Off to Ireland

Well, we’re off again – this time to Ireland for three weeks.  We’ve never visited any of the British Isles other than a few hours spent in the London airports between flights to other European destinations, and it’s been on our bucket list for a long time.  Our original plan was to split this trip between Ireland and Scotland, but the more we got into researching and planning our itinerary, the more we realized that we needed to spend more time in Ireland.  We eventually came to the conclusion that we would spend the entire three weeks in Ireland, which would allow for a less hectic pace of traveling around the Emerald Isle and enjoying the sites and scenery in a more leisurely manner.  So, God willing, we’ll hit Scotland and England together on a future trip.

One of my reasons for wanting to visit Ireland is to see the land from which at least a part of my heritage comes from.  My great, great grandparents, Patrick and Julie Angus McDonald Prendergast immigrated from there in 1840 or so; Patrick from County Mayo and Julie from County Cork.  I’ve done a little casual genealogical research, but haven’t located any suspected relatives in either area.  So while it won’t be as exciting as meeting Jeanette’s ancestral family in Italy a few years ago, at least we’ll be visiting and walking on the same ground upon which my forebears trod nearly 200 years ago.

Our itinerary in Ireland is free and flexible – we’ll be renting a car when we arrive in Dublin and then traveling in a clockwise loop around Ireland, starting in Dublin, with probable stops in Kilkenney, Waterford, Cashel, Cork, Killarney and the Ring of Kerry, Dingle, Limerick, Galway, Inishmore, Westport, Donegal, and back to Dublin.  We’ll be staying one or more nights in some locations.  If time permits, we may get as far north as the Giant’s Causeway on the northern shores of Northern Ireland, but otherwise our time in that separate country will probably be limited to a day trip crossing a portion of it on our way back to Dublin from the Donegal region.  Our goal is to get back to Dublin with time to spend at least two or three days in that historical city, with its many museums, pubs, and, of course, a brewery and a distillery or two.  We also plan to meet up with one of our Camino friends, Maurice, while in Dublin.  We also have plans to meet with our friend Elnore’s friend, Anne, in Waterford when we’re down in that area early on the journey.  We met Anne a few years ago when she was visiting Elnore in Denver and joined us on one of our Tuesday hikes.

Look for further blog entries and a few photos, usually by Jeanette, as we make our way.  As we depart we pray that the road will rise up to meet us, that the wind will always be at our backs, that the sun will shine warm upon our faces, that the rain will fall soft upon our garden while we’re gone, and, until we meet again, that God will hold us in the palm of His hand.