The Homes of Donegal, aka: one couples vacation to Ireland

[greenfire6]

Tuesday, 1 May our primary destination would be Glencolumbkille (Gleann Cholm Cille), Co Donegal and it's Folk Village Museum.

On the way we would stop and explore Killybegs, said to be one of the most important commercial fishing ports in Western Europe.  

Much of the fleet appeared to be in!  
Technically (most of) these ships are "trawlers".
This image shows just a portion of the "ladies" and "gents" backed up to one of the piers.
I can't begin to tell you how modern, clean and ready to ROCK the catch these beautiful vessels looked.  


Here is one way to practice your Irish.  


The piers are more or less open to the public.
We watched these lads loading bait fish onto their ship in preperation to sail.


And these lads washing up their girl, Heather Jane II.


Felucca, out of Sligo birthed stern to the pier in the manner of all the BIG ones.  


Unfortunately the pier was undergoing some repairs
which prevented me from getting a good look at the sterns of all these magnificant vessels.


The Pacelli in it's home port.
http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shipdetails.aspx?imo=9294446

[greenfire6]

Following Killybegs we would spend several delightful hours in nearby Glencolumbkille, Co Donegal
(aka: Gleann Cholm Cille, Co. Dhún na nGall).

The village of Gleann Cholm Cille is located on the most western coast of Co Donegal, on the shore of ...


...beautiful Glen Bay.


I encourage everyone to explore the Folk Village's extensive website: http://www.glenfolkvillage.com/


Upon arrival we would enjoy a provided lunch of soup and sandwiches in the Folk Village Tearoom.


The late Fr. McDyer is revered in these parts and is credited with leading many beneficial projects
for the people of Glencolumbkille including the establishment of the Folk Village Museum in 1967.


Here we are entering the very small 1750s era cottage.
Due to the crowd, I did not get a good picture of the interior and it's very simple furnishings.


Thatched roof detail on the 1750s era cottage.
In these parts it was necessary to rope the thatch down.


This cottage recreates a grocery, pub and cobbler shop.


One view of the traditional grocery.


One view of the traditional pub.


I believe this is the 1950s cottage.


One view of the interior of the 1850s cottage.


This nice lady gave a demonstration of traditional spinning and weaving.
I told her I know of a woman in the states who does the whole trad process from
raising the sheep, to spinning the wool, to making the garments.
I'm glad to hear that*, she said. Then, with a bit of sadness, she said
very few people in the Glencolumbkille area follow
the tradition of spinning their own wool these days.* *Paraphrased.


Departing the Folk Village we followed the mayor of Glencolumbkille over to the village's Church of Ireland grounds
where, with much passion, he gave us a sweeping view of the local history.

[greenfire6]

I meant to mention the  Glencolumbkille Folk Village has a well stocked gift shop. Diane bought a very nice sweater, knitted of Irish wool of course. She will get many winters of comfort from that warm sweater!

Back "home" at the Rathmullan House our after dinner music would be agumented by a performance of Trad Irish dancing!

These delightful 14 year old twins would wow us with many fine dances! Naturally the music was LIVE! 


Unfortunately point and shoot cameras do have their limits. 


Brother and sister danced their hearts out for us with power and ease. What a night! 

This day also happened to be our 30th wedding anniversary.    The lads, and Bronagh, covertly collaborated with the House for a cake!

Thank you James, Bronagh and Donnie! 

[greenfire6]

As mentioned upthread the beach at Rathmullan is know for the daily excercise of race horses.

I gather the licensed trainer in Rathmullan is Mr Thomas McLaughlin.

Here is the current list of licensed trainers in Co Donegal: http://info.hri-racing.ie/Content/RAS/TrainersRegion.aspx?County=Donegal

I don't know if the horses are only run at low tide or only early morning and late evening. All I can say is we were privileged to see some of the horses getting their workouts in the early mornings- which was also low tide during our visit.

From our limited observation the routine involves running the horses along the level of high tide.
There is also a rough course, in the shape of a lazy oval, in amongst the low and grassy dunes.


The routine includes mixing up the running with loads of walking in the ocean water.


Have no idea why this image refuses to be seen. Maybe it will clear up on it's own.  

[greenfire6]

Upthread I mentioned that Rathmullan held an important place in the history of Ireland. The 1607 Flight of the Earls is one of the most mysterious and intriguing turning points in all of Irish history.

The internet is full of coverage. One place to start: http://www.yourirish.com/flight-of-the-earls


Maybe part of the answer lies behind these doors? 

On a contemporary note here are some pictures of Rathmullan buildigs:

"Downtown" Rathmullan house.


In America these would be called apartments.


One of the three pubs in Rathmullan.

[MaryNorth93]

Thanks David!!!! This is making me so pumped for Scotland, even though I hardly know anything about it and there are probably enough differences with Ireland.. but still...  

With all the English/Irish signs, have you heard much Irish from the locals? (I always seem to mess up the spelling from whatever it's called ) I understand the tours were in English, but find the sharing of English and Irish very interesting, and I'm simply curious how many Irish is actually spoken in Ireland.

[greenfire6]

Thanks David!!!! This is making me so pumped for Scotland, even though I hardly know anything about it and there are probably enough differences with Ireland.. but still...  

I have not been to Scotland Mary but I'm sure you will have many wonderful experiences and come away with many fond memories!    The way I look at it the lads wouldn't organize equal numbers of tours to Ireland and Scotland if Scotland wasn't just as fun and interesting as Ireland.  

With all the English/Irish signs, have you heard much Irish from the locals? (I always seem to mess up the spelling from whatever it's called ) I understand the tours were in English, but find the sharing of English and Irish very interesting, and I'm simply curious how many Irish is actually spoken in Ireland.

I think it is safe to say most native Irish people have a working knowledge of Gaeilge (Irish Gaelic). After all, the native tongue is taught in school, if not also at home. Irish is probably heard and used more in the rural counties and villages- and yes we did hear it in use on many occasions, during our adventures.

My limitation in answering your question is the Irish are very sharp in recognizing visitors from America. They are also a very warm and gracious people and "shut the Irish off" out of courtesy to their English speaking visitors. (I'm sure it is courtesy and any shame is a thing of the past.)

As you can imagine I didn't travel 8000 miles to watch TV but I did notice that Rugby games were broadcast completely in Irish.
However... The big, annual Punchestown horse races were underway and were broadcast in English.

In my limited experience the daily use of Irish is probably most prevalent in the north and west of Co. Donegal. I will have a little story about that when I post about our visit to Leo's Tavern in the Gweedore region of Co Donegal.  

Hope this helps!  

[greenfire6]

Is it Wednesday?   LOL!  I think so...

This was the day that the tour was scheduled visit Letterkenny. For a bunch of reason that I won't attempt to explain the lads and the group agreed on a last minute change. No knock on Letterkenny, which by all accounts is a happen' place, it was decided that the group would hang out in beautiful Rathmullan for horseback riding, maybe some golf, a car load to Leo's Tavern, etc.

For Diane and I it would be a leisurely morning of further exploring Rathmullan followed by a provided lunch at Rathmullan House.

Before we ever left Nevada Donnie (the Scottish half of the lads, aka: http://www.menofworth.com/) had figured it all out for us. A gentleman named John Kelly operates a transportation service from Rathmullan. Too easy! Mr. Kelly would drive us, and any others to Leo's!

Right on time John picked us, and our friend Paul, up for the one hour drive to the remote north western shore of Co Donegal.  

On the way John told us many interseting things about the history and current events of these parts of Co Donegal. This part of Ireland is dominated by what the locals call the bogs. This is the peat that they harvest for fuel to heat their houses. The hillsides are covered with it and he would point out areas undergoing harvest and even if it was hand or machine harvesting. Here and there we would see cut peat laid out for drying and curing. Being early May the Heather wasn't blommin' yet so the lanscape was dominated by a soft golden brown hue.

After the delightful drive we slowed for the tiny village of Crolly (Croitnli) and suddenly there was the sign I was looking for!  

John would tell us that this sign is only a stones throw from the site of the home that Leo and Babs Brennan raised their family.
Unfortunately, he said, the home is no longer standing.  

Next stop LEO"S!!!!!  

BTW: Leo's website is back up as of a couple of days ago! http://www.leostavern.com/music/summer-entertainment/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LeosTavern+%28Leo%27s+Tavern%29

Or more simply: http://www.leostavern.com/

[greenfire6]

Tábhairne Leo is located in tiny Meenaleck, The Rosses on R 259 very close to the junction with N 56. This is between the villages of Crolly and Annagary. This region is one of many in the Republic known as the Gaeltacht wherin the government recognizes (and encourages) that Irish is the first language of it's people: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaeltacht

Leo Brennan established his tavern in 1968. About 10 years ago Leo's youngest son Bartley became the manager. In 2003 Bartley renovated the tavern, taking great care to improve the place while preserving it's ambience.  

During the winter/spring the tavern is open with reduced hours- not opening until 4pm. We arrived a few ticks after 4 and the door was locked! Not to fear! Sean, the bar minder on the night, heard us and immediately opened the door and invited us in. John, ever the gentleman, explained to Sean who we were. Sean told us to look around and he would be at our service shortly- then got busy with opening chores including building a turf fire in one of the two fireplaces.

In the meantime I/we captured these pictures:

Yonder, in the corner, is THE STAGE! Well, OK, it's not in it's orginal location.
None-the-less it is representative of the original and many fine artist have graced that tiny stage since the renovation in 2003.
Note the picture of Leo prominently displayed just to the right of the fireplace mantle.  


Pictured with us is our friend Paul from South Dakota. Officially this was Paul's 13th tour with Men of Worth.
Bronagh, however, thinks Paul has been on two or three more that got lost in the record keeping. http://www.menofworth.com/

Pictures taken inside Leo's and posted in no particular order. These walls not only speak, they speak volumes!  

[greenfire6]

I was finishing the pleasant task of taking pictures of all the awards and memorabilia on the walls when Paul came over to me and said, Your Guinness is ready whenever you are.  

So we all gathered in the "bar quarter" of Leo's that was warming-up with the pleasant odor of the turf fire that Sean had built in the fireplace. Like most of the bar minders I saw on this vacation, Sean is young and made us feel more like old friends than tourist from another country. 

Sean seemed genuinely interested in where we had been and what we had been doing and seeing in Ireland. He asked questions and laughed at our funny stories. When I clumsily attempted to express how the soft spot in our hearts for Ireland and it's people had grown ever larger he simply nodded his head in understanding. (LOL! I think he has heard these sorts of awkward sentiments before!  )

Anyway, after a time, Diane came over and said, Come meet this couple and their little niece. (While I had been talking to Sean she had been talking to a local couple who had come in with their 4 year old niece.)

Long story short we had a delightful conversation with this lovely couple and their beautiful niece (Once again I can not tell you how warm and open the Irish people are!  ) I purposely didn't take pictures but will assure you the little girl was beautiful with redish-blond hair and blue eyes. She was very outgoing and sang a lenghty Trad song for us in Irish as well as demonstarting her ability to count from one to thirty in both Irish and English. (She stressed she can count to one hundred but stopped at thirty for brevity! ). Although only four years old her singing voice was captivating!

Our time at Leo's was brief and only one pint of Guinnes drank but it was quality time and I left that place very satisfied.

Leaving Leo's John would drive us back to Rathmullan in time for the multi-course meal-to-die-for and the after dinner music with our tour group. All in all a very good day in Co Donegal! 

Please note: If you are ever in, or near, Rathmullan and need a lift Mr. John Kelly is your man. He operates a number of vehicles of various capacities. Mr. Kelly is a supreme gentleman and his fares are reasonable. John is easy to find- he and his wife have the Post Office contract for Rathmullan. 

[Emer Dreamer]

   I love the pic of all the ships lined up together. As always your camera serves you well.   

[greenfire6]

As planned we returned to the Rathmullan House in plenty of time for dinner with the group. The lads always entertained request at the after dinner music and this would be the night they performed The Homes of Donegal with James covering the vocals. Outstanding! Thank you James and Donnie!

The next day (Thursday) we would hop on the bus for Northern Ireland, the Giants Causeway and the Walled City Of Derry (aka: Londenderry).

On the way we would see that Northern Ireland comprises argueably the "best land" of Ireland.
Perhaps a big part of why the UK has fought so hard to retain control...


The celebrated Giants Causeway is a volcanic, basalt rock structure that appears here
and across the sea on the shores of Scotland (which is barely visible in the image).

Most of you know the ancient legend is that a giant in Scotland decided to walk the Causeway over to Ireland and take control. Well, the giant in Ireland heard about this so had a really big craddle built. Then he dressed up like a baby and crawled into the huge crib. When the giant from Scotland saw the "baby" he said, If that's the baby I don't want to see daddy! And promptly ran back to Scotland. 

It appears the giant from Scotland ran so fast he left a boot behind!


In the same area is the associated geologic formation known as the Organ Pipes.
For scale those are people on the foot path that is hung on the steep slope under the Pipes.


Of the hundreds of pictures we took this one has got to be the best! Not because we are in it but because Bronagh took it! The girl has the touch!  Thank you Bronagh for the best picture of the entire trip! Fair warning: Next trip I will be handing you my camera often! 

Next post: The Walled City of Derry (aka: Londenderry). (Please don't hold your breath, due to the political implications I'm not going to show much  ).

[greenfire6]

We had a very interesting guided tour along the top of of the wall that surrounds Derry.

One of many English cannons still aimed out.


View from the wall into the Walled City.


There are many beautiful churches inside the walls. This one is St. Columbe's Cathedral.

I suggest every interested person do their own research on the history of Derry (aka: Londenderry). I suppose this is as good a place as any to start:

http://www.bing.com/search?q=walled+city+of+derry+ireland&qs=AS&form=QBLH&pq=walled+city+of+derry&sc=2-20&sp=1&sk=

[greenfire6]

Sadly, every good thing must end. Friday morn we would leave our "home" at Rathmullan House

and Charlotte Sarah Wood Batt, who's comely image kindly watched over our evening gatherings in one of the parlors.




Enroute to our last night in Ireland we would visit and take an independant lunch in James's hometown of Charleston, Co Mayo.
While in Charleston a few of us would have the high privilege of meeting James's dad!  

[greenfire6]

Our last night was where it had all began 10 days ago.

Farewell dinner at the Park Inn Shannon. 


The lads pulled out all the stops for the last music session of the tour. 
They were joined by three of their good friends on the night.


A fitting closure to an awesome tour! 


I will try to do some closing comments in a few days.
Other than that this Tour Report is a wrap! 
Thanks for putting up with me.