EireLandings ~ Part Eight ~ Feeling Sheepish

      'Tis a Ruinous Place, this Ireland...   so many monuments to time immemorial fill the eye and cajole the spirit into chimerical imaginings.  And then there is suddenly another and another and yet, my flights of fancy are stirred rather than overwhelmed.   We race past the most precarious formations and then as we round a corner, we are confronted with the ancient and modern entwined in their untold stories of life and beyond.

New Headstones Among the Old

       Everyday life to most who live in both rural and urban Ireland, the primeval, the medieval, and all time intervals that follow are a natural seamless combination providing a set design worthy of any Oscar, Tony, or BAFTA.  From the simply astonishing to the local version of ordinary, the photographic delights and challenges were limitless.  

Skylights then and now

        As we whisked out of Galway and past the pastures and paddocks, we soon arrived at our next stop, Rathbaun Farm.  A working organic sheep farm, Rathbaun with its 150 year-old thatched cottage is also a lovely place for afternoon tea.  We were treated to a working sheepdog - just learning his trade - and several of our group including Younger Aunt and Favorite Oldest Daughter - had a chance to feed a lamb.  

Rathbaun Farm

             We also had an unusual chance to see a working Thatcher as the cottage roof was being restored.  The designs in the thatching are unique to each thatcher, a signature in a now rare skill.

I should have asked if her name was Margaret

       The tea and scones capped off the visit and a photo taken by our hostess made the moment even more special. 

       "Back on the Bus", we moved on to our final stop for the day and mercifully it was the same place from which we launched in the morning.  The only part of our tour that allowed us two nights in the same place, Ennis.  We had some time before dinner so Daughters, Younger Aunt, and I went to a local super store that had a little of everything - groceries, home goods, and lots of miscellaneous.  I found a notebook to act as a journal and various other purchases were made.  It was a lovely late afternoon so there were more photo opps.  After dinner, a sip of the local brew finished out the day.  Early call for breakfast was hours away and a good night's sleep was next on the agenda.

Scenes of Ennis:

Trump L'oeil Painting on an outside wall - no, really, it's flat!

A sculpture promoting peace

Carved Bench

        Tomorrow, the Ring of Kerry...

       I was surprised to learn from the farmer at Rathbaun, that most Irish wool is exported for finishing and rarely used for clothing.  The lovely sweaters we all bought are made in Ireland from merino wool imported from Australia!