Just figures... we want a quiet highland getaway and they have to host the Scottish Open golf tourney 3km down the road from our hostel... Traffic is a problem, but all the golfing stars are out and about. So, we've been enjoying this part by visiting some castes. First, Doune Castle, where the lion's share of Monty Python and the Holy Grail was filmed. They even give you coconut shells at the entry to enhance your visit. Very cool to see the spot where John Cleese (Launcelot) slashed his way through the peasants to save the 'princess' in the tower, and to see the wall where the French Knights taunted King Arthur and his men, and eventually launched a cow at them! Fun castle visit!
From there, we went to Loch Katrina for a boat tour and some local stories of Sir Walter Scott, who apparently landed a 34 lb Pike from the Loch. More recently, it is the drinking water supply for Glasgow, some 30km away. Nice highland views. Today we visited Stirling Castle, and the battlefields where William Wallace and Robert the Bruce became legendary as true BRAVE SCOTS. The boys love the gory history for sure. Axes in heads. Drawing and quartering. All very cool for sure. We also visited the Falkirk Wheel - a giant lift-lock on the canal system which uses a unique set of gears and wheels to raise and lower boats.
Then, back to the hostel, which is a massive estate home which looks a bit like Hogwarts's converted for hostel use. Our room is in a turret on the 3rd floor. Again, the boys think it's pretty cool.
If anyone is still reading this blog (I know it's summer now) thanks. We are just a few weeks from coming home and have enjoyed the e-mails and comments. We are having fun, but looking forward to seeing family and friends again!
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Monday, July 9, 2007
Best whiskey we've tried... Monkeyshoulder - a vat blend of three highland malts - excellent taste, good value and a really cool bottle - look for it!
We are in Oban where the local whiskey shop is staffed by someone from Saskatoon!!!
We are doing well in the West lands, and have visited some really beautiful places. A few days ago, we stayed at Glenfinnan, near the viaduct where all the dramatic train scenes from the Harry Potter movies were filmed. Every day, the Jacobite steam engine chugs up from Fort William and stops there en route to Mallaig on the coast. We rode the train, in one of the compartments used to film the scenes with the swirling 'Dimentors' and had a great time looking out over the hills an forests used to make the famous films. James and David were a little excited about all this.
We stayed in the Glenfinnan Rail Car sleeper - a hostel with a very small room, a nice kitchen and a seating area. The car is located beside the Glenfinnan station and is a really cool place to stay if you ever have the chance.
from there, we drove down the coast to Ben Nevis, and hiked the shoulder to the Steall waterfall. It almost didn't rain on us, but the top of the UK's highest peak could never be seen due to thick clouds up high. The boys have not forgotten how to hike - they did really well and earned an ice cream for their effort!
Then, down to Oban where we had the best Haddock and chips yet. We were over to the Isle of Mull yesterday, and spent some time at Tobermoray. We wanted to get across to Calgary and Calgary bay, but the local bus service does not run on Sundays! Had to settle for nice views of the harbour and town where we were.
Today we visited the Scottish Seal Recovery Centre- a place for injured wildlife. It has a pretty good aquarium too. This afternoon, I met a shopkeeper in a really nice whiskey store who hails from Saskatoon. She really likes the Monkeyshoulder as well. Off to a coastal park for a beach walk now, and tomorrow, off to Loch Lomond.
SUPER BIG CONGRATULATIONS TO MEI LEE OGDEN for having the good sense to pick Jamie and JJ as her new parents. The pictures are awesome and you guys look great!
Cheers!
We are in Oban where the local whiskey shop is staffed by someone from Saskatoon!!!
We are doing well in the West lands, and have visited some really beautiful places. A few days ago, we stayed at Glenfinnan, near the viaduct where all the dramatic train scenes from the Harry Potter movies were filmed. Every day, the Jacobite steam engine chugs up from Fort William and stops there en route to Mallaig on the coast. We rode the train, in one of the compartments used to film the scenes with the swirling 'Dimentors' and had a great time looking out over the hills an forests used to make the famous films. James and David were a little excited about all this.
We stayed in the Glenfinnan Rail Car sleeper - a hostel with a very small room, a nice kitchen and a seating area. The car is located beside the Glenfinnan station and is a really cool place to stay if you ever have the chance.
from there, we drove down the coast to Ben Nevis, and hiked the shoulder to the Steall waterfall. It almost didn't rain on us, but the top of the UK's highest peak could never be seen due to thick clouds up high. The boys have not forgotten how to hike - they did really well and earned an ice cream for their effort!
Then, down to Oban where we had the best Haddock and chips yet. We were over to the Isle of Mull yesterday, and spent some time at Tobermoray. We wanted to get across to Calgary and Calgary bay, but the local bus service does not run on Sundays! Had to settle for nice views of the harbour and town where we were.
Today we visited the Scottish Seal Recovery Centre- a place for injured wildlife. It has a pretty good aquarium too. This afternoon, I met a shopkeeper in a really nice whiskey store who hails from Saskatoon. She really likes the Monkeyshoulder as well. Off to a coastal park for a beach walk now, and tomorrow, off to Loch Lomond.
SUPER BIG CONGRATULATIONS TO MEI LEE OGDEN for having the good sense to pick Jamie and JJ as her new parents. The pictures are awesome and you guys look great!
Cheers!
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Wee bit 'o Cullen Skink in the Highlands
Happy Canada Day!
Tonight we are in Inverness, at the mouth of the river Ness, Moray Firth. We haven't seen any baby Nessie monsters in the river yet, but the paths and parks which surround the area are mystical and gorgeous. Scotland is a beautiful, natural place so far. We arrived last week in Aberdeen and drove down to Stonehaven in the driving rain. As it happened, out place there was on a high bluff looking over the North Sea at Crawton Croft. The house itself was amazing. Warm, comfy... we could have moved in for a long long time.
So - the Keiths descended from Robert de Keith who was awarded the lands near Stonehaven after the battle of Bannockburn. Subsequent generations of Keiths built up the area, including William Keith who built Dunottar Castle (used in Mel Gibson's 'Hamlet'). We spent some time there, and at Kennef Kirk down the road (plays big in Keith history) and also had some time in Aberdeen at the Maritime museum and Marishal College. We also visited Montrose, Brechin and the Caledonian Railway. The coast in this area is powerful - there are sea-birds everywhere (but only one Puffin) and the forest walks are tranquil. David and James are ready to stay and re-claim the Keith lands.
On our travels, we've also been to Lossiemouth, Keith, and the Glenfiddich distillery at Duffstown. It's Free! And they give you whiskey at the end of the tour! Today we visited the Scottish Wooden boat festival at Portsoy on the Moray Firth - very cool old ships and small boats, and a really nice harbour town.
And lots of Cullen Skink! Yum.
So now we are planning to escape to Skye, then on to Mull and hopefully Iona. Then to Loch Lomond and to Wales beyond. We hope to see Nessie on our trips around Loch Ness - will have the camera ready...
The local news is of flooding and of a car-bomb at the Glasgow airport. We are far away from those troubles, and appreciating that immensely. The boys are in good spirits. Still riding the high from the great time we had in Ireland. We hope everybody had a great Canada Day and will try to update again as soon as possible.
Tonight we are in Inverness, at the mouth of the river Ness, Moray Firth. We haven't seen any baby Nessie monsters in the river yet, but the paths and parks which surround the area are mystical and gorgeous. Scotland is a beautiful, natural place so far. We arrived last week in Aberdeen and drove down to Stonehaven in the driving rain. As it happened, out place there was on a high bluff looking over the North Sea at Crawton Croft. The house itself was amazing. Warm, comfy... we could have moved in for a long long time.
So - the Keiths descended from Robert de Keith who was awarded the lands near Stonehaven after the battle of Bannockburn. Subsequent generations of Keiths built up the area, including William Keith who built Dunottar Castle (used in Mel Gibson's 'Hamlet'). We spent some time there, and at Kennef Kirk down the road (plays big in Keith history) and also had some time in Aberdeen at the Maritime museum and Marishal College. We also visited Montrose, Brechin and the Caledonian Railway. The coast in this area is powerful - there are sea-birds everywhere (but only one Puffin) and the forest walks are tranquil. David and James are ready to stay and re-claim the Keith lands.
On our travels, we've also been to Lossiemouth, Keith, and the Glenfiddich distillery at Duffstown. It's Free! And they give you whiskey at the end of the tour! Today we visited the Scottish Wooden boat festival at Portsoy on the Moray Firth - very cool old ships and small boats, and a really nice harbour town.
And lots of Cullen Skink! Yum.
So now we are planning to escape to Skye, then on to Mull and hopefully Iona. Then to Loch Lomond and to Wales beyond. We hope to see Nessie on our trips around Loch Ness - will have the camera ready...
The local news is of flooding and of a car-bomb at the Glasgow airport. We are far away from those troubles, and appreciating that immensely. The boys are in good spirits. Still riding the high from the great time we had in Ireland. We hope everybody had a great Canada Day and will try to update again as soon as possible.
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Ireland is the biggest counrty in the world
According to Sean and James Egan, it's true. James Keith and David are suspicious, because they know all the words to 'Canada's Really Big' by the Arrogant Worms. Apparently, there are many underground levels we haven't seen, and less gravity in the North of Ireland where Finn McCool is from, so everything is really really big up there. Irish weather has been living up to the legend for the past few days. heavy rains and even some flooding along the rivers in and around Dublin. It's made drying the laundry quite a chore.
Yesterday we spent some time planning the last weeks of our adventure (Stonehaven, Aberdeen, Keith, Inverness, Glenfinnian, Isle of Mull and maybe Iona, Loch Lomond, and perhaps the two big cities of Scotland, then to Balla in Wales, Bath and London) and then headed out to see one of the largest tall ships in the world at the Liffey quays.
So, the ship is the Liberdad from Argentina. It is a massive three-masted full rigged ship, used for officer training. It is in Ireland to celebrate the fact that the Argentine Navy was founded by an Irishman, Admiral Brown.
Who knew.
In fact, the US Navy was also founded by an Irishman from Wexford - John Barry. There is a statue of the man in Wexford which, at one time, was visited by US President Eisenhower for a dedication. Anyhow, the Argentine ship was not open to visitors at the moment we arrived, but John Egan spoke to the young officer in charge in Spanish and they let us sailors on for a mini-tour. We also met Deirdre's cousin Cormac, his wife Neive and their 2 year old daughter Isabel down at the ship. When it really started raining hard, we repaired to O'Brien's Ferryman pub on the docks (to hear some real sailors swear) for a pint. Nice visit. Cormac is in a band called 'Stoat' - they have a web page if you are interested.
Last night, Deirdre and I joined Dan Egan at the Abbey Theatre (founded by Yeats) to watch a performance of the Crucible (Arthur Millar). Great performance, and a fine time at the pub after as well. Dan claims to be saving for another trip to Canada some time in the next 5 years or so, and we'll try to hold him to it.
Today we headed North into County Meath to see Seamus at the seminary where he lives, and to visit the 5200 year-old tomb at Newgrange. Older than lots of stuff in Egypt, it is. We had a a great time with the Egan men, and are now back in Dublin getting ready to fly tomorrow.
We have had such a great time in Ireland. Everyone has taken great care of us, and we've enjoyed every visit. Hopefully it will not be another 16 years before we return.
Many apologies for not updating pictures; I have been trying, but there is something wrong with the interface for our page here. They won't upload! We'll keep trying, or create another page for pictures (all 5000+ of them?). Cheers.
Yesterday we spent some time planning the last weeks of our adventure (Stonehaven, Aberdeen, Keith, Inverness, Glenfinnian, Isle of Mull and maybe Iona, Loch Lomond, and perhaps the two big cities of Scotland, then to Balla in Wales, Bath and London) and then headed out to see one of the largest tall ships in the world at the Liffey quays.
So, the ship is the Liberdad from Argentina. It is a massive three-masted full rigged ship, used for officer training. It is in Ireland to celebrate the fact that the Argentine Navy was founded by an Irishman, Admiral Brown.
Who knew.
In fact, the US Navy was also founded by an Irishman from Wexford - John Barry. There is a statue of the man in Wexford which, at one time, was visited by US President Eisenhower for a dedication. Anyhow, the Argentine ship was not open to visitors at the moment we arrived, but John Egan spoke to the young officer in charge in Spanish and they let us sailors on for a mini-tour. We also met Deirdre's cousin Cormac, his wife Neive and their 2 year old daughter Isabel down at the ship. When it really started raining hard, we repaired to O'Brien's Ferryman pub on the docks (to hear some real sailors swear) for a pint. Nice visit. Cormac is in a band called 'Stoat' - they have a web page if you are interested.
Last night, Deirdre and I joined Dan Egan at the Abbey Theatre (founded by Yeats) to watch a performance of the Crucible (Arthur Millar). Great performance, and a fine time at the pub after as well. Dan claims to be saving for another trip to Canada some time in the next 5 years or so, and we'll try to hold him to it.
Today we headed North into County Meath to see Seamus at the seminary where he lives, and to visit the 5200 year-old tomb at Newgrange. Older than lots of stuff in Egypt, it is. We had a a great time with the Egan men, and are now back in Dublin getting ready to fly tomorrow.
We have had such a great time in Ireland. Everyone has taken great care of us, and we've enjoyed every visit. Hopefully it will not be another 16 years before we return.
Many apologies for not updating pictures; I have been trying, but there is something wrong with the interface for our page here. They won't upload! We'll keep trying, or create another page for pictures (all 5000+ of them?). Cheers.
Monday, June 18, 2007
West Ireland Road Trip
Good afternoon from Claremorris, County Mayo. We have covered a fair bit of both rocky and fertile ground around Ireland in the last week. We drove towards County Clare via Limmerick where we stopped to see an interesting cave near Mitchelstown. The entrance is at a farmer's house, where one knocks on the door to pay the admission. From there we headed North to the Burren, a high rocky plateau covered with ancient mystical ruins. We stayed for three days at Clare's Rock Hostel, run by Pat Cassidy, right down the road from Cassidy's pub. You can see where this is going... Cassidy's bus lines take you to all the sites if you don't have a car. The local dairy, Cassidy's, makes really good ice cream...
The Burren is dotted with ruined ring-forts and Dolmans dating back about 1600 years. The area has been continuously settled for over 8000 years, which is hard to imagine given the very rocky terrain. We also spent some time at the Aliwee caves, the cliffs of Moher (where a scene from 'the Princess Bride' was filmed) and the swimming pool in the town of Lehinch. After three days of exploring, we headed Norht to Claremorris. We've been in the good hands of Dan Egan, Jarrod and Anne Egan (great dinner!) and their family, Noula (really great stew!) and Seamus and their boys John, Darraugh and Keiran, and have seen a lot of the county. We spent some time visiting with Deirdre's grand-aunt Kay at her house. She let us know that it's been there as a farm in he family for over 100 years.
Yesterday we climbed part-way up Croak Patrick, the highest mountain in Ireland and the mystical spot where St. Patrick fasted and contemplated the future of the faith of Ireland, and spent some time on the beach at Old Head near Westport. Just off shore from there is Clare's Island, home to Ireland's most famous Pirate, Grace O'Malley.
We've been staying at the Egan family farm which is still home to a few cows and a horse. At night, we burn peat in the fire, sip Irish whiskey. play cards and tell tales of adventures past and present. David and James have learned quite a bit of Irish history, and a lot about their family here. Today they had a chance to ride out in the tractor with Seamus Murphy to count the yearling cows in the far pasture, and to check out the milking operation at the farm. David is really interested in all of this; James just wants to drive the tractor...
Thursday we head back to Dublin, then to Aberdeen, Scotland on Sunday. It rains a lot here, but it sounds like the ground is more used to taking it up than in Clagary... keep your wellies handy...
The Burren is dotted with ruined ring-forts and Dolmans dating back about 1600 years. The area has been continuously settled for over 8000 years, which is hard to imagine given the very rocky terrain. We also spent some time at the Aliwee caves, the cliffs of Moher (where a scene from 'the Princess Bride' was filmed) and the swimming pool in the town of Lehinch. After three days of exploring, we headed Norht to Claremorris. We've been in the good hands of Dan Egan, Jarrod and Anne Egan (great dinner!) and their family, Noula (really great stew!) and Seamus and their boys John, Darraugh and Keiran, and have seen a lot of the county. We spent some time visiting with Deirdre's grand-aunt Kay at her house. She let us know that it's been there as a farm in he family for over 100 years.
Yesterday we climbed part-way up Croak Patrick, the highest mountain in Ireland and the mystical spot where St. Patrick fasted and contemplated the future of the faith of Ireland, and spent some time on the beach at Old Head near Westport. Just off shore from there is Clare's Island, home to Ireland's most famous Pirate, Grace O'Malley.
We've been staying at the Egan family farm which is still home to a few cows and a horse. At night, we burn peat in the fire, sip Irish whiskey. play cards and tell tales of adventures past and present. David and James have learned quite a bit of Irish history, and a lot about their family here. Today they had a chance to ride out in the tractor with Seamus Murphy to count the yearling cows in the far pasture, and to check out the milking operation at the farm. David is really interested in all of this; James just wants to drive the tractor...
Thursday we head back to Dublin, then to Aberdeen, Scotland on Sunday. It rains a lot here, but it sounds like the ground is more used to taking it up than in Clagary... keep your wellies handy...
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Hot days in Ferrycarrig
Good evening blog watchers. We have been having a wonderful time staying with John and Bernadette Parle here in the sunny Southeast. Touring County Wexford makes one a true believer in Ireland's charm and natural beauty, no doubt. We've had absolutely glorious hot sunny weather since leaving Dublin. On the way down we stopped at the Abbey of Glendalough and had a great time driving the back roads with Eoin Parle. Over the last few days, we've spent some time on the stunning beach near Curracloe where the film 'Saving Private Ryan' was shot. Deirdre has been swimming in the Irish sea there, and the boys have been making excellent sand castles. We've also spent some time in the town of Wexford, been down to the sea at Kilmore Quays, explored the grounds around Johson Castle, toured a famine ship in New Ross, found our way out of an extensive hedge maze at Dunbrody Abbey and watched the surf pounding at the foot of the lighthouse on Hook Head.
Yesterday John Parle and Dan Egan took me to the county final hurling match at Nowlan Park in Kilkenny. County Wexford (the Yellowbellies sponsored by Wexford Cheddar) and County Dublin ( the Arnotts? sponsored by...Guinness?) played a thrilling, head-bashing, knee-snapping match that saw the favourite Wexford squad narrowly defeat Dublin in the dying seconds by one score. If you ever get a chance to see a hurling match, go. It made NHL hockey play-offs look a bit silly, especially considering NONE of the hurling players get paid a cent to play, and the effort they make in the game far surpasses anything routinely seen in professional sports.
Tomorrow is our last day in Wexford; we will be renting a car and winding along the very skinny roads towards Waterford and the Rock of Cashel. We'll be staying later in the week at Clare's Rock Hostel in the Burren, County Clare, near the cliffs of Moher, Dingle and Galway. We meet up with Dan Egan again in Mayo on Saturday and will spend some time on the farm where Deirdre's mother was born before heading back to Dublin. Having hard luck trying to get more pictures on this thing, but will try next time we have high-speed access.
Hope everyone in Calgary is recovered from the flood. HOT AND SUNNY IN IRELAND!!?!!
Yesterday John Parle and Dan Egan took me to the county final hurling match at Nowlan Park in Kilkenny. County Wexford (the Yellowbellies sponsored by Wexford Cheddar) and County Dublin ( the Arnotts? sponsored by...Guinness?) played a thrilling, head-bashing, knee-snapping match that saw the favourite Wexford squad narrowly defeat Dublin in the dying seconds by one score. If you ever get a chance to see a hurling match, go. It made NHL hockey play-offs look a bit silly, especially considering NONE of the hurling players get paid a cent to play, and the effort they make in the game far surpasses anything routinely seen in professional sports.
Tomorrow is our last day in Wexford; we will be renting a car and winding along the very skinny roads towards Waterford and the Rock of Cashel. We'll be staying later in the week at Clare's Rock Hostel in the Burren, County Clare, near the cliffs of Moher, Dingle and Galway. We meet up with Dan Egan again in Mayo on Saturday and will spend some time on the farm where Deirdre's mother was born before heading back to Dublin. Having hard luck trying to get more pictures on this thing, but will try next time we have high-speed access.
Hope everyone in Calgary is recovered from the flood. HOT AND SUNNY IN IRELAND!!?!!
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Lucky days
We are having a great time in Dublin, visiting with family (John, Geraldine, James, Sean, Mary, Peter, Catherine & Connel, Seamus, Padragh, Groinge, Olivia & Eoin, Ann, Alan, Serena & Joshua, Dan too) and seeing some sites. We've been to the natural history museum, and spent some time looking at tall ships on the Liffey during Dublin's Maritime Days festival. Also, we went to see Jack Sparrow escape from Davy Jones's locker at the movies with cousin Josh Warren yesterday, so the nautical theme continues!
Shortly, we are off the the Guinness Storehouse with cousin Sean Egan to see how they make the famous stout. Surprisingly, it's s'posed to be a good tour for kids, in spite of them not being able to consume the end product. Sean's brother James has started a summer job as an apprentice in the brewery, which includes daily free lunches and free guinness. Nice work if you can get it.
Tomorrow we head to the sunny South East with cousin Eoin Parle to see his parents John and Bernadette, and to maybe, finally get out to a pub or two. Must head out to learn the secrets of black beer (Dublin is from Irish "Duhb Lin", meaning black water or black pools - little did they know how important little black pools might become...)
Clare Feasby - still waiting to hear what a 'Hollaback Girl' is; maybe Meagan and Kate Norris can help out! Cheers, Amigos
Shortly, we are off the the Guinness Storehouse with cousin Sean Egan to see how they make the famous stout. Surprisingly, it's s'posed to be a good tour for kids, in spite of them not being able to consume the end product. Sean's brother James has started a summer job as an apprentice in the brewery, which includes daily free lunches and free guinness. Nice work if you can get it.
Tomorrow we head to the sunny South East with cousin Eoin Parle to see his parents John and Bernadette, and to maybe, finally get out to a pub or two. Must head out to learn the secrets of black beer (Dublin is from Irish "Duhb Lin", meaning black water or black pools - little did they know how important little black pools might become...)
Clare Feasby - still waiting to hear what a 'Hollaback Girl' is; maybe Meagan and Kate Norris can help out! Cheers, Amigos
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