The reason we ended up at Courtmacsherry was to get some exercise. The weather however could not have been more unpleasant (hence only a few photos). We started the hike with a view over the bay in the opposite direction of the beautiful ruins of Timoleague Abbey. As we walked through the forest (which is […]
nature
The Burren Perfumery
It was still just early spring when we stopped over at The Burren Perfumery, so my photos of the garden don’t quite do it justice. You can still get an idea of the place though and it is lovely, even before the season is in full swing. The perfumery was founded in the karst landscape of the Burren around forty […]
The Burren
“Of this barony it is said that it is a country where there is not water enough to drown a man, wood enough to hang one, nor earth enough to bury them.” – Officer Ludlow The Irish Gaelic word for this unusual landscape in County Clare is Boireann, “great rock”. It’s about 250 square kilometres of limestone […]
The Paps of Anu
Anu (or Danu) is known as the ancient mother goddess of Ireland. The Paps themselves are kind of boob-shaped and each summit has a large, prehistoric stone cairn on it -hence the name: The Paps of Anu. Connecting the two cairns is a line of stones that was perhaps once a processional route. Last year around […]
Walking the Killavullen Loop
A little while back, we took a drive to the north to try out a 12km loop hike. Although it was sunny and there hadn’t been any hard rain for a while, it was very waterlogged on the uphill section but the rest of it is really easy walking, so we didn’t find the hike […]
Ballincollig Regional Park
Recently we explored the lovely Ballincollig Regional Park, just a few minutes drive from our house. It has marked running routes in a forested area, next to the Lee with views of the farms and fields on the north bank. Part of the route is tarred and part of it gets very muddy and boggy with […]
Blarney Castle in Winter
Perhaps you’ve heard of the Blarney Stone. Legend has it that kissing the stone will give you the gift of the gab, the gift of flattery and of knowing how to use words in a wonderful way. Many people, famous and not so famous, have kissed the stone at the top of Blarney Castle. I […]
Sheep’s Head Peninsula, Ireland
On a fairly rainless day we drove out to the end of Sheep’s Head Peninsula will take you about two hours of south west travel by car from Cork city. The way we went included a stop-over in Bantry, so that took a bit longer. If you’re planning on visiting Bantry House keep in mind that it’s closed in […]
Hiking at Gougane Barra Forest Park
We trusted the weather report for sunny weather, but when we arrived at Gougane Barra National Park, it was pouring. With a bit of patience, the rain cleared and the rest of the day saw a light drizzle at most. Walking at a decent pace, we soon warmed up (it was 4 degrees Celsius) and […]
Staying in Amsterdam East
Well, here’s some exciting news: We’re on our way to Ireland to live there for a bit! My husband, will be starting a new job there. En route we decided to stop at a Schengen country because our visas for that area are still valid. It was either Paris or Amsterdam (it felt like we didn’t have […]