Britain and Ireland Highlights

 I spent the first two week's of June touring Britain and Ireland.  I've shared more pictures on Instagram, but I had to give the trip one blog post, though I could never do it justice in photos or words.  I went to Ireland and Scotland three years ago and loved it so much I wanted to go back, but this time I wanted to see more of England's country side.  We started and ended our trip in London.  This was my second stay in London, and this time I wanted to see some of the famous neighborhoods.

 One of my favorite was Notting Hill.  The colors of the buildings, the doors, and the shops were right up my alley.  All the flowers were in bloom, and it just made the walk worth the trip over.

 I told my Mom for my (upcoming) birthday, I really wanted to find an afternoon tea somewhere in the city.  I don't like tea, but I like all the things that come with the tea.  We booked the Savoy, I beautiful hotel in London with a piano player entertaining us throughout the whole tea, and the most incredible tasting scones I've ever had.  I like scones, but these scones....make me love scones.

 We also headed through some great cities in England, Stratford Upon Avon, and Shakespeare's birth home (above), York, and we took a cruise on Windermere (below) in the Lake District, which was gorgeous from start to finish.  The roses climbed the buildings, and gardens were exactly like a Jane Austin scene.

 After a few days in England, we headed to Edinburgh.  The Royal Mile that leads to the castle is one of most interesting streets I've ever walked (and shopped) b/c it climbs towards the castle with colorful and varied store fronts.

 We then went on to Dublin, and the Highlight there was a side trip to Glendalough.  It was the stunning ruins of a monastery that has stood here for almost 1000 years.  It never ceases to amaze me the proximity we are given to ruins to climb about and explore.  In the US, if it's 100 years old it's roped off and protected, but these stones have somehow stood for centuries.

 I also got to tour the Irish National Stud farm, and really, baby ponies, need I say more?  Sure there were race horses that have one millions of pounds, but...baby ponies....

 We went to Waterford and see the expert crystal designers at work, which exceeded my expectations.

 And I toured a small piece of Wales for the first time, including the most stunning vineyard where we had dinner prepared by the family.  It was my favorite meal the entire trip (Glyndwr) and even more beautiful that the vineyard was the garden that surrounded the house.

 Another fun stop was Stone Henge.  It poured down rain during this stop, but beyond the mystery of the location, just to say I've stood here....it was definitely on the list of places to see.

 After a whirlwind 10 days, I found myself back in London.  I headed to Covent Garden this time and we enjoyed Sunday Roast at Hawksmoor.

 We also went to the Churchill War Rooms to see where the English govt operated during WW2.

 I walked away, having seen so many things, I'm still processing, but I hope it'll be one of many trips across the pond.

Ireland

 I recently went on a trip to Scotland and Ireland.  I blogged about Scotland a few days ago, but now it's Ireland's turn.  We took a ferry from Scotland to Ireland, and on the day we took it the seas were calm, so the ride was smooth.  I get the feeling it isn't always like that, so...if you are a motion sick kind of person (and I am) better safe than sorry.  We landed in Belfast and took some time to explore the Titanic Museum.  This overlooks the dock where the Titanic was built and you can see the actual site (and get an idea of the size) from the building.  It walks through Ireland's history that helped call for ships like the Titanic to be built, and then the actual building process/aftermath etc.  It gave a good virtual tour of what the ship would have been like, which is different from other museums I've visited on the subject (one that traveled through the US, and one in Branson-also really good, but different all the same).
We then took a journey through the streets of Belfast where so much of the conflict in recent years has gone on.  It was an eye opening experience to see all the walls, barbed wire, and propaganda.  We stopped at the peace wall and signed our name.

 We journeyed on to Dublin.  I spent two days there (one full) exploring the city amidst rain storms.  We got a tour of Trinity University via a college student.  Our tour set this up, but you can join one at the site and it was totally worth it to hear the history and to skip some lines in order to see the Book of Kells (a beautiful bible decorated by monks long ago).  It also houses this beautiful library, and Ireland's oldest harp (OK, one of three).

 We did get to see the colorful Dublin doors.  They once were painted all black, an order by monarchy (after a funeral), but now the thing to do seems to be to paint them all fun, bright colors.

 I also stopped at O'Neill's pub near Christ Church.  I'm sure there are great pubs all over Dublin, but this one was DELICIOUS.  I just grabbed a sandwich, but everyone around me kept talking about how good their food was.  Just sayin....

 We also took a canal cruise up the locks on Ireland on a barge (like the ones that transported Guinness).
After a few days dodging rain in Dublin (I definitely need a redo) we headed on.  We stopped at an old manor house for tea and scones.

 We got to watch one of their dogs heard some sheep.

 Next up was a stop at Blarney Castle.  The grounds alone were gorgeous and worth the stop.  I did visit the Blarney Stone, but I saved my kisses.  1) I don't really believe a rock is going to change my gift of gab.  2) I wasn't willing to lay on my back, slide down and out a few hundred feet while hold a poll to kiss it upside down.  Maybe someday.

 Another high light (and something my friend, Amber, who lived there said was a must, and I agree) was a drive around the Ring of Kerry.  We took a detour to the Skellig Islands with this gorgeous view, and several miles away are some islands that housed a monk community, and another that houses a puffin population.

 The next day we went to the Cliffs of Moher, another stunner.  We had about five minutes of sunshine and then we literally were in the middle of a cloud where you could not see more than fifteen feet ahead....and so....no cliffs, but I grabbed a few great pics before that happened.

 Our last night we stayed near the Bunratty Castle and did a dinner (with nothing but a knife) and some entertainment.

Words could never do Ireland justice, but it's definitely a place a plan to visit again.  What a fun culture, entertaining cities, and fascinating past that ties so closely to America.