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<\/a>A beautiful start!<\/p><\/div>\n
\u201dLadies and Gentlemen, this is your pilot speaking. \u00a0I apologize for the late departure but this aircraft came from London and we\u2019re missing one of the engines\u201d. \u00a0MISSING AN ENGINE???<\/strong> \u00a0 How do you misplace an engine? This was not the start to our Ireland trip that I had imagined. \u00a0But apparently it was \u201conly\u201d the tail engine so across the Atlantic we went. \u00a0Of course, I didn\u2019t sleep a wink, despite the lovely bed and a rather good glass of red wine. \u00a0While my fellow slackers in the upper deck slept, I was on alert all night trying to detect further engine issues. \u00a0At last, after too many hours to count and a second flight from London to Shannon<\/strong>, we arrived just in time for the spectacular sunset pictured (left). \u00a0As we stopped to take the photo a Irishman commented, \u201cOh, that\u2019s a good omen for your holiday.\u201d \u00a0And so our wonderful time in Ireland began.<\/p>\n Martin Guerin<\/p><\/div>\n Jack<\/strong>, our tour guide for the week picked us up the next morning for a drive to the beautiful Cliffs of Moher<\/strong>. \u00a0In my previous post I spoke about Jack and the rave reviews he receives on Trip Advisor and this first outing proved why his reputation is so good. \u00a0Rather than taking us to the Cliffs\u2019 visitor center, filled with SIXTEEN tour buses and too many cars to count, he escorted us onto a private drive and introduced us to Martin Guerin<\/strong>. \u00a0Martin and his family have farmed their land adjacent to the Cliffs for generations but have just recently started their touring business, Guerins Path (http:\/\/www.guerinspath.com\/).<\/strong><\/p>\n Martin\u2019s photo of us on his property at the Cliffs<\/p><\/div>\n There are several benefits to viewing the Cliffs with Martin. \u00a0The first is Martin himself, who is as charming and knowledgeable a person as one could hope to find. \u00a0He gave us great insight into the history of the local area, including the legends of the Lost City of Atlantis<\/strong> and Hag\u2019s Head<\/strong>, as well as describing the unique Liscannor stone that the region is famous for. \u00a0Second is that he has given right of way to the visitor center for the path along the Cliffs, but he still owns it. \u00a0So walking up the trail on his farm one ends up at the most spectacular spot on the whole of the Cliffs. \u00a0It would be a 20 minute uphill walk from the visitor center to get to this spot. The third benefit is that if the weather is inclement or someone in your party is unable to walk up the trail, he can drive right up to the path. \u00a0I can\u2019t recommend him highly enough so if you\u2019re planning on visiting the Cliffs of Moher, avoid the throngs of camera-clicking tourists and arrange a tour with Martin. \u00a0You will thank me for it, trust me.<\/p>\n After visiting the Cliffs we were ready for some lunch and once again, Jack proved his worth. \u00a0As we drove into the cute town of Doolin<\/strong>, we passed several bus loads of people lined up at restaurants. \u00a0Jack drove us a few blocks further where we lunched with locals at McDermott’s Pub<\/strong>. \u00a0The food was delicious and plentiful and it was here that I learned my travel mates love beer. \u00a0I tried Guinness<\/strong> for the first time and fell in love with its dark, smoky flavor. \u00a0I did recall someone told me that there were as many carbs in a pint of dark stout as a whole loaf of bread but I chose to chalk that up to an old wive\u2019s tale.<\/p>\n The Kerry Woolen Mill<\/p><\/div>\n Saturday morning Jack took us on a tour of the Ring of Kerry<\/strong>. \u00a0Knowing his audience, he first stopped at the Kerry Woolen Mills<\/strong>, who have been spinning yarns for over 300 years and are one of two remaining woolen mills in Ireland. \u00a0We loved the tour, which took us from the raw shearing to beautiful cones of yarn. \u00a0They do custom weaving here as well and each piece was a work of art.<\/p>\n Jack finally dragged us away from the yarn and we continued the tour. \u00a0The scenery around the Ring of Kerry is spectacular, which is why it is such a popular tourist attraction. \u00a0There is nothing like it in the world. \u00a0We stopped for lunch – and more Guinness – and viewed the Skelligs Islands<\/strong>, which were featured in the last Star Wars<\/strong> movie. \u00a0The highlight of the afternoon was a stop at the Skelligs Chocolate factory<\/strong> where we felt it only polite to sample and purchase their wares.<\/p>\n Finally, back in Killarney<\/strong> we cleaned up and then walked to the Celtic Whiskey Bar and Larder<\/strong> for dinner. \u00a0It turned out to be one of the best decisions we made – great food, great whiskey and beer sampling, and good people watching. \u00a0And then on the way home, we just happened to stumble into Sheehan\u2019s Pub<\/strong> where an Irish group was playing and the crowd of locals was welcoming. \u00a0We sang and laughed with abandon for an hour.<\/p>\n Finally back at our hotel I had one thought: It should be illegal to have this much fun.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Suzanne Sparrow Watson \u201dLadies and Gentlemen, this is your pilot speaking. \u00a0I apologize for the late departure but this aircraft came from London and we\u2019re missing one of the engines\u201d. \u00a0MISSING AN ENGINE??? \u00a0 How do you misplace an … read more![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/D16CE525-3710-4264-A89C-8EB66DA0B2F9-300x225.jpeg\")
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