Sharon and Jaya's 2003 Trip to Ireland - Day 4

Easter Monday, April 21, 2003

Cliffs Of Moher

We walked to the cliffs, and then up the hill. There was a small castle up there―and a lot of people on the path. The castle had a souvenir shop inside, and charged €1.50 to climb the stairs to the top of the castle. We decided not to go up, but took a few pictures. There was a plant with pink flowers growing on the side of the castle wall―we took pictures, and we had a better view of the cliffs from up there.

It cost €3 to get out of the lot, and we drove on towards Dingle. We went through Ennis and decided not to stop at Bunratty Folk Park. We went on to Limerick and stopped at a restaurant that was sort of like an Irish Denny's, it was called Red Chef. I had something called a Chicken Bap―which turned out to be a chicken sandwich on a soft bun. It tasted better than a hamburger bun, but it was about the same shape. Jaya had some sort of beef―and french fries. I think they still called them chips.

We drove on, and stopped in Tralee. Everything was closed, because it was Easter Monday. I found a convenience store open, went in to buy tape and baby shampoo. I tooked for something that said Tralee on it for Loraine―but This store didn't have souvenirs. I found a pamphlet at a stand that talked about Tralee, and I took some pictures of signs. None of the quaint little picturesque shops said Tralee. They all had peoples names―not the town's name. So, Loraine, I did my best.

I also got some cash from an ATM. It works just like the ones do here, only it spits out blue €20 bills instead of green $20 bills. So that was cool.

There was a statue near where we parked dedicated to the freedom fighters. It was on a high pedester―they seem to all be raised up to third story level―and was a man holding an oversized firepolker. It must have been a pike―but I didn't know they looked like that. I always imagined a sharp metal rod, rough hewn, and not that long. This was longer than the man was tall and had the (barbed) end on it. [[scan drawing on page 31]] So now I know what a pike looks like.

We left Tralee with some difficulty finding the road. Jaya is an excellent driver. I kept telling him I was glad he was driving. I would have been very lost and quite a wreck had I been doing it.

10k from Tralee is Ardfert Cathedral. We wandered around looking at all the old stone work. There was a graveyard beside the church―I must get some tracing paper to take impressions of these old carvings.

Ardfert Cathedral

I decided we had to go over the Connor Pass into Dingle.

Connor Pass

We stopped near the top and took a few pictures. There were sheep here and there all over the place, sometimes right on the road. The road was also quite narrow like it had been in Doolin―only we were traveling through a mountain pass, with a drop off one side. There was a stone wall―about mid-thigh high on that side―but it was kind of scary to me. Jaya said there's plenty of room! and proceeded to drive along, passing the cars that were too slow, and got us over the mountain and into Dingle.

Finding our B&B was another challenge. The directions were for coming in another way. We got turned around at first but Jaya figured out where we were and we made it in just after seven. Beatrice Flannery (The Plough) met us at the door―she said she had been worried about us.

It was just after seven by this time. She showed us to our room―all done in lavender. This one has a hairdryer in the drawer. I was able to use the converter plugs I brought (before leaving California) to recharge the camera battery, Yay!

The Room at The Plough

Jaya looked tired, so I suggested we stay in the room tonight and finish the cheese and crackers for dinner. We ate, we also had an apple, some chocolate, and a Balance Bar®. And tea―there's a hot pot in the room and tea making supplies. I want to go to a grocery store tomorrow and get some real Irish tea.

Jaya read for awhile, but kept dozing off. He woke up for awhile and I asked him how he felt, but he said he'd rather not say. He's sleeping now in his clothes under a blanket on the bed.

Oh my goodness! It's midnight! I'd better get to bed―I didn't get any postcards written tonight. I will have to do that tomorrow.

View from The Plough B&B

This month may mark the beginning of the end of a British institution: the ubiquitous siphon toilet, developed in the 1890s by Thomas Crapper. On January 1, as part of broad water-conservation measures, Britain will lift its ban on the so-called Euro-loo -- a valve toilet popular on the Continent, which uses 6.0 liters (1.6 gallons) per flush, as compared with the siphon toilet's current 7.5 (2.0 gallons) -- and will require that new toilets use no more than 6.0 liters per flush. Valve toilets of any sort have been illegal in Britain since the late nineteenth century, precisely for reasons of water conservation: a bit of sand in a valve can cause uncontrolled flushes and leaking, whereas the mechanism in a siphon toilet is not subject to leaks. Critics claim that the valve toilets may, over the long term, leak more water than they save.

Continued on Day 5.

Sharon and Jaya's 2003 Trip to Ireland