Cork and Blarney - BEAUTIFUL DAY

My second daytour was to Cork and Blarney. It is the same meeting place for all who are going off on a daytour with Extreme Ireland. Clock 06:50, we left Dublin behind us and the first attraction was The Rock of Cashel.

We stop in the small village of Cashel, there The Rock of Cashel is located in. The medieval monastery perched high on a hill. The view when you stood at the grave stones of the monastery's north side was incredible. The gravesite was much like a movie, the crows flew around the monastery all the time and sat on both the gravestones and the building, the only thing that was missing was just a bit of darkness and fog.
We got to go in and see what it looked like inside the convent and it was like a mini museum. They had taken care of old stuff so you could see how they lived in the past and even ancient famous works.

The next stop was at Blarney Castle. It is a medieval castle set inside a park. The castle is among others known for The Blarney Stone as according to legend, kissing the stone endows the kisser with the gift of the gab (great eloquence or skill at flattery). It was really cool to walk around inside the castle and see how it looked. And there were also underground passages that you could crawl into, which was weird and funny at the same time. It was not just the castle that was very nice, but the park was incredibly beautiful. We got 1 hour and 45 minutes there but I had really been able to walk around there in the park all day long.

Last stop was the city of Cork. There we had 2 hours to walk around and check out what the city had to offer in cafes and shops. Cork is one of Ireland's largest cities.

A overall summary of this tour is that I'm very happy and satisfied. The driver might have been able to be a little more entertaining but the places we visited I really liked a lot. Especially Blarney Castle.

Cliffs Of Moher - A GREAT DAY OUT

Now it is time for my first daytour and I feel the urge in my body to get going on an adventure. Since it is the first trip for me and when you should do something you have not done before, I always feel those butterflies in my stomach.

When I arrive at the location there the buses go from in the morning, it was not hard to find what bus you would go with because there were people in the place that helped you with that. Since the Cliffs of Moher are one of the most popular tours that go, it did not take long before the bus was filled. Wayne was our driver and guide that was noticed early that he was the kind of man who has the energy from head to toe, even during long days. His mouth was moving more than it was still and some might think it can be a hassle, but he was a real clown so you could not help liking him. That he combined jokes and facts made ​​the whole tour more instructive at the same time as it was entertaining.

On this daytour you are away for about 12 hours and 30 minutes, and of course you have to make more than one restroom visit during this time so they were very good with making sure that it was some stop along the way. It is not just the Cliffs of Moher you gets to see. In the meantime you are on the bus tells Wayne things about the places we went by and then there was also some brief photo stop and some little longer stops when for example, we ate at a pub.

But of course it was the Cliffs of Moher that was the coolest thing to see on this trip, it was after all the main goal. We stayed there for 1 hour and 30 minutes but I would really liked to stay a little longer because the paths on the mountains are long and I wanted to see as much as possible while I wanted to enjoy the magnificent scenery in peace and quiet. If you get the chance to take this kind of tour, I recommend it highly because it's a cool feeling to check on something as unique as nature itself has created.

When it was time to leave Cliffs of Moher was the next stop in the village of Doolin, where we would eat.
After that we saw The Burren which is one of the largest karst landscapes in Europe.

Last stop for photography was Corcomroe Abbey which is an early 13th-century Cistercian monastery.

A overall summary of this tour, I will say that I am very satisfied.

CORK AND BLARNEY

Our journey to Cork started at 6:50 when we met on the cosy bus. Our driver Joey amused us all the time with Irish songs, stories and different comments. Maybe a leprechaun was tickling him all the time?

After a short coffee break we stopped at The Rock of Cashel where we had 40 minutes to discover it. It is really breathtaking building, where you can see St. Patrick's cross, Hall of Vicars, Cormac’s chapel, Celtic Cathedral and the round tower.

At 12:30 we came to Blarney castle which is surrounded with beautiful gardens. Castle is very big and it gives you good opportunity to discover it. It has many rooms and of course famous stone. I kissed it and received Gift of the Gab. I also didn't forget about the caves under it. After 1hour and 40 minutes we went to Cork.

In Cork we spent an hour and a half. I visited The English Market where I bought something to eat and went to Saint Finbar's Gothic Cathedral. I decided to enter although I don't like to pay entrance fee for churches. I wanted to visit also St. Anne's Church but I didn't have time anymore. I'll visit it next time. It's good to leave a reason to come back again.

                                     

It was 7pm and we came back in Dublin - right on time. I'll remember this day for the castles and singing Joey :)  www.irishdaytours.ie

GIANT’S CAUSEWAY

This tour started already at 6:30 am, so we all came still quite sleepy. Our driver introduced himself and told us the itinerary for the day. After a long drive we came in Northern-  Ireland, where we had our first coffee break.

 Next stop was at Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge, which was unfortunately closed because of too strong wind. We decided to go to take a look at it anyway and we didn’t regret it. The bridge is magnificent. I still wanted to go over it, even though the wind was too strong!

Then we finally arrived to Giant’s Causeway, where I spent all the time we had to take pictures. I know that nature is amazing, but it still amazes me.

On the way to Belfast we had a quick stop at Dunluce Castle for pictures. When we arrived we had an hour to explore Belfast city. Most of us visited Belfast Christmas Market and tried out some goodies.

After two hours of driving we came back in Dublin at 7:45 pm. A trip was amazing, even though it was a long day with strong wind. I would say this is one of the “must see” tours.

Cork-Blarney-Cashel Tour

This past weekend I went on a tour with Extreme Ireland to Cork, Blarney & Cashel. Instead of going during the week like I will be in the upcoming months, I took this trip with my group. Usually we go in the order that the title states but because of a cruise ship coming in, we switched things up a bit to have less traffic.

First, we went to Blarney Castle to enjoy the view and kiss the Blarney Stone. In Ireland, it is rumoured that if you kiss the Blarney Stone you will be given the gift of gab! Anyone who knows me is already certain I have the gift, but it couldn’t hurt to try, right? Besides, it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity that I wouldn’t pass up! We got to wander through the castle and up the very small staircase to get to the stone, so we made sure to make use of the time by taking lots of pictures of the surrounding landscape. After finally kissing the stone and getting my picture taken, we exited the building and went to the gardens to see all of the pretty flowers. In this garden, they also had several dangerous plants, but we were careful to stay away. All in all, we stayed at Blarney Castle for about two hours and it was a wonderful experience 

                

Next up was Cork! We stayed there for a couple hours and had lunch at the lovely English Market. For those of you who are not familiar with the English Market, it is a lovely airy market. There are several stalls throughout the old building with different delicacies and wonderful foods. At the top, there is a little cafe, which is where we had lunch. Even though the food was quite simple, it was absolutely divine and refuelled us for the next leg of our journey.

Our last stop of the day included a visit to the Rock of Cashel, or St. Patrick’s Rock. It is said that St. Patrick banished Satan from a cave and the rock landed in Cashel. The cathedral, chapel, and high crosses there were absolutely lovely and we enjoyed the short time we were there. The weather was not as agreeable though so we were glad to be on our way home and back to the city centre. We had a wonderful day with Extreme Ireland and absolutely loved our driver!