Dante's Birthday

 Good friends, good food, good times.

Scotland

Scotland wasn't our most organized trip to say the least.  We hadn't planned anything in advance because Intel kept changing our move date and then we were getting settled.  Alfonso was told to take a week's vacation before the kids' school started.  Plane tickets were too expensive last minute, so we took the ferry to Scotland.

I am a huge fan of the ferry.  No long lines at the airport.  No passport control.  No security.  No restrictions on liquids or worrying about how much the bags weigh.  Just throw everyone in the car and go.  Instead of cramped seats and fasten seat belt signs, you can wander around multiple decks with plenty of room to spread out.  They have a movie theater and arcades for the kids, as well as balloons and face painting.  There's shopping and a sit down restaurant as well as a cafeteria style diner.  A thirty mile trip took about 2.5 hours -- but it was a stress free 2.5 hours.  I would travel every where by ferry if it was feasible.  

A big part of the trip was the B&B experience, the kids had a lot of fun making friends with the owners' children at each place we stayed.  We had to drag them away from the trampolines to go sight seeing.  Overall, the places we stayed were beautiful with lovely hosts.  (One was a bit sketchy and the owners' kid bragged to the boys about stealing stuff from guests.)  The ferrets below were named after Breaking Bad characters.  Albuquerque's claim to fame; everyone had heard of our home town because of a bunch of fictional meth labs.  Lovely.

We got to go out onto Loch Ness for our quest to spot Nessie.  Dante was so excited.  I had tried to warn him ahead of time that we weren't going to see Nessie but hope springs eternal for Dante.  He was devastated that our exploration was nothing more than a "lame boat ride."

The Scotland highlands are absolutely breathtaking.  It is nearly impossible to describe.  There isn't just a beautiful shot in front of you.  It encompasses you on all sides.   You are just completely immersed in this gorgeous landscape with picturesque views in every direction.  Simply stunning.

 We didn't spend a lot of time in Edinburgh.  Driving through it, we saw so many fascinating spots to explore.    The crowds were a bit overwhelming.  We went through Edinburgh Castle but skipped the rest of the city.  Heard the cannons go off (and even though I was expecting it, the blast still scared the beejeezus out of me!)  We went to see the Crown Jewels, which were impressive as the name suggests.  It was a nice visit but the crowds were a bit suffocating.  Thousands upon thousands of people.

Back at the B&B, things were a little more laid back.  I think we may have been better off if we had just stayed in one spot the whole time and done more hiking instead of trying to race around trying to see everything.  

As it was, we had to cut a significant chunk out of our intended route.  The drive took longer than we thought it would and the kids were difficult to get moving (more so than usual.)  So we missed the whole Aberdeen area that is teeming with castles.  We stopped at Drumlanrig, which wasn't originally on the itinerary but I needed a castle-fix.  The grounds were just amazing.  There was also a fabulous playground where the kids spent a good deal of time on a mini-zip line.

We also stopped in Kirkcudbright at Maclellan's Castle, more of a defensive tower than a glamorous estate.  Need a little contrast to spice things up a bit or risk a revolt on castle tours!  

There is a severe shortage of playgrounds in Ireland.  There are some but they take effort to make the trip.  Not as easy as walking across the street in Albuquerque.  Because of the scarcity here, they are usually packed.  So the kids were thrilled to just go to the park.  I think we could have saved a lot of money and the kids would have been happier with a trampoline and trip to the playground.

Overall, fabulous trip.  Low stress ferry ride.  Beautiful countryside.  Friendly people.  Did I mention that I loved the whole ferry experience?  Loads of good memories.  That said, it was August and we had to wear jeans and coats the whole time.  Brrrrrrrr!  Nice cool weather is okay for a few days but I wouldn't want the permanent climate change.  Too many years in the Land of Enchantment has turned me into a cold weather wuss.  

August Day Trips

Castletown

Castletown is a rather modern looking palace built in Celbridge in the1720s.  Celbridge is the biggest town near us where we do our grocery shopping and such.  We had driven past the entrance just about every day since we had been here.  Only took us about 7 weeks to stop by for a visit.  The tour guide, however knowledgeable and witty, spoke too quickly and too quietly for the size of the group.  We also got stuck standing near someone who was translating for others as well.  The kids enjoyed running around outside more than the tour.

 Balbriggan Beach

Went to the beach with my friend, Aoife, and her kiddos.  (We had met in a previous life when we were paid for working.)  A storm the previous day warranted red flag conditions, so the kids couldn't play in the water but were happy enough to dig in the sand.  

Glendalough and the Wicklow Mountains

Glendalough was another one of those days where we just piled the kids in the car and started driving without having a destination.  "Let's head south. What is south?"  "Let me check -- there's a monastic settlement from the 6th century."  "Sounds good."

There was a decent amount of tourists but the bulk of the people were locals that go to the site for its various hiking trails.

We drove home through the Wicklow Mountains.  Words just can't describe the beauty.

I absolutely love this shot despite my mishap.  The clouds are not threatening as they may appear in the picture -- that would be the edge of my thumb unfortunately.






Oughterard

So the Relocation Company sends someone out to give me an orientation -- show me where grocery stores and malls and such are -- 8 weeks after we arrived.  Really.  Anyhow, the woman did happen to tell me about this old church/castle/cemetery that is close to our house.  There is no way we ever would have found it (or known to look for it) without her.

Very cool spot.  There is a spiral staircase still standing that you can climb onto a partial collapsed roof; it has a stunning view of the county in all directions.  (It is as treacherous as it sounds -- so the kids loved it.)  Incidentally, Arthur Guinness, the founder of the slightly well known brewing company, is buried there.

Nadia really does own other clothes.  It is just anytime these ones are clean, she puts them on.














This wasn't really a day trip.  This was an after-supper-let's-get-out-of-the-house-since-it-is-sunny trip.

Giant's Causeway

We took our first trek up to Northern Ireland.  The Giant's Causeway is an area with hexagonal volcanic pillars/stepping stones by the sea. The weather forecast had only a 20 percent chance of rain for the day.  We had been so lucky with weather thus far that I didn't worry too much.  Cold, rainy, windy and miserable.  At least with the lousy weather, there wouldn't be crowds though -- right?  Absolute chaos.  People everywhere.  Nearly impossible to get a single photo without other tourists.  The stones were slippery so it was a bit difficult to even explore.  It was gorgeous place.  Hopefully we will get back in nicer weather.  Unfortunately, our days of nice weather are numbered...

Dublin Castle

Okay, I have done seven posts in two days.  I'm desperate to get caught up with our travels so far but feeling uninspired and a bit tired of writing.  Castle, blah, blah, blah, green, blah, blah, silly kids.  Well, I will try to do better than that --but, not much.  

  

Driving all the time gets tiring, so we decided to stay close to home for a change.  Went into Dublin with a short list of things to do.  Only managed to accomplish one item.  It's a good thing we live close and can head back again soon.  Went to Dublin Castle.  Had a bit of silliness in the courtyard waiting for the tour.  Dante had some seriously fat hair going on.
 

There is only one remaining tower from the original Anglo-Norman castle.  We also went down where they have been excavating and saw the foundation of the original Viking settlement.  The majority of the tour is in the State Apartments which are more modern palace type additions from the 18th century.  

Stopped for some sweets.

The boys got much needed haircuts.  

 Nadia and I wandered around and found some colorful street art.

Alright.  That's at good as it gets.  

Blessington Lake and summer camps

Almost went a week without a trip (Alfonso had been working like a burro) so we went for a drive to Blessington Lake by the Wicklow Mountains (which are more like big hills.)   Took a long drive around the lake, picked up some delicious local strawberries and stopped at a pub for a bite to eat.  Beautiful spot.

I'm dumping the summer camp stuff here in this post ... because I can.  The boys did a week long soccer camp at a park across from Intel in Leixlip.  They have never played before and all the other kids had been playing for years.  So they struggled a bit but had fun.  

They were more in the element the following week in theatre camp.  Couldn't find one where they could put on a play.  This was more of a performing arts with different instructors for dance, singing, acting with camera work and stage theatre.

Nadia didn't get in on any of the summer camp fun.  It was nice to have some time with just the two of us again.  She'll be starting school full time in the fall.  (There is a mandatory pre-K program here.)  So I am trying to soak it all in while I can.

First Visitors

Aunt Maggie and company had a trip to Ireland on the schedule and were able to stay with us a few days. We never got a complete group photo.  Dante was looking for his shoes and Alfonso was fiddling with the timer -- then it started raining.  Oh well.

The kids had lots of fun having sleepovers with their cousins.  (Nadia bailed on the sleepover once it got dark.)   Ale and Martin buddied up and played soccer.  Caroline and Dante bonded over a shared love of Greek gods.  Nadia was just thrilled to have another girl around.  Fr. Jim was still out running around with the kids (much to Aunt Maggie's and Eileen's dismay!)

Most of the visit, we just spent time together at the house but we did manage to go explore Maynooth Castle.  (The constant picture taking is getting to Nadia.)