Trying Again in 2025

I had great ambitions last year to really start a travel blog, as many friends had told me they enjoyed my style when tracking my trips on Facebook. Alas, the trip last September became too difficult for me to continue posting each day - the perils of traveling with a companion who has a different rhythm and my own need for quiet time in which to think & write.

So, I'm taking up the keyboard again this year, and am currently planning a trip with my mom, who turned 80 in May. She loves traditional Irish music, so I'm determined to find music at least every other evening - if not more often! Our itinerary is:

Dublin - we'll have 2 nights at the start of our trip, and one at the end. We're going to try a new hotel I read about on Facebook, Buswells (https://www.buswells.ie/) And this year we're going to arrive at The Cobblestone early enough to hear some music!

Clonakilty - this town in West Cork is well known for its traditional music scene, and we've chosen a hotel on the bay just a few kilometers from the action. We're researching the best pubs for music, but we know we'll be staying at the lovely Dunmore House hotel (pictured below), and I really want to go out & see St. Finnbar's Oratory in Coillte Forest near Gougane Barra. It looks gorgeous! This is a part of Ireland I haven't explored too much in the past, although last September we did find a really cool donkey rescue sanctuary that's not too far. Highly recommended for anybody looking for neat things to do with kids while traveling in Ireland. Or adults!

I'm sure it'll be hard to move on, but our next stop looks really gorgeous, too!

Armada House at Spanish Point in Co. Clare is not far from Doolin, another famed trad music spot. I fell in love with the pictures of the rooms and the sea, and the idea of eating lunch at Vaughans which is also nearby... Between the scenery, the fireplaces, the oysters and the music, we may feel we've died & gone to heaven! I will celebrate my 62nd birthday here. This will be the first year in decades when I've celebrated both my mother's birthday and my own together with her. Maybe we're starting a new trend!

I'm looking forward to visiting the Burren Perfumery again this year - missed it last year, and really felt the loss of going there. It's such a sweet place, wonderful face creams and such - and I swear their carrot cake saved me a couple of years ago when I was stuck in my AirBnB with COVID for a few days. Luckily I had laid in a supply before I got sick, and had that plus 6 eggs and a takeaway curry meal from the supermarket to tide me over! Needs must! Anyhow, it'll be nice to see the place again this year.

After Clare, we will head up north to Donegal, stopping at Aughnanure in Oughterard along the N59. As readers of prior posts might recall, this is the place I had my first "DNA Memory" of Ireland back in 1993 or '94 when I first visited. It's a small castle on the western shores of Lough Corrib, lately restored and now sporting a couple of scientists who work on the property and are amazing to talk with about the place! To learn more, you can check out this link: https://heritageireland.ie/places-to-visit/aughnanure-castle/ Or, listen to an audio history here: https://heritage.galwaycommunityheritage.org/content/places/aughnanure-castle-2

This is the castle keep and a small guard house - it's been restored and you can now walk through it, all the way up to the top, giving a feel for what it must have been like to live there 500 years ago.... which, who knows, maybe some DNA relative of mine actually did! I've always thought I might have been related to a scullery maid or a guard, as the grounds felt SO familiar to me the first time I was there. Spooky!

We will spend our next 3 nights at a glamping spot in Donegal, near the town of Annagry (Anaguaire). Last year, I had a most wonderful meal there at a lovely, small and unique restaurant called Danny Minnie's. I look foward to another meal or two there, and to lots of stargazing from our private HOT TUBS at Rann na Feirste.

Doesn't this look sweet? These are small self-catering cottages out in the country, with views of mountains and a body of water (bay? lake?) - we will report on general conditions after we've arrived, but right now this is looking to be a highlight of the trip! Annagry and other nearby towns have many options for trad music at night, and our daytimes will be spent visiting glorious natural spots like Slieve League and old castle or abbey ruins, or just driving along the seaside and enjoying the views. There are some absolutely gorgeous beaches nearby as well, where we'll be sure to have a picnic lunch if the weather is fine.

I can't believe I've written this much without mentioning the other hope I have for this trip: roadside wild blackberries, which are typically ripe and plentiful at this time of year. I found this website which seems to indicate that it won't be a great year for them, which is too bad. I've been known to set off on a walk along country lanes with nothing but the roadside pickings to sustain me for hours. Talk about communing with my ancestors!

And mostly this trip is to wish my mother a very happy birthday. Her independent spirit, joyful attitude and pleasure in music are truly inspiring. ♥️