Ireland Trip: Day 2

mullaghmore – 5 jun 2015

Though I was up early (5:30), the rest of the family slept in a bit, some more than others. After some preparation and packing we hit the road a bit after 10am. After a few missed turns, we were finally on the road out of town. No real motorway as we headed north, mostly just N roads, passing through small towns along the way.

geocaching – 5 jun 2015

Our first stop was in Mullaghmore, County Sligo. On the spur of the moment, we decided to get off the “main” road and head off to see the coastline. And we are so glad we did! A beautiful beach, a lovely harbor, and then a gorgeous windswept drive around the port. Barbara found a geocache in a rock “wall” in sight of the ocean and the castle.

google street view car – 5 jun 2015

We crossed into the UK without even realizing it. The most we got of a “Welcome” or “See you next time” sign was a notice that the speed limits had change from mph to kph. It was less remarkable than a border crossing between states in the US. Soon after, I spotted the Google Stret View car in front of the truck we were following. I tried to get a photo of it taking photos of it, but I failed terribly.

wall walk – 5 jun 2015

We stopped in Londonderry – though most of the distance signs had the “London” part crossed out so maybe I should say we stopped in Derry. After a break at the Visitors’ Centre – free wi-fi, clean restrooms and helpful information – we headed up to the walled city. Before we reach it, we ducked in for a late lunch/early dinner at Fitzroy’s. Camille had a shepherd’s pie, Chloe a risotto, me a vegetable curry. Barbara has chowder and Rob the salmon. Everything was well-prepared and delicious! And the bill was much, much lower than we expected. It was a lovely meal out.

peace bridge – 5 jun 2015

We crossed over to the walled city, looking for the stairs to get up on the wall. I had the insight to realize that perhaps the stairs were “inside” the walls (given that the walls were built to keep invaders out….). The walk around the city was lovely and uncrowded. We dropped down to walk out on the Peace Bridge; thankfully we didn’t get blown away!!

cottage view – 5 jun 2015

We managed to find the car and free it from the car park and make our way out of Derry, but not without a wrong turn that made sure we crossed every bridge in town! Not long after we found our way to Portballintrae and our “cottage”, which is larger than our condo. Sleeps six comfortably. As with the apartment in Galway, the living areas are upstairs and the bedrooms and bathrooms are downstairs.

dunluce castle – 5 jun 2015

Camille stayed at the cottage while the rest of us took a little drive to explore the coast. We stopped at Dunluce Castle where we raved all the stairs and climbs and were treated to a lovely view.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to get to Giant’s Causeway, but we have all day tomorrow and even some of Sunday for that. We stopped in Bushmills at the Co-op grocery store for some snacks, drinks and breakfast items before heading home to our cottage.

Full listing of Ireland posts