I’ve been watching the weather news for Ireland - I hope you are able to keep safely warm while the power is out. It never occurred to me that your schools weren’t heated, and that’s why they had to close them during this extreme weather. Living in the US, I’ve never attended a school that didn’t have heat, though it does make sense that…
I’ve been watching the weather news for Ireland - I hope you are able to keep safely warm while the power is out. It never occurred to me that your schools weren’t heated, and that’s why they had to close them during this extreme weather. Living in the US, I’ve never attended a school that didn’t have heat, though it does make sense that Ireland’s weather is usually not as extreme.
I’m with you on the slow travel. I was lucky enough to make it to Ireland on an unplanned six-week trip. My dad had died and once I sold the house and settled the estate, I stored things and went to Spain to walk the Camino. Short version, I hadn’t booked ahead enough and ended up flying to Ireland. My plan was to spend at least 3-4 nights in most of the places I went, and there were a few places I went back to more than once. Other than booking a hotel for the night I arrived, and then 4 nights in Kildare so I could see the Irish National Stud, I had no real plans when I got there. I ended up finding a hermitage in Glendalough, in Wicklow; two different hostels in Sligo, which I visited three times for several days each (I kept coming back to see Michael Quirke, the woodcarver/storyteller on Wine Street); 4 amazing days/nights in Dingle; and time in Donegal, Dublin, and Bray (the DART made it possible to spend less expensive visits into Dublin). And you are so right - in addition to Michael I met other folks in hostels, some of whom followed me to Sligo on my second visit. In Dingle, I became a “regular” in a restaurant for breakfast after one visit, and had many conversations with the woman in the bakery I visited daily.
Even when I used to go to writing workshops, I always made it a point to take the time to know the names of the kitchen folks or the staff, which made it more fun if I went back the next year to have people I knew.
Thank you for your nice, long response, Doc! County Kerry seldom gets much snow or icy weather, so this past week has been quite a shock to most people. Personally, we hardly got any snow (we are very close to the coast), but the electricity went off for about 24 hours. Thank goodness, we have a tile stove (kachelofen), so we just built a fire and the radiant heat kept us nice and warm.
I love Dingle, too--we live just 15 minutes from there over the Conor Pass. Unless the pass is too snowy or icy to drive over, as it has been this week. The alternate route to Dingle takes us about an hour.
The Irish are a hearty people who have traditionally not heated their homes well except for a fire in the fireplace. Stores and restaurants are often not heated, and many shops keep their doors open regardless of the weather because it is a traditional sign that visitors are welcome.
I’ve been watching the weather news for Ireland - I hope you are able to keep safely warm while the power is out. It never occurred to me that your schools weren’t heated, and that’s why they had to close them during this extreme weather. Living in the US, I’ve never attended a school that didn’t have heat, though it does make sense that Ireland’s weather is usually not as extreme.
I’m with you on the slow travel. I was lucky enough to make it to Ireland on an unplanned six-week trip. My dad had died and once I sold the house and settled the estate, I stored things and went to Spain to walk the Camino. Short version, I hadn’t booked ahead enough and ended up flying to Ireland. My plan was to spend at least 3-4 nights in most of the places I went, and there were a few places I went back to more than once. Other than booking a hotel for the night I arrived, and then 4 nights in Kildare so I could see the Irish National Stud, I had no real plans when I got there. I ended up finding a hermitage in Glendalough, in Wicklow; two different hostels in Sligo, which I visited three times for several days each (I kept coming back to see Michael Quirke, the woodcarver/storyteller on Wine Street); 4 amazing days/nights in Dingle; and time in Donegal, Dublin, and Bray (the DART made it possible to spend less expensive visits into Dublin). And you are so right - in addition to Michael I met other folks in hostels, some of whom followed me to Sligo on my second visit. In Dingle, I became a “regular” in a restaurant for breakfast after one visit, and had many conversations with the woman in the bakery I visited daily.
Even when I used to go to writing workshops, I always made it a point to take the time to know the names of the kitchen folks or the staff, which made it more fun if I went back the next year to have people I knew.
Stay safe and warm, and thanks!
Thank you for your nice, long response, Doc! County Kerry seldom gets much snow or icy weather, so this past week has been quite a shock to most people. Personally, we hardly got any snow (we are very close to the coast), but the electricity went off for about 24 hours. Thank goodness, we have a tile stove (kachelofen), so we just built a fire and the radiant heat kept us nice and warm.
I love Dingle, too--we live just 15 minutes from there over the Conor Pass. Unless the pass is too snowy or icy to drive over, as it has been this week. The alternate route to Dingle takes us about an hour.
The Irish are a hearty people who have traditionally not heated their homes well except for a fire in the fireplace. Stores and restaurants are often not heated, and many shops keep their doors open regardless of the weather because it is a traditional sign that visitors are welcome.