Ireland Day 7

Saturday 10/2/04

Rained during the night. (As usual) Going to see the Ross Castle today. Need to find a laundromat today too. Drove to Ross Castle, but got there too early to get inside. It's a ruin so there probably wasn't much to see. No one gets up early in Ireland. Maybe some farmers do, but no one else. Nothing opens until 9:00 A.M. and even then they don't open on the dot. They open at 9:00 if they happen to get there then. Frustrating for me. Drove up into the mountains to a place called Ladies View.(It is called that because Queen Victoria's Ladies In Waiting would picnic here whenever she was in Ireland) Quite the drive. In some spots the rock was overhanging the road. There is a narrow tunnel cut out of the rock. Beautiful views. Scary drive. Partly sunny today, very windy. It's sunshine-rain-sunshine-rain and the wind always blows. Went a place called Muckross House. It's a Victorian Estate House bult in 1845. Very impressive. Huge trees. Came back and ate a late lunch. Stopped in a pub and there were 6 or 7 drunken Irishmen singing to each other. Strange, but kinda cool too. Ate dinner at O'Learys Restaurant. Had lobster. First time I ever had a whole lobster. It was good, but not as good as Gramma's broiled lobster tail. Driving to Cork and Cobh(pronounced cove) tomorrow. Didn't find a laundromat today. Hopefully tomorrow.

(That's Gramma at the base of the castle Which is built on the rock, and that's me at the base of that tree)