Disappointing Doolin

The weather has been the biggest obstacle to seeing and doing things here. The wind is fierce and precludes either hiking the Cliffs of Moher or taking a ferry to the Aran Islands - or anywhere, for that matter. All sailing was cancelled for today and will likely be for tomorrow, since wind gusts of up to 50 mph are predicted. 

The last time we were in Ireland, we took a ferry from Holyhead to Dublin on "mild seas." My memories are of people puking in the lavatories and of Dan and Cody sitting on a very cold deck, trying to keep their seasickness in check and their asses from getting frostbite. I can't remember if Sallis was on deck; seems that he was for part of the time. My parents stayed inside the ferry, not feeling their best. It was not a fun ride, and Cody swore, for a while, that he would not take another ferry. 

I'm guessing that we are not seeing mild seas today. Here is a shot of yesterday's waters:

And here's what's been going on today:

You can definitely see the difference in the waves crashing against the Cliffs. 

Here's a video taken at the pier:

http://youtu.be/fp5KB0yFHII

Um, no. 

So as Dan has already ranted, we went to a cave. It was a bust. It was not as cheesy as Ruby Falls, but it was quite tame and boring. We saw one stalagmite. Really? We then went to see the dinky little stones that are so beautifully photographed and made into posters. POSTERS. Trust me when I tell you that the posters are just about life-sized. Descriptions of this place use the words "dramatic" and "huge." They are maybe dramatic and huge to Leprechauns... We also went to a smokehouse, which is really just a storefront from which they sell their smoked stuff. I guess that I expected more info on the whole smoking process.

The coup de disappointment was dinner. How can a place that has reviews like "food was excellent"  and "amazing food" serve a well-done steak, when medium rare was ordered, and crab claws that are tough and stringy? Even the double-fried chips were soggy. Cody reminds us that a lot of people rave about mundane food, but mine (the crab) was plain not edible. Cody sent his back for a do-over. I just sent mine back. Dan ate his, but said that it wasn't memorable (in a good way). 

Oh, well. C'est frommage. Tomorrow is another [windy] day, so we will likely continue to explore the region via car while we wait for the weather to break (we hope) for a trip to the Aran Islands on Wednesday.