We began with Bunratty Castle. We were a bit wary of its commercialism. After all, it had a flag. Turns out the flag is Irish and Bunratty was pretty cool.
A school group arrived about the same time, so we hightailed it to get ahead of them. Nothing like 30-40 elementary school kids to get you moving!
Cody and I climbed all the towers, making comments about Game of Thrones all the way through. We have had a good time. We also visited the blacksmith and listened to his humor. You have to laugh at a man holding a large hammer and tongs.
They have several thatched homes on the grounds. All were burning peat fires, and we left smelling a bit smoky. Peat burns remarkably well and makes for wonderful embers. Each hut had a basketful in the corner, and there were several stacks of peat bricks outside on the grounds.
This lady was demonstrating how to separate milk from cream, using a very old contraption that the well-off famers might have had. In about five minutes, she removed over a pint of cream from the milk, now skim. She was working hard. This was no casual demonstration to her; she took her work seriously. We were invited to return for butter making in a few hours.
The poorer folks made do with churns like these.
I personally liked this the most. This young lady was playing on a bench. Beautiful instrument.
Ater Bunratty, we drove to Adare, just west of Limerick, then came back to pack. We had to make sure our many purchases would fit. I have a wonderful handmade Irish sweater that I am looking forward to wearing this winter. Let's dispense with the Memphis summer.
For dinner, our hosts directed us to a wonderful country house, B&B, and restaurant, the Carrygerry Country House and Conservatory. Dinner was wonderful, with a beautiful view.
We've hugged Cody goodbye. He will sleep in for the first time tomorrow and go to the airport himself tomorrow afternoon, bound for England.
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