Ireland

I touched down at Dublin airport safely and on time on last Thursday. It was a luxury to be met by my friend Sean at the airport and avoid the confusion and disorientation of a new country. We hit the streets of Dublin and I finally got to wear my new (vintage) leather jacket I’d been dragging around since Phnom Phen. We did a pub crawl so I could get to know the beers of Ireland. (Beamish, Murphy’s, Smithwicks, and my first Kilkenny in situ)


Me in Dublin


Sean

We are staying for a week in a small town called Spiddal, about 15 minutes west of Galway, It’s a lovely little beach village, and according to the postcards, it’s a popular swimming beach in the summer. Across Galway bay is County Clare, the Cliffs of Moher and the Aran Islands. In the breaks in the weather I have managed to get out and take some photos.


Spiddal coast with County Clare in the background

Ireland is even more picturesque than I expected and the people are very friendly. Yes It’s cold, wet and windy, but there are patches of sunlight that flood the countryside with colour. Actually I’ve tried to keep my bitching about the cold to a minimum (remarkable for me) and the words of the Phra from Wat Ram Poeng keep coming back to me. ‘It may feel cold, but the feeling is impermanent.’


Spiddal cemetary, the oldest readable headstones dated back to 1805