Westport

Next day we woke up to sunshine, so off we traipsed towards Westport.

Once we'd figured out the one-way system we parked up beside the Carrowbeg River...

...complete with a beautiful old bridge.

Tine went into the local tourist office (seeing one of the Chieftans there!) whilst I wandered around the lovely square.

Of course we soon found a pub for a spot of lunch...

...and the obligatory Guinness and rosé.

It doesn't take much to amuse me.

We drove along to Westport Quay...

...with a wonderful view of Croagh Patrick over the bay.

 

A wet day visiting County Galway

And boy, how it rained!

First stop Clifden...

...with evidence of fishing

After lunch in one of the bars we headed for Cleggan

Who knew there was a town named after my family?

To be honest there wasn't a lot to see...

...and the weather wasn't improving.

Our last stop of the day was Kylemore Abbey...

...on the banks of the Pollacapall Lough

Sadly we didn't get to visit the abbey...

...but the views were worth the stop.

Galway

Our final stay was just outside Galway, the Airbnb not being our best choice but we were impressed by Galway town.

The cathedral

Dedicated in 1965...

...it is the youngest of  Europe's stone cathedrals.

We had a spot of lunch in this bar...

...opposite The Quays...

...with its own Galway girls.

The River Corrib is only 6 km long but very fast flowing. No wonder when we saw the amount of rain that could fall!

The Spanish Arch, part of the original medieval town walls...

...constructed to protect the busy quays.

Adare, Bunratty Castle & the Cliffs of Moher

We left our holiday companion to join her friend near Killarney, and motored further north stopping in Adare to visit and have a spot of lunch.

Our Lady's Abbey, outside...

...and in.

There was a lovely thatched bandstand/shelter in the park...

...and a very interesting information sign.

The village had many picture-perfect thatched cottages too.

Onto Bunratty Castle

...then the Cliffs of Modher...

...214m (702ft) high!

Sadly visibility wasn't as good as we'd have liked.

Killarney & Ross Castle

We rented an Airbnb apartment in Killarney.

Of course the wine came too!

Although not blessed with the best weather...

...we wandered through the town to catch a tour bus.

Destination, Ross Castle

This view reminded me of the 'marais' in la Vendée

It's the ancestral home of the O'Donoghue clan, dating back to the 15th century...

...with a lovely view over a wild & windy Lough Leane...

...appreciated by these two!

We couldn't book a tour of the castle but the visitors' room had an interesting model of the tower.

Don't be fooled by the blue skies...

...there was a torrential downpour whilst we had a spot of lunch.

Later, back to business!

 We  loved Killarney and hope to return one day.