Ireland Road Trip – Part 1

It is the Easter Holidays and we are hitting the road.

We have just bought our car (with extra seats for Granny & Grandpa when they visit) and we are keen to take off for a road trip – destination IRELAND!

We have a packed 10 Day itinerary ahead with overnight stops at:
Cardiff, Wales (Marker C)
Swansea, Wales (E)
Kilmore Quay, Ireland (I)
Kinsale, Ireland (K) (2 nights)
Glin, Ireland (P) (1 nights)
Portmarnock, Ireland (Q)
Newtown, Wales (T)

DAY 1: Bath, Cardiff

Before crossing the river Severn into Wales, we couldn’t resist a nostalgic trip down memory lane with a trip back to Bath (one of our highlights on our UK trip 11 years ago, along with Cardiff). 

Bath is incredibly picturesque with the river running through a series of bridges through the old town.

After a stroll along the river, we had a picnic lunch in the park alongside the river, opposite the abbey (the green bank in the photo above)

Not your everyday wedding car …

In the early afternoon, we left Bath and crossed the bridge over the river Severn, heading for our overnight stop at Cardiff.

We checked into our hotel and took a stroll through the castle gardens before dinner.  Spring was busy springing all about and the girls enjoyed the time climbing trees and playing in the gardens.

Sazzie being a monkey on the tree.

View of Cardiff Castle (just ignore the tall sky scraper in the background).

After our walk, we headed to the docks for fish & chips for dinner.

DAY 2:  Cardiff, Barry, Swansea

In the morning, the only sites on our agenda was to visit Castle Coch.  Again, this was a nostalgic trip – we visited here with Darryl & Vicky 11 years ago. 

The girls have been totally deprived of seasides since we left SA and it really showed on this trip.  Anytime we went near the sea, they braved the cold elements and went splashing in the waves, only to come out about 30 minutes later howling with cold.

The first of these stops was Barry on our way to our overnight stop at Swansea.

Colin striking his usual pose…

and the girls revelling in the waves.

It always fascinates me going to the beach in the UK – most of the sane people are in the jeans, socks, shoes, and jackets, and the crazy people are splashing in the waves in their undies.

In the late afternoon, we bundled the shivering, wet babies into the car and drove the last few miles to Swansea.  The girls warmed up quickly with hot chocolate in our hotel room and were good to head of for a final walk on the Swansea beach before dinner time.

DAY 3: Tenby, Fishguard, Kilmore Quay

The next morning was miserably wet and cold and so our trip to Tenby ended up being a quick walk fighting rain and wind and a race back to the car.  Sarah and Colin were jousting against the wind.

and CHAAARGE!!!

From Fishguard, we could see our Ferry waiting for us for our trip to Rosslare, Ireland. 

This evening, we were staying in the small fishing village of Kilmore Quay.

DAY 4: Jameson, Cobh, Kinsale

After leaving Kilmore Quay, we took a slow coastal tour and stumbled across ruined abbeys and castles along the way.

And then we happened upon the Jameson Distillery!  Now, we were not going to just pass this one by :)

Our last planned detour was the town of Cobh.  But this turned out to be very uneventful and with the wind and rain pelting down we didn’t even venture out of the car, heading straight on to Kinsale for the evening.

DAY 5:  Kinsale

After the miserable weather of the previous day, we woke up to the most glorious sight!  Clear blue skies and an unimaginable view from our bedroom window.

Our B&B below – our bedroom is the top left window. Not too shabby Nige!

(Link to Part 2)

Sunday stroll along the Thames

We now have a new car with enough capacity in the boot for both of the girls bicycles, and Saturday, we bought Sarah her new bike (after leaving her old small bike in Prague).  On Sunday, we decided to go to the Tesco and do some grocery shopping, and afterwards take the girls for a ride on their bikes along the river.  This is a great opportunity for me to put on my running shoes and for Colin to take a leisurely stroll with his camera.

The river has quite a number of canal boats that moor along the edges, so it makes for a very picturesque scene.

A view along the river facing east:

Mom and girls jogging and biking:

(Belated) New Posts

 

Sarah’s School Concert – 19 Dec 08

Christmas Market – Starometska, Prague – 14 Dec 08

Eufrat Week-end in Elsyn Dvůr – 7 Dec 08

Well, 2008 is now a closed chapter.  2009 blogging starts tomorrow!

Disco Girls

The girls’ school organised a Disco as part of a fund raising programme.  They had to dress up as a diva or as their favourite character – our girls just wanted to be beautiful.

We had quite a packed day as we were hunting for cars during the day and ended up racing home with only a few minutes to get ready and leave for the school.

Fortunately, they had already decided the previous night what clothes they wanted to wear and so all that was needed was a dash of make-up and they were true princesses.

The party was great.  They had a DJ lined up and the Year 1&2’s danced from 4.00 – 5.30 and then the rest of the school danced from 6.  Amber, after just having seen Riverdance, was showing off her tapping and “happy feet” dance moves and they both came home quite worn out.

A Home with a Garden

There were many moments while we were in the CZ that I was really worried that we were severely depriving our children whilst living in a flat without any gardens.  There was one time while we were walking on our way to the bus stop in the morning and we walked past a house that had a really scruff little patch of garden in the front.  They had made a concrete wall alongside the pavement that had flowers growing in wells, that made it look like part rockery, part wall.  There were some very tired looking flowers growing and Amber stopped and wilted, declaring in the most love-sick, soppy voice how much she wished that we lived in that house so that could be her garden.  My heart nearly broke, considering our 4200 m2 of an immaculate park of a garden that we left behind.

In Reading, we now live in a house with a garden, not only in the front, but also in the back.

The first realisation now though was that it means another whole slew of “stuff” that we had to buy to be able to maintain the garden.  Fortunately, our neighbour helped out and lent us his lawnmower – this was a big novelty for the girls!

I think our neighbours in the street must think we are completely mad.  With the first inkling of sunshine, we are all out front with our forks and watering cans, arms deep in mud, weeding and playing games.  Surprisingly, it does not appear to be a trend – we never see a sole outside of their front door.

Even the Thomas Mouse is out in the yard:

The next week-end and the bikes and skipping ropes are out front and we spend the whole day running, skipping, cycling up and down the street.  Fortunately we are in a cul-de-sac so we are not too bothered by cars.  The neighbours have started warming up to us now and we get the wave and a smile through their windows as they drive by.  You never know – maybe we will set a new trend.