Monday, August 17, 2009

Cliffs of Moher (Final Day in Ireland)

We spent our last day in Ireland at the Cliffs of Moher.

Alex with the Cliffs of Moher behind her.

We climbed up O'Brien's Tower to see the cliffs.

This lady, named Tina, was an incredible harpist. I think she made our visit to the cliffs all the more wonderful. I could have set and listened to her for an hour. (And, I bought her CD... her music is like a beautiful lullaby.)

Now we're on the side by the cliffs and you can see the tower we climbed earlier. Nana & Papa had been here a few years earlier and things have changed a lot. It is much safer! They have moved the walkways back from the edge and there is practically no way you could fall off if you stick to the paths. There were paths marked "Private Property: Do Not Enter" that weren't near as safe.... and you wouldn't believe how many people were taking those paths! (My librarian is from Ireland and she'd warned me that quite a few people have been blown off the cliffs by strong gusts so she'd warned me to keep Alex away from the edge... I was so glad they had made this view so much safer!)
Alex saw this adorable little mouse on our path. He's about the size of a ping pong ball. Papa picked him up twice to move him off the path... he blended in so well he was in danger of being stepped on! (Oh, and Alex named him Cheddar!)

We also took this boat to the base of the cliffs. Here it is coming to get us with an island in the back. I hadn't noticed the ancient ruins (to the right with the flag) while we were there!

Alex and I started our trip at the front of the boat. What a mistake! :-) We got SOAKED in just a few minutes... it was quick and we were trying to get towards the back when the drencher came.

Unfortunately, Nana got sick and I wasn't feeling very good myself. My camera also got wet in the "drencher." And, the boat was going up and down so much I was really surprised any of my photos came out. Anyway, you can see the tower we'd climbed earlier (a little to the left of center). The main cliffs are on the right, not in the photo at this time.



I loved how this feature was sticking out of the water.

And, a short video of Tina Morrissey's (was Mulrooney) beautiful music. She's been playing at the cliffs for more than 20 years! (Great video at this link - includes Tina playing part of Danny Boy.)

9 comments:

Sybille said...

Looking at all your beautiful photos makes me think you have been in Ireland and Scotland for just a YEAR! So many things to see, to enjoy, to listen to... Magic!!

live4evermom said...

Love the harp. You look like you had a wonderful time and made great memories.

Cindy said...

What a lovely trip! I've SO enjoyed the pictures!

Dana said...

The cliffs are impressive to say the least - I imagine it was just incredible in person. Cheddar was pretty cute!

Alycia in Va. said...

what an amazing trip. You are so lucky to be a homeschooling family and to be able to give Alex these wonderful adventures. She learned more in those few days about Ireland, culture, etc. than she would have ever in a book.

Rhonda said...

So beautiful! I watched the video also and loved it. Thank you for sharing the link. I also want to thank you for taking us on this incredible journey with you. I have truly enjoyed it. ♥

Melissa said...

I have really enjoyed reading through all your adventures and seeing the photos! Thank you so much Dana for sharing. You were so blessed to have had such an opportunity to be there.

Melissa

sarah in the woods said...

You r Ireland pictures are beautiful. Thanks for sharing.

Jill O. Miles said...

What a great trip and great photos to prove it! I'm jealous - that is the part of the world I long to visit. One of these days.

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