It was another lovely day to be in Ireland today. We had free time in the town of Killarney this morning so I set out to see St. Mary’s Cathedral. It is very impressive with lots
of stained glass and ornate mosaics. I was particularly impressed, though, by this modern stained glass
window entitled Dawn to Dusk. At the bottom it says “Why is there anything, instead of nothing?” I’m a little surprised the Catholic hierarchy let that one slip by.
Then I swung back around to the Anglican Church which was nearer our hotel but not yet open when I set out. It was smaller but beautifully decorated inside. I had never before seen a painted pipe organ and this stained glass window was more to my taste than some of the more biblical ones.
After checking out a few shops and buying a few souvenirs I was all walked out but still had an hour before the bus was due to leave so I indulged in a horse cart ride through the National Park parts of which were donated to 
the country on stipulation that only foot, bicycle or horse traffic would be allowed. I got one last look at the McGuillycuddy’s reeks, the highest mountain range in Ireland at around 3500 feet.
On the road again we proceeded through county Tipperary, seeing more 
horses and dairy cattle than sheep now, to County Cork and on to Cork City with a stop at Blarney Castle. Even if the cruise ship had not just dumped thousands of people on the place I would not have stood in line to bend over backward and kiss a rock. It’s a little too late for the gift of gab to do me any good anyway.
We set out on the ring of Kerry which is a scenic drive in and around the Killarney National Park and Iveragh Peninsula. Our guide was intent on getting us to lunch on time so there wasn’t much time to photograph the beautiful scenery. We finally had a photo stop along the Dingle Bay. I’d never seen a rainbow quite like this one projected onto the water. And no, I didn’t find the pot of gold.
ut just as we got there the ceiling dropped and the clouds opened up and all we could see was fog and
ne last stop at an overlook with a magnificent view of a glacier carved valley.
me in town tomorrow but I did get a quick shot of one of the horse drawn carts. It is also possible to walk into the Park which is adjacent to the town. One thing for sure, if I don’t like the outcome of the upcoming election I’m moving to Killarney.
Along the way we picked up guide, Shane Connolly, who had quite the accent and quite the sense of humor. Some of us thought he might make it as a stand-up comedian in the U.S. One thing about the Irish is they are very savvy about American politics and like to poke fun at both sides in the current election. But Shane was also very knowledgeable about archeology, natural history and geology and gave us an expert walk through the Burren, a rocky, desolate landscape. He insisted though, that it is of the best land in Ireland for raising cattle because the grass stays fresh in the winter and farmers bring their cattle up here where the limestone covered hills absorb heat from t
he sun so stay warmer than the valleys below.
After lunch we headed out to the Cliffs of Mohr which Patrick tells us is the second most visited site in all of Ireland. The first being the Guinness storehouse in Cork. The crowds are well managed but it does put one in mind of such over loved national parks as Grand Canyon and Yellwostone. I have to say it was quite different from my last visit to the cliffs when it was so foggy you could barely see your hand if front of your face, let alone the cliffs.
But, I digress. Our first stop this morning was at old Bushmills distillery. Here’s a picture of their logo in stained glass. We were not allowed to photograph inside and the outside pictures were a little murky due to the rain. We had a tour of the facility and I got to taste some 12 year old whiskey. Which may have been a mistake because up until now I was pretty sure I didn’t like whiskey. This could make a convert of me but the good news is 12 year old Bushmills is not sold outside Ireland so I won’t be able to develop any new habits once I get home. I suppose at this point I should probably stick to wine anyway.
good day to choose to sit at the front of the bus. The shepherd’s pie was delicious but, and I never thought I would say this, I am getting a little tired of meat and potatoes.
We went on to the Giant’s Causeway just up the road. This is a UNESCO World Heritage site famous for its unique Geological formations. It was pouring rain as we were having our guided tour but later eased up. I was just a little disgruntled about the num
ber of people swarming the area. Tourists from all over the world just like me.
erry and wonder of wonders they had fish on the menu and it wasn’t fried! It was, of course, served with mashed potatoes.
This first picture is from the Guenther House where we ate lunch. Typical of the solid limestone buildings built by the German settlers who flocked into Texas in the mid to late 1800s and one of many listed on the National Register of historical places as the plaque states. But note the San Antonio twist, as the citizens prepare for th
eir annual fiesta, homes and businesses are decked out with brightly colored ornaments to celebrate the occasion. I believe the flags on this next home with beautiful arched window served the same purpose.
Steinbeck is often quoted as saying Texas is a state of mind and so it is. They are proud of their state, proud of their history, proud of their flag and proud to tell you how many generations their family has lived in Texas. They love it that much. I can only be proud to tell you I am a fifth generation Vagabond as my ancestors just couldn’t get enough of moving west, though somehow they 
managed to miss Texas altogether. Maybe that was the problem.
s. So here are a few of my favorites.
I ended my free afternoon at a great modern vibe restaurant with a southwest twist called Acenar. Overlooking the riverwalk I dined on the patio. My entree was duck crepes made with serano peppers and for desert, pineapple flan. So much fun to try new tastes!
I had a busy day of touristing yesterday and was too tired to process any images so had to make up for lost time this morning. My first stop enroute from Pismo Beach to Santa Barbara was the Santa Inez mission in Solvang. There I found the kind of detail I love in the old missions. Solvang itself is fascinating with a Scandinavian theme but I decided to save that for another day.
beautiful of the missions and you can see that this may be true.
Roman columns and such. I don’t know if this is true but it does make some sense as this does not look very Spanish.
Sorry, I had to take a day off from the blog yesterday. I didn’t have many great pictures anyway because it was either pouring rain or we were inside. But today I had a chance to revisit the Sea Otter haunts in Morro Bay with the big girl camera and long lens. Pretty happy with the results. Here is a mama with her baby riding on her s
tomach. I think this one is about ready to solo.
uring down rain when we set out but by the time we arrived at our first destination it was clearing up but too muddy for our bird walk. So we proceeded on up the road to a less muddy place where we found few birds but lots of young male elephant seals separating themselves from the herd to avoid confrontation with the alpha males. This one won the prize for cuteness.
After a delicious lunch and a talk about whales we proceeded to the main elephant seal rookery where we found mamas and baby’s as well as alpha males and wanna be alpha males. This first shot looks like a slumber party of females without pups.
is one to prove it. Life is harsh on the beach though and the survival rate is not high. This fellow had been nursing but stopped to take a nap. We learned that the moms do not feed while nursing and lose 450 lbs before leaving the pups to wean. A newborn pup weighs about 75 lbs and grows to 300 lbs before Mom cuts off the milk supply.
But things got pretty exciting on the beach just as we were about to leave. To Alpha males, also known as Beach Master’s got into a fight over territory. It was still going on when we had to head out to our next appointment at the Natural History Museum in Morro Bay. There we saw a video about Humpback whales before proceeding to the Embarcadero for dinner.
It was another full day today starting with a bird walk at a place called Oso Flaco, or Skinny Bear. We saw Scaup, Ruddy ducks, Cinnamon Teal, Northern Shovelers, a green heron, juvenile black crowned night herons, and white pelicans as well as some shore birds and a few black phoebes. The Ruddy ducks proved to be the most photogenic 
though. And then there was this marauding mammal that snuck into the picture.
butterflies but it isn’t going to happen tonight so this view of the clusters where they hang together will have to do for now though it is awfully hard to see that this is really a tree covered with butterflies and not a bunch of dead leaves.
Finally, we had lunch in downtown Pismo Beach and then strolled out on the Pier and around town looking at the shops and taking pictures of the signs. By this time I was almost too tired to enjoy it. The first picture here is an artistic look at the shadow of the pier against the patterns of the waves in the sand. The shorebird just ties it all together. Then we have a great painterly rendition of the Splash 
restaurant. Splash has been providing our catered meals throughout the week.
is is the sunset that was happening last night as I was finishing yesterday’s blog. This, by the way was shot from my hotel room balcony.
found 15. It was still pushing the envelope for the M3 and how I was wishing for my 150
ho actually showed up to try and steal the otters food.