Take Me Home

There is no big rush today…….loads of time to make the roughly 3-4 hour trip from Killarney to Malahide, where we started this journey, just north of Dublin and very close to the airport. Staying again at the Grand Hotel. We have no plans, but Jutta thinks we should stop in Adare and visit Adare Manor…..you know…….home of the Ryder Cup 2027…….after all, when she was there 20 years ago she just strolled across the street with Steph and Sam and a woman they had met who was staying at the manor…….all equestrians of course………and they had a lovely lunch at the manor and visited the stables, etc………how pleasant. This is not the case anymore……fairly tight security……tried to bluff our way past the oversized Leprechaun who came out of the guard house, but he was just way too smart for us…….prick!……so it seems getting on property was just not going to happen unless you were staying there or had reservations for dining which we did not…….next time we will have a booking. Somehow after a phone call to try and make a that booking, we fooled ourselves into thinking there was an access to the golf course back closer to town………yes, the Adare Manor Golf Course is there……yes, we went…….NO, it will not be the home of the 2027 Ryder Cup. The local Adare Manor GC (muni) is there, established in 1900, with some lovely gardens around the place and big stone ruins of something that used to sit right on the river bank. Some locals inside tell me the story of how “THE” Adare Manor was transformed and the Kabillions of Dollars it took to make it what it is today……..the owner J.P. McManus a legendary Irish businessman, probably most well known for his success in the Sport of Kings (horse racing) both with horse ownership and bookmaking, part ownership of Manchester United, and his generous philanthropy, made it all happen. I rescue Sybille from the tiny pro shop where she is ready to buy up the place thinking these Adare Manor golf shirts, sweaters, and hats, are a steal considering what Royal Portrush British Open swag was selling for. We get back on the road.

The rest of our ride is mostly on freeway…….something we haven’t seen much for the past three weeks……..three lanes on each side of the road when I have become used to sharing just one with the oncoming traffic………..but we are eating up the km’s, this Dacia Jogger just blowing away everything on the road, and are in Malahide on schedule, with plenty of time for the mountain goats to get in a late afternoon walk (more shopping). Yours truly has a much needed nap.

Dinner this evening is at Old Street, a restaurant Jutta scoped out the last time we were in Malahide but unfortunately on their closed days. We all had Irish rack of lamb mains…..delish…..Jutta started with Irish beef carpaccio, and I had Irish salmon tartare…….yummy……..a fitting Irish meal for our last dinner on the Emerald Isle.

No great anticipation about tomorrow’s plans……..travel day…….ughhhhh. Aer Lingus hits it out of the park once again…….nice plane……great service. I am flipping around the movie/tv menu and see this listing for “Other Voices”………turns out it is a music performance show that originated at the St.James’s Church on main street in Dingle…….we walked right past it and never knew…….crap……..check it out. This has become a must play venue for many artists, and the performances in this tiny church are amazing. Amy Winehouse was great. Other than that, it was your typical travel day, slogging our way home………jumped in the truck……I had forgotten what legroom felt like……J&S now casually lounging in their LayZBoys…….I adapted quickly to driving on the wrong side of the road, but my left hand keeps reaching down for the non-existent gearshift.

Justin Farrell from Links of Ireland gets a HUGE thank you from us……….we initially booked our trip with him over three years ago……pre-covid…….and when the shutdown happened we re-booked for the following year…….not happening either………but finally it came to be……….well done Justin. linksofireland.com is where you can reach him.

Ireland has been nothing short of wonderful……..many thanks to all of you who sent along advice, and suggestions of places to go and see……..and for just tuning in to share this one with us. Until next time.