Yup. I am late again. Last month I did manage to post my 12 of 12 in somewhat of a timely manner, considering. Chad was even kind enough to post my link well after the fact. That's me at the bottom of the list.
This month, however, I am fairly certain that I won't even attempt to add my contribution to Chad's list. I am going to bet that since I didn't even get around to posting this until September...as well as the fact that we are indeed only one week away from the next installation of 12 of 12, everyone has way better things to do than to moderate posts from a month ago.
There are reasons for my delay. One: I was in another country (again) sans computer on August 12th. Two: Since that date things have been hectic what with the car being broken, a sudden trip home for a funeral, and also my computer? The power adapter no longer works.
That's right, people - I have no contact with the outside world...well, no more than 2 hours a day anyway. This means I cannot plan our trip to Paris. Nor can I plan the trip to Prague. Yes, Steve-O, I said PRAGUE. I am also unable to successfully locate a place/site/company from which to purchase a replacement power adapter. This is made slightly more difficult by the fact that I need it to arrive in Spain, AKA The Land of SLOW POST, as soon as possible.
This month, however, I am fairly certain that I won't even attempt to add my contribution to Chad's list. I am going to bet that since I didn't even get around to posting this until September...as well as the fact that we are indeed only one week away from the next installation of 12 of 12, everyone has way better things to do than to moderate posts from a month ago.
There are reasons for my delay. One: I was in another country (again) sans computer on August 12th. Two: Since that date things have been hectic what with the car being broken, a sudden trip home for a funeral, and also my computer? The power adapter no longer works.
That's right, people - I have no contact with the outside world...well, no more than 2 hours a day anyway. This means I cannot plan our trip to Paris. Nor can I plan the trip to Prague. Yes, Steve-O, I said PRAGUE. I am also unable to successfully locate a place/site/company from which to purchase a replacement power adapter. This is made slightly more difficult by the fact that I need it to arrive in Spain, AKA The Land of SLOW POST, as soon as possible.
Oh, and also?
I cannot write email to send;
I can't comment on blogs of friends;
I do not like this lack of power;
I do not like it, WATCH ME GLOWER!
So yeah - I've had some issues...not the least of which is a fondness for Green Eggs and Ham. Moving on...
August was hot, humid and exceptionally crowded here in southern Spain. The one exception to the rule appears to have been the body shop at the car dealership where our car wassupposedly being repaired. More on that later.
Our one attempt to escape the heat and hordes was to travel northward to Ireland for our August holiday. We lucked out on the weather; it only rained for part of one day while we were there and it was the day that we spent the least amount of time walking. We did encounter some shady tour operations on our trip, but were able to deal with that with a good deal of success as seen below. More on the shady-ness later as well.
ENOUGH! Here is the 12 of 12 already!
We began our day with the shady tour operator who made a stop at this quaint boat...place. Anyone who wants to let me in on what it is really called, be my guest; the comments are open. Although a useless stop (shadiness indeed), it was nice to look at.
We joined a couple of men who agreed with us on the shady nature of our tour and left it to go to Powerscourt Gardens (which was supposed to be on our tour in the first place). This is a shot of the Italian Gardens located immediately behind the house. So beautiful...so green...
The house is quite grand but was unfortunately ruined by fire some time ago. Two rooms have been refurbished to their former glory and are now used mostly for weddings. In this photograph you can really only see the center portion of the house. We are standing down the hill and on the other side of Triton lake...that is him in the center.
One section of the gardens contains the pet cemetery. Jack is apparently a popular name for cocker spaniels. There were some humorous stones in the cemetery. Most were for the typical pets, but there were some for cows as well. Moo.
The walled gardens are especially beautiful. They contain flowering plants in a very "the're growing wild" arrangement. This fountain was in the center of one section. R-Shelly should enjoy this...from her computer at Virginia Tech. Go Hokies!
This one is for Ahj. The hydrangeas were absolutely gorgeous. I have never seen them in such abundance and looking so absolutely perfect. Bountiful. They were fab.
There she is. Sugar Loaf Mountain. We sat on a bench and had a snack. What a view for our short rest.
Tower Valley is a section of the gardens that contains this small tower. The view from the top includes a family graveyard, Sugar Loaf Mountain, and a tree-lined view of the house. Each area that we entered in the gardens was contained such that it appeared to be its own separate world. Except for the small trails connecting each garden, one would never know that there was more than what you could see when standing in each one. Excellent design.
I imagine that many people consider the Japanese Garden to be their favorite upon visiting the Powerscourt estate. It is a beautiful place and, of course, very different than what we've seen before. Japanese style gardens are not hugely abundant in the places in which I have lived. It is beautiful, just like every garden there, and more importantly it is different, which made it stand out.
I love the way the light is captured in this photograph of Triton Lake. There you have it.
We ate lunch in the Avoca Cafe in the Powercourt house. We then met up with the two men who had originally joined us in escaping the tour and shared a taxi to Bray where we all hopped on the DART to head back to Dublin. Once we were back, we headed up towards the Dublin Writer's Museum. Unfortunately it was closed, but we were able to view the Garden of Remembrance located in Parnell Square. This memorial was created in order to remember those who lost their lives fighting for Irish freedom.
Afterwards we walked up O'Connell Street, crossed the River Liffey, passed Trinity College and continued up Grafton Street. At the end of Grafton Street we took a right and soon found Sinnott's Pub. A friend in the states has family ties to the name. I looked the pub up online before we traveled and every photograph I found showed people standing in front of the building looking at the pub. I couldn't discern why until we saw it ourselves. The owners have hung a large flat-screen television in the front window and they show - what else? - football! Of course there are men standing around watching the game!!
We took a detour through Stephen's Green on our way back to the hotel. Had we visited on another day, I am sure it would have appeared more beautiful. Viewing this lovely space after having spent the day at Powerscourt estate takes some of the beauty out of it simply because we compared the two. How could we not? Either way, it is an absolutely perfect place to walk or exercise and it is fabulous that such a large green area, complete with flowers, fountains and ducks is available in the city. I imagine it is a habitual haunt for many.
Our day did not end here, of course. We took a short break at the hotel to rest and change and then we were off to Temple Bar area for some dinner. No, we didn't stay there for the late night "festivities". We weren't all that interested in those. Dinner was tasty and afterwards we had a lovely walk through the city.
I'll be writing more about Dublin in the days to come...assuming I can manage to charge my computer again in the near future. I also have a bit more to say about Barcelona and of course there is always something to write about Spain!
Hasta pronto,
~ CC
August was hot, humid and exceptionally crowded here in southern Spain. The one exception to the rule appears to have been the body shop at the car dealership where our car was
Our one attempt to escape the heat and hordes was to travel northward to Ireland for our August holiday. We lucked out on the weather; it only rained for part of one day while we were there and it was the day that we spent the least amount of time walking. We did encounter some shady tour operations on our trip, but were able to deal with that with a good deal of success as seen below. More on the shady-ness later as well.
ENOUGH! Here is the 12 of 12 already!
10:05; County Wicklow, Ireland
We began our day with the shady tour operator who made a stop at this quaint boat...place. Anyone who wants to let me in on what it is really called, be my guest; the comments are open. Although a useless stop (shadiness indeed), it was nice to look at.
11:52; Powerscourt Gardens, County Wicklow, Ireland
We joined a couple of men who agreed with us on the shady nature of our tour and left it to go to Powerscourt Gardens (which was supposed to be on our tour in the first place). This is a shot of the Italian Gardens located immediately behind the house. So beautiful...so green...
12:00; Powerscourt House, County Wicklow, Ireland
The house is quite grand but was unfortunately ruined by fire some time ago. Two rooms have been refurbished to their former glory and are now used mostly for weddings. In this photograph you can really only see the center portion of the house. We are standing down the hill and on the other side of Triton lake...that is him in the center.
12:18; Powerscourt Gardens, County Wicklow, Ireland
One section of the gardens contains the pet cemetery. Jack is apparently a popular name for cocker spaniels. There were some humorous stones in the cemetery. Most were for the typical pets, but there were some for cows as well. Moo.
12:25; Powerscourt Gardens, County Wicklow, Ireland
The walled gardens are especially beautiful. They contain flowering plants in a very "the're growing wild" arrangement. This fountain was in the center of one section. R-Shelly should enjoy this...from her computer at Virginia Tech. Go Hokies!
12:26; Powerscourt Gardens, County Wicklow, Ireland
This one is for Ahj. The hydrangeas were absolutely gorgeous. I have never seen them in such abundance and looking so absolutely perfect. Bountiful. They were fab.
12:37; Sugar Loaf Mountain; County Wicklow, Ireland
There she is. Sugar Loaf Mountain. We sat on a bench and had a snack. What a view for our short rest.
12:50; Powerscourt Gardens, County Wicklow, Ireland
Tower Valley is a section of the gardens that contains this small tower. The view from the top includes a family graveyard, Sugar Loaf Mountain, and a tree-lined view of the house. Each area that we entered in the gardens was contained such that it appeared to be its own separate world. Except for the small trails connecting each garden, one would never know that there was more than what you could see when standing in each one. Excellent design.
12:55; Powerscourt Gardens, County Wicklow, Ireland
I imagine that many people consider the Japanese Garden to be their favorite upon visiting the Powerscourt estate. It is a beautiful place and, of course, very different than what we've seen before. Japanese style gardens are not hugely abundant in the places in which I have lived. It is beautiful, just like every garden there, and more importantly it is different, which made it stand out.
13:08; BONUS; Powerscourt Gardens, County Wicklow, Ireland
I love the way the light is captured in this photograph of Triton Lake. There you have it.
16:37; Garden of Remembrance, Dublin, County Wicklow, Ireland
We ate lunch in the Avoca Cafe in the Powercourt house. We then met up with the two men who had originally joined us in escaping the tour and shared a taxi to Bray where we all hopped on the DART to head back to Dublin. Once we were back, we headed up towards the Dublin Writer's Museum. Unfortunately it was closed, but we were able to view the Garden of Remembrance located in Parnell Square. This memorial was created in order to remember those who lost their lives fighting for Irish freedom.
17:24; Dublin, County Wicklow, Ireland
Afterwards we walked up O'Connell Street, crossed the River Liffey, passed Trinity College and continued up Grafton Street. At the end of Grafton Street we took a right and soon found Sinnott's Pub. A friend in the states has family ties to the name. I looked the pub up online before we traveled and every photograph I found showed people standing in front of the building looking at the pub. I couldn't discern why until we saw it ourselves. The owners have hung a large flat-screen television in the front window and they show - what else? - football! Of course there are men standing around watching the game!!
17:26; Dublin, County Wicklow, Ireland
We took a detour through Stephen's Green on our way back to the hotel. Had we visited on another day, I am sure it would have appeared more beautiful. Viewing this lovely space after having spent the day at Powerscourt estate takes some of the beauty out of it simply because we compared the two. How could we not? Either way, it is an absolutely perfect place to walk or exercise and it is fabulous that such a large green area, complete with flowers, fountains and ducks is available in the city. I imagine it is a habitual haunt for many.
Our day did not end here, of course. We took a short break at the hotel to rest and change and then we were off to Temple Bar area for some dinner. No, we didn't stay there for the late night "festivities". We weren't all that interested in those. Dinner was tasty and afterwards we had a lovely walk through the city.
I'll be writing more about Dublin in the days to come...assuming I can manage to charge my computer again in the near future. I also have a bit more to say about Barcelona and of course there is always something to write about Spain!
Hasta pronto,
~ CC
4 comments:
Best of luck with your computer troubles. That would drive me nuts and I certainly understand how hard it is to be overseas when you need something fixed! Our oven, still blown up for example.
Great pix from the land of lucky charms. I was especially thrilled with the grave stone. Jack thanks you too.
I've been to the Garden of Remembrance, and the Stephen's Green park.
The Dublin Writers' Museum was good, but either pick a few writers to listen to the commentary for (and read the notes on the wall), or allow a lot of time. I gave up after the first room, and just moseyed around the second room, listening to the commentary. I didn't have time to read all the wall notes.
Ahj says thanks for the beautiful floral and garden pictures! You are a professional! What a gorgeous spot to visit! Thanks for sharing this!
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