Dangle in Dingle

For P-Day this past Monday, we took the Sisters down to "dangle" in Dingle.  That means we took a little tour.  We had beautiful weather on the way down so we were able to see some beautiful vistas.

It is amazing to us that even in the depths of winter, with no leaves on the trees, it is still vibrant emerald green everywhere you look.

How would you like to have an old castle ruin in your backyard as a playhouse?

A rocky beach near the castle.  The rocks were very large and all rounded.

A pretty marker near the Castle.  I'm sure it says something informative, but we don't know Irish.

Dingle sits on the edge of an oblong inlet of the sea, surrounded by hills.  It's a beautiful setting. These are pictures of the waterfront.  I'm sure during tourist season it is packed with tourists along here.

On the way home we went over Connor Pass for some amazing views.

And, just to prove we were there, a picture of us.

                                    Fungie (foongie) the dolphin was happy to see us again.

And, that's how one "dangles" in Dingle!

HASTE YE BACK!

A Mighty Fortress

Recently, we drove the Sisters up to the Shannon Airport to catch a plane to Edinburgh for a mission Sister's Conference.  Because Bunratty Castle is just a few miles from the airport, and as we had no appointments or pressing duties to attend to, we decided that it would be a good time to check it out.  It dates from 1426 and was restored in the 1950's after being deserted and falling into disrepair.

As with most Irish castles, Bunratty is a massive, square monolith.  Originally it was also surrounded by a moat and the Ratty and Shannon rivers.

 This was a fun door into the courtyard.  The big door was opened for knights on horseback and other important people, and the little door for everyone else.

We were allowed to wander about the castle freely and explore all the nooks, crannies and spiral staircases we cared to climb.

 These pictures are of the Great Hall, in the center of the castle on the 3rd floor.  There were massive tapestries on the walls, huge antlers everywhere, and along each wall were carved wooden busts of the allies of the McNamara family, which was one of the builders of the castle. (you can see one in the upper left corner.)

 One of the views from the battlements. (the crenelated tower.)

 

The spiral staircases were narrow, high and in medieval times had no handrails.  I don't know how those regal ladies managed to climb these stairs and not trip on their gowns.  Guess it was more important to be safe, than to be dainty.

The worst staircase was down to the dungeon.  It was low, very narrow, and for someone who does not suffer from claustophobia, I felt very claustrophobic.  Fortunately, there were only 13 steps.  (Sorry, no picture.)  The dungeon itself was small, very dark and the floor was a long way below the door. Apparently when they put someone in the dungeon, they took him to the door and gave him a push to get him in.

                                                                                                                                                                   This was the soldier's barracks.  It is the first room one comes to upon entering the Castle. The soldiers slept, ate and lived in this one large room. Nowadays they hold medieval feasts in here.

It was fascinating to get a taste of medieval castle life.  Bunratty Castle was just to place to get a feel for it.  Big halls, massive walls, tiny passageways going all over and spiral staircases in every corner, nook and cranny.  It was grand!

HASTE YE BACK!

Ray's Lunches-Comfort food extrordinaire

This is Ray's Loaded Lunches.  Shortly after arriving in Tralee (the first week, I think), we discovered Ray's.  We were walking down the street and Ray just suddenly turned in here and said hello to Ray. Maybe he liked the name, or maybe Ray looked like an interesting, friendly sort of lad, but Ray decided to go in.  We took one look at the food and decided we had to try some.  Thus was born an almost weekly habit of going to Ray's for lunch (obviously).  We introduced the Elders to Ray's while they were here and they fell in love too.

This is Ray and Diana.  They own Ray's Lunches.  They have become good friends of ours.  Ray is a Donegal lad, the oldest of 9 children who lived on a farm.  When his mother would be cooking for all the family and the farm hands, he would help out in the kitchen with the food.  He has also worked as a hotel head chef, so he is legit.

He makes rustic, hardy, stick-to-your-ribs, delicious Irish food, the kind you find all over Ireland in pubs and grills.  There's usually all kinds of meat, soup or curry, mashed potatoes, cabbage, carrots, and 3 kinds of gravy.  Pepper gravy is our fave.    He makes a small individual meatloaf and a breaded chicken breast.  He also makes a killer cottage pie, and he educated us on the difference between Cottage Pie and Shepherd's Pie.  Shepherd's pie is made with lamb, thus the name Shepherd's Pie.  Cottage Pie, on the other hand, is made with mince, the Irish name for hamburger.  Everything else about the two pies is the same.  So, if you have been making Shepherd's Pie with hamburger, you need to change the name to Cottage Pie.

As you can see, the portions are generous, tho' I should say this actually all comes on one plate and we divvy it up.  And you get all this for 9 euro!  I think, tho' that Ray is a little generous with us and gives us a little extra, since we share.  He is very nice that way. 

We've developed a nice friendship with Ray and Diana.  Ray and he joke about a bit and he tells us about Donegal and Tralee.    We invited him to our Branch Halloween Party and our Thanksgiving Feast, and he came to both.  He is a grand man! 

He's also probably responsible for at least a 5 lb weight gain on both of us. 

 (Even tho' he claims all of his food is low fat.)

HASTE YE BACK!

The Chapel Doors

We thought we should show our visitors around our little LDS chapel here in Tralee.  There are 114 members on our Branch roll, of which about 20 show up to Church on a good day.  This chapel is pretty spacious for our needs, except for the small cultural hall space, which is quite tiny.  But it is sufficient for our needs.

Our "Cultural Hall"

The Chapel

Primary Room

Foyer

RS and YW classroom

Hallway

E Walker in the Clerk's Office

The stairway up to the Church floor

The Tralee Branch building at 19 Pembroke St. We're the cream colored building and tall part at the end, which is the stairway up. We are over a computer shop, tanning salon, and gym, which is closed on Sundays, thank goodness, or our meetings would be jumping from the loud music they play for their exercise classes.



And that's our church family home.  Hope you enjoyed the tour.  It is a nice meeting place for Church and all our activities.


HASTE YE BACK!