Joe always gets stuck taking the ladies' night pictures.... : )
Outside the Quays....oh, and there's no prohibition against having alcohol in the streets here, so the pubs pretty much spill out into the road.
Day 18: Amazingly, I woke up this morning, even though my alarm decided it would be much funner if it didn't go off....I still got up 45 minutes before I had to leave - yay for showering AND breakfast, all in one morning. : ) Today was a bus tour to the Cliffs of Moher, better known as....
"The Cliffs of INSANITY!"
Dunguaire Castle.
Out on some of the Burren, leading down to the sea.
Some of our group, meandering.
The Burren, marked by those cool stone walls.
An ancient church we passed, or what remains of it....they still actually use the cemetery, though.
More lovely coast, on a "clear" day.
After a quick lunch, it was on to the Cliffs. Apparently, getting near the edge is pretty dangerous (who would've thunk?) There are deaths every year, from both accidents and suicides. I guess with the combination of certain death if you go over and the conditions - high winds, eroding ground, etc. - it's pretty explainable. Anyways. A lot of it has a stone wall a couple yards from the edge, so you can't go up to it. There are two parts that don't, though. One you can usually go to, but not today - it was blocked off by the Irish Coast Guard. Tragically, there was a death last night, and they were doing recovery. : ( The other part is blocked off by a low barbed-wire fence that everyone feels free to hop over, and then you can wander as far as you like along the edge.
As the bus driver said, continuing his tour guide narrative, "If you do happen to fall over, however, if you just look to your right, you'll have a fantastic view of Galway Bay. However, as it will be the last view you'll ever see, we do not recommend it." Reminded me of "gone with the Schwinn" on Mt. Haleakala a few years ago....
Me, go near the edge? With how I feel about heights? And I would NEVER just hop a fence like that, right? ; ) Well....a lot of folks did climb the fence, and I don't feel anyone was really unsafe - nobody was teetering on the edge. The driver said that some folks stand right on it, leaning into the wind over the edge. Then the wind stops, and you're, well, basically screwed. Yeah. Not smart. Nobody did that today. But we did get a good look. I didn't go too near the edge, but a little bit before I backed away again, satisfied to return inland a bit.
Anyways, the Cliffs were really beautiful. It was rather misty and foggy, but apparently, it was rather clear in comparison to how it often is - we could actually see all the Cliffs. It was immensely windy up there, too....
Meghan and I.
There they be, in their majestic beauty....
Hi.
Yeah. Don't stand on it.
"Only Fezzik is strong enough to go up our way. He'll have to sail around for hours 'til he finds a harbor."
View from the top.
The other side....
"Did I make it clear that YOUR JOB IS AT STAKE?!"
"Did I make it clear that YOUR JOB IS AT STAKE?!"
That's as close as I got to the edge. To my right (your left) is sheer drop-off. And it was darn windy up there....
Oh, brave souls....some of my fellow students, after having jumped the fence.
"Look, I don't mean to be rude, but this is not as easy as it looks, so I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't distract me."
"If you're in such a hurry, you could lower a rope or a tree branch or find something useful to do."
Inconceivable. ; )
Oh, and here's for you, Erin, and for anyone who's seen Conan O'Brien's Ireland tour....ya know O'Brien Tower, that he goes to? That's up on the Cliffs. : ) I've been wanting to recreate some of his Ireland moments on this trip, so seeing that was kinda nifty. : ) It is dreadfully windy up there, for sure! And today was a mild day....
O'Brien? I'm an O'Donnell! We must be related!
"I can't imagine why my ancestors gave it up!"
On the return journey, we stopped at Poulnabrone Dolmen, which is a 5,000 year old burial ground. Thoughts of my old desire to be an archaeologist resurfaced....After that, it was the Aillwee Caves, which have rock formations inside dating back over 10,000 years. Pretty crazy. Mom, remember when I used to collect (okay, maybe I still have some lying around) rocks? That part of me was all excited here. : ) They also found brown bear bones here - bears have been extinct for over 200 years on the island. Oh, and fellow Planet Earth devotees....no snottites, but it was still pretty sweet. ; ) Random fact: it takes these stalactites about 100 years (they reckon) to grow one centimeter in length. Upon learning that, I felt a little bad....I had touched one dripping, allowing the little waterdrop to leave the stalactite and run down my hand instead. All things considered, I probably just set it back half a century. This is why humans shouldn't mess with nature - we just screw things up....
Check it out - no mortar or anything.
On the Poulnabrone Dolmen.
Thousands of years....
Just check out that architecture....I don't get how it stays up in all the wind!
Delilah, Eric, and Greg, entering the cave....
Ha, just included this for the weird effect. The gray is from someone else's flash - I didn't have mine on, but caught their's in mid-picture.
Sweet stuff....
See the "praying hands"?
Shiny calcite deposits.
No, not snottites; sorry. Little "straw" stalactites - long and hollow like a straw, and growing at the rate of one centimeter per century.
A sweet stalagmite....
A little waterfall.
Now it's early evening, again. No going out for me tonight, though - just not up to it. Wait, I guess it's not that early....just seems that way with this much light. Farther north than I've ever been, I guess.
Oh, and I went and bought some wellies (aka rain boots) tonight! Don't think I've owned any since I was about seven....but I'm excited. Amazing how something like dry feet can vastly improve your day. : )
Anyways....take care. Cheers!
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