I am exhausted. I need some rest. And the worst thing is that the vacation is just about to start.
A couple of my kids thought that I might be lonesome after Johnny Murphy died so they got me a cat. Truth be told, I am a cat hater. Always was. Imagine my surprise when my son Danno - also a die hard cat hater - turned into a knowledgeable cat lover! Mike always loved cats. They are trying to turn me to the dark side.
Our big ball of long black fur/hair is friendly enough, but his hair is everywhere. His name is Doolin. He is 12 years old so he spends most of the day sleeping or rolling around on the floor. He is always whining for food, but he is looking bigger and bigger so surely he is getting enough to eat.
His biggest problem is that he sometimes misses the litter box.
Danno was concerned that Doolin would be lonely while Mike and I were in Ireland for 10 days. So he kindly offered to take him home to his cats. Dan was down last weekend, and he and Amanda took him home - Doolin went quietly. He had his own room at Dan's - Dan introduced him to one of Dan and Amanda's cats, BenJen, but Doolin ran to eat his food before BenJen even thought to try it. Next morning Dan let Salem in to meet Doolin who promptly attacked and almost killed him before he dug his claws into Amanda's boots. 6 am text: Come get him - this isn't going to work. I was shocked! This cat never showed any sign of violence. Mike took the day off and brought Doolin home in disgrace. I guess he does not like any competition.
I had to go into the office on Thursday for work - I was gone from 7:30 am - 7:30 pm. Mike worked a double so he was gone all day too. I got home and the house smelled of cat! That is one thing I will not tolerate. I couldn't find any signs of anything.
On Friday the odor was still there. So when I finished work, I started cleaning rugs and floors - now the house smelled like rug cleaner and Lysol. I was trying to get packed in between cleaning.
Mike and I headed for the Logan Express in Braintree at 2:30 pm on Saturday the 14th. We pulled into the parking lot in Braintree, and I suddenly realized I didn't have my credit cards! The wallet I had kept everything in for years - that I had bought at the Gravedigger's Pub in Dublin - had recently fallen apart. I was using an old wallet of Johnny Murphy's to hold everything. I had bought a new passport holder with pink flamingos - that would be hard to lose! - and transferred my passport/license/debit cards/euros into it. But I had kept my credit cards in Johnny's wallet in a zippered compartment in my purse. My purse was bursting because it was so full - so I had switched bags just before we left and never thought to take the wallet! I had plenty of money with my debit card, but car rental companies do not accept debit cards! That's what I was worried about. It is 3:30, and our flight is at 7:30! Mike suggested calling my brother Johnny to see if he could grab the wallet and meet us halfway. He and Vickie were in Virginia I think he said - I didn't stop to talk to him. I tried calling my friend Julie - this would really test the bonds of friendship! She was driving home from her cottage in Wareham. Typical Julie - of course she would drive to pick up the wallet and then drive halfway to meet us! God bess Julie.
Then as I was emptying out my purse to find the parking ticket that Mike had just handed me, I came across 2 credit cards that had come in the mail - I had never opened them. So I did! Then I immediately activated one from Marriott - bingo! I called Julie back, and she said she had the same credit card - I should be good to go. So I used it to buy the Logan Express tickets. The card worked - no need for Julie to drive up! We jumped on the bus and headed to terminal C for Aer Lingus.
I never delay going through Security - I check in and go immediately through security. That's what we did. Then we headed to the gate - when we got there, I pulled out the new credit cards and my phone. I called the Marriott number to let them know I was traveling - no foreign transaction fees. Then I activated and notified the other card - this one has foreign transaction fees so I won't be using this. Now I could relax until we got to the car rental agency.
The flight was okay - the chicken meal was not great. There was some delay with the bags - I had never waited so long, and it was everyone's bags. We went to Alamo Car Rental to get the keys. The gal did tell me that Dan Dooley is 95 year old, and that is why he sold the business to Enterprise. I was lamenting the loss after renting with him for 30+ years. The gal said it was a culture shock after she had worked for Dan Dooley for 13 years to go to Enterprise. She gave us the keys, and thankfully it was not a hybrid! The new credit card worked so I could finally relax.
We had a quick bite at the airport about 6:30 am then headed to Galway. We got to the Connemara Coast Hotel about 8:30 am - no traffic on Sundays. We had even driven through Salthill looking for the statue of Father Griffen but never saw it - Salthill is so built up now. My friend Barbara Thompson's uncle used to live near that statue, and she stayed there as a kid. Each time I am in Galway I try to find it. We drove by it once on a bus a couple of years ago, but Salthill was under water from the tropical storm so they would not let us off the bus. I think I drove past it last May with Beth, but the traffic was horrendous, and I couldn't find a parking space. I think I will have to stay in Salthill next time. I do love the promenade and being so close to the water.
We got to the hotel - reception told us that our room would not be ready until after noon because it was full last night. We were not surprised that the room wasn't ready, but were surprised that the hotel was packed!
We went to the dining room and met up with Johnny Murphy's sisters - Joan and Monica who were having breakfast - they had arrived Saturday and were leaving Monday. Monica's son Micheal Lynch is the manager of the hotel - he told them to have us leave our bags in their room. They suggested that we drive them into Salthill then we could have a sleep in their room. So we drove them into Salthill - they would poke round and then meet Micheal at 2:30, and he would bring them to the hotel on his way to work.
We changed clothes and jumped into the beds. Suddenly I heard an airplane nearby - I thought it was a plane going to or from Inverrin to the Aran Islands. Then I heard it again so I got up and pulled back the curtains - it was a helicopter landing behind the hotel! We watched it land, but since there were no cameras or reporters, we figured there were no celebrities, and we jumped back into bed. We found out later it was someone flying from Connemara to Loughrea - the visibility was so bad that it put down at the hotel - which does NOT have a helicopter pad by the way!
Having that quick sleep was a good idea - we felt better - still tired but able to go for a drive to Roundstone.
Joan and Monica came along - neither had been to Connemara before. It was not the best day to go - damp, rainy, and very foggy. I had originally thought of going to Clifden first, but decided to just go to Roundstone due to the time and weather. We took the road to Maam Cross - turned left and headed toward Galway. Mike was driving - it was only his 2nd time driving in Ireland, and he had not been to Connemara since he was a kid - 15-20 years ago. The drab, foggy weather put a damper on the drive - visibility was limited when the fog settled in - I knew there were rolling mountains out there somewhere, but we couldn't see any! I thought I saw a sign for Roundstone on the left, but I hadn't been paying attention - no one else saw it. And the GPS said to continue straight. That next sign is for Emlagh - that is near Roundstone, but again why listen to me when the GPS said to continue straight. Finally, I knew we were in the outskirts of Clifden - we had missed Roundstone - I knew that drive was too long.
Mike turned around - reset the GPS as I was saying we could skip Roundstone and stop in Clifden. Rather than drive to the city center and take the Roundstone Road through Ballyconneelly, we headed back toward Galway and got off at a sign for Ballynahinch. This was a road I hadn't been down before - we came along the back of Ballynahinch Castle on a twisting narrow road - talk about a canopy of trees! We finally came to civilization - Roundstone was not too far away. We pulled up to O'Dowd's Pub in a light mist - we got a spot outside the door.
I've always eaten in the pub side so that is what we did. There was one loud obnoxious customer sitting at the bar with a couple of guys - there were 2 other young men trying to carry on a conversation near the loud fella - and a young couple sitting in front of the window. We all ordered - I had fish 'n chips with mash instead of French fries - Mike had an Italian pasta dish, Monica had shepard's pie, and Joan had salmon. My fish was delicious! Mike liked the pasta which makes me smile because I would never think of ordering pasta for my first meal in Ireland - I need fish or roast chicken and mash! I love the potatoes over here.
Monica, Joan, MEM, Mike at O'Dowd's in Roundstone.
I'm sure I have said before that my grandfather worked at O'Dowd's before leaving for the US. So my family has a soft spot for the place.
MEM, Monica, and Joan at Roundstone Harbor.
After eating, we walked up to King's Pub - across a small street and up about 2 doors. It was locked up!?! That's odd. We stopped next door at my cousin Mary King's house - keys in the door but no answer. I opened the door and gave a few shouts - no response - so I left a note saying I had stopped by. Johnny Murphy and I as well as my sister Patty with her husband Richie and son Ricky Schiavoni, my sister Jody, and my brother Jimmy had rented this house during a couple of trips when Mary was still running and living next door at the bar. I knew Mary was not far with keys left in the door.
Joan had walked up to The Shamrock Pub - nice cozy turf fire going. We ordered a round - Monica asked the barman if he had seen Mary King recently. A girl at the next table said she had seen Mary going into Vaughan's a short while before. Vaughan's Restaurant is in the Roundstone Hotel. We were enjoying the turf fire when the barman said he just saw Mary going into her house. I left my Diet Coke, and ran over - Mary was just coming out to pick up her grandson at his girlfriend's. As always, Mary had a few minutes to talk - we were just catching up when a man came in - he was Mary's brother - then another brother came in and then one more. They had all had dinner at Vaughan's and were now heading to Tuam for a christening. They were just out the door when Mary's son Joseph came in - he runs the bar now. They were telling me that there had been a christening in Roundstone on Saturday - I guess some of the guests were a little rowdy, and the Gardai were called. The same blokes were around this morning so Joe did not open the bar - he did not want any trouble with them. They had just left town before we got there.
Mike, Monica, and Joan walked in now. We took a couple of pictures - Joe had opened the pub, but we didn't go in - it was late now - still rainy and foggy - we had an hour and a half drive - so we said goodbye and headed to the hotel.
Mike, MEM, Mary, and Joan in Mary's house
Mary King and her son Joseph
MEM, Mike, and Joan in Roundstone
The drive home wasn't as long as the drive to Roundstone. We all went to our rooms for a short while then met Joan and Monica in the bar for a night cap. Micheal, Monica's son, was there and bought us a drink. I don't drink very much - one drink usually puts me to sleep, but I did have a glass of Bailey's. Then Micheal bought another round for the 4 of us, and I had another glass of Bailey's! I was ready for bed after that!
Next morning Mike went down for a swim and tried out the hot tub. Then we went down for the breakfast buffet, and Joan and Monica came down after packing. Micheal was driving them to the Limerick bus station for the Killarney bus. They would catch the Kenmare bus in Killarney.
Mike and I went upstairs to get ready for our day trip to Cong in County Mayo. We went down to say goodbye to Joan and Monica, but they had just left thinking that we had already left!
My whole extended family loves The Quiet Man movie. Mike was willing to drive to Cong to the Quiet Man Museum so we headed off. It was a beautiful warm day - like summer.
The Quiet Man was filmed in 1951 in parts of Connemara. The crew stayed at Ashford Castle in Cong - some scenes were filmed on the hotel's grounds. Cong is a cute little town except for the big buses and trucks traveling through on its narrow roads! We found a parking space about 11 am and walked to the museum for a 11:30 walking tour. We passed the Dying Man's House - where the old man is being visited by a priest and jumps up when he hears that Sean Thornton and Squire Danagher are fighting. I think John Ford's brother played the dying man.
We continued down the hill to the museum which is a replica of the original cottage which is now in ruins in Maam. It is across the street from the river where part of the fight scene was filmed.
Quiet Man Museum in Cong
The sign on the half door said "Back in 10 minutes" so we walked over to the river which is on the border of Mayo and Galway. At 11:30 no one had removed the sign on the half door. Mike tried the door, and it opened - so, of course, we walked right up the stairs. There was a woman inside the gift shop all the time - she had forgotten to remove the sign. She told us the 11:30 walking tour was canceled because the leader was sick. We weren't sure we wanted to stay till 12:30 pm. We paid the admission fee to the museum downstairs, and the woman came down and unlocked the door - she asked us to use the side door to leave, and then locked us in!
They have done a good job with the museum.
Posters and chairs that belonged to the main players!
Bed from the famous bedroom scene, and the original dress Maureen O'Hara wore.
The bike Sean Thornton and Mary Kate Danagher rode.
I hadn't realized that The Quiet Man was based on a short story by Kerry man Maurice Walsh - the Green Rushes - I have to go home and look to see if I have that story in a book of Maurice Walshes' stories.
A few of Maurice Walsh's books in the museum.
There were all kinds of old newspaper clippings about the filming and the premier. Apparently many Cong villagers were paid as part of the crowd scene during the fight.
We let ourselves out the side door and went around the corner to see the statue of John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara. A car pulled up and yelled at Mike when they saw his Bruins shirt - they were from Charlestown.
I stopped outside Danagher's Hotel to take a couple of pix.
Mike was talking to a guy on the corner - turned out he was the bartender in Pat Cohen's Pub so we went in for a cold drink. The bartender was very friendly - his 86 year old Grannie was outside walking her dog. Some of the bar scenes in the movie were filmed here.
The bartender was expecting a busload of tourists for lunch.
We decided to skip the walking tour and instead look for the train station used in the movie. So we headed east toward Tuam to Ballyglunin.
This railway station was in several scenes in the Quiet Man - when Sean Thornton first arrived home and then when Mary Kate was leaving Sean Thornton - he pulled her out of the train and started the great walking/dragging scene with Thornton dragging Mary Kate through the fields to her brother.
I started talking with one of the Fas workers - he was telling me that restoration was going slowly but was moving along. They have restored the outside of the waiting room - they plan to restore part of the interior to the way it was in the movie - they are also going to develop a museum and a community center in there. The signal cabin was also restored, and they landscaped the ground across the tracks this year.
Mike with signal cabin on left.
We met some women who came to look at the station - they were NOT there because they were Quiet Man fans - the older woman had left for London from this station as a young girl as had many others. I guess this history of hundreds who probably headed toward emigration from this station will be part of the history for the museum.
Also part of its history will be the raids during the War of Independence - look below for the items that were raided.
From the railway station, we headed west again to Oughterard where Sean Thornton and Micheleen stopped on the bridge to look at Sean's old homestead. The bridge is about 5 miles west of Oughterard. After we passed through the town, we came across farmers protesting the price of beef - I guess protests have been going on across the country.
The little bridge was off to the left as we headed toward Clifden - then at a bend in the road.
Sunday we couldn't see any mountains - Monday was a beautiful day.
View west from the bridge.
Mike walked over the bridge to read the plaque.
This was on that plaque.
The following plaque is along the river before you get to the bridge.
So we ended our Quiet Man quest and drove to Peacocke's Hotel at Maam's Cross. We hadn't eaten since breakfast so I had soup and brown bread - Mike had chicken wings. We did check out the old cottage beside the hotel - I had been there with my kids years ago - and with Jody and Beth a couple of years ago. The cottage is well preserved, but the inside does not compare with the Quiet Man museum rig out.
We headed back to the Connemara Coast Hotel - as we were driving along, we were listening to the news. Several years ago, my sisters Patty and Jody and myself were in Oxford, England and wanted to stop at Blenheim Palace where Winston Churchill was born - I am a big Churchill fan. We drove up to the palace, but there was an event going on, and we couldn't even get onto the grounds. I was thinking of that trip when the news about the big burglary came on the radio. An Italian artist had loaned an 18 carat gold toilet worth 4 million euro to an exhibit at Blenheim Palace - it was plumbed into the building and was a working toilet. The thieves pulled it out of the wall, and there was massive flood damage. Mike and I were screaming laughing. Then came the clincher - the radio reported that the artist begged that the toilet not be melted down and that all he asked was that whoever stole the golden toilet use it, and then let him know what it was like to use a golden toilet!! The reporter said a 60+ year old man was in custody and that the police expected to flush out more clues!
We were still laughing as we pulled into the parking lot of the hotel. We watched some TV before we met Micheal for dinner at 6.
View out our room window.
Danno and Amanda had raved about Padraicins restaurant just west of the hotel so that is where we went. Unfortunately, we parked along the river, and the midges ate us as we walked the short distance to the restaurant. When we had passed by Padraicins last night coming from Roundstone, the place was mobbed, but tonight it was quiet. I had a delicious roast chicken with fabulous green beans and mash. Mike and Micheal had pasta dishes that they said were good. Micheal is a great guy - he and Mike were close growing up - he came to Boston and stayed with us for a short while. It's always good to see him.
Padraicins is right on Galway Bay - must be lovely sitting outside on a nice day.
Micheal had to work at 7 am so we cut it short. Mike went down to the bar for a while. I started this blog. Tomorrow we pack up and head home to Gortdromagh - the weather is supposed to be good - if so, we may take the coast road. Both of us are down as drivers, but Mike has done all the driving so far.
