27 juin 2009
The Twelfth is Coming
It looks like a wild wasteland, but this is not littering. This is the preparation for the Twelfth of July.
29 mai 2009
May Holidays Finale : Baltimore and Kinsale
After a visit to the Dingle peninsula which is not worth mentioning due to the weather conditions, the last trip of the week consisted in bringing me back to the Cork airport, which led us through the south-west coast of Ireland.
First, down to the little village of Baltimore (point B), famous for two things. First, the beacon which stands at the entrance of its harbour (his nickname is Lot’s wife, due to the Bible’s woman changed into a salt statue) :
And also because some detail about its history : Baltimore was one of the rare Irish port to be attacked and ransacked by pirates. It happened in 1691. A hundred villagers were captured and sold as slaves in North-Africa afterwards. That’s why you’ll find a pub called the Algiers Inn :
After that, we headed West in direction of Cork. On our way we went through a village called Timoleague where stands the remains of an abbey burned down by Cromwell :
And eventually, reached Kinsale (point C), a little port, now a popular holiday resort, endowed also with a tumultuous history.
In 1601, the town was held by Spanish troops, besieged by English forces. A battle between Irish and English followed, and the Spanish eventually left the town and the island. The James Fort and the Charles Fort, each one of a side of the harbour are quite impressive and well cared :
At last, it was time to go to the Airport. Half an hour later, i was at Cork’s Airport, and from there, four hours later due to a delay, i was back in Belfast.
27 mai 2009
May Holidays Part 5 : Beara
Our destination today : the Beara Peninsula.
Beara is the peninsula on the south of Iveragh. We first stopped at Bonane, where an Heritage Park was supposed to give us quasi-prehistoric monuments of the stone age. However, if the view was great, the place in itself left a lot to the imagination.
In the middle picture, you can see where was supposed to stand a fort, just like the one in Staigue Fort. However, nothing really remains except the ditch. The crannog, on the right side, is not genuine, but a reconstitution. In short, if you happen to cross Bonane, don’t stop at this Heritage Park, it’s a waste of time and money (4 euros by person).
Then, we crossed the Caha Pass, the limit between the Kerry County and the Cork County (because Beara peninsula is shared between both).
And we drove down to Glengariff :
Glengariff is a very little town, but with its almost tropical climate, its most distinctive feature is its flora, and a mediterranean-looking shore :
After a meal in a pub, we drove on the south shore of the peninsula, which is rocky, barren, sun-burnt almost ! Here is the Bantry peninsula view :
And then, we climbed again another pass, the Healy Pass, to go on the northern part of the peninsula, enjoying the view en route :
Again, once more, this was (above) the Cork County side and… this is the Kerry County side:
Finally, we finished the trip on the north shore of the Beara peninsula, facing Iveragh, and, somewhere on the other side of the Kenmare river, Sneem is hiding :
