Around The World With The Oberlys 2005-2006

April 17-24, 2006 Ireland and Wales.

Once again on the road. And despite the words of the old World War I song, it really isn't that long a road to Tipperary. However, the issue of safety driving on the narrow Irish roads is a horse of a differant color. Our drive took us on progressively smaller roads, from the dual carriageway of the M7 out of Dublin to the two lane road of the N74 into Tipperary. We spent the night at a bed and breakfast in Tipperary which had a big back yard, providing another opportunity for the the boys to try and beat the parent team in football. Tipperary is definitely a working town with much less emphasis on tourism and more on daily Irish life. An interesting comparison with Dublin.

From Tipperary we headed south on our way to Blarney in County Cork. But before we arrived there we stopped at Caher, location of Caher Castle. The parental units had stopped at this same location 16 years ago and toured the castle with Jim Gorton. We wanted to share this incredible relic with Liam and Dillon. The castle was begun in the 12th century and remains in tremendous condition because it was surrendered to Cromwell in 1650 without a struggle. The boys filled their stay with fantasies of battles and how they would repulse an attack by any number of attackers, even if they breached the outside wall. For us, the castle was everything we had remembered.

From Cahir we drove to the little town of Blarney. Blarney is a real contrast. Seven kilometers from the second largest city in Ireland (Cork) and home to one of the most visited tourist attractions in the country, it still remains a cozy little Irish village. The people are friendly as any in Ireland and after the tourist buses leave with the people who stay only an hour, it actually is almost a sleepy little town. We stayed in the Blarney Castle Hotel, a small family-run hotel with a comfortable pub downstairs. We found it was popular with the locals our first night there, as our room was right over the pub and we could hear the noise late into the night. Not as much noise as we heard in the meeting room next to our room our first night which was hosting the monthly meeting of the Blarney Gramophone Society, complete with classic old recordings played at top volume. You gotta love those small towns. Across from the hotel was the large town green which provided the family with yet another venue to hone their football skills (F.Y.I. U.K. football is very similar to U.S. soccer).

Of course Blarney town was our gateway to Blarney Castle. All four family members kissed the Blarney Stone. The castle is not as well preserved as Cahir, but that didn't impact the boys' imaginations at all. Especially when we came to the dark, scarry stairways up into the unknown. One ended in a large, empty, dark room. One could almost hear the conspiratorial whispers from long ago. Another great advantage to Blarney was the shopping opportunities, which all the family members availed themselves of. The luggage grows bigger. Blarney was a great stop. A town we will return to.

Our stay in Ireland was coming to an end. Before leaving Bill wanted to quickly relay a day he had around Dublin exploring the early days of Ireland. The land north of Dublin is particularly rich in history. It contains place where Cromwell landed and committed his first outrage, Drogheda, and the place where William of Orange defeated the army of James to cement the protestant, English rule of Ireland. But it also contains much earlier history in the places of Newgrange and Tara. Newgrange contains Stone Age buildings, passage tombs, which are aligned with the skies, the largest of which is light inside only by the sun on the days around the winter soltice. Tara was the home of all that was early Irish, from the druids and goddesses to the High Kings of Ireland. Definitely a fine day of history in a land full of the past.

From Blarney we headed west and caught the ferry from Rosslare. It was sad to see Ireland recede in the foggy morning light. On the other side, we landed in Fishguard, Wales. A few hours drive brought us to Cardiff, the capital of Wales. We stayed on the outside of the city which gave us easy access to the surrounding area which included another great castle to tour. Caerphilly Castle was built in the 13th century during wars between competing Welsh nobles but within twenty years of its construction Edward I subdued Wales and made the castle obsolete. It remains a wonderful place to visit and imagine. It is absolutely huge, with walls thicker than a person's arm is long. We walked the grounds in awe.

Like many of the places we visited, our stay in Wales was way too short. For instance one of the places we want to visit next trip is a Welsh town called: Llanfairpwllqwynqyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch. So much to see. Such long names.