Travelling to and Learning about the Emerald Isle

During the past year, our edventure in the caravan has focused on the UK. We've been up into Fort William, across to Cromer and Pembroke and down to Dover and the Scilly Isles, taking in Scotland, England and Wales. We hadn't crossed the Irish sea to visit Ireland or Northern Ireland but our last fortnight of travels has meant we've been able to explore some of the beautiful Emerald Isle.

 

It is quiet this time of year; some of the caravan sites are getting ready to close (if they're not closed already) for winter and therefore booking is easy since there is plenty of availability. We chose three sites in the South West of Ireland - the focus of our trip: Glen of Aherlow, Flemings White Bridge (Killarney) and Blarney, near Cork, and travelled the three and half hour ferry journey from Fishguard to Rosslare. You never know what weather awaits you and we heard many jokes (by the Irish themselves) about the wet and cold Irish climate but we were fortunate to have mostly sunny, warm days. The weather in fact was better than that in the summer, one warden pointed out. 

 

As we've been travelling around the UK, the girls have been learning about each and every location that we visit, gleaming historical and geographical facts along the way. So, while in Ireland, we wanted to learn as much as possible along the way. 

The Irish history overlaps greatly with British history in the early days but there is so much to learn about the Irish famine, emigration to the United States, the many wars with England, and the relatively more recent political unrest. The best way to learn about the Irish history is by visiting the places where many of these historical events took place, by visiting the castles and museums dedicated to communicating the history to visitors. One of our highlights was the Queenstown story in Cobh, a museum that focused on Irish emigration triggered by the Famine.

 

Southern Ireland is renowned for the its beautiful landscape. Driving around in the counties or Limerick, Kerry and Cork allows you to take in wonderful mountains, waterfalls, rivers, beaches. The Ring of Kerry and the Wild Atlantic Way are two recommended routes that can be taken by car, bus or bike and allow you to soak in the views. As walkers, we enjoyed climbing two of southern Ireland's mountains Galtymore and Carranauntoohil.

 

The Irish love their music and pubs proudly offer live music throughout the week. Some venues are specifically targeted at tourists and offer a  flavour of traditional Irish tunes but authentic live music can equally be found in towns throughout, particularly at the weekends. 

 

Ireland is a nation of sport lovers. During our visit the Rugby World Cup was taking place and pubs were showing the games as avid fans cheered on. Rugby is not the main sport in Ireland though; gaelic football and hurling are two of the most popular and traditional sports. Outside on the streets, children and young adults wander around carrying hurling sticks. If planning a visit to Ireland then try to see a game if you can. The seasons had ended when we were in Ireland but we managed to find a local game of hurling in Blarney which provided to be very exciting.