Monday, October 10 Causey Farm, bogs, Galway

 October 10 

This morning we have breakfast and then board the bus and head southwest.  We cross into the Republic of Ireland with no fanfare - no border crossing or signs.  David says if there was infrastructure it would be probably be blown up!  We get the impression that Brexit has further complicated the border issues, especially when it comes to commerce, taxation and such.

More signs now in Gaelic and English. In general, the western part of Ireland speaks more Gaelic. There are often flags flying by homes and David says these are for Counties.  County sports are very big - Gaelic Football, Curling, Hurling....  Very little sign of any national flags.

Things are getting a little warmer and today is a beautiful day.  In the cities there are older buildings where the first floor is businesses, with several apartments above.  As we get into the country there are more single family homes, mostly small and made of stone or brick.  We stop at a service station that features a Burger King with Texas Bacon Burgers!  There are Tesla charging stations, an ATM and the all important restrooms.

David talks a lot about Irish history, including the Book of Kells, a handwritten book produced around 800AD.  Written on velum (paper was yet to be invented) it retains beautiful illustrations and colors and can be found at Trinity College in Dublin. The Vikings established Dublin and many other cities.

This area is perfect for farming and we see many bales of hay that are wrapped in black plastic.  Farming is the number 1 industry in Ireland, followed by tourism, and then high-tech.  David discusses the potato famines of the 1840's when over a million people died and thousands of others emigrated.  The government was still exporting potatoes even as their own people were starving! The population today is still lower than pre-famine days!

We stop at Saint Columba's Church which was completed in 814. We have seen many celtic crosses.  David says the round portion behind the cross represented the sun and was an attempt to ease the move from the old religions which worshipped the sun, to the new Christianity.

Roads are getting very narrow - barely enough for 2 vehicles to pass!  We arrive at Causey Farm, which offers a look at farming in Ireland. They are decorated for Halloween, which is a surprise to us!  Catharine, our guide, tells us that they've adopted the US customs, including a haunted house!

Our first task is making Irish Brown Soda Bread.  We divide into couples and each couple makes a small loaf which we'll enjoy with lunch later.  

Next we are loaded into an animal wagon and driven through the woods on a very bumpy road, to see a bog.  It is even wetter than usual with the recent rains.  Lots of ferns and moss along the pathway.

 Work begins in the bogs in May to create fuel for the following winter.  Turf is cut and stacked to dry and needs to be turned every 2 weeks.  This particular bog is being preserved as people realize that bogs are not endless and grow only 1 mm each year.  Turf is still used as fuel and we will see stacks at various places over the next few days.  Bogs maintain a steady temperature and have been used to store butter and milk.  They have also been used to hide things - the book of Kells was wrapped and hidden in a bog for a long period of time.  There is discussion about a "bog man", a well preserved human recently found in a bog somewhere in Scandinavia.

We go back to the main farm and check out some animals including cows, sheep, alpacas and pigs.

And then we learn a bit of Irish dancing.

Lunch is soup and the bread we've made, along with scones with jam and clotted cream, and tea. 

Lastly there is a sheep dog demonstration and we chat with the trainer.  Amazing how he communicates so much with just a few sounds!  It takes a year to train one dog and they are usually border collies. (See the black wrapped bales of hay in the background?)

The countryside here is incredibly clean - no trash anywhere!  Fence lines are mostly made of stone here, with some hedgerows.  

 Then we are off to Galway, located on a bay rich in seafood.  The Normans built this as a thriving trading port.  The population is about 17,000 and they are famous for craic (sounds like crack and means good times) and hookers (which are small boats used in harvesting seafood).  There are signs of people living here during the Bronze age and bronze's components, tin and copper, are found nearby.

We arrive at the Maldron Hotel about 5:00 and do a walk into town with part of the group.  It is about a 20 minute walk to an area of several blocks that are pedestrianized.  We pass a park flying the banners of the 12 tribes of Scotland, a statue of Oscar Wilde, and the Spanish Arch which was built in 1584 as an extension of the Norman wall of the 12th century. Lots of shops, pubs, restaurants and most places are very busy!  Looks like craic for all!

The Spanish Arch.

We end up at Beef & Lobster to enjoy some local seafood.  We start with bruschetta, followed by King Prawns and Wild Mussels.  Excellent! Service is very slow as they seem to be short staffed (like much of the world, it seems).