We have been to Ireland twice, once in the south east near Rosslare and once in the west in the lovely county Kerry. Ireland is without doubt a lovely place and just driving through there with the green fields and beautiful countryside make you feel at peace. The roads however are not good once you get off the motorways and they are not getting better as time goes on.
The people are the friendliest on earth and will go out of the way to help.
The first day we were in Ireland in 2007 there was a horse show in Thomastown near where we were staying. There was no entrance fee, it was just ‘go on in and have a good time’. I love show jumping and we were really close to the action. The Irish are famous for their love of horses and we saw some fine specimens that day. Links to albums taken in Ireland are at the bottom of the page.
We also went to the Waterford crystal factory which has now sadly closed. A beautiful display of crystal, but the prices were way out of our reach. I would guess that the American visitors were not buying as much either and that is why it failed.
We also went to Dublin for the day and met an old pen pal there. A really lovely city and well worth seeing. We did not spend long enough there as it was a long drive and we had an ‘Irish night’ in the evening where I had far to much to drink! Well I was not driving!.
We did a bit more driving around and I have put links in below for other albums.
We went back to Ireland in May 2009, this time over to the west to Co. Kerry. This really is one of the loveliest parts of a lovely land. BUT it is a long way away from Rosslare where the ferry landed. On Irish roads it took me nearly five hours.
Click on the link below for the album of the famous ‘Ring of Kerry’ and the outstanding scenery there.
This really is an area of outstanding beauty but the roads are just appalling. Large tourist coaches go over there daily and our car took a real battering on the suspension.
While in that area we went to Killarney and on that day there was a horse racing meet. We went along and had a good day out in the spring sunshine. One thing that marred it was a horse being destroyed when it pulled up lame. We learned the next day that six horses had been destroyed that day.
We drove around quiet a bit and one day went to the Fota wildlife park and arboretum near Cork. Cork itself is well worth the visit but after Cork we went on to Fota a few miles away.
This park is not as busy as some in the UK but well worth the visit. On the whole it is very easy for the visitor with a wheelchair to get around and none of the animals are caged so you do get quiet close to them. At the end of the walk however is a very steep hill that you have to go up to get to the last part before the exit. And oh boy! Was that difficult to push a wheelchair up. It was either that or walk all the way back we had come. After that and a short rest we wandered over to the nearby arboretum. We did not have a lot of time then as the park was not far off shutting but I would have liked to walk around a bit more of that lovely place. Besides I was getting knackered from all that wheelchair pushing!
Click on the photo for the album of the visit. 
We also went to the Jamesons whiskey factory again just outside Cork. These day of course the whiskey is made in a separate factory but the tour around the original one was very interesting.
The link below will link to it.
To finish this page. Ireland is without doubt very beautiful and the people are some of the nicest on the planet. BUT, be prepared to dig deep in your pocket because it has gone very pricey. Between 2007 and 2009 the prices have rocketed up and many people said that they were finding it hard to live. The cost of a ferry for a car and passengers will set you back over £300 alone with accommodation and for the bungalow we hired that was nearly £600. But if you are prepared to pay you will love it. It is one of the loveliest places we have ever been to.
Irish photo albums