ENNIS
We arrived early in the morning to Shannon airport. By early I mean, our flight pulled in just before 6am. My first view of the Emerald Isle was the sun just rising over coast. a beautiful omen of things to come.
Once we arrived at the Old Ground Hotel, incredibly early. We asked about how soon we could check in. They promised to do their best, but it was 7am. They did hold our bags while we grabbed a bite to eat and a coffee in their dining area. Afterwards we decided to wander around Ennis ourselves. It was interesting to walk around the streets when they were almost empty. Tourists come later, partying at night. We watched the street cleaners in action working to maintain the Tidiest Town distinction that they have won in the past. The shops, history, river and nature preserve were charming and lovely. We enjoyed comparing some of the wildlife from home to here (i.e. different species of Herons). We strolled back to our hotel, where mercifully they had a room ready for us before 10am.
After our catnap we went to the reception area where we were directed to our tour group. We quickly began introducing ourselves to the other tour members and soon our tour guide. The famous Stephen McPhilemy joined us and gave us the run down of what to expect and passed out the headsets that we would use throughout the tour to hear our guide well while walking. We exited the hotel with the group and our guide giving us a brief introduction to Ennis, pointing out memorials to Irish heritage, lore and other local stopping points. We ended at the Ennis Friary, a 13th century Franciscan friary and an important piece of history provided a grand education on faith and architecture in Ireland. The guide at the Friary pointed out details in the structure and statues that we might otherwise miss, such as masons marks in the stonework.
After the Friary, the group walked next door to a restaurant called The Cloisters, which used to be a part of the Friary, now turned restaurant, for our first group dinner.
The group was invited out for enjoy some local music, however we chose to attempt to catch up on sleep a little more. Plus, we were leaving at 8am to go explore the Cliffs of Moher.
The Cliffs of Moher
Our brilliant tour guide made it a priority to get to the Cliffs of Moher bright and early, before the crowds of tourists from Dublin made it in. The bus we used for the entirety of the trip was luxury: comfortable seats, a restroom aboard, and lots of space to spread out. The bus drive was about an hour and we reached the visitor center where we were allowed to disembark and spend about an hour exploring. The Cliffs of Moher feel familiar because of how they have been a backdrop to so many popular movies and television shows. But nothing compares to seeing them in person: the steep cliffs, the ocean breeze and the trail that seemed never ending. A surprising visual was while on one side along the trail you saw the sweeping cliff views, the other side of the path boasted the pastoral landscape of cow farms. The cows keeping watch right along the fenceline off the trail, close enough to pet. We could have stayed and hiked and explored for hours, alas, we had a schedule to keep.