Edinburgh

After a 5 hours train ride we arrived in Edinburgh. We checked into our B&B, had a cuppa and set off to explore the city. First stop was lunch at the Lonely Planet recommended Maison Bleue. The food was great and although servings were small there were 3-4 courses which filled us up nicely.

Then we set off for Edinburgh castle where we took the guided tour. The castle is quite large, set up on a hill overlooking Edinburgh, and we heard way too many facts to take it all in! Starting in the Lower Ward, through the Portcullis Gate, to the Middle Ward with the one o'clock gun (fired each day at one o'clock). Then to the upper Ward with Mons Meg (giant medieval siege gun), St Margaret's Church, a dog cemetery, someone getting married!, the Half-Moon battery (lots of cannons) and fantastic views of the city. Beneath the half-moon battery is the remains of David's Tower which collapsed during the Lang seige.

Mons Meg - old cannon (L) and views of Edinburgh

the 1 o'clock gun (L), views of Edinburgh and Arthur's Seat

Around Crown square is the Royal Palace (which houses the Honours of Scotland and the Stone of Destiny), the Great Hall (with its amazing timber roof) the Scottish National War Memorial and the Queen Anne Building (with large vaults that served as a prison).

Great hall (L), view of Calton hill (C) and view of Edinburgh Castle (R).

From the castle we walked down the Royal Mile, past all the whiskey shops, more tourist attractions (like Real Mary King's Close). We had dinner at Howie's (thanks to Lonely Planet again) which was in a former chapel. Grace tried a traditional Scottish dish, liver. Andrew can't really remember what he had, but thinks it was good :-)

After dinner, to use up any remaining energy, we walked up Calton hill which had great views over Holyrood Park, the Firth of Forth, Edinburgh and the Castle. The hill is scattered with monuments including the National monument (below).

That's our B&B with the white door on the right!

After a long, tiring day we had a good night's sleep in our very comfy bed.

On Sunday we visited the Scottish Parliament building, which was completed in 2004 for the new Scottish Parliament after the Scottish people voted in 1997 to have their own parliament. It was very controversial because of the cost of the building (over £400m) was way more than the initial £40m idea that was proposed, but it is very impressive.

It incorporates some old buildings as well as modern architecture using mostly local stone, timber and (as our guide made us feel) very smooth concrete. Notable features are the "up-turned boat" roofs, the anvil/hairdryer/gun shaped panels, the lightness of the space - lots of glass to promote the use of daylighting

Just over the road, and beneath the imposing hills is Holyrood House, the Queen's residence when she's in Scotland. Her majesty wasn't in residence at the time so we were able to see quite a lot of the palace. We saw several rooms including the room where Mary Queen of Scots used to sleep and where her secretary Rizzio was murdered. Outside are the remains of Holyrood Abbey and we had a walk around the gardens. The audio guide was really good, as looking around this kind of place can be rather boring.

Entrance (L) and inside the grounds.

The abbey and grounds.

We wanted to climb up Arthur's seat and the Salisbury Crags but we ran out of time - something for next time!

Edinburgh is a beautiful city like everyone says. Gorgeous old buildings and wide roads.

After picking up our bags we were back on the train for the long journey home. Whatever possessed us to do this in just a weekend, I can't remember! but it was a great weekend away.

Powerscourt

Our last day :-( We drove north through Sally Gap again towards Powerscourt.

Powerscourt Estate (not far from the waterfalls that we saw yesterday) was commissioned by the first Viscount Powerscourt and designed by Richard Cassels. It has been modified through the years by subsequent Viscounts. The building was damaged by fire in the 1970's, and has been partly restored by the Slazenger family who now owns it.

One of the restored rooms (L) and views from outside.

It has beautiful grounds with unique features such as, the pepper-pot tower (L), japanese gardens (C), a pet cemetery (R)

and the Triton lake (with stunning view with reflections of the Perron steps).

After battling the Dublin traffic, we return our trusty Fiat Punto at the airport and took our flight home. Goodbye Ireland.

Glendalough

We drove north from Enniscorthy, stopping at the Meeting of the Rivers (River Avoca and River Avonmore) in Wicklow Mountain National Park.

We reached Glendalough where we took at look around the old monastic settlement. Highlights were the double stone-arched gatehouse, 30m tall Round Tower (left), a 12th century cathedral (centre- complete with wedding in progress), St Kevin's Cross and St Kevin's Kitchen (right - actually a 11th century church).

From Glendalough we drove the scenic Military Road. On the way we passed the highest village in Ireland, saw the Great Sugar Loaf Mountain (with it's distinctive nipple-shaped top) and stopped at Powerscourt Waterfall

On the way back to Glendalough we passed through Sally Gap, a remote pass surrounded by boggy hills with streams and large cracks covering them like veins.

Grace had a nice rabbit stew for dinner at the local restaurant in Laragh. We stayed at a nice B&B near the monastery, overlooking one of the two lakes.

Crystal

Waterford was only a short drive from Tramore. We stopped at the Waterford crystal factory and took a guided tour.

We got to see workers in action, and lots of examples of the finished product. We saw lots of trophies that are made for major sporting events such as tennis and golf tournaments. They make two of each trophy. One is used and one is kept (just in case!) and once the first one has been awarded, the spare is kept at the factory and displayed.

After purchasing some crystal for ourselves :-) we headed off to Enniscorthy. The highlight of Enniscorthy is Vinegar Hill where the 1798 Rebellion (against the British) took place.

We also visited the National 1798 Visitors Centre, a museum about the rebellion.

After a walk around the town we had another Chinese dinner.

Rock of Cashel

First stop on the road was Cashel, where the Rock of Cashel is situated. The Rock was the seat of the King's of Munster (a region of Ireland) and is a historic religious site set high up on a hill over looking the town. We did a guided tour around the site and saw St Patrick's Cross, the large Cathedral - memorable for the small faces sculptures around the walls- and the small Cormac's chapel with it's amazing Romanesque patterns.

It's a long way to Tipperary. Well, actually it's not that far from Cashel, so we paid a visit.

Yep, that's all there is to see... on to Tramore for the night, a nice beachside town.

And look, Duffy's Pub!