Going to Cong and Westport
This morning after saying goodbye to Joan and Frank we headed to Cong. Our first surprise--we entered the gates of Ashford Castle which is now a 5 star resort. The original castle was built in 1228. It was added onto a number of times until 75 years ago when there was a major addition to turn it into a resort hotel with a golf course, horseback riding, boating, etc. We all went inside and had a cup of Irish coffee. What a wonderful start to a wonderful day! The interior of the castle was just amazing!
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Irish coffee served at 10 AM
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Denise & Bill join us.
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Our big surprise!!!!
We went to the Ireland School of Falconry. Here we saw owls, falcons and hawks. Mary told us many facts about the birds. The house hawks come from central and South America and they hunt in a pack. Their wings are shorter then their tails and therefore are sprinters or short distance flyers and are designed to catch mammals. The falcons body shape with long wings and short tails allow them to fly long distances and catch their prey in mid air. At Ashford Castle they do pest control at the local landfill site. Inca, from Peru, was our female Barisal hawk weighing 1 pound 8 1/2 ounces. We each had the opportunity to wear the leather glove and have Inca land on it. Then we could cast her off. She saved all the food we gave her in her "crop" or neck and when she returns to the roost she will digest her food. |
Our journey continues. We stop at Leenane and saw the only fjord in Ireland. We passed the Croagh Patrick which is the mountain where St. Patrick went to the summit and fasted for 40 days and 40 nights during Lent in 432 AD. It is said that this is where St. Patrick drove out all the snakes from Ireland. (Of course there were NO snakes at that time in Ireland!) We enter Westport and see the clock tower and the memorial to St. Patrick, both which are located near our hotel, the Clew Bay Hotel. The hotel is just down the street from Matt Molloy's Pub. The colors of County Mayo are red and green. Interesting notes: Grace Kelly's (Princess Grace of Monaco) grandparents were from Westport. Also, Westport is in the Gaelic football finals this year. Tonight we share a group dinner at Madden's Bistro.
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