Galway Bay Fences

On my visit to Ireland last year

I would love to have seen the sun go down on 

Galway Bay.

I realised later that one of the downsides

of being on an organised tour

is that things don't always work out the way we want.

If we are lucky enough to return to the
Emerald Isle
we will hire a car as there is so much more
we want to see and do.

Being a keen gardener I was hoping to see
Helen Dillon's world renowned garden
but the open days didn't coincide with our tour dates.

It was a happy surprise when now and then
our bus ventured down lovely old country roads!

I'm joining Tex for her 100th link up for Good Fences 

CONGRATULATIONS TEX!!!


Thank you for visiting and your kind comments

Take care and
be kind to one another
à bientôt

Shane

Irish Fences and Five on Friday

Behind the barrier at Dublin airport

a Scottish Highlander arrives 

to cheer on his team at the annual 

rugby game

Ireland vs Scotland.

The fence alongside Dublin's Liffey river

with the Halfpenny bridge

Our tour bus stopped at this shop

in the middle of the countryside.

It was jam-packed full of top quality
Irish linens, woollen jerseys and so much more.

I fell in love with a blue tweed jacket....

I dithered about and decided to leave it in the shop....
it was a hot Summer's day
and hard for me to envisage the cold Winter days back home.

Wouldn't you know, I've regretted it ever since

isn't that always the way - c'est la vie!

I hope you've enjoyed seeing a variety of fences from

Ireland!

I'm joining Theresa for Good Fences

and

Amy for Five on Friday

Take care and

be kind to one another

à bientôt

Shane

Reflecting on the year that was...

JANUARY
We travelled down country to visit my 96y old Aunt.
Passing Mt Ruapehu on the Central Plateau and
Lake Taupo.

FEBRUARY

I made Miss Maggie Rabbit for Miss Jessie's 3rd birthday!

MARCH
Sunshine on my kitchen window sill, a visit to the
countryside to see our son and sweet Snowball in the garden.

APRIL
A card from my bloggy friend Joanna, Anzac Day and
Magazines from my Swap partner Deborah.

MAY
A visit to Nancy Steen Rose Garden to meet another bloggy friend
Patricia who gave me a gorgeous red wooden bird necklace.

JUNE
Off on the huge Emirates bird to Ireland and France! 

Blarney Castle - yes we managed to kiss the stone!

JULY
The ancient village of Nemours.

AUGUST
My three granddaughters out walking. The school fair and Jessie
always skipping or running!

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER
My visit to the Laduree shop in Paris - delicious!

NOVEMBER
Horrific bombings in Paris.

DECEMBER
Christmas in Australia with our son.


I wonder what's ahead for all of us this year?

Take care dear friends and
be kind to one another

Merci à bientôt

Shane

The Charm of County Cork

On our tour of Ireland

we fell in love with the

charming villages of

County Cork

with their gaily painted houses

and friendly people.

I'm linking this post to 

Judith for Mosaic Monday

Stephanie for Roses if Inspiration

Our World Tuesday

hosted by

hosted by Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy & Jennifer

Thank you ladies for hosting your weekly memes.

Take care and

be kind to one another

Merci à bientôt

Shane

  

If you ever go across the sea to Ireland...

Hello dear friends,

the weeks have flown by since my last post.

At last I have a few spare minutes to spare

to update you on our travels!

We left New Zealand on the 4th June

on board the Emirates A380 Airbus

(I've wanted to travel on this aircraft for such a long time...)!

It met all my expectations, great service, food, etcet

I can highly recommend it.

I can now tick that one off my bucket list!

Any way we are now in France with our family

(more on that later)

but first I want to tell you a little about our tour of

Ireland!  

I'm sure I have mentioned before

my darling father was born in Limerick, Ireland

and consequently I'm half Irish.

I have wanted to make this journey for a long, long time.

We joined 49 others on our seven day tour,

there were Americans from North Carolina, Idaho,

Maine, New York, and Chicago.

Canadians from Vancouver Island

A Mexican family of four

six Australians and four other Kiwis.

All lovely people.

Not everyone on our tour

kissed the Blarney Stone

but we did!

We thought one can't travel

half way across the world

and not do it!

I must fly and get the washing off the line!

I'll be back soon with more on Ireland.

A special thank you to my friends who

have been emailing to see what has happened to me,

I appreciate your thoughtfulness
and send special love to each one of you!!!

I'm joining Judith for Mosaic Monday

Take care and

be kind to one another

Merci à bientôt

Shane

Celebrating my Irish Roots

I'm celebrating my Irish heritage today!
My darling departed father
was born in Limerick, Ireland.
God bless his soul!

For sure he had the gift of the gab

which he used to good effect

when he got his law degree and

much later when he was made a Judge.

I still miss

his Irish smile

his wise counsel

keen wit

and riveting story telling.

He was a 

lover of books

tramping and the outdoors

flora and fauna

and

a generous advocate for

less fortunate souls. 

So today I tip my hat to the Irish
for their sense of fun
and love of the written word
to their wonderful writers.
I particularly enjoy stories by
 Colm Toibin.

I'm joining Mary for Mosaic Monday


Take care and be kind to each other

   Merci à bientôt

♥ Shane ♥

 

Bíodh lá iontach!