July 14th - Ireland Part 5 - Inis Oirr

Hi!

Today was another busy day. It started bright and early as we loaded onto a bus and headed to the small village of Doolin. From there, we took the Doolin Ferry across the water to Inis Oírr (pronounced Inisheer, literally “small island”).

When we finally got to the island, there were a few observations that I was able to make. The first is that one of the primary forms of transportation is the traditional Pony & Trap. I saw loads of ponies and carriages around the island, and each carriage looked to fit about 6 people. Just be careful where you step! The second is that the island itself is pretty small; only about 300 people live there in the summer, and 150 people live there in the winter. According to one of the locals, most of the houses on the island are vacation homes. The third thing is that the weather changes on a dime. There would be 10 minutes of absolutely pouring rain followed by 10 minutes of bright sunshine.  It’s a very windy place, so I can see how the gusts push fresh rain clouds in and out all day.

After getting off the boat and obtaining the bikes we'd use to travel around. Paul (our Irish tour guide over the last few days) was telling us about the island and its history, when it started absolutely pouring rain. We ran with our bikes to the nearest shelter, which happened to be a pub. Inside the pub, we waited out the rain with some hot chocolate, which was very tasty!

Once the rain stopped, we biked to our first destination: Plassey Shipwreck. The shipwreck had been there since the 1960s, and it was really cool to see it up close. We carefully climbed over the rocks to get a better look and even peeked inside.

Our next stop was the lighthouse. We didn't go too close to it since the path we chose had a whole bunch of rocks that we had to walk over. We still managed to take some pretty decent pictures.

The next place we explored was one of the highest points on the island: O’Brien’s Castle. The castle itself is from the 1400s and was built by the O'Brien family, who were battling against the Flaherty family over the island. This thing is so cool!

After the castle, we stopped for lunch. We went to this place called An Currach, right next to the Blue Flag Beach. I got an Irish beef burger smothered in St. Tola goat cheese, red onion relish, onions, tomatoes, spinach, and Folláin Irish tomato relish (basically Irish ketchup). The burger was so good, and the beef and cheese were both locally produced and extremely fresh. The burger was also cooked perfectly.

After eating my burger on the beach, I decided to take off my shoes, roll up my pants, and head into the ice-cold water to join Ben and Anthony (two people in my program), who were already out there. The water was a little uncomfortable at first, but we got used to it. I also took the time to admire the interesting stones and shells on the beach. 

You can see them waving at the camera!

After the beach, I travelled west on the bike and found an interesting pier with loads of crab traps set all around it. Mr. Krabs better watch out! The full name of the pier is Trá Teacht pier.

I continued biking west and found Fisherman's Memorial, also known as Maireann a gcuimhne fós i m'aigne Memorial. This is a monument dedicated to those who lost their lives at sea.

After that, I continued west and found more people in my program: Evan, Jack, and Joseph. I decided to stick with them. We continued biking and found a small cliff we were able to admire, then found 2 separate wells. 

The calf is so cute!

Once that was finished, we biked back into town (through some wind and rain), and half my group decided to go to the pub. Jack and I instead biked up to the island's graveyard. There, we found an old 10th century church called Teampall Caomhán. The place is also known as the Sunken Church. 

After the church, I biked back into town where I settled down at the pub, joined my friends, and ordered a Rockshore apple cider. The place was packed with locals.

Then, we got back on the ferry to the mainland. I even saw a rainbow!

When we got back, Paul took us to the Cliffs of Moher. I went to the highest point of the cliffs (O’Brien’s Tower) and took plenty of pictures. I also checked to see if my last name was in the comprehensive list of surnames exhibit in the visitor center (which is used to find things like family crest, etc). Unfortunately, it wasn’t. 

After the cliffs, we got hungry so we drove back to Doolin for some dinner at McGann’s Pub. My main was seafood risotto with prawns, crab claws, and salmon. It was amazing; easily the best risotto I’ve ever tasted. Dessert was also a treat: Biscoff cheesecake. I was practically licking both my plates at the end of the meal. I was also talking to a bunch of locals in the pub, and they were super nice and fun to talk to!

After dinner, we simply drove back. 

That’s all for now. Thanks for following along!