Ireland: The Road to Athlone

Day 8: Our morning began with some exciting town gossip over breakfast. The owners husband came rushing into the dining room and hurriedly asked Frank and Patrick if they had heard the news about Mr McGreevey. When they hadn't he relished in the opportunity to tell everyone. It appears that Mr McGreevey had saved the life of a man and would be receiving a medal of bravery from the town. A man had suddenly fallen to the ground outside of the church near McGreevey's shop. Someone called for the police and a passerby who happened to be a doctor ran over and checked for vital signs. When she found none, she ran into the church where there was a defibrillator. Now this was all occurring during evening rush hour and the streets were filled with cars, the ambulance was unable to get through and brave McGreevey ran into the street and began directing traffic to a side street so the Garda could get through. Frank joked that McGreevey must've taken his cash register out with him, and the men had a good laugh at that. But ultimately they all confessed that they now had the up most respect for him and would certainly stop by his shop to congratulate him.

After the morning meal we took a good walk around town and attempted to do some shopping. We purchased a few trinkets and headed back to the B&B, packed up our room, and set out for Ballintubber, the oldest continuously open church in Ireland. Daily for 800 years mass has been held. It was founded by St Patrick, is older than Westminster Abbey, and survived bombings by Cromwell. The grounds were surrounded by centuries old family plots, and ruins from when it sustained damages during the 17th century. While we were there, people were setting up for a wedding that was scheduled for later that evening. The sky's opened up, so we sought refuge in the car and decided afternoon tea at a castle sounded grand.

Ashford Castle isn't like anyplace I have ever been. It was built in 1228 but is more modern than the previous castles we had visited. It is now a luxury hotel hosting the likes of the Jolie-Pitt's, John Wayne, Grace Kelley, Queen Mary and King George, Pierce Brosnan, and countless others have had fairytale weddings. A footman greets you at the front grate to make sure you belong, then sends you through with instructions to drive across the bridge and ask for David he will assist you from there. David, a doorman, welcomed us to the castle and invited us to have a seat in the luxuriously appointed entry room while he checked to see if there was availability for tea. Fortunately for our pockets tea was booked, but David suggested we inquire with the Cottage, just beyond the castle wall to see if we could find lunch there. He curiously asked where we were from and was delighted to hear Los Angeles. We spent a few minutes recounting our trip thus far and then he had a great number of questions concerning our weather and fires. He bid us farewell and off we went to the Cottage.

The Cottage was totally empty and the staff were delighted to see us. The inside was tastefully decorated and had modern aire despite being centuries old. We ordered a craft cider, soup of the day and a panini. The Irish don't exactly grasp what panini is, but boy are their soups delicious. Allison's cream of broccoli was easily the yummiest soup of the trip. We watched the rain begin to blow down sideways and decided dessert was in order. The scones were brilliannt, baked fresh to order served with clotted cream and jam. In heaven you can bet every afternoon I'll be enjoying those scones with a pot of Earl Grey. As the rain lightened we took a short jaunt around the property then set off for Athlone.

Athlone was an eclectic ethnic city and reminds us of Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco but without the drugs. The buildings are brightly painted orange, purple, royal blue, and the left bank area.of Athlone is 4 tiny blocks (across the bridge is a Sheraton and the second biggest mall in Ireland). Left Bank is home to the Castle which was built for King John (of Robin Hood fame), St Peter's Church with more Harry Clarke stained glass, Sean's Bar the oldest bar in Ireland (Guiness World Book dates it to 900AD), and a slew of niche shops (liturgical book binder, Rigpa Tibetan Buddhist meditation center, and Viking Ship day cruise. Our B&B occupies two buildings across the street from one another, one is a dorm style house with shared bathrooms above an art gallery and yoga studio, and ours is in the meditation center and is a studio flat with ensuite. The little apartment is decorated like an Ikea catalog.

Athlone is a happening place on Saturday so we immediately turn our attention to securing a reservation for dinner. We were able to get a 7:20 reservation at The Locke, a gourmet Irish restaurant inside of a 150 year old Anglican church. Dinner was superb and the setting was lovely. Notably there were large parties all around us. One was a group of 5 couples, and right next to us was a large "hen party". We soon discovered that hen parties were growing in popularity and often the bride and her group of friends go out to a.lovely dinner followed by a night of drinking at the local pub. Based on the parties in the streets that fastest well past midnight Athlone is a destination for such events.