Adare, Ireland

After leaving Blarney Castle we got on the road for our next destination, Adare.  We were going to stay at the Adare Manor for two nights, right outside of Limerick.  

The drive was really nice.  The scenery reminded me of Vermont.

We decided to stop at the Rock of Cashel, which was a little out of the way, but we had seen it on our drive down from Dublin and it looked pretty neat.  

St. Patrick's Cross

By this time the temperature had dropped and it was a little bit misty.  Being up on the rock we were exposed to the cold wind and I didn't really enjoy this site, mainly because of the unpleasant temperature.  We decided to stick around and follow one of the tours.

I love the architecture

A map of the grounds

A view outside, it was so windy we tried to stay under the little shelter that was available

Cool paintings hidden underneath, you can see some coming through

Rock of Cashel

We eventually got back on the road so we could get to Adare at a reasonable hour.  We were really hungry at this point.  Luckily we had leftover snacks from Celeste's (Sean's mom) out of town bags from the wedding hotel.  We filled up on peanuts and a granola bar.

A little black sheep we saw on the drive

We arrived at Adare Manor late afternoon, and we were excited to check in and relax.  

The view driving in

The woman brought us up to our room and we had two double beds and a very basic room.  We looked at each other, and then Sean spoke up.  He informed the woman that we were on our honeymoon, and asked if there was a king or queen bed available.  

She left to check and luckily there was one king room left.  This room was the owner's favorite and it overlooked the garden outside.

View from the door

View of the garden

We got situated and then decided to have a drink downstairs in the bar.  We freshened up and then got ready for dinner.  We had reservations at the Carriage House, which was in the clubhouse, which was on the same property as the Manor.  Yeah, no driving for us!  The weather wasn't ideal so we had one of the staff drive us over.  We both enjoyed a few drinks and a delicious dinner.

After dinner we came back to the room and our bed was turned down.  It was wonderful.  They pulled our shades, opened the bed, slippers by the bed, and chocolates just for us!

Who doesn't like a turned down bed?

This, I could get use to!

Yum, Chocolates!

We weren't super tired so we decided to check out the pool.  We had a quick swim, and wanted to use the Sauna, but it didn't work so we just went back upstairs, and I enjoyed my chocolate (I had saved mine for after the swim).

Sunday morning we slept until about 8:30 and went down to breakfast.  We both had poached eggs benedictine, and at least 3 cups of tea!  It was delicious.

We decided to take a walk around the grounds.  

We had to sneak underneath a fence, to get to the golf course next to the property.   There were quite a few people out playing golf.  One guy offered to let Sean hit a ball, but he was being sarcastic, because the guy was left handed.  Little did he know, Sean was left handed too.  

We really enjoyed walking around, talking and enjoying the sunshine.

We thought this bridge was really pretty

A view of the entire Manor from our walk, the left side is the original building, and the right is an edition they put on when they decided to make it into a hotel in the 70's.

Pointing at our room

I love self timer!

After our walk we went back to the room for a little relaxation, and to take some notes so we would remember what we did each day.  We had tea time set up for 2pm, so a little before 2 we went down to the main area to have our tea, sandwiches and deserts.

Enjoying my tea

Sean shows off our big array of sandwiches and deserts

Tea time was definitely one of our favorites during our trip.  It was nice to relax, eat and just enjoy each other's company.  

After tea time we took a tour of the manor and learned some history.  The tour was open to all guests staying, but we were the only ones that went, so it was like we had a private tour.  We talked with the bellmen for a little bit.  He was the cutest old man ever!  I wish I had taken a picture, but he wasn't there on Monday when we checked out, and I hadn't had a chance to take a picture before then.
After the tour we had just a little bit of time, and then we had our massages that were at 5pm.  They were definitely appreciated and a nice end to a relaxing fun filled day.
For dinner we decided to walk off property into the town of Adare.  We ate at a local pub, Aunty Lena's and we were hoping to enjoy some live music, but I was too tired.  The music was supposed to start around 9:30, but I couldn't stay awake any longer, so when the music still wasn't on at 10 we decided to head back to the manor.  
While we were at the pub we did meet a Vermonter!  Alice from VT works at Essex Physical Therapy, and apparently noticed my awful posture and came over to talk to me.  It definitely is a small world!