Limerick: Modern meets Medieval

Even though life on the farm is great, I've been quickly realizing that I really am a city girl at heart. After a few days with nothing more than country walks, ice cream and Sopranos reruns to entertain us, I felt we needed an urban interlude. So, we ventured into Limerick to search for gluten free digestive biscuits (a must for the many tea breaks the Irish take), a pint of Guinness and return to sanity. We found everything we'd wanted and more.

Our host farmer, Mike, was surprised to discover how young a country Canada is. It's no wonder, considering all the marvellous history at his doorstep. Limerick is a grand mix of 13th century architecture and modern structures.

a view of Limerick from River Shannon

King John's Castle, located in the heart of Limerick

I just can't seem to escape :)

Bobby Byrne's Pub
It was here that I had my first bite of beef in almost 20 years (the Irish know how to make a burger!)

Our Trip into "Town"

We're really enjoying the solitude of the farm, lots of time to think (about our next wacky adventure).  However, sometimes we need to have an outing and reconnect with civilization.  For us the closest civilization is a 30 minute walk away to the nearest "town", Dromkeen.  It consists of a gas station, barber shop, and furniture store - that's it!  Luckily the gas station store has all the the staples: wine and ice cream.

bustling Dromkeen city centre

Dromkeen doesn't have much, but it does have ICE CREAM!  Here's MB pulling a "Linda" (licking the plate/bowl/yogurt tub, or in this case ice cream wrapper down to the last drop).

Germany has the autobahn, but Ireland has ridiculous speed limits that cannot be reached if you want to keep your car on the narrow winding country roads.  We expected our walks into town to be calming strolls along a peaceful country road.  Instead, what we encountered was a death trap.  The road is barely wide enough for two cars to pass by with no sidewalk or shoulder.  This wouldn't be a problem except cars zoom by at crazy speeds and pedestrians need to hop out of the way to avoid impact.  Don't worry Mel, I'm keeping Mari-Beth safe by insisting she walk furthest from the street (note from MB: Scott is talking the job of keeping me safe far too seriously).

80 KM/HR!  Right after this photo as taken a massive tractor drove by that took up the entire width of the road.