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June 22, 2018
Tinsley House was perfect for us and Patsy and Liam couldn’t have been kinder hosts to us and especially the children. As we headed out of town we walked to end of the block and visited St. Mary’s Parish Church. It is an interesting 15th century church because there was a period of time after the Reformation where the church served both the Anglican and Catholic communities in Cahir. There is a curtain wall in the church that divided the two faiths during the service.
Old St. Mary’s Medieval Parish Church, Cahir
St. Mary’s as seen from the front door
Looking back from the curtain wall to the front door of the church
Next we thought that we would stop by Cahir Abbey, but the road was very busy with work trucks and wasn’t easy for parking. To visit you should park on Abbey Street just after the train track and walk down to the Abbey Street. Next time we come to Cahir we will visit, and do it early in our stay either earlier in the morning or later in the evening when the Timber Company is less busy.
After we got the day’s picnic supplies at Supervalu we headed north, destination: Clonmacnoise. We arrived mid-day after an unfortunate navigation error. I exited the small roundabout in the center of Cloghan (Co. Offaly) one exit early and ended up on the Bellmount Road instead of the N62 (to Ferbane and Athlone). To Sarah’s credit she immediately said “I don’t think this was the right turn” and I insisted it was signposted. The result was some tense wandering on some roads that touched the side of our car on both sides in places and a couple of interested/curious glances from the locals. On the positive side, we now know that where the road crosses the Grand Canal is very pretty (though no one was interested at the time). Eventually Sarah got us back on the the N62 without taking too much extra time though.
It was mid-day when we arrived at Clonmacnoise and we had not booked tickets online in advance (though I did check that morning and no time slots were sold out). When we arrived the car park was completely full and cars were beginning to line the circle outside of the car park. I went in and booked the next English language tour (the next tour that would happen would be in Spanish). That gave us about 35 minutes for lunch and to use the restroom. We ate our lunch on the wall next to the staff car park with Clonmacnoise Castle behind us and watched the tour buses navigate the shrinking circular road.
Clonmacnoise Castle greets you at the entrance to Clonmacnoise
Clonmacnoise Castle as seen from the monastery
A few minutes before our tour we used the restroom and then settled in for the introductory film. When the 20 minute film ended, our guide Katherine led us out. She was a great guide and interacted well with the children. At one point she asked a question about church architecture and Fionnuala (6) correctly answered. Her initial expression was shock and then she began to laugh as she said, “That’s the first time anyone has gotten that right.”
Clonmacnoise, Co. Offaly
The Cross of the Scriptures Replica
O’Rourke’s Round Tower, Clonmacnoise
The Whispering Arch
McCarthy’s Tower, Clonmacnoise
O’Rourke’s Round Tower
The Cathedral, Clonmacnoise
Temple Kelly, Clonmacnoise
The interior of Temple Kelly
Temple Ciarán, Clonmacnoise
The cross slab inside Temple Ciarán
One of many cross slabs that reside at Clonmacnoise
Temple Finghin and McCarthy’s Tower, Clonmacnoise
When the 30 minute tour ended we spent a little while exploring and taking pictures. We used the restroom one last time and then returned to the car to make our way to Athlone. We arrived at Shannonside House about 3 PM which is too early for check-in, but our host Linda showed us to our room anyway. The B&B is very nice, and large, and very clean. The only downside to this place is the bathroom isn’t very large and we only have two beds for tonight (instead of three).
Our room at Shannonside House B&B, Athlone
Two double beds
The bathroom
We took about an hour after I finished unloading everything from the car to cool down (it was 20° again) and relax. Then we headed downtown on foot in search of Sean’s Bar. Sean’s Bar is recognized by Guinness World Records as the Oldest Pub in Europe. The bar dates back to 900 and the city is named after the original owner. On top of that it is currently owned by two Donovan brothers. We had to stop in.
It was unclear to me whether they did food or not, so I asked and they don’t, but Tim the barman (I think he is one of the owners) recommended Smoke Barbecue around the corner. Coming from the south we thought we might not need “Southern Barbecue” in Ireland (haha). We went in to Sean’s and had a round of drinks, and considered a second but decided against it. We all had a great time and it was a shame to leave but we thought we needed to sober up the children after their Cokes.
Sean’s Bar, Athlone
We walked along the river to the canal lock and the salmon weir and then back down to Athlone Castle. We wandered around the part of the castle that doesn’t require admission a bit (until they began to lock up) and then went in search of a restaurant.
Athlone Castle, Athlone
Saints Peter & Paul’s Church, Athlone
Locked up in Athlone Castle
Maybe we shouldn’t have had those drinks at Sean’s!
Sarah chose Di Bella for dinner (which unknown to Sarah I had separately selected as a back-up previously in case Sean’s didn’t serve food!). Our meal was great and the service was wonderful. It was a perfect ending to a wonderful southern journey before we hit the Northwest tomorrow. The walk home from the restaurant was the perfect distance (about 10 minutes for an adult) on a nice evening.
Enjoying dessert at Di Bella in Athlone
Gealtacht, tá muid ag teacht!
Liam’s Highlight of the Day: Sarah chasing a fly out of our room in the B&B
Fionnuala’s Hightlight of the Day: Sean’s Bar
Driving time from Cahir to Clonmacnoise (with unintentional detour): 2:11
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