Moran's Oyster Cottage at County Galway, Ireland

The Cliffs of Moher on the west coast of Ireland rise over 700 feet with a sheer vertical drop. Now if there is ever a need to switch off your lights in style, this is the place to make that jump. A good time to do it would be at about 6.00 in the evening as one is able to catch the setting sun in all its wondrous glory before meeting your maker.

Y




Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with gold and silver light,



The blue and the dim and the dark clothes
of night and light and the half-light,



I would spread the clothes under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;



I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

He Wishes For the Cloths of Heaven by W.B. Yeats (1865-1939)


Y


The air was tense.

"You haven't planned for the Ireland segment yet." It was more of a statement than a question. We were due to fly from London to Dublin the next day.

I merely looked at him miserably and nodded my head. "I thought we could make it an adventure," I whimpered. "We could rent a car and drive around with just a map."

It sounded preposterous at that moment...a mere excuse for failing to make time to plan...but he let it pass.


Y


Without trying to justify my failure to execute my part of the deal with him, I have to say that the week in Ireland reminded us of how our holidays used to be. Not the part about the lack of planning, but the carefree feeling of not really knowing what tomorrow would bring, and the freedom of driving across the country and stopping whenever we felt like it. Thankfully, it wasn't the height of the tourist season, and so we were able to book our accommodation quite easily.

The best thing about a DIY holiday is the freedom to eat at restaurants of our choice. We pored over books and searched the internet for recommended eateries at the cities and towns we were visiting, and it certainly helped that the Blakes were around to give us a helping hand. Several restaurants caught our fancy. One such restaurant was Moran's Oyster Cottage at The Weir, Kilcolgan, County Galway. Dating more than 250 years, Moran's is located at an inlet of Galway Bay and has since expanded its menu to include, in addition to oysters, other types of seafood such as crabs, lobsters and mussels. Apparently (and there was photographic evidence gracing the stone walls of the plainly decorated restaurant), the restaurant has been graced by the likes of famous people such as Roger Moore, Pierce Brosnan, Woody Allen and the Emperor and Empress of Japan. Fuiyoh.



Thankfully, prices were reasonable enough to enable us to sample two types of oysters - raw, with a squeeze of lemon......



....and baked oysters with garlic and cheese.

I must say that the oysters were splendid. The Galway Bay oysters were moderate in size, but extremely fresh, plump and a delight to eat. The right combination of fresh water and salt water plus a sufficient amount of plankton creates the wonderful flavour that is associated with these oysters.



We couldn't leave without a taste of Bailey's cheesecake. A little bit of intoxication to contend with the glass of guinness, eh?



This is the view outside the cottage. Now this is what I call a holiday. :-)

As the dear Bard said, All's well that ends well, despite my obvious screwup in the planning. I do believe that I've been forgiven. Yes?