Cliffs, caves and hurling

What an action packed day we've had.  Up early and a quick breakfast of scrambled eggs before we rushed out the door for our last day of sightseeing.

Jenny drove Tom and I out to the coast for a whirlwind tour of some very impressive sights.

The first place we stopped was the Portal Tomb, a tomb from the Neolithic Era.  The limestone covering the ground was amazing geology as water has cut millions of small ravines into the rock.

Then it was into the dark of the Aillwee Cave.  A man named Jack MacGann discovered this cave in his field in 1940, but didn't tell anyone until 1970-something.  At that time he was speaking to cavers from Bristol University and he though they would be interested in what he found all those years ago.  I think he is a brave man going deep into the caves with just a candle.  At one point of the tour the guide turned out the lights and I couldn't see a thing.  It was a bit scary, especially as your eyes can never adjust because there is absolutely no light.  I was glad when the lights turned back on and we got to see a pretty waterfall.

Once out of the caves we raced down to the bird show.  They flew an owl, an eagle and a falcon for us.  I was a bit sad I wasn't chosen to have the eagle fly onto my arm, but they seemed to prefer the cute little kids.  The birds were impressive and it was fun watching the trainers fly them about.

Next stop on our tour, the Cliffs of Moher.  What an impressive sight!  These cliffs are absolutely gorgeous standing proudly out of the Atlantic. We were very lucky to have the sun shinning, it made the cliffs that much more magnificent.

        

This evening we went and watched a sport I hadn't ever heard of before coming to Ireland, Hurling.  This is the most popular sport here in Ireland; everyone plays it.  James coaches an under 16 team and they are who we went to watch.  I was impressed at how these boys could flick the ball up with their sticks, called hurly to catch it.  And then, how they could run whilst balancing the ball on their hurly.  It's a fast paced game and went by very quickly.  James' team came out with the win.  It was close though, they were behind at the half and finished only two points ahead.  I also enjoyed the brilliant rainbow that shone during part of the game.  Silly me though, I'm in Ireland and I didn't go looking for my pot of gold.

It's late now, half ten and just getting dar.  I think it's time for bed; we need to be up at six for our early morning flight back to England.  Good night.

Love