Set the alarm for 7:00, got dressed, and quietly made our way outside to see the morning sun on the water and green hills and sleepy sheep – we were quite close to the coast. Took some photos (this is a recurring theme), then went in for breakfast: sausage, ham, fried egg, fried soda bread, half a tomato, toast, coffee, and orange juice – whew! Got directions from Rosie and drove to the Carrick-A-Rede rope bridge. Hiked almost a mile from the ticket counter to the bridge, then climbed over and up onto the rock island. So cool! Hung out a bit looking at the sea and the cliffs and the caverns.
Drove further down the same road to Giant’s Causeway, bought our tickets, and hiked down to the rock formations!! Climbed around for awhile, then waited in line for the bus back up the cliffs – well worth the €1.30 apiece. Bought some postcards and started our long (~6.5 hour) drive southwest. The car wifi didn’t work in Northern Ireland, so we used Mom & Dad Z’s borrowed map (thank you!) and the GPS on my phone to track our progress. It was SO WINDY!!!
After covering a lot of territory and seeing some gorgeous countryside (with a couple of stops to stretch our legs), we finally made it to Cois Farraige B&B in Lahinch around 19:15. Our hostess here was also named Rosie! She pointed us to the beach walk and towards the town. Took a nice – albeit windy – walk along the coast, watched the waves and a brave surfer! Then to the main street to find a pub (there were more than five in a 2-block area) and settled on Kenny’s. I had the best seafood chowder of my life and of course more Guinness, while Corrie had cottage pie and Cloughmore Heather IPA – everything was amazing! Rainy walk back and climbed into bed. *yawn*
