The Cliffs of Moher, Inc.

Today we headed out from Ennis into an area called The Burren and towards the Cliffs of Moher. Unlike most of the time since we had arrived in Ireland, the weather was a bit cool and cloudy with a likelihood of rain. As we drove though small villages toward the Burren, we stopped at the ruins of an old Abbey and graveyard.

It was a surreal Irish moment – grey clouds, fog, an abbey on a hill, a graveyard full of Celtic crosses, countless ravens.After wandering around the graveyard, we departed and drove up the coast towards the Cliffs of Moher.









We passed through the holiday town of Lahinch for a quick view of the beach, the surfers and the shops.

Arriving at the Cliffs we encountered government-protected landscape at its finest – reminiscent of many US National Parks. The buses, the paid parking areas, the crowds. The facility is very nice, but it reminded me of Old Faithful or similar destinations You can’t deny the beauty but you feel little actual connection to the landscape.

We stopped for a lunch in Ballyvaughn and headed towards The Burren. The Burren is characterized by a strangely rocky landscape which contains the 5000 year old Poulnebrone Dolmen – a Neolithic/Bronze Age chamber tomb. It is about 15 feet high and while not on the scale of Stonehenge, certainly begs the question ‘What were these people doing trying to make a life way the hell out here?’

Leaving The Burren, we drove around Galway Bay and into the town of Galway. This bustling sea town was alive with Saturday evening shoppers and diners. We strolled the streets, stopped into shops and admired the buildings. Galway was an injection of energy we all enjoyed.

Back at the hotel in the evening, we enjoyed a nice dinner and a few drinks in the hotel pub. Strangely, there is little traditional Irish music being played in pubs. Instead, as was the case this evening, the musicians played keyboard-driven karaoke-grade American pop tunes to an appreciative local crowd. This is Ireland today.