Beautiful Ireland

This is the inside of Ashford Castle, very fancy and very European.  We had to dress for dinner.  It was fun but the food was a challenge since most of it was very bland.  I did, however, discover some things I had never heard of before that were really delicious... salad with edible flowers and cucumber sandwiches ... YUM! 

One afternoon we sat in front of the windows and ate pickle and cheese sandwiches. They were wonderful. My kids literally inhaled them.  When I ordered another plate the waitress looked at us like... "You Americans eat too much!"  We didn't care, we were starving.

In one of the hotels there was a full suit of armor positioned just to the left at the bottom of a large staircase.  I would forget that it was there and every time I went down the stairs it would startle me.

This was my favorite place... The Park Hotel, Kenmare, Kerry County.  It was beautiful but not quite so formal.  The best part was that behind the hotel was an amazing garden of flowers that covered at least an acre.  There was a small path through the garden that led directly to the sea.  It felt like I was in an old painting.

Our room