Ireland


      Bunratty Castle
Above: The castle at Bunratty, which overlooks the Shannon Estuary, was once home to Admiral Penn
and his then infant son William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania.  Today, the castle is open to tourists
and showcases 14th to 17th century furniture, paintings and wall hangings.
Above: My family pose with a traditional Irish phone booth outside the Blarney
Woolen Mills in the village of Bunratty.  This store stocks every 'Irish' gift
imaginable to include sweaters and crystal.
Above: My family poses in the Bunratty Folk Park, which adjoins the castle.  It is a reconstructed
traditional Irish village with cottages, a forge and working blacksmith, weavers and butter makers.  There
is a complete village street with post office, pub, and small café.  Some buildings were transplanted here
from old settlements on what is now the site of Shannon airport. Peat fires glow romantically in the
hearths and there's a persuasive feel to it all.
Above: Bunratty Castle's Great Hall hosts medieval banquets, replete with harp players, court jesters, and
food a la the Middle Ages, all washed down with mead, a kind of honey wine.  You eat with your fingers.
The whole thing is thoroughly enjoyable, taken in the right spirit!