Beautiful Brisbane

View from the Botanic Gardens, Brisbane

Roscommon



Roscommon Gaol

Today we had lunch at the Roscommon Gaol, where my great-great-great-grandfather was condemned to death (see yesterday's blog entry).  Luckily this sentence was commuted.  When we visited this gaol in 1994 it was still obviously a gaol, but today it contains shops and restaurants.

Also went to Roscommon Castle, in ruins, and now a lovely public park complete with children's playground and adult exercise equipment.

Now back in Dublin, and tomorrow on the plane to Australia - this holiday was too short!

Tracking down the ancestral home

Abbey Hotel, Roscommon

We've just come from drinking Irish coffee beside an open fire in this 18th century manor house in Roscommon - feeling very mellow!  The view directly outside our window is of a 12th century abbey (the hotel is called the Abbey).

We travelled today from Westport to Roscommon, via Rooskey and Kilglass parish, where our ancestor, Francis Hanley, lived from 1805 to 1835.  In 1835 he and two mates planned an uprising against the British rulers, and stole a gun from the Protestant minister - Francis and his mates were all Catholic, and Catholics were not allowed to own guns.  They were caught and sentenced to death, later commuted to life imprisonment in Australia.  Francis Hanley was set free after 14 years and married a girl who had come out to Australia in 1849 on the "Earl Grey" ship for "Irish Orphans".  Jane Hogan had been in the Ballymanagh (Ballymena) poorhouse in County Antrim, but because of the Famine was sent off to marry one of the convicts who were finishing their sentences and probably causing trouble as there were too few women in the colonies.

The view from our hotel window - ruins of Roscommon Abbey

Francis and Jane settled down and had lots of children.  Unfortunately Jane died in childbirth with child no 8, but Frank took care of all the children and eventually established himself as an upright citizen.  Their eldest child, Catherine, married an Irish Protestant, which probably would not have happened if they had remained in Ireland.  Catherine was my great-great-great-grandmother.

In 1994 Alek and I attended the Hanley (Ainle) clan rally in Rooskey, the seat of the Hanleys, meeting all the Irish, British and American Hanleys.  Many had left during and after the Great Famine.  Evidence of this is all about in this part of the country - the land has been divided into smaller and smaller plots, there were more than 8 million people in Ireland at the time, today there are only around 4.5 million.  Subsistence farming was the norm, but with the tiny plots for each family, disaster was just around the corner.

Strokestown, the location of the National Famine Museum, is only a few kilometres from the location of Francis Hanley's family plot, as this was one of the areas hardest hit by the famine.  If he hadn't been a naughty boy and been sent to Australia, he probably would have been amongst the millions who died of starvation.

At the Hanley clan rally, people were encouraged to tell the stories of their ancestors.  Many of the Americans told of the Ballykilcline evictions, where hundreds of people from the Rooskey area were evicted from their land, and the lucky ones made it to America.  I was reluctant to tell the story of Francis, and began by saying "you may not want to hear this story, as Francis Hanley was the black sheep of the family, a convict in Australia".  When I finished my story, there were cries of "he wasn't the black sheep, he was an Irish hero!"  I suppose it depends which side of the equation you are looking at.

I have copies of the petitions made on behalf of the three who were committing "outrages" in the Irish countryside at that time, signed by their parish priest, Brian McDermott, and many of the upstanding citizens of Rooskey (also named as Russkey).  The details include the location of the house of the Protestant minister.  We tracked this down, at the time it was the largest house in the village.  Interestingly, it is now owned by the Hanleys!  We also looked for the Protestant church, but were told it had been dismantled by the Catholic population of the village as revenge for the repression by the British.

site of Francis Hanley's plot

It is now easier to find exact locations based on GPS, so we tracked down Francis Hanley's plot of land, which has recently been built on - good to see life again in these locations, when we were here in 1994 it was sad to see the tumbledown building left on the plots after the evictions and the famine.  There are many new houses and estates in and around Rooskey, which is located on the River Shannon.

We also visited the Kilglass cemetery, just outside Rooskey, where the Hanleys are buried.

Today we are travelling back to Dublin, then tomorrow we face the long trip back to Australia - but on reflection, it is not as long as the journey faced by the convicts back in 1836!

Bog-trotting our way to Westport

Galway

We started the day in Galway, a university city with an obvious medieaval past.  The city has a very fast-flowing river and I contemplated how dragonboating would work here, but concluded that going fast backwards would be the only result.

Travelled on many backroads to get to Westport, County Mayo.  Alek has renamed all the roads, which are:

• L (local) = lousy
• R (regional) = rough
• N (national) = nice
• M (motorway) = magic

The roads here have improved enormously, thanks to a huge injection of EU funds.  In 1995 there was only 2 kilometres of motorway, now they stretch across the country (but not to Westport, County Mayo).

Here in the west of Ireland, and in fact everywhere we've been, there are lots of new houses, and many beautifully restored and maintained older houses.  It's been really uplifting to see such changes for the better - we'll see what the future brings with the euro problems and the unemployment rate rising.  A great pity, as there seems a sense of optimism.  I've never seen so many B&Bs in my life, and they are all beautiful.  We've been staying mainly in hotels, as the off-season the rates are really good, but occasionally we've been in a B&B.

Croagh Patrick

In many parts of the country we have seen the cutting of peat from the bogs, great to see they are still using the old ways.  Country markets are everywhere, the ones here in the west seem to sell only hay and gumboots.

Westport is home to Croagh Patrick, where many pilgrims climb the rocky slopes on their knees as homage to St Patrick - I can assure you we are not here for that!

Today on to County Roscommon, the ancestral home of some of my maternal relatives, and then a final day in Dublin - sad for this journey to come to an end .... 

Ennis, Galway, and kicking the wall

We started the day in Ennis, County Clare, and now we are in Salthill, County Galway.  Ennis was a starting point for many who were transported to Australia as convicts.  There's a gaol which was known as the "Convict Depot" where many Irish began their long journey to Australia.  During Famine times, crimes were being committed deliberately to ensure a passage to Australia.  The Convict Depot is now a hotel, how's that for a drastic change of use?

Alek adding years to his life by kicking the wall

This afternoon we arrived in Galway and walked the Salthill Promenade, which ends by 'kicking the wall'.  Apparently it has become a tradition to do the 4km walk, kick the wall at the end, turn round and walk back.  Legend has it that kicking the wall adds years to your life.  Well, this is at least as likely as kissing the Blarney Stone gives you the gift of the gab!  We kissed the Blarney Stone last time we were here, so thought that doing it again might lead to being just too loquacious!

The County is encouraging the locals to do the walk as a fitness improver.  I'd read about it but didn't really believe it till I saw several people kicking the wall.  Here's Alek giving it a go.

Tomorrow to Westport, County Mayo.  Hard to believe this long journey is now coming to an end.

McGillicuddy's Reeks

Gap of Dunloe

When I was a small child, I remember reading in a book the name "McGillicuddy's Reeks" and thinking how exciting it sounded, though I didn't know what it meant.  I thought somehow that it was a swamp in Ireland.  But no, it's not, it's mountains in Kerry.  They are fairly inaccessible but we took a punt on a very narrow (one car wide) road and ventured to McGillicuddy's Reeks, and the Gap of Dunloe.  We were rewarded with amazing scenery, indescribable beauty and a deserted winding road.  I couldn't believe that I finally realised my childhood dream.

We also drove part of the famous Ring of Kerry, where we had been previously, so decided not to use the whole day for that. 

Thatched houses in Adare

We continued on to the "prettiest village in Ireland" - Adare, in County Limerick, passing by the Cliffs of Moher and Drumoland Castle, where we stayed during PM Keating's visit in 1993.

Lots of people speaking Irish in this part of the world - fascinating to hear such an ancient language, almost lost, but now revived.

We're now in Ennis, County Clare.  Tomorrow Galway!

Cork to Killarney (via Blarney, Cobh, Kinsale, Skibbereen, Bantry Bay, Kenmare and Glengarriff)

Kinsale, County Cork

A virtually unknown road in the west of Ireland is the trip between Bantry and Glengarriff, yet it is absolutely stunning.  The views are just amazing - Alek got some great video shots.  The other places we travelled we'd been previously, but went back to reminisce and to take some photos to show the boys - Kinsale is still just as pretty.

Cobh is the last place the Titanic docked in 1912, so of course they are gearing up for a big commemoration this year.  We took a car ferry between Cobh and Monkstown, but didn't see any icebergs ....

Tomorrow Limerick and Ennis, County Clare.

It's a long way to Tipperary



Johnston Castle, just outside Wexford

Today we travelled from Wexford through to Cork, passing through Waterford, Tipperary and Kilkenny on the way.

Interesting places were the Johnston Castle, Ormonde Castle, the only Tudor castle in Ireland, and the Opera House in Wexford, which has as its frontage a row of terrace houses.

At the pub tonight, people are speaking Gaelic, and we're only as far west as Cork - fantastic!

Wexford

Ferrycarrig Hotel

We had a day in Wexford, staying at a very nice hotel overlooking the Rosslare Harbour.  Ahead of this we travelled through the Wicklow Mountains, visiting the well-known Glendalough, as well as Avoca, which is the village featured in the Irish soap Ballykissangel.

We also went to see the house we lived in, which looks much the same as it did 15 years ago.

Our old house in Coppinger Wood, Stillorgan

We went to the Stillorgan Shopping Centre to take pictures for Pierre and Daniel, who enjoyed Eddie Rocket's (also known as Fast Ernie .... it's a long story), Papagallo's and Ping's.  We checked out the pub in Stillorgan where we used to drink Irish coffee.  It has the largest thatched roof in Ireland, and seems to be still going strong.

A good day!

Dublin

Marian O'Dea, of Plurabelle Paddlers, with "A Dragon's Tale"

Plurabelle Paddlers – friendship across the seas: Plurabelle Paddlers are Dublin’s equivalent to Dragons Abreast in Australia.  Plurabelle are the only breast cancer dragon boat team in Ireland, and perhaps even the only dragonboat team in Ireland.  Dragons Abreast Australia kindly donated a copy of our book “A Dragon’s Tale”.  Dragons Abreast ACT donated a DAA cap and some other items.  Australian Dragon Boat Federation donated a cap for each member of the team.   Marian O’Dea, founding member of Plurabelle Paddlers, is seen here accepting the gifts on behalf of her team.   They paddle in the Grand Canal Basin, which is only a few hundred metres from where we are staying.

Grand Canal Basin, only 500 metres from our hotel

We’ve had a lot of trouble with the phone, so apologies to anyone who has tried to call or text us on the Brussels number.  We gave up in the end and bought a new SIM card, and thus have a new number – please email us if you’d like to know this number.

We’re staying at Pearse Hotel on Pearse Street, which I have to admit when I first saw the area I thought was a bit rough, but it has been upgraded considerably and is only 2 streets back from the River Liffey. 



Oliver St John Gogarty in Temple Bar (David, eat your heart out!)

Yesterday we walked into town from here along the Liffey, a lovely scenic walk, and also saw many of the sights of Dublin, including Molly Malone, also known by the locals as “The Tart with the Cart”.  There are also statues and monuments in Dublin known as “The Stiffy by the Liffey” and “The Floozie in the Jacuzzi” (Anna Livia).
We wandered the streets of the famous Temple Bar district, crossed the Halfpenny Bridge, visited O’Connell Street, Grafton Street, Trinity College and St Stephen’s Green.  The first time we came to Dublin we stayed a week in Shelbourne Hotel, across the road from St Stephen’s Green.

On our first full day in Dublin, we celebrated Orthodox Christmas, first to church and then lunch with friends.

Following this we had dinner with some old friends from the International Women’s Club.
Today we’ll be revisiting our old home in Stillorgan, and then on to Wexford.

Magritte

Visited the Magritte exhibition at the Musee des Beaux Arts in Brussels, with Daniel and Laura.  A strange character, Magritte ....

Africa Museum

Yesterday we went to the African Museum in Tervuren.  The trip to the museum is via tram 44, which travels through the forest - the tram journey alone makes it worthwhile.  When we lived in Brussels, the boys had Wednesday afternoons free, so we often used to make the trip to this museum as both Pierre and Daniel loved it so much, together with the tram experience.  The journey itself was an adventure, heading into the dark forest to emerge into the lightness of Tervuren and the Museum.

The Museum itself is a product of colonial exploitation, which is one of the reasons I couldn't bring myself to take pictures - all those stuffed animals in glass cases.  In the past it was Belgium trumpeting its colonial triumphs, but today this has been toned down somewhat and there are some indications of apologies and reconciliation.  For example, there is a wall of names of Belgians who died during one of the inevitable conflicts in the Congo, but not a single name of a Congolese who died during the conflict.  Of course none of these have been recorded and not even the numbers are known with any accuracy, so to redress this somewhat there is a changing Powerpoint slide on the wall below which asks, in three languages "where are the names of the Congolese?"  Possible numbers are indicated by crosses which appear and disappear on the slide.  It is quite poignant, though my words can't express it adequately.

dragon boat with spears as paddles?

The only pictures I took were of the huge boat fashioned out of a single tree, which of course to my mind looks like a giant dragon boat designed for 100 paddles.  The main difference is that the paddles also serve as spears, which could come in handy at the end of a race!

If you want to know more about the Africa Museum, see http://www.africamuseum.be/home

Searching for squirrels, and another trip into town

We're preparing to leave Belgium, so packed up some of our stuff.  There's always a complication if you changed airlines at all, as suddenly we are overweight with our luggage.  Etihad allows us 23 kgs, while Aer Lingus allows only 20kgs.  So we'll have to pay excess on the trip to Dublin.  Of course the fact we have bought presents for everyone, as well as for ourselves, doesn't help our situation.

Etangs du Woluwe, on Ave de Tervuren

After this we walked down to Etangs du Woluwe, just for the walk and the scenery, but we kept an eye out for squirrels, and saw quite a few.  However, they wouldn't sit still long enough for me to photograph them.  Nice to know there is still urban wildlife.

After this we again caught the metro into town and had frites in the Grand Place.  We'll miss this, but I'm sure it will be better for my waistline not to eat frites and gaufres.

Television is similar to when we lived here - there are the Belgian French channels, the Belgian Flemish channels, the German, Luxembourg, Italian, British and Dutch channels, with the addition of Arabic, Turkish, Portuguese, Spanish and Greek.  The French are great at dubbing, though sometimes the voice doesn't seem to quite match the actor.  The Germans are also quite good at dubbing, it's interesting to see Paul Hogan speaking German or Arnold Schwarzenegger speaking French. 

The Dutch, however, favour subtitles, which could explain why they learn English so easily, the children are exposed to the sound from the beginning of their lives.  You often see very young children speaking entirely fluently in several languages, they will change languages for different members of their family.  All within seconds.  I don't know why we make such a big deal about children learning languages, they do it naturally until about age 12.  Which is of course when we normally start teaching children languages - once they reach high school!  Crazy, no wonder we're not good at them.

Tomorrow, the Tram 44 to the African Museum in Tervuren - haven't been there since 1989!

Amsterdam

We took the train to Amsterdam on Friday and came back late yesterday (Saturday).  Had a great time in Amsterdam, a wonderful city. Bit of a shock, even to old hippies like us, the number of 'seed' shops, the sex museums, and what we found lying on the footpath (see our photos, you'll be surprised).

Christmas-time on an Amsterdam houseboat

Loved the bicycle culture, and those Dutch bikes, so old fashioned, so practical in every way.  Plenty of spots to carry stuff, and I love the way children are catered for, on the front, in the safety of their parents arms.  I remember my father having a child's bicycle seat like that, it was a leather and metal contraption, but it was between the handlebars and the seat, so the parent's arms were shielding the child.

Also on the Dutch bikes, the children are normally in a wheelbarrow-type contraption in the front, not in a wheelie thing on the back, so the children can see, and the parents can see them - it seems more sensible than the ones we usually see in Australia.  And there are windshields on the front of bikes to protect children from the wind.

There are multi-storey bicycle parking lots, no wonder they've been able to bring down emissions, with bikes and a great public transport system.  The ferries are free for everyone, and since 1990, trains have been free for students.  Don't tell me socialism doesn't work!

a few of the houseboats we saw

As we only had the 2 days in Amsterdam, we did a lot of walking, but also took a canalboat tour.  I went a little crazy taking photos of houseboats, it's always been a dream to live on a houseboat in the middle of Amsterdam.

Lots of stuff going on in the streets, as it was New Year's Eve - Daniel and Laura are due back from Amsterdam tomorrow, so no doubt we'll hear more then.

Today was quiet in Brussels, though I did my usual long walk just to see what was going on.  Tuesday will be back to work for most, and back to normal.

Bonne Année à tous!