Caravan Holiday in Ireland Cont…

We had an excellent stay in Tramore , but on arrival on the Friday , which was bank holiday Friday I had an issue with the water supply coming through the caravan system, in that it did not!!! I went up to the site office and John, who is the owner of the site gave me a leaflet for Sweeney camper and caravan repairs based in Clonmel, Co Tipperary and Anthony operates a mobile repair service. I rang him at about 5.40pm on the Friday night and he would have been prepared to come out to the site to look at the van, but first of all he spent about twenty minutes going through various options to get the system working. Which fortunately for me it worked (saved a call out fee) and fortunately for him he did not have to tip out. So if you are in this part of Ireland here is his number 0526189621 or his mobile is 0858073130 if you have a problem. I hasten to add it is NOT a free service! Monday 7th of May We decided we would go into Waterford and we visited the Waterford glass works and went on a tour around the factory, it really was most fascinating and given that a lot of the work is still done by hand you can see why Waterford glass is very expensive. Also they have a very good retail shop and also a restaurant where we had a snack lunch. We also visited the Bishops palace and the medieval centre, both of which are worth visiting . Tuesday 8th of May We left Tramore and drove down to Blarney and we were booked to stay at the Blarney Caravan and Camping Park, on the outskirts of Blarney. This has to be one of the best sites we have stayed at so far. It is in the country as is gently sloping. The site is extremely well cared for and each pitch for a touring caravan had it’s own tap and electrical socket and they are well spaced out. The office is open from 09.00am to 21.00hrs each day . If you are staying here and want to go out in the evening and you know you are going to bed after 9,00pm you are given a key fob so that you can operate the barriers. There is a €10.00 Euro deposit for the key fob. You obviously get it back when you return the fob. In this area there is do much to see, there is of course Blarney Castle and the kissing stone, there is the woollen mill, which is a huge complex with a massive shop, restaurant, pub and ample free parking. Wednesday 9th of May Another lovely day, we decided to go and visit the John Jameson and son whiskey distillery( yes, I have spelt Whiskey correctly as this is Ireland, in Scotland it is spelt Whisky). We went on a tour of the factory and included in the price if your ticket is a taste of whiskey. On the tour we were on they selected 8 people to taste 3 different whiskeys , Jameson’s, Johnny Walker Black Label and Jack Daniels, the eight had to decide which they liked best!!! I leave it to you to think which Whiskey, Bourbon, or Whisky the eight preferred! We were there and knew the answer, I leave it to you to decide!! It was a fascinating visit and again well worth the money and time. Thursday 10th of May Today it was another beautiful day, so we decided to go to Cobh (pronounced Cove) . This place had a fascinating history, it was the last port of call for The Titanic before it set sail across the Atlantic having previously calling in to Cherbourg. In those days the town was called Queenstown (after Queen Victoria) here The Titanic took on 123 passengers many of whom were Irish folk travelling 3rd class to New York for hopefully a better life, from memory only 3 travelled first class which in today’s money would cost $69000.00. There is the old ticket office for the White Star Line, the owners of the Titanic, where again you can do a very good tour. Friday 11th of May We sadly leave Blarney to travel down to Glenbeigh in the ring of Kerry …… to be continue…