Hey everyone! Sorry for skipping last Friday's post. The constant rain here in Manila has made it nearly impossible to photography anything using natural light, and since I have no artificial lights available, I've held off beauty posts for a bit. Keeping my standards for posts high by doing my best to use natural light!
Anyway, the third installment of my Europe 2016 travel series is County Clare, Ireland. My aunt's family lives in Clare and we stayed there half the time. Compared to Bray which is focused more on the city life, Clare was more focused on seeing more of what Ireland had to offer on the nature front. Believe me when I say that there was a lot.
Featured here are Lahinch, which is a beach great for surfing, and the Bunratty Castle and Folk Village. These two are actually a few kilometres from each other, but we went on separate days as my counsin's schedule dictated. I decided to save the Cliffs of Moher and Inisheer for another post, as it would have made this one far too crowded if I did.
Starting off with Lahinch! We were set to surf actually, something I've never done before, but due to the stormy weather (aka typical Irish weather), we just settled on a walk along the coast. I can't help but be relieved to be honest, as I can't imagine surfing in waters that aren't warm. It was also my first time to see the Atlantic Ocean. I guess it looks a bit more gray than the Pacific?
My uncle who drove us there, said that if we were to swim from the coast of Lahinch, we would end up in New York. Its so strange for me to think that America was so near, when it typically takes 13 hours to get to the West Coast from Manila.
There's something about European roads that is just so picturesque. I have tons of pictures when we were on the way to different destinations, and they all came out beautifully.
We stopped for a bit in a town called Ennistimon. The falls with the bridge in the background provided a great photo opportunity, so you bet that my cousins and I took about twenty or so pictures.
Lahinch! It was incredibly cold and windy here, which I was not prepared for at all. The coastline itself looked like it was out of a movie - no wonder so many long for houses by the beach. I would too, if the singing wind didn't scare me so much.
This view could be seen at the start of the trail of the Cliffs of Moher, which you'll see in another post. It's amazing how so many of these beautiful places are near each other.
Next is the Bunratty Castle and Folk Village. Being in Europe, it was one of my (many) priorities to see at least one castle. It was built by the McNamara clan in the 1400s, and is about 30 minutes away from my aunt's house. How insane is it to live so near a castle built during the medieval times?
Unlike the day we went to Lahinch, the day we visited Bunratty was pretty hot by Irish standards, which was 25ºC! While I've been in much hotter temperatures, it still felt really hot considering we were used to 12-18ºC. Yay for less layers!
All the greenery just seems to make the place a lot more fantasy-like. The sunlight in Europe as well, no matter what time of the day, makes everything look so soft yet so alive.
Most of the inside of the castle was so difficult to photograph to be honest, may it be due to lack of light, lack of space for a decent picture, or both. It did feel like something out of Game of Thrones (though I only ever watched one episode, sue me).
This was the view from the top of one of the towers. I would never get sick of this view if I had this through my window.
One part of the Folk Town was a Fairy Village! It's all quite adorable because there was everything from miniature doors to houses to not-so-secret entrances. My friend Ena would have loved this as she has always been interested in fairies!
Best part was that there were so many great spots for pictures like these! I felt like I was a part of Arrietty, which is one of my favourite movies from Studio Ghibli. The scenes at the garden were the best!
That's it from me today! What about you guys - have you ever been to a castle? Or a beach that's warmer or colder than what you're used to?
That's it from me today! What about you guys - have you ever been to a castle? Or a beach that's warmer or colder than what you're used to?
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