The day after arriving in Galway we set out to visit the Kylemore Castle and Victorian Walled Garden. This was probably the first time we came face to face with the reality of Irish folks' form of directions. The people of Ireland are so very warm and helpful that they sometimes overinflate their knowledge of the terrain, how much time is needed to get somewhere and what roads to take. This was also the first time it really set in that Ireland does not h...

The journey across went effortlessly.....not much time between flights but oh well! Met up with Eric at SFO and away we went to our first destination of Shannon, Ireland. The flight seemed very quick and we were energetic when we arrived on the Green Isle. We picked up our crossover (Irish for small SUV in which five adults will barely fit) and alowed the gentleman to talk us into renting a GPS.....a decision we were thankful for over and over again during the...