FISHES AND CASTLES – Donegal Excursion
Up early – I love these early mornings – into the dining room for a good hearty breakfast and everyone is looking forward to our excursion.
We pass Ballyshannon, Donegal and stop at Ardara to see a handloom demonstration – I am not interested but there are a lot on the tour that are, BUT there is a shop that has loads of hand knitted jumpers. The patterns on the jumpers all denote a family. Reason for this being that if a fisherman was lost at sea and then his remains found, people could identify to what family he belonged. There is also a part of the shop that deals in jewellery so I think – maybe another ring? Something with an Irish theme? Looking around – I spy an Irish Claddagh ring with an emerald. It fits perfectly – and I take that to be an omen – so I buy it. The claddagh meanings are - the heart denotes love; the hands – friendship; and the crown – loyalty. Enough spending.
South to Killybegs – a large fishing port. There are huge fishing vessels moored at the quays - monstrous beasts that sail the seas in all kinds of weather. We are told that today is not a working day but when the boats are working the smell of fish is strong enough to take your breath away. Needless to say I’m glad they are not working. We get to walk around the docks and take some photos of the boats. There are some shops that sell all things nautical but nothing really takes my eye and it is soon time to get back on the coach and we are off to Donegal. 
The scenery is wonderful and we see a lot of ‘round towers’ like we saw on Devenish island – see photo on the right. We enjoy the countryside as we drive along and our Tour Guide Paul is always a wealth of information. He even narrates stories for us that are set in or around the area in which we are travelling. This is a great trip!
We arrive in Donegal and stop to get some good views of the ruins of O’Donnell Castle. We don’t go in – just stand on the roadside near the coach and take photos. After all the misty weather isn’t it great that I finally get lots of blue sky in the photos – I’ll have to keep my fingers crossed for the remainder of the tour.
Not much happening today – bit of a rest time to catch our breath. Am glad to get back to the Hotel and the comfort of my nice big bath.
Highlight of the day: Killybegs
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