07-03-2023 Killybegs, County Donegal, Ireland

A typical view of the rolling landscape of County Donegal

As mornings go, this one was simple and beautifully forgettable, as it should be.  Our breakfast in the Terrace Cafe was fine once we learned to eat fruit, bagels, and English muffins. For some reason, bacon seems to be an item that any cruise ship or any tour we have been on for the last 20 years hasn't managed to do right.  It is either limp, or overcooked, and has no flavor.  By this time, halfway through our cruise, we learned what to eat and what to avoid, and had a lovely time eating breakfast with a nice table by the window.  We actually slept in on this sparkling morning, with the curtains closed we had no idea what time it was and woke at 9.  That is unheard of for us.

These are the base towers for windmills that power most of County Donegal

Our port in Killybegs was at the dock, no tender was needed.  The seas had calmed as well, so there was no more rocking and rolling to contend with.  However, looking out over the port of Killybegs wasn't particularly exciting.  The cruise ship provided a bus for the 20-minute ride to the city center, but we had a tour of County Donegal at noon, so decided to relax on the ship until it was time for our tour.

This was our view of County Donegal from the bus in 2015

We were thrilled to get a different perspective of County Donegal, since in 2015 we simply saw it from the northeastern boundary on our way from Sligo to Derry, with the tour director pointing out the beautiful ocean far to the southwest, and regaling us with stories of the glorious County Donegal, home to artists and fishermen and beautiful rolling green hills.

Today we would see it differently, albeit still from the window of a bus.  Sometimes there is just no other way to get around to see some of the sights in a single day.

Our tour departed right on time just after 12:20 pm, and the tour director explained to us the importance of the wind turbines that provide almost all the power for this part of Ireland.  The huge blades are delivered to this port for distribution throughout Ireland.  We never did learn where the blades were made.

Moving quickly along the narrow roads, through the countryside, we saw coke ovens and heard stories about coal mining which was important at one time for this part of Ireland as well, but no longer.  Our guide had a strong Irish accent but was easily understandable.  He also had delightful Irish humor and made the 3.5-hour bus ride thoroughly enjoyable.

Amazed me how these tour bus drivers stay between the lines on these narrow roads

The drive was an immensely panoramic meander, following a circuitous route to the village of Crolly, and back.  Throughout the tour, we rolled through the heart of Ireland's second-largest county, a northwest landscape punctuated by sleepy villages, long valleys, and a rocky, barren coast.

We stopped at a rest area on the banks of a beautiful river.  When I took a photo of this sign, written in Gaelic, I thought it would help me remember the name of the river.  Instead, it is the name of the town nearby.

Leitir Mhic a Bhaird (anglicized as Lettermacaward) is a village in the Rosses region of County Donegal.   Understanding the Gaelic signs is not necessarily very intuitive.  It was a beautiful river, though, strongly affected by tides from the nearby Atlantic Ocean, and lined with green seaweed.  We were told that the seaweed is a sign of the good health of the river.  When it turns brown and dies, it means the river has a problem.

Here is a google map for reference, with the name of the river conveniently written in English.  We were on the banks of the Gweebarra River, closer to the ocean than I realized.  Usually I download an offline map for towns we are visiting where I won't have internet, but on this day I didn't do so.  It was a mistake because I had no clue where we were most of the time. Understanding the Gaelic signs is not necessarily very intuitive.  It was a beautiful river, though, strongly affected by tides from the nearby Atlantic Ocean, and lined with green seaweed.  We were told that the seaweed is a sign of the good health of the river.  When it turns brown and dies, it means the river has a problem.

The stop was a short one, with only ten minutes or so to exit the bus, take a photo or two, and right back on the bus, continuing through the village of Gweebarra. Here are a few bus window photos of some of the villages that we passed through on our route.

The Irish singer Enya, and her family, who make up the group Clannad, are from Crolly, and our destination was the pub in Enya's hometown, currently owned and run by her brother, who took it over when their parents retired.

Leo's Tavern is quite well known, with Enya often returning home for casual performances in the bar with her family.  Bono drops in now and then, and Paul McCartney has also been seen there.  There was quite a bit of name-dropping going on as we all entered the tavern and settled in for some music, some Irish dancing, and an Irish Coffee.

It was a fun time, and Mo and I chose again to sit at the bar for the festivities.  It was important to get another one of those bar mirror photos.  Not our first, and I hope not our last.

The young girl who performed an Irish jig for us was Leo's granddaughter.  My video isn't blog worthy but it is a charming remembrance for Mo and for me.  You can see her in the photo below with the long blond ponytail.

Enya's brother, seen in the photo above, introduced his older uncle (in the photo on the wall on the right) who played the accordion and sang an Irish ballad for us as well.  Overall, a delightful and relaxing visit to a fun place.

The 90-minute ride returning to the ship was beautiful, with many views of County Donegal.  It is a rural place that has been found by artists and creative people from all over the world.  In addition, with the advent of online work for many people, entrepreneurs working from home have discovered County Donegal.  

The area abounds with good entertainment, good food, and lots of art and music as would be expected in a place frequented by an artistic community of people.  Homes are not inexpensive, with rents running 1500 euros per month for a 2 bedroom apartment.  Rent creep is everywhere, I guess.

We returned to the ship just in time for the 5:30 PM departure from the port at Killybegs.  Our evening was another quiet one, with a simple dinner in the Terrace Cafe and the choice to skip the magic show in the Riviera Theater at 9:30 PM.  Once again, we relaxed on our veranda and enjoyed the slight motion of the ship as it sailed from the port of Killybegs into the Atlantic Ocean toward the Hebrides Islands of Scotland.