Slight Detour: A Wee Taste of Ireland

The view from our window in Kildare.

Sean said to mention his name. So I shall.

He remembered me from the last time we stayed at Silken Thomas in Kildare and the Internet didn't work.

They fixed it, but apparently the image of the "blog lady" stayed in his brain, and when we walked into the restaurant to have dinner, Sean remembered me.

I must say that our Internet is doing just fine this time. Thank you, Sean, and thank you Beata for setting us up in this beautiful room again.

We love the room, and our dinners were very tasty and satisfying.

Our stay here is short.

First thing tomorrow morning, we'll board the bus again, head back to Dublin Airport and fly to Santiago, Spain, where Annie will be waiting for us.

At the present time, every aspect of our trip has been running on fast forward with little time in between the next leg of the journey.

Our flight from Spokane Friday was an hour late AND we also learned in Spokane that we could not send our luggage straight through to Dublin as we had in the past.

Apparently, Alaska Airlines abandoned that service three months ago, which meant that when we arrived in Seattle an hour late, we still had to retrieve our luggage and wait through a long check-in line where we again checked our luggage.

Then, we had to go through TSA again--another long, long line.

For a while, we worried that we would miss our flight to Dublin BUT on the last SLOW escalator to the gate, a man behind me commented about how they hadn't fixed the escalator for two weeks.

I turned around and saw that he was wearing uniform. He was one of Aer Lingus pilots who would be taking us to Ireland. He assured me that we had at least 15-30 minutes left.

So, we made it to the plane and our seats and then sat there for about 45 minutes. The passenger number did not match the log, so they spent time to make sure that it was correct.

All that said, we arrived in Dublin on time. It always feels so good to be back in Ireland. We felt at home immediately.

After going through customs, we had to figure out where to catch the bus that would take us to Kildare. That aspect all worked out just fine, and we enjoyed the ride through neighborhoods of smaller towns south of Dublin.

It's always good to get back to Kildare and to see the people here at Silken Thomas who have become friends.

But we must move on, and tomorrow, the real adventure for Bill and me begins with our first trip to Spain and especially to spend the time with Annie who has walked so much of Spain over the years.

Plan to see photos on Facebook added to the same post over each day. Plus, I'll post on the blog when time and wifi allow it.

So, tonight (Saturday in Kildare) I'll post a few photos, call it good AND, oh yeah, get some sleep IN A BED.

Beata arranged for our room as she has done before.

Blessed is Beata, a lady with a truly beautiful soul.

Thank you, as always, Beata, for making life at Silken Thomas a special experience.

The best place to stay or dine in Kildare Town, Ireland

St. Brigid's Cross

Kildare is the home of St. Brigid's Cathedral.

Next to St. Patrick, St. Brigid is a most beloved patron saint of Ireland.

Much of her story is myth; some is true, but the reverence toward her is endless.

And, she takes care of the livestock, even U.S. National Champion dressage horses named Pache!

Brigid is also a common name across Ireland, and the shortened, nickname version: Bridie.

I know a beloved Border Collie named Bridie.

There's a little bit of betting on the horses that goes on in Ireland. We walked into a local establishment last night just to get a feel for what goes on, but we placed no bets.