I wanted no part of driving on the wrong side of the road (several of which were glorified pedestrian walkways), in pouring rain and learning to shift with my left arm. (I never did consider which feet went with the brake and accelerator pedals.) Carol was afraid we’d be missing some stunning Irish views […]

  My first drink order in my first pub on my first night  in Dublin was for a “Black and Tan.” The very first pint order. I might just as well have been in Belfast and ordered a Car Bomb. The thing is, I knew better. I knew “Black and Tan” referred to a Protestant […]

  Since I don’t write travelogs as such, I don’t feel bound by chronology or geography in recounting our Irish trip. Suffice it to say, the “chopped up” method of travel has worked out just fine. And then, quite on its own dynamic, it has now morphed into a more formal itinerary as the rhythm […]

  Carol remarked on our second day in Ireland that this trip so far seemed “chopped.” I conceded her point, keeping my own thoughts on the subject to myself. Namely, “chopped” is exactly the way I wanted this trip to unfold. The Guiness Brewery bar. Perfect combo of sightseeing while having a pint   Ireland […]

  We stumbled on a pub in Dublin’s Temple Bar section that was alive with  Irish guitar and fiddle music even in the late afternoon. We shuffled in among the  SRO crowd who were clapping and singing along to a lively Irish standard, and soon lucked into a table in a far corner with a site line […]

  Whatever Carol feels might be demonstrated as my wizardry when it comes to flying standby (and maybe that switch from Rome to Venice via our Eurail Pass to nab a couple of first class seats home might qualify), most assuredly went out the window when I stepped into the shower in our Dublin hotel […]

   Carol and I leave for Ireland this week. She continues to nudge Rick Steves’s guidebook Ireland my way, and I keep nudging it back. I’m not being an idiot, at least not in this case. I’m also not being a snob just because I’ve been to Ireland once. That was more than 50 years ago, and about […]

   If you’ve read these travel blogs of the past few weeks, and have gained nothing in terms of useful information, tips, perspective or growth at any level, then I’ve accomplished precisely what I set out to do.    I like the going.  Once there, I like the staying. A good accommodation – comfy couch, sizable fridge filled […]

   We had just settled into perfect seats in a nearly empty carriage when they came aboard and slid into seats just behind us. Until then, it had seemed like our last train ride in Europe would be a good one: seats in the direction of train and a quiet ride all the way into Sintra. […]

Photo credit: Carol Madigan    The bad news about Cascais is that it’s a beach resort. The good news about it was that if this was to be our last day in Lisbon, it meant we wouldn’t be daytripping to Sintra, which by all accounts was steep and overrun by selfie-crazed tourists (present company included) […]