Ramblings-Donegal

Since February is the month of love, we have decided that this month for Wordless Wednesdays (which we missed yesterday) and our new weekly feature, Ramblings, we will focus on places in Ireland that we love.

Dictionary.Com defines the word Rambling as:

aimlessly wandering.
taking an irregular course; straggling: a rambling brook.
spread out irregularly in various directions: a rambling mansion.
straying from one subject to another; desultory: a rambling novel.

All of the meanings listed apply to both our style of travel and, more than likely, the way we will write about it. There is also a pronunciation guide on the website, but disregard it. In the South, i.e. Texas, rambling is pronounced ramblin. As with most Southern translations, the g on the end of the word is silent.

In our 2012 trip we included County Donegal in our ramblings around the Emerald Isle. Donegal is located at the top of the island and shares its Eastern border with Northern Ireland. It is a beautiful county and we visited it mainly for the scenic drives and to hike the cliffs of Slieve League.

We arrived in the town of Killybegs in County Donegal after spending a few days touring Northern Ireland. Killybegs is a beautiful, quaint, seaport town near Donegal Bay. The town's main source of income is generated by fishing in the North Atlantic Ocean.

When we arrived in the area we drove straight to Tullycullion Bed and Breakfast located a few minutes outside of town. We immediately fell in love with the proprietress of the B&B, her menagerie, and the B&B itself. At the time we were still looking for a home in Ireland and she spent quite a bit of time talking to us about the ins and outs of living in the country, including the taxes.

A beautiful and welcoming B&B. While it is currently closed to visitors, check out their link for a self catering option.

That night we drove into town to see the sights. The sights, for us, almost always include the harbor, the Garda Station and then dinner in a nice restaurant. We walked the streets for awhile and then had that dinner in a very nice restaurant in the Hotel Tara.

The views from the harbor were beautiful

We sat in the big bay window area and were treated to views of the harbor while we enjoyed our dinner

Our dinner was not only tasty, but also artistically arranged

Visiting Slieve League was the main item on our agenda the following day, along with traveling down the road a ways to our next destination. But, we couldn't leave Tullycullion without spending some time with the B&B's charming residents. The “security” for the B&B was this adorable pomeranian. A couple of donkeys were also both inquisitive and charming.

Slieve League, a mountain in County Donegal boasts some of the highest sea cliffs in Europe. It is quite the hike up to some of the higher scenic view points, but the photos were definitely worth it. The number of sheep dotting its slopes are epic.