We had a few days left in our trip so we stopped in Waterford and Bray before heading back to Dublin. Waterford had a lot of things to see and do related to vikings and Bray is a seaside resort town.
WATERFORD
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| Viking tower, called Reginald's Tower, dates from the year 900! This is the view from the Tower Hotel, which we loved! |
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| Waterford crystal is made here - we went on a wonderful factory tour! |
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| One of the few pieces of colored Waterford crystal. |
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| Molds for crystal pieces |
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| Design and cutting area |
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| Viking longboat by Reginald's Tower |
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| They even have a piece of the Twin Towers from NYC as a 9-11 Memorial! |
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Strongbow and Aoife statues
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| In the Viking Triangle, there are several attractions to see, including this carved giant sword. It is right next to an old church ruin and other attractions. |
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| Strongbow and Aiofe again - outside the Medieval Museum. We learned more about the history of Waterford in the museum, but it wasn't our favorite thing there. Strongbow and Aiofe were from England and Waterford Ireland and their marriage in 1168 solidified the relationship between the two countries. |
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| There was a bit of sun in the forecast, so we drove a short way to Anne's Valley. We walked in Anne's Valley to Dunhill castle ruin. We had the place to ourselves! |
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| One of my favorite pictures, looking out of the castle! |
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| The morning we left, we stopped by a Friday market in St. Olaf's Hall. We got some homemade goodies! |
ON THE WAY TO BRAY
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| We stopped in Enniscorthy for lunch at a charming little cafe called Toffee & Thyme. Delicious! |
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| I got some "biscuit cake" to go! It was kind of like vanilla wafers encased in chocolate almond bark. |
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| It was raining so we didn't stop, but Enniscorthy Castle looks awesome! |
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| Next stop: Wicklow This is the castle by the sea and there's not much of it left! It was windy and rainy but we enjoyed exploring the area for a few minutes and walking down by the little lighthouse. |
BRAY
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| The rocky beach in Bray - so pretty! Lots of hotels along here that enjoy the views. |
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| Our hotel, which has some beauty and charm to it, although the rooms are 80's style. |
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| Somebody was a little hangry so we stopped to get a treat! |
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| There is a walk along the sea (on a good path) to Greystones, or a more difficult path up to the cross. After the ice cream The Hubs was ready for a challenge and so we took the steep, rocky and muddy (in some places) trail up to the cross. We got some great views! |
We ended our stay in Ireland this time with a wonderful meal at a seaside restaurant with great views, Butler and Barry. Exploring these little towns in Ireland has been wonderful! Even if we only have a day or two in these places, it's worth it. I really love the places in Ireland I've gotten to see and look forward to returning and exploring Northern Ireland!
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