Our trip to Antrim and the Dingle Peninsula, Ireland
April 9-23, 2013
Travel from Dublin to Barbican Gatelodge in Glenarm
Wednesday, April 10
|
|---|
Barbican Gatelodge in Glenarm, County Antrim, Northern Ireland:
You are viewing PAGE 02 of this travelogue.
Here are links to the other pages. A new window will NOT open.
|
Page 03: Thu – Giant’s Causeway.
| |
|---|
|
Page 04: Fri – Bushmills, Dunluce, Waterfall in Glenarm Forest.
| |
|---|
|
Page 05: Sat – Drive from Antrim to Dingle, Murphy’s Pub.
| |
|---|
|
Page 06: Sun – Dingle and Music at Courthouse
| |
|---|
|
Page 07: Mon – Shopping in Dingle.
| |
|---|
|
Page 08: Tue – Loch a'Dúin, Doyle’s Restaurant, Music at Courthouse.
| |
|---|
|
Page 09: Wed – Cottage, An Canteen Restaurant, Michael & John at Mighty Session
| |
|---|
|
Page 10: Thu – Fenit Pier and Bana Beach
| |
|---|
|
Page 11: Fri – Inch Strand, Sammy’s Cafe, An Canteen, Music at John Benny’s.
| |
|---|
|
Page 12: Sat – Dingle, Dinner at Michael & Dara’s, Music at Courthouse.
| |
|---|
|
Page 13: Sun – Cottage, Global Village Restaurant, Dick Mack’s Pub.
| |
|---|
|
Page 14: Mon – Dingle, An Canteen Restaurant, Pack and Return Home.
| |
|---|
|
Page 01: Tue – Prep and Travel to Dublin.
| |
|---|
|
Page 02: Wed – Drive from Dublin to Barbican Gatelodge in Antrim.
| |
|---|
|
Original, all-on-one-page version.
| |
|---|
Press here to return to personal picture menu.
Travel from Dublin to Glenarm’s Barbican Gatelodge
Barbican Gatelodge
Wednesday, April 10
We landed on time and were the first to arrive at passport-control but there was an entire plane in front of us this year! The line moved quickly, and when we got to the baggage carousel both our bags were right there in front of us. We each grabbed one and loaded them on a cart. On our way out, they sent our bags through a scanner, questioning the amount of electronics we had. I don’t remember that from last year.
KC had a new phone, through his work, and wasn’t sure international service had been activated so we tested it and, sure enough, he did NOT have service. He used my phone, which did have service, to call the appropriate people. We got some Euros from the ATM, and snacks for KC at the convenience store, then went to get our car.
We used Hertz this year which was a big mistake. All their cars are in a remote lot, so we waited outside for their shuttle bus and when it finally arrived we were driven to Kishinev (euphemism for far, far away). We were given an Audi A3 – the only good thing about this experience so far. KC loves the A3. Then, we were offered insurance at FORTY EURO PER DAY. No wonder the rental was so cheap – €100 for ten days – there was no insurance included! Nada. We took the insurance, of course, but we don’t like surprises like that. Next year, we’re going back to Avis.
Our A3 had a turbo drive 200-horsepower turbo diesel engine
and a 6-speed manual Quattro (4-wheel-drive) transmission.
When we got to the car KC noticed lots of small damages – a piece missing from the front bumper, scratch marks on the rear, etc…so we asked the agent to make sure they were recorded. He told us it didn’t matter since we had full insurance. Our bags didn’t fit in the trunk and there were no rear doors so I thought we were going to have to get a larger car until the agent showed us how to put the rear seats down. Everything fit but having no rear doors makes accessing the back difficult. I hope the funness-factor overcomes that.
In spite of all these delays, we were on the road at 9:20, 40 minutes earlier than I had planned.
There are no Discovery Series Ordnance Survey Maps for Antrim County, it is part of the UK not Ireland, so I printed out directions using Google Maps. We should also be able to use the GPS in our iPhones. Yes, I have a new phone!
Route from Dublin to Barbican, 132 miles, 2.5 hours:
The earliest check-in time at the Gatelodge is officially 4:00 pm and we expected to be there between noon and 1:00 pm. Irish Landmark protocol required that we call the House Manager, Penny, 4 days before arrival. When I did, I asked whether we could check-in early, and she told me any time after 2pm would be fine. We would be met by her son, Yatelyn. That was perfect for us as 2pm will give us time to have lunch and/or stop at a supermarket.
Penny recommended the ASDA supermarket in Larne, 12 miles south of Glenarm, as a good place to buy organic food. Sainsburys supermarket in Ballymena is another option but that would be too far out of our way. She said there is a shop in Glenarm which is fine for basic essentials but not good for fruit and veg. There are some good small supermarkets in Carnlough which is 3 miles north of Glenarm. One of them is a SPAR, which we remember from Dingle.
I suspect we will be eating dinner in the local pubs, and lunch wherever we happen to be for the day, but we will need breakfast fixings, TP, and water. If we buy enough to last us through our first night in Dingle we would avoid having to stop in Garvey’s Market on our way to the cottage.
Using Google Maps, I found a pub one block way, and several restaurants in a Carnlough, 3 miles up the road.
KC and I discussed stopping at the Kilbeggan Distillery , west of Dublin near Athlone, but it would add 2 hours to our trip, plus whatever time the tour will take, and we didn’t want to get into Antrim that late.
We had the ‘best map ever’ from 4 years ago, which included Northern Ireland, and I had printed off step by step directions in Google. Nevertheless, we made a wrong turn at Lisburn, taking M1 west instead of east, and ending up on A26/A52 to Larne, instead of M2. This cost us half an hour and the pleasure of seeing the castle at Carrickfergus so we’ll have to make a point of going to Dingle that way.
When we paid our first toll, on the M1, KC asked me whether we had paid for the Gatelodge in Euros or Pounds. When I said pounds, we realized we were in the UK and all we had were euros! Hoping there were no more tolls, we decided to stop in the ASDA in Larne to get cash in addition to some groceries. Those directions were easier to follow.
ASDA Supermarket in Larne:
Across from Curran Court Hotel
6 Redlands Road
Larne, County Antrim BT40 1AX UK
We used the ATM at the ASDA and went inside to stock up. There weren’t as many organic items as I’d hoped; in fact, none of the fresh produce was organic, but they did have local free-range eggs and cream. KC also bought some sausage rolls. It didn’t take long and we were back on the road shortly and nearing the gatehouse just before 1:00pm.
Unusual canned fruit at ASDA in Larne (we don’t have these in the US):
The scenery along the coast is stunning, and very different than the western coast, but both cameras were inaccessible so I took a few pix with my phone and they are less than stellar. For much of the way we were very close to the water with only a low stone wall to separate us.
The Northern seacoast:
I tried to text Yatelyn but the send failed so we tried again while stopped at a lookout point and again it failed. Since KC’s phone didn’t have service at all, and mine was now acting up, we wondered what we’d do if we weren’t able to contact him.
We drove to the bridge leading to the Gatehouse where I finally managed to reach Yatelyn by phone. He gave us the code to open the gate and told us he’d meet us in 5 minutes.
The Barbican Gatehouse in Glenarm:
KC walked over the bridge down to the gate and entered the code. Lo and behold, the gate opened!
Opening the gate:
Look at the bottom edge of that huge iron gate above KC’s head!
He walked back over the bridge and just as he reached the car the gate closed!
The gate closing behind KC just as he gets back to the car:
We drove UP TO THE GATE, opened it, and quickly drove through. We parked the car in the spot to the right of the gate and moments later Yatelyn arrived to give us the keys and the grand tour:
The view into the castle grounds!
(As you drive through, the door to the utility room is on the right, the door to the living area on the left.)
The back of the gatehouse
Yatelyn was there in less than 5 minutes and explained that before going in we had to wait until the gate had been closed for 2 minutes. There are electric eyes in the sally port that will prevent the gate from closing on your car so, once the gate has started closing, don’t trip them or the gates will stop and open again. This is to enable you to pull into the sally port and unload your luggage, groceries or passengers without damaging the car. Finally, we went in.
On the ground level, opposite to the entry to the living area, is the utility room with a washer and dryer and the controls for the heat, water, and electric. He explained that the heat is set to go on at specific intervals and that they can be overridden if necessary by pressing the buttons on the thermostat. If the fire alarm goes off – a common occurrence – there are instructions on how to reset it. I hoped we weren’t going to need them.
To get to this room from the living areas you have unlock the door to exit the living area, cross the sally port, unlock the door to the utility room, take care of business, lock the door to the utility room, and the lock the door to the living quarters before going back upstairs. We weren’t planning to do laundry so I didn’t expect to be visiting that room again….
The Barbican Gatehouse Entry Door
You can see the winding stone stairs just inside the door:
Through the door pictured above, the bedroom and bathroom are on the third level, up two flights of narrow winding stone stairs. As we were making our way up, I debated whether we could get away with leaving that huge heavy suitcase in the car for the next three days. The rooms are EXACTLY like the photos on their website; exactly. I took some pictures but wasn’t able to capture the room and the unusual vaulted ceiling so I am including the pictures from their website.
The Gatehouse Bedroom seen from the door:
The Gatehouse Bedroom seating area seen from the door:
The Gatehouse Bedroom bed seen from the seating area:
The bathroom is off the bedroom, down two flights of 3 stairs, and has a commode, a sink and a tub. I didn’t realize it when I booked it that there is no shower. We never take baths so this will be an experience for us. I’ve heard baths are much better for you as they encourage dead skin to slough off, so I’m looking forward to taking one. We’ll have to buy some Epsom salts tomorrow. Negotiating those stairs in the middle of the night, though, is going to be interesting…I hope I don’t fall.
The Barbican Gatehouse Bathroom seen from the bedroom door:
Up another flight of winding stone stairs – this really is like living in a castle – is the living/dining/kitchen room. It, too, looks exactly like the photo on the website. Up a third (fourth?) flight of stairs is the patio: a circular area with crenulated walls and another stairway to a lookout point, the patio is a perfect place for meals, weather permitting. I doubted we would be able to use it, as it was unusually cold, and I was sorry about that. I did not get a picture of it.
The Barbican Gatehouse Kitchen area:
The Barbican Gatehouse Living area:
My best attempt at capturing the ceilings:
My pictures are not as good as the ones on the Gatehouse website so here are the official ones for comparison. Notice the vaulted ceilings!
The back of the Gatehouse looks out on the Glenarm Castle and the castle grounds around it, which it was designed to guard.
View of castle from living area.
In the summer, when the trees are in leaf, you wouldn’t be able to see it:
View of castle from bedroom:
The Gatelodge looks at the back of the castle. Here is a picture of the front of Glenarm Castle from their website.
Glenarm Castle in County Antrim, Northern Ireland:
The castle operates The Walled Garden Tea Room which is open from Monday to Saturday, 10am to 5.00pm and Sunday 11am until 5.00pm. They serve homemade cream tea or a light lunch, overlooking the kitchen garden.
We asked Yatelyn about the Tea Room and he explained that it was not IN the castle, but overlooked the walled garden, and that wandering around the castle grounds was frowned upon as it was still the private residence of the Viscount and Viscountess McDonnell. That was a disappointment, as the grounds were gorgeous.
The Glenarm Castle behind the Gatehouse:
View of the grounds from the bedroom windows:
The windows in the living-kitchen area look out on the village of Glenarm and it was interesting to watch the goings-on in the small town which were easy to see because we were so high up.
View from Living-kitchen area:
After Yatelyn left us, KC managed to get our luggage into the bedroom while I took the pictures seen above. It was COLD in here! We hoped it would warm up, now that the heat was on, and we left to get something to eat. Neither of us had eaten breakfast and I had only had two pieces of shrimp and two bites of beef for dinner so we were famished. I’d been looking forward to eating at The Walled Garden Tea Room so we made our way there.
It was late for lunch, 2:00 pm, and there was only one other patron, but they serve until 5:00 pm and welcomed us graciously. We were given the table right by the garden. There weren’t many plants blooming at this time of year but we were able to watch one of the gardeners repairing the stone walkways. He was so conscientious; he was a pleasure to watch.
When I asked about organic ingredients they told me that all the veggies are from their garden and they are organic. The castle raises organic sheep and cattle but these are not served in the Tea Room. They only serve ham and the locally farmed Glenarm organic salmon.
Guess what! They had several gluten-free options on the menu! While I know that most gluten-free products are made with potato, corn, and xanthan gum, all of which are avoids for me, I need to support and encourage this practice so I ordered a Glenarm organic smoked salmon sandwich on gluten-free whole wheat bread and a side salad. KC ordered a toasted sandwich with cheese, tomatoes, and onions as well as a cup of Earl Grey tea.
My meal was surprisingly good! The salmon was excellent – I could have eaten twice as much even though they gave me a very large portion – and the bread didn’t taste much different than wheaten bread, the soft type you would use to make sandwiches. The small salad turned out to be three mayonnaise based salads – apple, potato, and cabbage-carrot. They were all good but not as good as that salmon. I would LOVE to have that with scrambled eggs….
Glenarm Smoked Salmon at The Walled Garden Tea Room in Glenarm:
Toasted Sandwich at The Walled Garden Tea Room in Glenarm:
KC inhaled his sandwich, his cabbage-carrot salad, and part of mine. He also had two cups of tea, hoping the caffeine would mitigate his sleepiness. He hadn’t slept well on the plane and was really feeling it. In fact, he almost fell asleep right there in the café waiting for me to finish my scone.
Yes, I ordered a gluten–free scone! It arrived piping hot with sides of butter and strawberry jam. I tasted both but prefer my scones without jam. This one wasn’t as good as the wheaten cream biscuits that KC makes for us occasionally (in addition to all his other talents, he’s a great cook!) but it was very good for being gluten-free. I had only intended to eat half of it but managed to down the whole thing. After two years of avoiding baked goods, it was a real treat.
Gluten-free scone at The Walled Garden Tea Room in Glenarm.
It was almost 3:00 pm now, too early to go to bed, but we had nothing planned for the rest of the day so we decided to drive up the coast and see some of the Nine Glens of Antrim.
The Nine Glens of Antrim are Glenarm, Glencloy, Glenariff, Glenballyemon, Glencorp, Glanaan, Glendun, Glenshesk and Glentaisie
I had forgotten to bring the directions so we hoped there would be signage. When we saw a sign for "Scenic Route" we decided to follow it and were not disappointed. They have had a LOT of snow here lately! There were still large drifts of it in the fields as well as banks along the roads.
Snow!
The scenery was no match for my drowsiness, given my propensity to fall asleep in any moving vehicle, and I dropped off frequently only to be jerked awake as KC swung around another bend. The road was very twisty-turny and would have been a joy to drive had we not been so tired! We gave up and returned to the gatehouse.
Scenic Route
Before going in we noticed some birds flying between the trees on the castle grounds and making a loud racket, like sticks banging against each other, whenever they flew. Were their wings really making that noise? I’ll have to research that when we have access to Wi-Fi.
Brrrr! It was still REALLY COLD in here. We lay down on the bed for a short nap and had to spoon to keep warm, something we never do because I am like a furnace in bed. We were both asleep instantly and woke to hear my phone barking. Literally, my ring tone is a dog barking. I grabbed it and handed it to KC: it was his contact at work regarding the problem with his phone. Finally, they got it working! Not two minutes later, his daughter called. We had invited her and her family to join us this trip and she was calling to let us know whether they would be able to make it.
KC had trouble getting a good signal and went upstairs to improve it. While he was gone, I realized my migraine was coming back and took another Maxalt. If this continues, I won’t have enough to get me through the trip. I also had cramps in both my calves so I took a swig of magnesium. I hadn’t had my smoothie or vitamins this morning and wondered whether those were the consequences.
I sat in the chair in the bedroom, right next to the radiator, and remarked on how comfortable it was – nice and small for a small person. The radiator was barely warm, and I was so cold, I called Yatelyn to ask for his help with the heat. By now I was pretty sure it wasn’t going to get any warmer.
Yatelyn was very accommodating. He met me downstairs in minutes and together we solved the problem. In the winter, the heat is supposed to go on between 7:30 - 9:30 am, 1:30 – 2:30 pm, and 5:00-10:00 pm. So, it had been off while we were sleeping; but, even though it was on now, the radiators weren’t hot enough to do any good. We turned the knob up to “max” and hoped that would make a difference. It did! Within minutes the radiators were too hot to touch and the rooms were getting warm.
I asked Yatelyn about those funny sounding birds and he told me they were probably rooks, black birds that use big sticks to build their nests. They break these sticks off trees and that is probably the noise we heard. There was a mess of sticks on the ground by the gate, which had been created by the birds while building a nest right above the LR window; and, while we were talking, one flew overhead with a stick in its mouth!
Rook in flight with stick in mouth
Apparently, some commonly used English words, like rookery and clamour, originated with rooks. There is a video on this fascinating website, of their mating and nesting habits.
I went up to tell KC the good news about the heat and found that he, unaware that I had been fiddling with the controls, had put a pan of water on the stove and was trying to heat the room with steam! When he remarked on how it seemed to be working, I explained what I’d been up to. We kept the doors to the stairs closed to keep the heat in.
Speaking of the doors, they were massive, with great rings for handles, and required considerable strength to turn the knobs. I loved them! But I forgot to take a picture so I’ll have to ask Yatelyn if he can send me one.
I also loved the stairs. Having to go up and down stairs every time I needed to use the washroom, or get something from our suitcases in the bedroom, I was getting lots of exercise.
Looking up at the bottom of the stairs to the living area
While the rooms were now warm and KC was comfortable, *I* was not. For some reason, I was chilled to the bone and even the warm room was not helping. So…I took my long underwear out of the suitcase (top and bottom) and laid it on the warm radiator with my balaclava, scarf, and slippers. When they were toasty, I put them on over what I was wearing, and finally got some relief from the cold. In fact, I had a hot flash and that was the end of feeling cold for me. I removed the balaclava and scarf and was comfortable the rest of the evening.
After debating what to do the rest of the day we decided we didn’t want to go out. KC fixed some cheese, crackers and sausage and I made myself some scrambled eggs. He opened a bottle of pear cider; I opened a bottle of Perrier. The cider was good – less sweet than I remembered it – but I stuck with the Perrier in an attempt to eliminate this migraine. After dinner, KC made half a pot of coffee which we shared. I was pleased with the quality of the dishes and flatware. The plates are made by Abbeyleix in Ballyroan County Laois , one of my favorite potters, and the flatware was heavy.
Then, for the rest of the night, KC played with his iPad and I updated this web page. I had been taking written notes since we left and transcribed them here. KC sat in the chairs by the fireplace and remarked on how small they were. He wasn’t uncomfortable, but they are definitely “period” chairs, and you really get a feel for how people lived when this was built, in 1825.
KC relaxing:
Barb working on this webpage:
At 1:00pm it started to get cold again. I felt the radiator and it was no longer too hot to touch. We didn’t want to sleep too late tomorrow so we hit the hay.
|
To continue to the next page, please use the links below.
A new window will NOT open.
| |
|---|
|
Page 03: Thu – Giant’s Causeway.
| |
|---|
|
Page 04: Fri – Bushmills, Dunluce, Waterfall in Glenarm Forest.
| |
|---|
|
Page 05: Sat – Drive from Antrim to Dingle, Murphy’s Pub.
| |
|---|
|
Page 06: Sun – Dingle and Music at Courthouse
| |
|---|
|
Page 07: Mon – Shopping in Dingle.
| |
|---|
|
Page 08: Tue – Loch a'Dúin, Doyle’s Restaurant, Music at Courthouse.
| |
|---|
|
Page 09: Wed – Cottage, An Canteen Restaurant, Michael & John at Mighty Session
| |
|---|
|
Page 10: Thu – Fenit Pier and Bana Beach
| |
|---|
|
Page 11: Fri – Inch Strand, Sammy’s Cafe, An Canteen, Music at John Benny’s.
| |
|---|
|
Page 12: Sat – Dingle, Dinner at Michael & Dara’s, Music at Courthouse.
| |
|---|
|
Page 13: Sun – Cottage, Global Village Restaurant, Dick Mack’s Pub.
| |
|---|
|
Page 14: Mon – Dingle, An Canteen Restaurant, Pack and Return Home.
| |
|---|
|
Page 01: Tue – Prep and Travel to Dublin.
| |
|---|
|
Page 02: Wed – Drive from Dublin to Barbican Gatelodge in Antrim.
| |
|---|
|
Original, all-on-one-page version.
| |
|---|
Press here for 2012 Dingle travelogue (a new window will open)
Press here for 2011 Dingle travelogue (a new window will open)
Press here for 2010 Dingle travelogue (a new window will open)
Press here for 2009 Dingle travelogue (a new window will open)
Press here for 2008 Dingle travelogue (a new window will open)
Press here for 2007 Dingle travelogue (a new window will open)
OOAKFolk, Inc., and artist Barbara Healy are not affiliated in any way with the original manufacturers of
the dolls pictured in this site. No photograph, text or graphic on this site may be copied without written
permission from Barbara Healy. Copyright © 2004 OOAKFolk, Inc.
Last Revised: May 27, 2013
Site Questions? Press Tech Support to send email.
