Just after leaving Enniskillen we spotted an opportunity and followed the signs to Monea Castle built for Scottish born Malcolm Hamilton in 1618 about five years before he became the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Cashel. We had an absolutely delightful time wandering through the castle, taking pictures, doing a bit of amateur videography, and imagining life in a castle four hundred years ago.
Over a long weekend we sampled some of the myriad things to do in Cuyahoga Valley National Park, unique among national parks for it’s environmental reclamation, historic preservation, and recreational opportunities adjacent to the populous cities of Cleveland and Akron in northeastern Ohio. Can’t wait to return and explore more.
Our journey from Portsmouth, England to our home in Ohio might have been accomplished in about sixteen hours but my avoiding air travel we were able to enjoy a fifteen day journey home via train, ship, Uber, train, as well as our own feet and finally our personal vehicle.
It’s been a fascinating two day visit to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. We managed to pack in tours of the HMS Warrior, the HMS Victory as well ast Victory Live: The
Big Repair, and finally the Mary Rose. All were incredibly informative and well presented.
What a delightful and unexpected treasure that rewarded our spontaneity. Hey, we just passed a sign for a castle! Want to go? Yes!!! Alice got really good at u-turns.
It was so cool to have everyone feel so easy with spontaneous decisions to just stop and do something that looks interesting!