SECOND SHOT AS A TOUR GUIDE

--------------THE AMERICANS TOUR OF IRELAND-------part II------------------------

----------Now that I have you all captive and on the edge of your seats---------

We took a day off----to relieve the driver-----and roamed around Claremorris---which doesn't do much for anyone-----we are a very small and quiet town-----our two claims to fame are a Drama Festival in March and an Agricultural show in July (we missed it).
I decided that we should visit my favourite Crystal factory---CELTIC CRYSTAL-----Sorry to say that Waterford is no longer the prize crystal of Ireland. They were bought by a German conglomerate and much of it is madethere and finished here. We do not buy Waterford. There are many My friends were really intrigued and impressed----but they didn't buy---very expensive.
The very large jardiniere which is breathtakingly beautiful on site----takes three months to cut---to rest the eyes of the cutter. Colour pieces are very difficult and the cutter is not allowed to do any cutting for a while after doing one piece.
After 'drooling' over all the lovely crystal we headed south to The Burren. Initially this was a traffic nightmare til we passed Galway City and rounded Galway BaY which is the home of a major ocean boat race --The Volvo Ocean Race. -
There are three Island in the Bay--The Aran Island from which come the Aran knit fisherman's sweater.-----There at one time were used for identity---Each family had it's own pattern and fishermen were identified by the sweater in the even of tragedy---This however is no longer the case.
We then partially encircled the Bay which brought us to ---THE BURREN---an area of limestone rock covering imposing mountains of unique ecological sensitivity.
This is a place of megalithic tombs and monuments that are older than the Pyramids in Egypt! A place that has flowers that grow no where else in the world!!-----At one time brown bears and wolves roamed wild----but no longer. Brown bears have been extinct for thousands of years and the last wolf on the Island was killed in the late 1700's.

----------------------------
T-t-t-t-thaat's all folks-----for tonight!!---------------------
-