Was A Lovely Afternoon...

Himself says thank you all very, very much for the birthday good wishes...

We went to Carrick-on-Shannon via the Island road...a winding narrow road which goes past the end of Lough Gara...the views out across the Lough are lovely...there are always Swans and Ducks on the shoreline...it's along this road that the men cut and save their turf by hand.

The hedges are swathed in Honeysuckle and for once it was warm enough to have the car windows right down so the scent drifted through the car...

There's an old school right on the shore...closed to pupils now of course, but it must have been a grand place to be learning your lessons when it was still open...it didn't actually close until the 1960's. Just the one room, with a row of privies out the back.

Coming into Boyle there's a row of those gimme houses...two up two down with the stairs just inside the front doors...they have such pretty gardens...festooned with hanging baskets and tubs over-flowing with bright Marigolds...there is a huge sense of a real community there...all the doors and windows stand wide open to let the sun in...people leaning on the walls having a chat...dogs lying on the pavement fast asleep...

Of course Carrick was heaving with cars and people...you can hire boats here for the day or for a week to go sailing along the Shannon...avail of coffee and cakes at one of the posh hotels over-looking the water...or get a new tattoo at the tattoo parlour.

It is here that there is a bookshop to simply die for...squirreled away down a little alleyway, it's a small place heaving with both modern and antiquarian books...bound in calf-skin with tooled gold lettering, they tell stories of adventures in foreign places...give advice about bird watching or how to deal with your servants.

The other end of the shop is devoted to cheap and cheerful second-hand paperbacks...shelves crammed with crime and mystery and the more esoteric...witchcraft in Europe...reading the runes...

The owner is a miserable, grumpy sort of a chap...endlessly taking snuff and grumbling about everything...adds to the charm of the place I suppose.

We came home the same route...passed people out with their dogs and small children...they waved at us and we waved back and the sun shone down and Himself has doughnuts for his pudding and I have glossy black cherries...

[Hidden]

Sounds like a perfect way to spend an afternoon, thank you for sharing Vashti and all best wishes to Himself may he enjoy what is left of his birthday.

[scorpiolass]

Sounds a delightful birthday outing; a real treat to the senses. Clearly more peaceful than the 50th ! Love Margaret x

[Azure_Sky]

Wishing you and Himself many more Happy Birthdays to celebrate in the years to come. May you both have much more happiness together.

Also sending heartfelt wishes, for the invention of a new and more practical method, of .supplying oxygen. An Atilla that is lightweight and easy to use, would be a good start.

<3

[Hidden]

So pleased you had such a good trip out - you definitely deserved it after feeling so rotten of late. Jan xx

[Hidden]

Belated Happy Birthday to himself xxx

[Nikkers]

Sounds idyllic Vashti, I hope himself enjoyed it as much as you so obviously did?

I almost feel as if I've travelled with you on these outings that you write about, you have such a wonderful way with words. Thank you. XX

[Nanaeal]

Better late than never. Happy Birthday to himself & glad you had a very enjoyable afternoon. Thank you for sharing.