Belleek, Bundoran and Donegal

Today our adventures began with another drive through the lush green hills and vales of County Donegal.  To say this County is picturesque is inadequate but it will have to do for now.  The green hills dotted with white houses is quite a quaint scene and different from other parts of Ireland.        

We arrived in Belleek,

set in the lovely surrounds of the Erne River,        

and headed for the Pottery where we decided to take the guided tour, something we haven't done in the past.  We are so glad we did - the whole process of making this fine porcelain is hand done and labour intensive.  I thoroughly enjoyed watching them at their work stations.  There are no seconds in this factory; if a flaw is found (or a chip anywhere in an item, as we were shown) then it's into the crushing bin and out with the mallet! The craftsmen and women are outstanding in their skills, trained on site and faithful in their service.  Two men we spoke to had worked at Belleek Pottery for 42 & 43 years each.  It helped to give an appreciation for the cost of the items on sale and the incredible skill and patience needed to produce such fine quality porcelain, but not necessarily a reason to loosen our wallets!

 Checking that the porcelain vessels are free from rough edges and clean for glazing and firing.

                                                         

Each item is stamped on the base with the workman's initial to identify who made it.

Straight out of the mould.

Attaching the decorations

We ended our sojourn with lunch in the tearooms.  The food, already tasty, was so much the more served on Belleek's fine porcelain china  and eaten with Belleek cutlery, a total experience to remember.  Now we sit and wait for the rain to stop, glad that we arrived before  a bus load of Seniors!!

From Belleek we pressed on to Bundoran with excited anticipation.  We had read much about this highly recommended 'Ireland's Premier Seaside Resort' town with its

 beachfront  filled with  a caravan park and resort-style accommodation, lots of amusement parks to entertain the children, and its world-class reef breaks which attracted many of the world's top competitive surfers to its shores.  

Alas, all we found were ordinary waves where juniors were having surfing lessons, hopeful for the opportunity to stand up on their boards in the water, an almost impossible task in the minuscule frothy waves.

Great Irish beach weather! 

We packed our disappointment into the car and drove off to finer pastures, hoping for better weather.  Ballyshannon was equally ordinary, as was the weather, but Rossnowlagh was interesting.  Firstly, we tried to park and watch the water but couldn't because of the stone wall,  so we exited the car, choosing to walk on the beach,  discovered  that you can drive the car on the sand.  Allan was keen for a drive;  we thought 'car surfing' could take off and become a world class sport!

Many cars  compact the sand down,  

 but  cars can get stuck in the sand after rain... So with those clouds getting darker by the minute, we made a hasty retreat. 

World class 'car surfing' champion!

Then we discover Donegal town, and  what a lovely town,

 with a harbour, a castle and a great town centre (reminded us of Richmond) with lots a interesting and classy shops, the first cluster of nice shops we have found in Ireland so far.  

Donegal is famous for its tweed fabrics  

 Not sure about Donegal tweed hats though!

This shop had a big display of spinning and weaving

I tried on a beautiful tweed coat - it was fully lined and magnificently sewn with each tartan square exactly matched at the seams.  A perfect fit made the shop assistant all the more attentive, she followed me everywhere around the shop which was  when an American lady spotted the coat and asked to try one one.  Unfortunately there was only one size 12 so I handed it over to her.  She bought it on the spot.  Sadly, they didn't offer me a commission which, if based on the original price of the coat,  would have been sizeable.  I guess that was the end of my modelling career...

We  didn't arrive in Donegal  until after 4pm and the last harbour cruise was well and truly finished.  We did dine in fine style at 'The Harbour' where we managed to squeeze in before the afternoon special ended.  It was a cozy, warm restaurant with comfy chairs and exceptionally good company.

On our way back to Bruckless we came upon this interesting sign on the side of the road.  Ahead there was another saying 'Garda' (which means police).   And then we came across a large gathering of people at a particular house,  with traffic controllers in high visy vests, directing the people.  In Ireland, when someone dies,  they are taken home and family and friends come to pay their respects to the family and the one who has died.  This is a wake house...