tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84441082251995627422024-03-13T07:13:17.621-07:00Boston IrishMark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.comBlogger240125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-19831105161066520862016-03-01T05:57:00.001-08:002016-03-01T06:03:19.132-08:00Will Cruz get Tommy O'Malley's vote?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Spotted a Ted Cruz poster at the Holy Name School Super Tuesday polling station in West Roxbury. Seemed like the only Republican poster there, so he gets full marks for trying. However, he doesn't seem to otherwise be playing for the Irish American vote...<br />
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<i>"Just let me get this straight, because this is very
important," the host said. "Tommy O'Malley from County Cork in Ireland
is over here, and he overstays his visa, and he's got a couple of kids,
and he's settled into Long Island, and you, President Cruz, are going to
send the feds to his house and take him out and put him on a plane back
to Ireland?"</i><br />
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<i>"You better believe it," Cruz said.</i></div>
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<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/02/23/watch-ted-cruzs-hugely-awkward-fox-interview-on-mass-deportation/&source=gmail&ust=1456926919280000" href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/02/23/watch-ted-cruzs-hugely-awkward-fox-interview-on-mass-deportation/" target="_blank">https://www.washingtonpost.<wbr></wbr>com/news/wonk/wp/2016/02/23/<wbr></wbr>watch-ted-cruzs-hugely-<wbr></wbr>awkward-fox-interview-on-mass-<wbr></wbr>deportation/</a><br />
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Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-57136461607579668512016-02-22T10:03:00.001-08:002016-02-22T10:03:43.640-08:00Boston Serial Killer?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
If <a href="https://cryptidantiquarian.wordpress.com/2016/02/20/bostons-mysterious-vanishing-men/">people falling into rivers and the sea after a night's drinking was evidence of a serial killer on the loose</a>, I'm not sure where that would leave Ireland. Still, interesting to see the trail of perhaps-linked disappearances. </div>
Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-74984466070167732482016-02-18T08:28:00.001-08:002016-02-18T08:28:02.953-08:00Irish wolfhound at Bunratty Castle Folk Park<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I saw this Irish Wolfhound in one of the sheds. Huge dog. I wished I'd seen it walking out-and-about though (although obviously it would need some supervision!)<br />
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Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-39138243880213580242016-02-16T09:13:00.002-08:002016-02-16T09:13:32.196-08:00Ailwee Caves during the rain<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Last August I visited Ailwee Cave in County Clare when it was <i>very </i>rainy outside. I was pleased to see that the water level in the cave only raised slightly, and the staff there managed the whole process very well. The water all goes to help the stalactites, which can be seen in the photo below:<br />
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Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-49307074880407961712016-02-13T08:20:00.002-08:002016-02-13T08:20:24.353-08:00Opius Bliss at the Beehive in Boston's South End<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I caught Opius Bliss last night at the Beehive. Great set, including a cover of the Eurythmic's "Here comes the rain again". Great food too (though only one vegetarian item on the main course menu).<br />
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Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-84278735689889632712016-02-12T10:57:00.001-08:002016-02-12T10:57:33.903-08:00Who bombed Aleppo? Maybe it was the Continuity IRA<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
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Surreal times as US and Russian militaries argue on Twitter over who's bombing Aleppo. <a href="https://t.co/E1iwRMU41Q">pic.twitter.com/E1iwRMU41Q</a></div>
— DavidKenner (@DavidKenner) <a href="https://twitter.com/DavidKenner/status/697807682623766529">February 11, 2016</a></blockquote>
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Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-36610665713775219182016-02-11T07:58:00.003-08:002016-02-11T07:58:42.533-08:00Hurling with "compromise rules" in Boston<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/11/23/hurling/OCNX1wvKVFmlDkuAsyTOXK/story.html">Hurling came to Fenway Park in Boston</a> last year. Using soccer goals, the version of hurling took a bit of getting used to. Due to the smaller pitch, "normal" hurling rules would have resulted in a huge number of points. The goals-only approach successfully avoided that.<br />
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I was less happy about the use of quarters rather than halves, and the confusing (to me) countdown which was used. But it seemed to go down well with the crowd which was more used to American sports.<br />
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All in all, a hit. Definitely looking forward to the next time hurling reaches the big time in the US!<br />
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Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-89968140270067670452016-02-10T07:48:00.000-08:002016-02-10T07:48:46.348-08:00Treasures at National Gallery, Dublin<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I visited the main <a href="http://www.nationalgallery.ie/">National Gallery</a> location on Dawson Street (beside Leinster House) in Dublin and it was good to see how well-presented the exhibits are. Much better than I remembered from school tours 20+ years ago. Some highlights below (photos don't do them justice).<br />
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Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-53819446329661887272013-06-09T06:04:00.002-07:002013-06-09T06:04:24.423-07:00Dunkin' double-take<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Looks like a Dunkin' Donuts, doesn't it?<br />
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It's Donut King at Wellington Airport in New Zealand.<br />
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Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-79417281181597551192011-12-30T12:28:00.000-08:002011-12-30T12:29:51.966-08:00Great Irish bar in San Francisco - The Irish BankAlways loved this bar, which is a short walk from Union Square. The story about how they originally registered the domain bankofireland.com is an interesting backstory also. If you look closely at the bar you can see the old faded "Bank of Ireland" name there. Fitting because it's close to the financial district.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/markkristenbeneve/6223561668/" title="Irish Bank, San Francisco by MarkKristenBenEve, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6239/6223561668_3879602af7.jpg" alt="Irish Bank, San Francisco" height="281" width="500" /></a>Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-65543088379104971022011-12-12T09:04:00.000-08:002011-12-12T09:08:37.059-08:00A nice Irish gift - screenprint of Dublin with added drop of GuinnessI love this <a href="http://www.meandhimandyou.com/dublin-screen-print">screenprint of Dublin from MeAndHimAndYou.com</a> . It is "Printed with solvent free, water based ink and a small drop of Guinness using traditional screenprinting techniques". Usually when I drop Guinness into something I'm printing, it's a bad thing :-) But here the results are great:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jR8aF71A6os/TuY0Qy1bDKI/AAAAAAAABXs/htC10sidLmY/s1600/screenprint.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 298px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jR8aF71A6os/TuY0Qy1bDKI/AAAAAAAABXs/htC10sidLmY/s400/screenprint.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5685289042730224802" border="0" /></a>Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-65625115915183311622011-12-04T12:33:00.000-08:002011-12-04T12:34:32.055-08:00Effin in County Limerick deemed "Offensive" by FacebookI'll withhold any Limerick jokes :-)<br /><a href="www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/1203/breaking19.html"><br />www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/1203/breaking19.html</a>Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-7402183341639205382011-10-13T12:10:00.000-07:002011-10-13T12:51:15.545-07:00#danarumours LOLAs people outside of Ireland may not know, Dana (who won the Eurovision for Ireland with "All kinds of everything") is running for president of Ireland. In the Irish presidential debate last night, she <a href="http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/1012/president.html">mysteriously said that a "vile rumour" about her was about to surface</a>. This has led to much Twitter speculation about what the rumour is....<br /><br />My favourites are:<br /><ul><li><a href="http://twitter.com/#%21/AllyKerr_/status/124277356746641408">she stole her eurovision song off Norwegian band Nin Huguen and the Huguenotes</a></li><li>(also on that note) <a href="http://twitter.com/#%21/LucyFur_40/status/124242993673797632">she kicked Bishop Brennan up the arse<br /></a></li><li>(one for the Irish speakers) <a href="http://twitter.com/#%21/DeanCullen69/status/124534176547475456">A Porn Video Of Dana Was Leaked Called Arse In Uactaharain</a></li><li><a href="http://twitter.com/#%21/DrMagennis/status/124245761029451776">she secretly had potatoes during the famine</a></li></ul>Or what about "She drove to Canada with a dog strapped to the roof of her car". No wait, that was Mitt Romney: I'm thinking of the wrong election there.Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-54341847785476397162011-09-23T15:36:00.000-07:002011-09-23T15:50:17.194-07:00Glenilen Yoghurt - a delicious find in IrelandWhile in Dublin this week, I found some really great yoghurt. It's <a href="http://www.glenilen.com/">Glenilen Farm </a>yoghurt, and comes with jam ready to mix in. Highly recommended. I bought it in the Morton's the Luas station on Harcourt Street. Wish it was possible to get this in the US.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8HKUWi1L3Gg/Tn0KFYfqctI/AAAAAAAABO0/wbcZpm95Ivs/s1600/2011-09-22_15-03-14_768.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 225px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8HKUWi1L3Gg/Tn0KFYfqctI/AAAAAAAABO0/wbcZpm95Ivs/s400/2011-09-22_15-03-14_768.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655687794638090962" border="0" /></a>Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-42396654360706067972011-09-22T02:50:00.001-07:002011-09-23T15:51:01.564-07:00Roslindale Open Studios coming up<a href="http://www.roslindaleopenstudios.org/"><img style="width: 288px; height: 166px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E6qGXuuQYWY/TnsFAay8NuI/AAAAAAAABOs/PyTtW88YwGY/s400/ros_logo_new2011_webuse.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655119261844911842" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.roslindaleopenstudios.org/">Roslindale Open Studios </a>is coming up: It is the first weekend of November: Nov 5&6 from 11am-5pm.<br /><br />Looks like they have more artists this year than ever before. It always makes me think "Wow, Roslindale has a *lot* of artists".Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-20993361043983337562011-09-03T14:24:00.000-07:002011-09-03T14:26:22.522-07:00Tolls are bad enough without a border fence with New Hampshire tooGood to see that the presidential candidate Perry has let New Hampshire know that it can't build a border fence. Though I'm sure some people in NH would like to see Massachusetts residents fenced out, it would not be very convenient for commuters each day...
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<br />Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-37811224286550235292011-09-01T21:33:00.000-07:002011-09-01T21:40:53.851-07:00Staying where Michael Jackson (and family) stayed in IrelandIt is a little known fact that, before he died, Michael Jackson spent a lot of time with his kids in Ireland. Now you can rent the same house in County Wicklow where Michael Jackson, and family, stayed: <a href="http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/property/2011/0901/1224303280437.html?via=mr">http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/property/2011/0901/1224303280437.html</a>
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<br />Michael Jackson also spent time in 2006 in County Westmeath, and you can rent the same houses stayed there too. It is amazing to read about it now:
<br /><p style="font-style: italic;">Jackson fell in love with County Westmeath and, after a month in the converted cowshed, moved to the equally secluded neighbouring estate of Coolatore, also owned by the Dunnings. Because Jackson didn't have his own driver in Ireland, Paddy enlisted local taxi driver Ray O'Hara to drive Michael and the kids around in a borrowed people carrier with blacked-out windows.</p><p style="font-style: italic;">The Dunnings somehow managed to keep the fact that the King of Pop was in residence a secret for several months. Even when Jackson began to venture out and there were rumoured sightings of him in the nearby villages of Moate or Kilbeggan, the Dunnings would deny all knowledge. "If someone said to me I've heard Michael Jackson is there, I would tell them: 'Yeah, so is Elvis Presley!' says Paddy</p><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2010/aug/15/michael-jackson-ireland-secret-retreat">http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2010/aug/15/michael-jackson-ireland-secret-retreat</a>
<br />Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-26107369930524611472011-07-27T19:20:00.001-07:002011-07-27T19:22:17.435-07:00Ireland to ban smoking in cars with kids present?As someone who spent a lot of time in a smoky car as a kid, this is an interesting topic. I tend to agree with Conor Faughnan's views:<br /><blockquote>AA Roadwatch spokesman Conor Faughnan said there would be mixed views from motorists on the issue and that there was also an ideological issue involved. He said motorists tended to regard their cars as their own personal space.<p></p><p>“Is the logical extension of that is that we should ban smoking in homes too or ban it altogether?” he asked.</p><p>Mr Faughnan said it would be a “profound mistake” if smoking in cars was made a road traffic offence as it was not a road traffic, but a health issue.</p></blockquote><a href="http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2011/0728/1224301502295.html">http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2011/0728/1224301502295.html</a>Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-67915261680417435262011-05-30T19:09:00.000-07:002011-05-30T19:13:06.405-07:00A black pudding burger - Irish heaven in Sydney<a href="http://www.durtynellyssydney.com.au/">Durty Nelly's pub in Paddington, Sydney</a>, serves a black pudding burger. So, I had to check it out. The burger tasted great, though I was slightly disappointed to see that it contains many normal-sized black pudding slices, not a big burger-sized disc of black pudding. Good atmosphere in the pub too, which is just off Oxford Street not far from the junction with Victoria street. There is a great Indian take-away around the corner, on Oxford Street, too. All highly recommended.Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-48372761415400520902011-05-29T02:48:00.002-07:002011-05-29T02:57:19.297-07:00Queen arrives in Bus Eireann busI know times are hard in the UK and Ireland right now, and I know that <a href="http://www.buseireann.ie/inner.php?id=210">Bus Eireann runs a bus route from London to Dublin</a>, but <a href="http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/0517/breaking1.html">this Irish Times report</a> seems to imply that Queen Elizabeth bussed it over from London:<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8kbqFzYU5kE/TeIYDZz82xI/AAAAAAAABHw/nIXt7A2ziRE/s1600/QueenVisit.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 340px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8kbqFzYU5kE/TeIYDZz82xI/AAAAAAAABHw/nIXt7A2ziRE/s400/QueenVisit.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612074532404517650" border="0" /></a>Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-89074385186796069822011-05-27T20:52:00.000-07:002011-05-27T21:00:05.619-07:00McDonalds "Boston Deli Bagel" - seen down underI am in Sydney at the moment, and I was surprised to find a "Boston Deli Bagel" on the breakfast menu at MacDonalds here. It's actually quite tasty, but baffling to me why it's a <span style="font-style:italic;">Boston</span> Deli Bagel. Is Boston known for its delis? Something more true to Boston would be a copy of the Dunkin Donuts breakfast sandwich. <br /><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LiLBNOjCp7k/TeBxtqvOy9I/AAAAAAAABG4/wkh_qNPqugo/s1600/2011-05-22_08-18-51_141.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LiLBNOjCp7k/TeBxtqvOy9I/AAAAAAAABG4/wkh_qNPqugo/s400/2011-05-22_08-18-51_141.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611610165084081106" /></a><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rSUybLXwDMk/TeBxtbQTbCI/AAAAAAAABGw/Qpi3JvsTqyA/s1600/2011-05-22_08-18-02_471.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rSUybLXwDMk/TeBxtbQTbCI/AAAAAAAABGw/Qpi3JvsTqyA/s400/2011-05-22_08-18-02_471.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5611610160927829026" /></a>Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-13089535004915497142011-01-25T08:32:00.000-08:002011-01-25T08:33:30.979-08:00A good deal on a snow hat on Amazon - only $1795I know it's very cold in Boston now, but I think that almost $1800 for a snow hat might be pushing it a bit...<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Winter-Earflap-Trapper-Hat-Multiple/dp/B00439MY2Q"><br />http://www.amazon.com/Winter-Earflap-Trapper-Hat-Multiple/dp/B00439MY2Q</a>Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-32510425906863654732011-01-04T06:03:00.000-08:002011-01-04T06:05:13.634-08:00Pete PostlethwaiteThe Irish Times has a moving tribute to Peter Postlethwaite today, though I remember The Town being more about Charlestown than Norn Iron:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">" In Ben Affleck’s admired picture, the actor plays the owner of a florist in Northern Ireland who moonlights as a criminal mastermind."</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/features/2011/0104/1224286698358.html">http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/features/2011/0104/1224286698358.html</a>Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-19140883314648182942010-10-25T10:18:00.000-07:002010-10-25T10:22:58.505-07:00Welcome to Ireland, now get lostGood piece by <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/24/travel/24ireland.html">Matt Gross in today's New York Times on being "Lost in Ireland". </a>It is interesting how different the piece is from something that would have been written a few years ago. Now, rental cars from Dublin airport are "cheap", roads are surprising good, but the radio is non-stop depressing gloom and doom about the economy.<br /><br />I was surprised to see Johnny Fox's pub on the list of places he visited. In my experience, this pub in the Wicklow mountains is not somewhere you can find without a good map or GPS. More than once, I have had to follow the Dublin Bus which I know drives past it. But perhaps the best way to find it is to first get lost?Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8444108225199562742.post-10150925592841666982010-10-19T07:04:00.000-07:002010-10-19T07:08:35.855-07:00CNN's circular road trip around IrelandIt's always good when you get the impression that the person writing about a road trip actually went on the road trip themselves, and didn't just write it from a guide book. This <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/10/19/ireland.road.trip/">CNN road trip around Ireland by John D Sutter is good</a>, for this reason.<br /><br />For the record, <a href="http://24hourstravelguide.blogspot.com/2008/08/ireland-road-trip-part-1-dublin-to.html">here are my own recommendations on driving around Ireland</a> (follow the links at the bottom of the page for more)Mark O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03202416986720435011noreply@blogger.com0