Weekend in Tipperary 17th Nov - 19th Nov

Fishing in Tipperary (not so successful)!

The plan for Tipperary was to go fishing. Brent and Sharon went to an Uncle's house and borrowed two rods and Brent bought a few lures at a fishing shop on Grafton.

The 5 o'clock whistle went last Friday and I was outta there! Luke and I met at home after work so that we could pack and get our shit together. Sharon and Brent were picking us up at 7-7:30pm. On his way home, Luke stopped at Tesco and bought tons of sausages, eggs and rashers for brekkie. We went to Centra down the street to pick up some beer, packed our overnight bags and we were ready. At 7:00pm we got a text from B & S saying that they were running a little late. That was ok, Luke and I had a cup of coffee. At 7:30pm we texted them. An Uncle was in town and was using their parking space so they were held up. No problemmo, we switched on the tv. At 8:00pm we got a text saying they were on their way. Yoo-hoo. We were excited. They pulled up in front of the house and Brent helped us bring everything out and load it into the car. For four people going away for only two days we had TONS of stuff. We each had an overnight bag, there was a 'ghetto blaster', a bucket (in case we caught some fish), 2 rods, lotsa beers, stuff for breakfast and dinner, a table ping pong set, and so on and so on. The boot of the car was jam-packed.

Sharon drove (thank you Sharon!) the 2 1/2 hours (45 minutes of that was just getting out of Dublin. The traffic was horrific). After a quick journey we were in Tipperary and we were excited. It was pitch black and we were in the middle of nowhere but we were excited to be there! We pulled up to the property (lead by the owner) and were very impressed. The house was huge. Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, fireplace, large kitchen, living room, dining room and backyard. Fantastic. We put stuff away, cracked a beer and had a seat at the table. We then played a round of cards and then decided to walk over to the local hotel/pub for a drink before last call (Luke was itching for a Guinness). We walked around the corner and discovered that the joint had already closed so we walked back to the house, cracked another beer and pulled out the beer pong. We had a good laugh and then hit the sack fairly late.

Got up Saturday morning, Luke made brekkie (it was to die for, see photo of meat plate). At about 11:30am we packed up our gear, some beer and bundled up. We walked to the river and started the fishing. After an hour we decided to walk a little further to see if there was another spot that might be more suitable. There wasn't, so we walked back to the original spot (a tiny, old, country road wooden bridge) where we continued to catch nothing. From there we walked down river, into a pasture where, again, we caught nothing. After another hour we decided to walk back to the house, drop everything off and walk to the pub for a pint. On the way we passed a field where we were greeted by a beautiful horse. The background was mountains with snow, there was vibrant green grass. It was incredible.

The hotel/pub looked quiet so we decided to walk further down the road to the one other pub in this teeny, tiny town. On the way we stopped at a pottery store, which was full of beautiful hand crafted dishes, etc. From there we continued down the road until we stumbled upon the pub. To our disappointment it was closed as there was an important match that day so everyone was at it. We turned back and walked to the hotel/pub which was open. We ordered a pint of Guinness each and 4 soups and 4 sandwiches. The woman serving us suggested we get 4 different sandwiches and share them, so we did. They, and the soup, were dynamite. Just like what your mom would make, you know? We finished eating and ordered another pint. The server let Luke pull his own pint, so that was exciting. We then moved from the dining area to a little cubby area by the fireplace where we pretty much spent the rest of the day, cosied up and laughing, telling stories, etc. It was great craic. A nice way to spend a chilly winter day. We enjoyed the woman server so much that we invited her to stay at the pub after her shift finished so that we could buy her a couple of drinks. We agreed to meet back at the pub at 9pm, two hours later. After a few hours we decided to head back to the house for dinner. Sharon & Brent made a great spaghetti with homemade meat balls. Delicious!

After dinner we were full and tired and so we lazed on the couch for a little bit. Luke fell asleep. Sharon, Brent and I decided that we would drag our lazy butts off the couch to meet the woman. We put Luke to bed and made our way back to the pub where we had a nice chat with the woman (who turned out to be the owner) and one drink and then we headed home, sat back on the couch, Luke woke up, we chatted and watched tv and then went to bed.

Next morning Luke cooked brekkie again, we packed, and then headed back to Dublin.

Thanks for another great weekend, Brent and Sharon!