Bunratty CastleBunratty, Ireland – October 14, 2024: Bunratty Castle is a large 15th-century tower house in County Clare, Ireland.

Ireland is not as famous for its castles as some other countries are for theirs, but it does have castles and they are well worth seeing. Bunratty Castle (featured above and below) is fun to visit. It's a 15th-century tower house in Country Clare. We visited the castle last October on our return from visiting the Cliffs of Moher, which I will feature in a future blog post.

Autumn at Bunratty CastleBunratty, Ireland – October 14, 2024: Bunratty Castle is a large 15th-century tower house in County Clare, Ireland.

We enjoyed walking around the grounds of the castle and the adjacent folk park. The folk park has lots of interesting things to see, including animals, such as these little goats:

Small goatsSmall goats in the folk park around Bunratty Castle in County Clare, Ireland.

Bunratty Castle was interesting and fun, but we actually found Staigue more interesting. Staigue is a stone ringfort (photo below) in County Kerry. The fort is thought to have been built during the late Iron Age, probably somewhere between 300 and 400 A.D.

StaigueStaigue is a stone ringfort in County Kerry, Ireland. The fort is thought to have been built during the late Iron Age, probably somewhere between 300 and 400 AD.

The fort was built without any mortar and the walls are so strong that, almost 2,000 years later, one can climb up the walls and walk around. The fort sits at the head of a valley that stretches down towards the sea. Standing atop the walls, one can see sheep grazing in the valley.

View from StaigueThe view from atop the wall of Staigue, a stone ringfort in County Kerry, Ireland. The fort is thought to have been built during the late Iron Age, probably somewhere between 300 and 400 AD.

Next up, I'll post about some of the cliffs we saw during our visit.

O'Connell Bridge DublinView of the O'Connell Bridge over the River Liffey in Dublin, Ireland.

I visited Ireland last fall with my family. We began our visit in Dublin, which is split roughly in half by the River Liffey (photos above and below).

Ha'penny BridgeThe Liffey Bridge, also known as the "Ha'penny Bridge", over the Liffey River in Dublin, Ireland.

Dublin is quite a nice city. I love the walk along the river and all the old European architecture and cathedrals (following two photos).

Dame Street DublinDublin, Ireland – October 11, 2024: Dame Street in College Green.

Dublin Christ Church CathedralDublin, Ireland – October 11, 2024: Christ Church Cathedral exterior.

But Dublin presents quite a contrast with much of the rest of Ireland. We traveled out west into some of the more rural parts of Ireland and we were amazed. We drove along the coast of County Kerry in the southwest and found some gorgeous green countryside.

Green Pastures in IrelandGreen pastures along the southwest coast of County Kerry in Ireland.

We also spent some time in the small villages. The following is a photo of Kenmare, which is a very charming village in Country Kerry.

Kenmare IrelandView of downtown Kenmare in County Kerry, Ireland. Featuring Holy Cross Catholic Church and a hillside covered in forests.

Dublin was a fine city and we certainly enjoyed Dublin, but we preferred the countryside. The west coast had all the charm and beauty we could have asked for. I'm going to share some more photos in future blog posts. Stay tuned!

Brilliant skies over a wintry WashingtonA brilliant sky over a wintry Washington, D.C., skyline at dawn. Featuring the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument, and the Capitol.

We received some more snow here in Washington, D.C., so I went out to shoot another landscape. This time, I shot the sunrise over the D.C. skyline from across the Potomac River in Arlington, Virginia. It was another very cold morning, but I was very happy to see the skies light up in brilliant color.