May 29th (Thursday) Casual BBQ (Daily Diary)
Later in the day, we're going to 1757 for a farewell BBQ, so we lounged around this morning and did a bit of packing.
We had breakfast in the main dining room (Lady Helen), and it was pretty good.
Mary had the famous Irish Boxty Potatoes and said they were excellent. We both had tea, you know, when in Paris.
Boxty are potato pancakes. The savory pancakes consist of potatoes, flour, eggs, milk, and seasonings shaped into patties and fried in oil. This iconic Irish dish is served all year round, but it's especially associated with St. Brigid's Day.
The look like normal potato pancakes until you bite into one!
Did You Know? - Boxty is a traditional Irish potato pancake. The dish is mostly associated with the north midlands, north Connacht, and southern Ulster, in particular the counties of Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo, Fermanagh, Longford, and Cavan. There are many recipes, but all contain finely grated, raw potatoes and are served fried.
An old Irish rhyme is: "Boxty on the griddle; boxty on the pan. If you can't make boxty, you'll never get a man!"
Paul opted for the kippers because it sounded interesting. They were like sardines on steroids.
Hello Kippers my old friend.
Did You Know? - A kipper is a whole herring, a small, oily fish that has been split in a butterfly fashion from tail to head along the dorsal ridge, gutted, salted, or pickled, and cold-smoked over smoldering wood chips.
The word is thought to derive from the Old English cypera, or copper, based on the colour of the fish. The word has various possible parallels, such as Icelandic kippa which means "to pull, snatch" and the Germanic word kippen which means "to tilt, to incline". Similarly, the Middle English kipe denotes a basket used to catch fish. Another theory traces the word kipper to the kip, or small beak, that male salmon develop during the breeding season.
As a verb, kippering ("to kipper") means to preserve by rubbing with salt or other spices before drying in the open air or in smoke. Originally applied to the preservation of surplus fish (particularly those known as "kips," harvested during spawning runs), kippering has come to mean the preservation of any fish, poultry, beef or other meat in like manner. The process is usually enhanced by cleaning, filleting, butterflying or slicing the food to expose maximum surface area to the drying and preservative agents.
Mout Juliet is on a lot of land dating back centuries and on the property are many gardens and ancient walls. We strolled for an hour after a rather filling breakfast and saw a sign sating fairies ahead, We had to go!
This adventure is for Donna!
The thistles were in full blossom. In Celtic countries, the associations are positive, and the flower symbolizes resilience, strength, determination, protection, and pride. The flower's purple and pink colors represent royalty. In Victorian England, the thistle signified pain, aggression, and intrusion.
Beautiful but standoffish! The needles hurt when accidentally touched!
We ambled, meandered, perambulated, promenaded, rambled, sauntered, strolled, and wandered through the grounds praying that an Irish rain storm would not trap us under a great tree.
The rock pathway was excellent for walking.
The local flowers were pretty and everything was green.
With humans coming to Ireland, these magical beings retreated underground to another realm, residing in mounds and fairy forts around the island. They wished to keep to themselves and watch over the land and animals.
But they are also well known for playing tricks on humans who cross their path for fun, sport, or even to show their superiority.
The fairies were sleeping, and we let them rest. There is no use asking for trouble
Keep on sleeping little guys!
They live inside the trees but have windows to make sure their area is secure and watch our for humans.
We wondered where the door went to but were afraid to knock and find out.
Almost every tree had wee people homes built on the side.
Cute little homes they were.
The wee people are creative as well as pesky!
Bye for now little folks!
The Queen Anne's Lace grew wild all over the country, especially by the side of the roads. Some believe the flower got its name because while Queen Anne II was tatting white lace, she pricked her finger with the tatting needle, causing a drop of blood to fall on the lace. This is why the white flowers have dark red flowers in the center.
In the 18th century, English courtiers referred to this flower as "living lace." According to this legend, the "living lace" name came from a contest that the second Queen Anne II hosted for her ladies-in-waiting.
We heard children or perhaps the wee folks?
This is Mary being sneaky!
Gates were needed to get to the fields/pastures on the other side!
Moongate is said to symbolize good fortune and love, along with the legend that lovers who walk through it are given eternal happiness, good fortune and ever-after love.
A gate is an exit or entry point. There are two types of gates, the physical and the spiritual gates; every physical gate has a corresponding spiritual gate! Before you conquer a physical gate, it's imperative that you conquer a spiritual gate.
Becky's Moon Gate as seen from the other side.
Becky's wedding tent is in the distance.
It's a big gate when you get up close!
Mary's says it is 5:00 somewhere; time for wine!
This gate was guarded and lit! Look carefully and you can see another gate though the big gate.
The only reason to have a second story house is to have a landing at the stairway!
This landing was on the Grand Staircase and it was peaceful and provided a great place to escape.
We got dressed a little early and headed downstairs to Club 1757 where we had a greyhound using grapefruit soda instead of regular grapefruit. It worked out just fine.
The recently refurbished, 1757 bar is located in the original cellar of Manor House. We enjoyed the sense of history as we relaxed amongst the vaulted ceilings, thick stone walls and atmospheric black and white photographs. The elegant 1757 bar, located down one level, enjoys a private terrace overlooking the River Nore and Ballylinch Stud.
The patio was covered in white roses and the weather held. The people gathered both inside and outside as the breeze began to get stronger around 5:00 pm. Many people opted to dine inside due to the cold.
Ireland does not have grapefruit and therefore it is difficult to have a Greyhound so one of our bartenders suggested Grapefruit Soda. He was quite correct, it worked!
Slurp and burp and the BBQ was started!
The wedding flowers were used again on the patio and they were still magnificent.
We visited outside until the wind came up. Mary got to see the family and old friends she had known since they went to school with Becky.
The 1757 Lounge was a long facility complete with a small theater, a fishing room, and several nicely padded dining areas. Either end of the hallway opens onto a great patio with a river view.
The 1757 Lounge was huge!
Flags flying for Becky; checkout the wind!!
There were flowers everywhere.
Our view of the pasture was relaxing.
Inside Dan and Mary talk.
The decor was quite interesting.
Of course, the ever present fireplace provided heat to the old room.
No one was late when the dinner bell rang!
The grand babies were enjoying the BBQ
We are getting ready to get in line!
We dined on the patio until a slight rain began!
The boys (Adam and Ethan) put on a show for us!
Future hams!
Cute as can be!
Ethan watches his big brother.
Adam is full of energy!
When the BBQ was over, we headed to our room to begin packing for the trip to Dublin tomorrow.
