Kilkenny

Kilkenny, also known as the Marble City is situated on the banks of the River Nore, it lies only just over an hour southeast from Dublin has been voted the 9th friendliest city in the world by Conde Nast Traveller readers.

As a former haunt of mine, I can definitely agree. With friends I spent many great evenings wandering the streets of this small town; it is a city but really it's possible to walk from one side to the other in about 15 minutes.

At the present time, Dublin Bus drivers are on strike so there won't be the familiar yellow and blue buses on the city streets for the foreseeable. The strike began at midnight on Saturday and has been in place through Sunday and today, Bank Holiday Monday.

Dublin Photo Tours at the Coast

Leading photo tours around Dublin is interesting and often challenging, there are no two days the same. Despite visiting the same locations over and over again, it's hard to become tired of it. 

Croagh Patrick, Cruach Phádraig is Ireland's Holy Mountain and like many mountains in Ireland it is busy in summer with climbers.

However, Croagh Patrick is a mountain with a difference, home to a major pilgrimage every year on the last Sunday of July. I've partaken in this pilgrimage in July on many occasions and also throughout the year; but what better way to climb a mountain 764m high, than on a day, known locally as Reek Sunday, when up to 20,000 others are climbing it. There is a sense of camaraderie and the views can be stupendous. 

The Grand Canal

Ireland's Grand Canal runs from the Grand Canal Dock in Dublin all the way to Shannon Harbour in the west of Ireland, a distance of 131km. Begun in 1756 to carry cargo to and from Dublin it is now exclusively used for tourism purposes with plenty of barges making the scenic journey through the heart of Ireland every year.

Irish Bogs

Irish bogs are interesting places, sometimes thought of as barren wasteground and fit only for cutting for fuel or conversion to forest, they cover approximately 12,000km² of the country.

Two types of bog are found in Ireland, blanket bog and raised bog.

For many people Ireland is synonymous with sheep and lamb.

Travelling through the Garden County it is easy to see why, with sheep and lambs in spring on verdant fields or by roadsides grazing on heather.

Wicklow sheep were common throughout Ireland before the Famine and produced wool very suitable for flannel (as well as mutton for stews).

Saint Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin

I'm not sure if any trip to Dublin would be complete without a visit to Saint Patrick's.

Connemara

Researching locations for a photography workshop can be very rewarding, especially if the location is in the west of Ireland. Here in Connemara there is notonly a land of bog, mountain and sky but also a land of machair, ponies, and the sea, or, in this case, the Atlantic Ocean.

Connemara or Conamara

The western part of County Galway, situated west of Lough Corrib, is known as Connemara.

It's a land of bog, mountains, sea and sky. This image is taken from a single track bog road on the way to the edge of Ireland, the edge of Europe on the Atlantic Coast.

As I made my way across the bog towards the small lake pictured in this image, I was shadowed by the vertical flight of the skylark hovering in the clouds above me, warbling its distinctive call.