November 2022, Week One

Hello again my lovelies, I hope you've been having a great week! Thank you to all of you who have read my wee Blog so far, I know it's not the most groundbreaking work in the world, but I hope you're enjoying my adventures. I am still behind, but I wanted to share some of the things I got up to in my first week here.
My boyfriend, Gareth, helped me to move by driving me over on the ferry from Holyhead to Dublin. Unfortunately, it was the most horrendous crossing, and he's not a great sailor at the best of times. It was so bad that I was concerned he'd never want to come back to visit me, but as soon as we disembarked, he felt better. Luckily for me, he fell in love with Ireland too, and already has his next trip booked, which is a relief! We stayed over Halloween night in Blackwatertown, Northern Ireland, and drove on to Donegal the next day.
Tuesday the 1st November, I finally made my dream come true and moved to Inishowen! We unloaded and moved my things in, but after that the first thing I wanted to do was go to what I call "my" beach, and say hello to the shore. And after that, Gareth tried his FIRST EVER (I know!) Guinness at the Ballyliffin Hotel, where we also had a lovely meal. 

Gareth's first pint of Guinness ever, and my first this week.

Wednesday 2nd November, it rained pretty heavily all day, so we spent it settling in, shopping for groceries, etc, and I cooked our first meal in my new home. That was tasty, but not worth sharing a photo of, haha!
Thursday 3rd was absolutely beautiful, with clear blue skies and sun, so we explored the local area a bit. First stop was the Glenevin Waterfall, and seeing it in the Autumn was just spectacular. I think I will be visiting there quite often, taking a picnic and sitting by the river, admiring the views!

Walking from the car park to the Glenevin Waterfall.

The Glenevin Waterfall itself.

View from the scenic overlook near the waterfall.

It's only a short walk from the car park to the waterfall, but it was enough to work up an appetite so afterwards we stopped at Nancy's Barn in Ballyliffin for lunch. I had the Seafood Chowder again, and Gareth had the haddock Goujons. Both were delicious!

Two pints of the Black Stuff at Nancy's Barn.

From Ballyliffin we drove up to Malin Head, and went for a lovely walk around the cliffs. It was getting more cloudy at this point, but the views were still spectacular, and it was a very calm day. I've been there on very windy days and was afraid I'd be blown off the edge! Malin Head is the northernmost point in Ireland, and to make it even more interesting, they filmed part of The Last Jedi there! 

View from Malin Head of Scheildren Beag and Scheildren Mór.

View from the Cliff of Pracha, Malin Head, looking south to Glashedy Island.

Feeling on top of the world!

It was starting to get dark when we left Malin Head, and the temperature was dropping, so a pub with a fireplace sounded like a good idea. We went to Farren's Bar in Slievebawn, which is the northernmost pub in Ireland, and on the way passed the sign for R2D2, a road that was renamed to commemorate the Star Wars movie being filmed nearby. The road had previously been called R242, and I love that they did this!

R2D2 road, renamed to commemorate the filming location of The Last Jedi nearby.

Farren's Bar.

A pint of Harp and a pint of Guinness (complete with shamrock!) by the fire in Farren's Bar.

On Friday 4th November, we went to the Glendowen Craft Shop, (which I will write more about in my next post) and back to "my" beach for a wander, before having a quiet night in. Gareth had to leave on the Saturday morning, but luckily, this crossing was much smoother! I spent the rest of Saturday unpacking and organising my wee home. I love it so much!
Sunday 6th November was another nice day, so I went for a walk near where I live. I hadn't gone far when I found a standing stone in a field nearby! I don't know anything about the history of it, but I'm planning on finding out as soon as possible, because these kind of things fascinate me. I walked along the Clonmany river for a while, and then turned uphill to follow the road just to see what I could see. I am constantly blown away by how beautiful the countryside is around here. I have always loved this area, but it seems like every time I turn a corner there is another incredible view, and seeing it in the Autumn has been especially magical. 

Standing Stone with Raghtin More in the background.

Clonmany River Walk.

 

Clonmany River Walk.

View of the sea and hills.

I looped around to come back to Clonmany and stopped in at the Square Bar for a pint, which is where I found out they were having a big night later on. The current owners were leaving after 14 years, so there was a big party planned, with multiple live bands playing. Of course, I had to go back for that, and had the best time, sitting at the bar, listening to great local music, and making some new friends.

So there you go, my first week living in Inishowen was a busy one, and I loved every moment of it. I am so happy to be here!