Dave Hogans Blog

Dave is Dove Chauffeur Drive Holidays tour guide. Everyday he takes people on wonderful adventures throughout Ireland. Dave also writes poetry and sings traditional Irish songs.

Chauffeurdrive Vacations in Ireland
My party on the Ring of Kerry with the Dingle peninsula and Dingle Bay in the background and a beautiful Irish sky.

I am now once again able to post some pictures and hope that you like them. Over the last couple of days we have made our way from Kinvara in county Galway to Killarney via the Burren and the Cliffs of Moher.We crossed the Shannon river on the ferry into county Limerick and then into county Kerry and the town of Killarney. Then yesterday we toured the famous Ring of Kerry and these photos are just a small selection of the many we took on these journeys. I can post some more of them in further posts over the next couple of days. These photos are not in the order of our travel but enjoy anyway.

Crossing the mighty Shannon river on the ferry from Killimer.

No mistaking the Cliffs of Moher
Lemenagh Castle, an old O'Brien fortress in the Burren of county Clare
Chauffeurdrive vacations in Ireland
The mysterious Blasket islands off Dingle on a misty day.

I must apologise for failing to Blog yesterday as i just did not have time.My party went to the Aran Islands and had a really wonderful time, eventhough the boat ride was a little bumpy on the way back. As i was not with them i do not have any pictures for you. Now i have to report that i will not be adding any more pictures until i get back to Kinvara on Wednesday evening. This morning we left Kinvara for the Cliffs of Moher. I am now in Killarney as i write. I forgot to bring the connector for downloading the pictures from my camera to my laptop so the pictures will not appear until i get home on Wednesday. I will have a lot of nice ones for you then so stay in touch.
The Cliffs of Moher were at their best today and this was a real bonus as we had just about given up on going there last night when we heard the weather forecast for today. What a lovely surprise it was to find this morning that the skies looked promising to the west and the nearer we got to the Cliffs the brighter it got. The sun was shining when we got there and we really felt blessed and everybody thoroughly enjoyed the spectacular views. We crossed the Shannon river on the ferry from Killimer. We are now in Killarney and the sun is still shining. So much for the forecast. I have said it before and i will say it again......when they tell you it is going to rain in Ireland it does not mean that it will rain all day. A typical Irish rainy day is one where you get showers, not non-stop rain.If we had paid heed to the forecast what a lovely treat we would have missed today.
Tomorrow we head for the Ring of Kerry and i have no intention of looking at any weather forecast. I still have enquiries coming in for October so if anybody has plans to come anytime soon just give me a call.

Dave
Private Driver for Irish Vacation
Gerry and Larry at Galway Golf Club with the Bay and the Clare Hills in the background. Please note the blue skies. Who dares to say that it always rains in Ireland?
My new group on the lawn in front of the Galway Golf Club
From left, Larry, Georgeanne, Patricia,Gerry, Judy and Lynda
The Grafton Capital Hotel in Dublin

This is a view of the entrance to our hotel in Dublin where we stayed last night. It is located right in the heart of the city and convenient to many of the main sights. I always find it very satisfactory and once again my clients had no complaints. Hotels in Dublin in general can be noisy, especially at weekends, due to the fact that there are many visitors who come to Dublin just to party and no matter where you stay you cannot be guaranteed a quiet night. The streets can be noisy also so ask for a room off the street to protect you from these noises. The bottom line is, if you are fussy, bring ear plugs. Then maybe you can be fully sure that you will be undisturbed.
I dined on my own last evening in my favourite Indian restaurant in Dublin. This is just down the street from my hotel. It is called Jaipur and their food is wonderful. The restaurant is very nice and not too large so either get there early or call and book. They have Early Bird specials also so early can mean better value. The staff are really nice there and the manager, Jaswanth, will not mind if you mention my name to him. You just might get special attention. The menu there is excellent with a great variety of choices, both meat and sea-food, and they also have a vegetarian selection. Many people feel that Indian menus offer only spicey foods but there are many things on their menus that are not spicey at all. I love their food and always look forward to dining there when i am in Dublin. Give it a try.
I met up with my latest group, (pictured in the photos on top) in Dublin at our hotel this morning. I thought we might meet last evening but we missed each other and did not meet until breakfast this morning. Breakfast at the Grafton Capital Hotel is a meal in itself and they offer a fine variety of choices. You can start with your cereals and juices and fruit and then have you typical Irish breakfast of bacon, egg and sausag and beans etc, if you are fit for all of that. You also get all the toast you want with a endless supply of tea and coffee. After a breakfast like that you do not need too much until evening time. Yes, i do like this hotel.
Our final destination today was the town of Kinvara on the southern shores of Galway Bay. Kinvara is a quaint little harbour town with its own castle and a great selection of old style Irish pubs and restaurants. The food here is great also and there are many places offering a varied selection of dishes with anything from Pizza's to great steaks, lamb, and sea-food. Our drive took us into Galway city as i wanted my new friends to see the main city sights before going to Kinvara which is about 20 miles from Galway. The day had started out wet but by now the sun was shining and the sea-front at Salthill was spectacular with many people enjoying a stroll along the promenade or swimming in the blue sea. Galway Bay was at its lovliest. We ended up visiting the Galway Golf Club at the end of the promenade, where i myself am a member, and stopped off for a snack. Some had the soup of the day while more of us had a wonderful sea-food chowder. The views from the restaurant at the club are amazing with the golf course, and Galway Bay, and the hills of county Clare across the Bay. Needless to say my friends were impressed and poor Larry, who loves his golf, really would have been in heaven if he could only have had the time to play a round of golf. Today i would gladly have joined him but it was not to be. He will just have to come back again. After touring the city and taking in many of the sights we made out way to Kinvara and Fallon's, their B&B for the next two nights. This B&B is lovely and is located right in the heart of this quaint town. Tomorrow they head for the Aran Islands for what i am sure will be another memorable adventure. The forecast is good so it will be special i know.

An interested reader of my Blog once expressed concern with regard to my putting pictures of my groups on my Blog. This is never done without permission and many people love to have their families at home in the USA following along as their tour unfolds. I do publish their Christian names but never the Surnames or addresses simply as a matter of identity protection.

Once again i am blessed with a lovely group of new friends who are here with the very obvious intention of having a holiday to remember. I am sure that i will be enjoying it all with them just as i did today.
Chauffeur/Private driver and guide Ireland west
The famous Cliffs of Moher

I have been having a break and have not been keeping my Blog up to date but i am now starting a new tour with a group from Mass, so maybe you can follow along with me. Tomorrow i head for Dublin to meet them for the first time and then we head west to my own favourite part of this magical country. Our weather continues to be really nice with nice cool breezes today and plenty of sunshine. Our temperatures are in the low 20's (approx 70 US ) and the air, as always, is as fresh as can be. Anybody who complains about Irish weather should travel a little more and sample what people have to put up with in some other places right now. I know that our internatiuonal soccer team are in Armenia where they have to play a match tomorrow in temperatures in the 40's. How they will manage at that heat i have no idea but it will be something i am glad i do not have to do. More about that again. For now.....come travel with me over the next few weeks and maybe you can enjoy some more of our country.

Dave
Poppies growing wild in my garden.

They are an amazing flower. You pick them and they die in seconds. You leave them alone and they seem to die overnight but then revive once again and come alive as beautiful as ever. They last for quiet some time if left alone and are very decorative. They just appear in my garden every year, and i never planted any seed. They just appeared.
I am still between tours myself and actually catching up with many undone tasks, such as my garden.It is amazing how quickly it can get out of hand. I also had many other unpleasant jobs to do, such as get my tax returns in order, but now i have that in hand also and can begin to relax. My next group arrive next week and they are all excited about their adventure. Then i have a large group of ladies and i have no doubt that they will keep me busy and i am looking forward to that challenge. I just hope that our weather continues to be as kind as it have been for nearly all of my touring season this year. We have been blessed with a relatively dry season, showery at times but never a wash out. We have had no soaring temperatures like some of the heat wave conditions people have had to endure in the USA in recent times, and i will say it again, give me Irish weather anytime.
September is nearly upon us and it will not be long now before we will be subjected to the Christmas present advertising campaign. Where does the time go to.