The sunny southeast lived up to all its promises, giving Emma a history lesson in the process. However, it’s soon back to reality, and the contemplation of All-Ireland tickets...
NEWS flash: we’re back from our first proper staycation in years and not only did we survive it despite all my fears, but we had an absolute ball. I know! No one was more surprised than me. As we pulled out of the driveway last Monday morning with the car rammed with stuff to deal with everything from a snowstorm to a heatwave, along with breakfast cereal, golf clubs, the paddle board (obviously) and tea towels wedged in wherever they’d fit, I couldn’t say I was bursting with excitement. The situation wasn’t helped by the fact that the puppy must have suspected he hadn’t made the passenger list and had an upset tummy prior to departure (either that or he ate something he wasn’t supposed to...it was probably the latter).
Let’s just say it involved doggy diarrhea, piles of it, me not seeing it, and stepping in it. Work it out for yourself. Anyway, fast forward a few days later and we didn’t want to come home! Our destination of Waterford won us over; it had us at ‘well girl.’ A bit like the Vikings all those years ago, we came, we saw and we conquered (our staycation fears).
Of the many things the south-east has going for it is that it’s just a short drive away (I mentioned the crammed car right?), and it turns out it lives up to its reputation as being a sunny part of the country. Not boiling hot, hiding-in-the-shade sunny though, just pleasantly warm enough to put a pep in your step. At no point did I feel like self-combusting (well, maybe only when my husband disappeared to play another round of golf ), and there were no rashes, or prickly heat or mysterious bites or anything like that. There’s even a few photos of me where I look relatively alright; maybe not framers but still, that’s a win in my book.
And there’s tonnes to do too. Waterford is one of the oldest cities in Ireland, founded by Vikings in the 9th century. Now, I must have been asleep or off sick or something when we covered the Viking era in school because it was all news to me, so I was the first one to sign us up for various Viking virtual reality tours and visits to towers and the likes. I’m now fully immersed in my Viking era and can’t get enough. I’ve ordered books on the subject, am contemplating doing a history degree (which we all know won’t happen but let me away with it) and am even trying to source a horned helmet for the craic. Impressionable? Me? Why would you say that?
Another discovery was the sublimely stunning Mount Congreve house and gardens which were developed by a chap called Ambrose Congreves, an intelligence officer in the second World War, who is rumoured to have inspired none other than 007 himself, James Bond if you don’t mind! The gardens boast one of the world’s largest private collections of plants and are beyond impressive. I’m embarrassed to say I had never heard about this divine place until last week but I’ll definitely be returning.
Of course no visit to Waterford would be complete without hopping on a bike and hitting the Greenway. I adore cycling but am terrified of traffic so this is my dream scenario, even if I still wobbled like a mad thing anytime a cyclist passed me in the opposite direction or overtook me – I’m a danger. We did a very manageable 12km from Kilmacthomas to Durrow and back and we all felt like heroes after. At one point, my mind wandered and I began to wonder if there was a chance any of us would get nits from the hired helmets but with the breeze on my face (not my hair unfortunately) I banished such thoughts from my mind. Only time will tell I suppose.
Another epic find was the Guillamene swimming cove which felt a bit like I imagine the Forty Foot (I’ve never been) and I kept thinking I’d spot Sharon Hogan and co from Bad Sisters among the buzzy crowd! If we had a spot like this in West Cork we’d be insufferable altogether and wait for it…there’s even toilets! We didn’t launch the paddle board here but gave it a spin another day in Dunmore East when we were reassured by the presence of lifeguards on the beach, and enjoyed fish and chips on the wall overlooking the sea afterwards. A Kodak moment, threatened only by brazen sea gulls trying to steal my catch of the day.
On the way back to base that night we detoured to Tramore for a spin on the bumpers and for a moment it felt like we back in the 80s. Pure magic. In other news, while I’m not stressed at all after my few days away it seems that my hydrangeas are. I have two white plants that have gone from looking glorious and gleaming, to all miserable and brown. Google tells me it could be down to too much water, or too little, too much sun, or too little, but that basically the plants are stressed. Maybe they need a staycation in Waterford too? Any tips to revive them will be gratefully received.
Meanwhile, while I’m not talking soothingly to the plants, I’m planning our next ‘staycay.’ I was contemplating a house swap but I’m far too uptight to let strangers in my house unsupervised and besides, I don’t think the hydrangeas are up to it. With all rebels headed east for the All-Ireland I’m wondering should we build a holiday around it? Although even in the highly unlikely event I’d get tickets, after hearing all the horror traffic stories from those who went to the semi-final we’d nearly have to head off now! Anyway, c’mon the rebels…but I think we’ll go west. I might just buy my own bicycle helmet and work on that wobble a bit first though.
