Authentic Irish Experience
Review Submitted: September 1, 2009
Date of Stay: August 2009
We deliberately sought a cottage or house that would feel real, have the strengths and perhaps limitations, of living in a country setting that would give us a deeper connection to being in Ireland. We were attracted to the Shannonview House because of the Shannon River across the street, the smallness of Labasheeda, and its proximity to a host of attractions that would take us easily to destinations along the western coast, as well as to other cities.
The house description was accurate and we were delighted to have use of their washer and dryer, fully-stocked library, games and CD player (we brought our own favorites and loved music at night sitting at the DR table or on the bench outside the front door admiring the moon or stars over the river). The beds were comfortable (a big plus) and the three of us vying for the full bath upstairs was very manageable. There is another toliet reached by going outside and opening a door into a closed room next to the house. It is an authentic Irish 20th century experience and it worked for us.
The country lane nearby with beautifully stone-walled meadows -- some containing cows -- the quiet seclusion of the house, the chance to see rainbows over the Shannon were great early morning or evening relaxations. During the day we headed out to fabulous attractions the western coast provides. Rain didn't keep us home because somewhere along the coast or inlaid it isn't raining and we went there. If the house was musty, we opened windows and the front door. We used china in the breakfast nook, found what we needed in the kitchen to cook when we felt like it and found the house a comfortable base. Watching the Tour of Ireland one night on TV led us to decide to go to Cork the next day for the finish.
The challenge of driving on the left on narrow lanes is true in the west and most of Ireland and not for the chicken-hearted, but by doing so it opened up vistas of beauty that will be part of us forever. We treasured driving on the Dingle Peninsula and going to the Cliffs of Moher, Galway, Cong, way up in County Mayo, enjoyed nearby Ennis, catching the market in Limerick and so much else. Labasheeda offers a small market attached to the pub, the few nearby small towns also have places to food shop and eat. Although we had cell service, we deliberately curtailed use of blackberries and iPhones, watched almost no TV, and experienced with Labasheeda as our home base a true sense of being present. What a gift.
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