Running Wild

 Ireland; green, rugged, diverse, friendly.
A lot like New Zealand, one might say.
But with better pubs.

Belfast

Just after the storm rolled out.

Walking to the Giant's Causeway.  A 9 pound entrance fee - per person - was baulked at by us; instead we walked for 16km to access the causeway via the free path.  Sounds bonkers - and it vaguely was - but totally worth it.

Along the path.

And the Giant's Causeway itself.  Just as the rain decided to come down. Again.

Hence the splatters of rain drops on the lens.  Makes you feel like you were there, maybe.

Driving off the main road often landed us in beautiful areas.  This was one of Hana's many spectacular photos.

It was hard to capture this place with our wide angle lens.  It wasn't until a few days later that we realised this was the image used on the cover of Ireland's Lonely Planet.  Again, it was just along a random back road we decided to turn down. Pretty at every corner.

The Diamond Track in Conemarra National Park.

Another path off the beaten track - that track you can see in the bottom mid-right is the road we were driving down.

A folly Castle or Abbey built by a wealthy man. Another large tourist attraction we deemed above our budget.

The vaguely moonlike surface of The Burren.

Spot the shoes.

Finally got my moment to take a photo sitting on the edge of a rock. This was as terrifying as it looks - 212 metres down.

David had the courage to sit.  I could only crawl up to it and lie down.

Stone walls and rolling fields.

Fog. Lots of fog.

An abandoned monastery just off the Ring of Kerry.

Some assassin's creed action.

The summit of Pricklesinhand Mountain.

A beautiful abandoned monastery south of Dublin. It was peaceful and quiet as the sun went down behind the surrounding hills.

Our camera has finally crapped itself. Two years after we thought it was probably going to die.  Not bad really. So we have no photos of Dublin I'm afraid.  Not missing much really - apart from a few shots of us with Guinness.
The photo above is the last photo it took. You can see it's eye slowly fogging over as it heaves its final breath. A fitting scene in a way. May it Rest In Peace (as it recycled into new things).