The last three nights of our Irish vacation were first in County Clare and then in Dublin area nearby the airport. And our last Airbnb was just perfect – cozy and comfortable, and it even came with a pony in the front yard! Located outside of Listowel in County Clare, it was a fantastic starting point for our discoveries along the Wild Atlantic Way. 
The Burren
The Burren – with its mysterious moonscape like scenery and rich biodiversity, its one of the most ecologically important landscapes in Ireland. 
The word “Burren” derives from the Irish word “Boíreann”, meaning “rocky place”. Much of the ground is limestone pavement, formed of sediments from a tropical sea present 350 million years ago. These sediments were compressed into horizontal strata, and now you can find fossil corals, sea urchins, crinnoids and ammonites in the rock of the Burren. The Burren ecology is quite diverse, comprised of :
- limestone pavement
- calcareous grassland
- hazel scrub
- ash and hazel woodland
- turloughs – disappearing lakes
- lakes
- petrifying springs – lime-rich water sources which deposit travertine and result in mineral-rich spring water
- cliffs
- fen – swampland
Exploring the Burren means an exciting drive and continuous phenomenal views. We climbed around for about an hour, but you could easily hike it for an entire day, and still find more to explore.
Cliffs of Moher
We stopped off to visit the cliffs in the lat afternoon, and we were rewarded with some beautiful skies. 
Dingle Peninsula
The city of Dingle and the Dingle Peninsula are quite well-known in County Clare for the wealth of Irish culture and stunning scenery.
We had a great morning and early afternoon walking around, enjoying some Murphys Ice Cream, and doing a little shopping.
Adare
Considered one of the most romantic villages in Ireland, Adare is, more than anything else, a wonderful walk around. We took a stroll through the gardens, checked out a few shops, and continued on our way.
Inch Beach
With beautiful weather we opted for a few hours at Inch Strand – a beach with terrific views and pretty good beach combing. And just look at that view!
The Fahan Beehive Huts
Along the coast of the Dingle Peninsula are the Fahan beehive huts, clochán. These beehive houses can be found throughout the county, but the Fahan site is an opportunity to walk through and around multiple of them.
These beehive huts don’t use mortar in their construction but rather corbelling – layering stones one on top of the other, each new layer slightly further inward and sealed at the top with a capstone.
The exact age of the clocháns is uncertain because this building style was used for thousands of years in Ireland, from Newgrange to the 1960s. The Fahan huts are believed to be from the 8th to the 12th century.
Rock of Cashel
The Rock of Cashel is considered one of Ireland’s most important sites, a medieval compound including a 12th century round tower, high cross, Romanesque chapel, 13th century Gothic cathedral, and a 15th century Castle.
Before that, the Rock of Cashel was a base of the Eóghanachta clan from Wales, back in the 4th century. For about 400 years the Rock of Cashel competed with the Hill of Tara as Ireland’s center of power.
We had a wonderful time exploring the site and taking a tour of Cormac’s Chapel, the Romanesque chapel containing the remains of wall frescoes.
Skellies
Our last night in Ireland. Bittersweet, like the end of all good vacations. We were ready to sleep in our own beds but sorry to say goodbye to the Emerald Isle. Still, we needed dinner, and we headed to Skerries to do it. A beautiful evening, an ocean view, and an excellent seafood dinner. Not a bad way to end our trip.
thecloudsarelowerhere 