By Barbara Dodge ITWPA Member I felt like Cinderella riding to the ball at the prince’s castle with my pumpkin carriage and footmen. Actually it was a rented Ford Expedition minivan with my family, but still the thrill was there. I’d always heard about the castles in Ireland and it had been on my bucket […]
The baths are a favorite among Connemara’s hiking crowd — a soothing end to a day of trekking. “I’ve been coming to the Leenane Hotel since I was a little girl,” says 50-something Claudia Baan, from Germany. “And the best part of my daily hike is always the seaweed bath at the end of the trail,” she adds, laughing. Hikers unwind and rejuvenate as soothing music fills the candlelit rooms, and soakers are greeted by the stunning vista of the fjord, visible through the privacy of one-way glass windows. A tranquil soak in the velvety, silky sludge is the ultimate relaxation experience — at the very least it’s sure to promote a good night’s sleep!
Where in the world would you find a transatlantic journey that once offered a lounge, a formal dining room, a white linen table setting for up to 35 passengers, a menu of shrimp cocktail, turtle soup, steak, fresh vegetables, peach Melba, and a wide choice of drinks? This was not a transatlantic cruise, because ships took seven to nine days to cross the ocean. No, this was a transatlantic flying boat, which in 1939 took 25 hours and 40 minutes to fly one way.
