Sunday, September 7, 2003 (Near Dublin - Republic of Ireland)
Last night's bed was definitely
not
flat. Powerscourt is a grand house with an even grander setting. Driving on
fumes.
Day 179. There’s something about sleeping
on a cambered surface that is quite frustrating. All around us, we see other,
newer, campervans that employ various devices for compensating for an uneven
footing such as ramps under the wheels, supports that tilt up the corners of the
vehicle and so on. No such devices for our twenty five year old dinosaur,
however. Even though we’ve been very pleased with the brick, there are a
few nice features found in more modern vehicles that I wouldn’t mind
having on-board.
Since Powerscourt
House & Gardens was going to be the main focus for the day, we wasted little
time in setting off to check it out. By the time we arrived, the overcast sky
had started to produce some light drizzle but not quite enough to warrant
staying inside. Accordingly, we started our tour of the gardens in earnest.
Sadly, however, the precipitation slowly thickened and we had to retreat back
into the brick after just a few minutes. It would have been a shame to drive so
far for just a brief glimpse at the marvellous gardens so we decided to have
lunch in the brick and hope for a turn in the weather. Not only is the
depressing weather infectious but it also seems to make both of us very tired so
it was somewhat of a blessing in disguise that gave us a chance to relax a
bit.
After an hour or more of
relaxation, the weather improved to the point where we could venture outside
again. After a brief tour of the exhibition inside the house, we went out into
the gardens and wandered around for a while. The gardens cover quite a large
area and are magnificent in their design and appearance. There are several
styles of garden represented throughout the grounds including an Italian pond,
Greek statues and even a Japanese garden complete with bridges, waterfalls and
bamboo.
It was well worth sticking it
out for the gardens. They were quite enjoyable but we finally left to head
towards another campsite that was not listed on our map but was very much closer
to Dublin than where we were last night. We weren’t all too sure how to
get to the main road system from Powerscourt and we eventually ended up going
the long way. Although the road we wound up on was the more direct route, as the
crow flies, it took us high up over what seemed like a mountain range. The roads
were not only very narrow and bumpy (we are used to this now) but so steep that
I had to use first gear several times just to maintain a forward momentum.
Coming down on the far side of the hills must have put a couple of years onto
the break pads.
We eventually made it
here to this campsite with probably less than a cupful of fuel left in the tank.
By the end of our journey, the heavens had opened up and it has rained almost
constantly ever since. This continuing deterioration in the weather is starting
to put a bit of a damper on the whole trip. The forecast for the next few days
is very changeable weather but we are still hoping for the best. I suspect that
our time in Scotland will be shorter than the time we’ve spent here in
Ireland if the weather continues to become more winter
like.
Tomorrow, weather permitting,
we are thinking of leaving the brick here at the campsite and taking the bus
into Dublin for the day. We’ll see how we feel when we wake
up.
Posted: Sun - September 7, 2003 at 01:20 PM