There's a hot destination in Ireland that we haven't been to yet, but want to check out: Dingle. Doesn't the name alone make you want to visit this town in County Kerry, in the pretty southwest corner of Ireland? A recent decision could've made it very hard to find Dingle, but there's been a change of heart.
You see, changes to Irish language laws meant that the anglicized name of Dingle should actually have been changed back to its original Irish name of An Daingean. But many locals were concerned that the good reputation Dingle has with tourists--they say because of the landscape, we say because it's a silly name--would be lost, and with it, much of the town's revenue.
So in the friendly spirit of the Irish they've made a compromise. The official name of the town is now Dingle Daingean Ui Chuis. Nice choice, guys. We can really see that fitting nicely on a map.
If you've been on the tourist trail in Ireland you'll know all about the Blarney Stone: a piece of stone in the Blarney Castle near Cork, which is meant to give you the "gift of eloquence" if you lie on your back and lean awkwardly out to kiss it.
But one recent study is now suggesting that since 1888, tourists have been kissing the wrong stone. Smooching with the original Blarney Stone apparently involved being lowered down the side of the castle, with some trustworthy friend holding your ankles. The researchers suggest that someone (cleverly) decided this could be dangerous, and simply started telling people the Blarney Stone was another one.
Naturally enough the current keepers of the Blarney Castle dispute this, eloquently. We dispute it too, since we've kissed the allegedly fake Blarney Stone in the past--and surely here at Jaunted we're nothing less than eloquent?
This is probably not what the Irish wanted to read in the newest Lonely Planet guide to their fine country:
Ireland's 40 shades of green don't, it seems, include the all-important eco-green.
These days, that hurts. The guidebook worries that Ireland's carbon footprint is apparently more than twice the global average--although statistics, as we know, can say nearly anything one wants them to.
The guide does mention that the recent introduction of a tax on plastic bags has helped Ireland's green credentials. The country's infrastructure and size make it popular for cycling and walking holidays, which are obviously pretty eco-friendly, too. So maybe Lonely Planet's being too tough on the Emerald Isle. Then again, when you're a country whose national color is green, it makes sense to play up that fact.
Options for grabbing a ferry between Britain and Ireland have got bigger and better this year with the introduction of the Stena ferry service between Fishguard, United Kingdom, and Rosslare, Ireland.
With a fast crossing time of just 2 hours, they're obviously hoping to hold onto a market that could be tempted to flock to budget airlines. Stena's also got summer specials of £80 for a single ticket (car included) plus extra adults for just 17 quid a piece if you sail mid-week.
150 cars can squeeze onto a Stena ferry. And 650 people telling Irish jokes. For the record, Stena also sails to Holland and Scandinavia, but the jokes there cost extra.
Aging cutie Matthew Broderick's Irish vacation came to a crappy halt yesterday when the star fell off a horse and broke his collarbone while riding on a beach near Donegal.
Broderick and wife, Sarah Jessica Parker, own a three-bedroom clifftop bungalow in the village of Kilcar. The pair are on a two-week, end of summer vacation with their son, James. Reportedly, they won't return to the U.S. and Broderick will tough out the pain on the Emerald Isle.
Matt's had some tough times in Ireland, after being involved in a car accident there, near Enniskillenn, in 1997 with then-girlfriend Jennifer Grey. That time around he was fined for "careless driving." Um, maybe he should let someone else do the driving/riding while abroad.
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by amandak
