Wednesday, February 19, 2020: The Adare Manor Hotel, Ireland.

Wednesday, February 19, 2020:

The Adare Manor Hotel, Ireland.

Last night’s midnight snack: delicious oregano mozzarella margarita pizzas; cozy-room service style.

Exceptional turn down service including a spa candle gift and lavender pillow and sheet spray. All the amenities in the room are from the elegant French La Mer line and the Italian line of Acqua Di Parma.

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We literally slept like princesses in our Irish countryside castle. Hands down, the most comfortable bed I have ever slept in, and the most solid night’s sleep I have very had in my entire life. It was like diving into a marshmallow cloud; it took everything within our power to get out of bed this morning; we could easily have stayed in bed all day, all week, and all winter long.

The entire manor smells wonderfully of sandalwood, fig, eucalyptus and crackling fireplaces.

Everything in the room is controlled by an i-pad that is provided to each guest; including making restaurant reservations, ordering room service, booking your excursions, to scheduling your turn down service to your wake-up calls.

Perfect comfort. Impeccable food and beverage. Extraordinary staff. Flawless service.

(Over 600 on the staff to manage this magnificent manor).

Thunderstorms all day with minimal visibility, and quite frankly, this countryside manor house / opulent Neo-Gothic castle is too spectacular to book an excursion elsewhere, especially since we are only staying here two nights, therefore, we stayed exactly where we are and enjoyed our beautiful, peaceful picturesque surroundings. Adare Manor is truly the ultimate Irish countryside get-a-way. A must experience for at least two nights when you visit Ireland!

Very impressive, elaborate breakfast buffet surrounded by chandeliers, old library books, crackling fireplaces and assorted board games. We each had French toasts; the best I have ever had in my life; and since some things are just too delicious to only have one order of; I decided to indulge in two orders! Amazingly pleasurable! No regrets!

This afternoon we explored parts of the 840-acre estate outdoors and got to meet the latest addition to their Falconry family; a Snowy Owl. He’s 4 weeks old and weighs two pounds. 

We also met the other rare and endangered owls, but we were not allowed to photograph certain ones. It was a very interesting and educational experience for us both. We learned that:

·       There are around 200 different owl species.

·       A group of owls is called a parliament.

·       Owls have powerful talons (claws) which are much more powerful / damaging than their beaks.

·       Owls have large eyes that take up most of their brain.

·       Owls can turn their heads as much as 270 degrees.

·       Owls are farsighted, meaning they can’t see things close to their eyes clearly.

·       Owls are very quiet in flight compared to other birds of prey.

·       Barn owls can be recognized by their heart shaped face.

More perfectly presented and delicious meals, followed by a cozy afternoon snack of oreo cookie milk-shakes and warm baked cookies in front of the living room’s crackling fireplace with dark grey rainy skies in the backdrop.

Tomorrow early departure for three different trains to get from Limerick to Belfast in Northern Ireland.

For now, Good Night from charming Adare!