Moe and Irene's RTW blog: Ireland: Immersing in Irish

May 3-6, 2013. My sister Carol, Moe and I spent a week in Ballyferriter, Ireland.

We went because of a scrap of paper with an email address on it. I was given it a year ago and had tucked it in my Irish textbook where it was shuffled around or used as a book mark. When I looked up the website, I found a course in Irish language, heritage and activity for proficient irish-speaking adults.

I needed a beginning Irish course but I wanted to hike the beautiful Dingle peninsula, visit heritage sites, and speak Irish. I was studying Irish at home and so I wiggled my way into the course

Once in Ballyferriter, a week before the course, I stopped by the office of the Irish Language & Cultural Organization (Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne). Inside the cosy office everyone was speaking Irish-in long, complex, complicated sentences. In other words, they were living and breathing Irish.

If you could have seen my face, you would have seen a shocked person who could barely babble her own name in English.

I have lined up a tutor for the five full days prior to the course. Maighréad, my tutor, taught me grammar, and local expression. She took me on field trips and hikes and taught me how to herd cows. After five days she turned me out, saying "Call me if you need help!". HaHa! I didn't have a cell phone... and even if I had, one couldn't buy all the minutes I needed.

All's Well that Ends Well

Words can't express what a fabulous time I had in the course! Kudos to Caitríona and Máire, our language instructors. They were so accepting, and kind. I learned so much, wasn't humiliated, and want to continue learning! Each day I had instruction, we all heard a talk (in Irish) and then went on a walk/hike.

Darach Ó Murcú--guest lecturer

Darach is a freelance mountaineering instructor and trekking guide who also works part-time at home on a small organic market farm. He has a particular interest in edible wild foods. (see his website www.inmyelement.ie)

This charming young man (left) and friend Frainc Mac Cionnath did a series for TG4 (Irish language television channel) on foraging for food. They collected seaweeds, mussels, shellfish, wild garlic and onions, to name a few, and made tasty, healthy, organic meals.

These boys can cook!

Darach spoke in Irish to the course attendees; the subject was seaweed--the many varieties and their uses. I deducted this from the color slides and the objects he held up.

He showed us a video clip of the TG4 presentation for Irish T.V. I understood every word, as it was subtitled in English. The video below is a trailer/teaser for his series on foraging. Go to YouTube and and search for "dul i bhfiáin"to see some amazing episodes.

After the talk, Darach treated us to green seaweed soup and seaweed panacotta. Both delicious.

Next to the beach for up close and personal. Darach glided across the seaweed; I was almost on all fours to keep from falling on the rocks. Irish seaweed is slipperier than snot and the rain didn't help!

Let's go look at another site for seaweed. First over a style. Then to the beach.

Smart people stopped at the top of a seawall. That was the safe thing to do. I teetered down to the water and was rewarded by the beauty of the rocks.

Mt. Brandon

At 3,127 feet, Mt. Brandon is the 9th highest mountain in Ireland. I wanted to climb it and so did Carol, who received a gracious invitation from Caitríona to accompany us. The weather looked good in the morning but deteriorated in the afternoon.

The peak of Brandon is the end of a Christian pilgrimage trail known as The Pilgrim's Path (Cosán na Naomh). The path of the top is marked by crosses and small white posts. That's about all we could see! We were in the clouds and the summit winds were fierce.

I was the caboose on the hiking train and only made it to the top because I love gummy bears. I would catch up to the stopped group, a fellow hiker would offer me a gummy bear and then start hiking again before I caught my breath. Cruel but effective!