Sunday, July 10, 2011

Limerick Town























After so many people telling me not to go Limerick I felt the need to go! I think folks are operating on old beliefs and history. I am finding Limerick to be a nice place with the beautiful River Shannon adding to its charm. Yesterday I spent several hours in the downtown area, walking the shops, having lunch and just taking it all in. I took some pics of what I saw. Also, yesterday there were two sporting events in town that attacted over 20,000 people. Hurling and Football matches just up the road. The Limerick teams were playing and thankfully they won! I took the bus into town since parking was at a premium....much easier. Again, I found nice, friendly, helpful people. The first bus driver took the time to write down the bus number I needed and where to catch it. The second bus driver actually stopped at the front door of the Hotel instead of the regular stop so I wouldn't have to walk far. Amazing.
I was asked by a homeless lady (who was wearing a yellow vest saying she was registered) to buy a 2 euro lottery scratch ticket. What a good way to raise money. Apparently they register as agents and get to keep part of the money they collect and the rest goes to lottery and is used to provide services for the homeless. I'll have to show this card to my housing friends in Seattle. On the surface it looks like a good idea.
Limerick continued....
Today is Sunday and I decided to go check out the historical section of the town. King John's Castle is one of the most impressive buildings. St. Mary's Cathedral is also beautiful and dates back to 1168 with most of the history from the 15th Century. Huge stone buildings that must have taken an amazing amount of man power and time. St. Mary's is surprisingly a prostestant Anglican church. I decided to pop in the church and say a few prayers, for Angela and Frank McCourt and spend a little time in meditation. When I poped in there was a service in process so I took a seat quietly at the back of the church. I did what I had come to do and stayed a bit longer to listen to some of the service. When I started to quietly leave, I pulled a classic "Reed Tumble" by not seeing one of the stairs and fell flat! So much for leaving quietly. The service continued while 2 men came to the rescue and made sure I was OK and brought me tea while I was told to sit and rest a bit. No breaks or bruises so far but I did take a hard hit on my bad knee. We'll see what tomorrow brings. I can't believe I got busted sneaking out of church!
I'm sharing a bunch of Limerick pictures so you can get a feel for the Town. I loved the sign about "school boy haircuts". By the way, there is CCTV security cameras everywhere. In the shops, on the streets, everywhere. Very security minded in Ireland. Must stem from the days of the "troubles" when they were dealing directly with terrorism. Or maybe the Irish are just "light fingered"!