Monday, October 8th, 2007
Our earliest rise in Ireland thus far, we managed to get up to the house by 9:30 a.m. in preparation for going to the mart to sell cattle. Uncle Mick and Bernie advised that it would be a bit boring to go so early, so we decided to stay behind and do some laundry and then meet them later. We headed into Castlerea around 12:30 (or as the say in Ireland half 12) and found Dermot’s uncles. It turns out that one of the bullocks took a third place prize, which would increase it’s value at time of auction. Sure enough when the bullock was auctioned off an hour later, it fetched a good price, which put a smile on their faces. We then headed off to an internet café to finalize some details before our departure from Ireland the next day. The mart was running longer than expected, so we headed home without the Uncles and stopped by a neighbor’s house, Mickey Madden, to say hello. We had to carry on to Longford to visit with Dermot’s cousins, so we didn’t stay long.
In Longford, we met Dermot’s cousin Christine in town at the Longford Arms (the usual meeting spot when you visit Longford. . . don't you know). Christine then lead us to her beautiful new home which recently had a received a landscaping makeover.
Christine’s husband, Kieran, arrived home soon after, so we had some tea, took a tour of their house, and met their dogs outside. Christine’s parents, Uncle John and Aunt Sheila, soon arrived and then we were off to eat in a small town called Gowan in County Cavan. We had a wonderful meal that Uncle John and Aunt Sheila treated us to. It was great to see them and catch up on new things and reminisce about past trips to Ireland. We headed back to Christine’s house after dinner and then had to get on the road back to Roscommon, because we had an early flight to London the next day.
Day 57: Flying to London- $25 tickets each!…Until our luggage