Ireland day 0070. Tuesday 07 December 2021- Barra

Ireland day 0070. Tuesday 07 December 2021- Barra
Today’s summary A blustery wet day as storm Barra passed through.   College closed so no Spanish class this evening.   Used the bad weather as an opportunity to stay in and finish the Christmas cards.   Portmarnock loop walk in evening
Today’s weather Blustery with heavy showers.  No sun.   Appx 7C
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Today’s overview location
(the red cross in a circle shows where Val and I are at the moment)
Close-up location
(Click the button below to download a GPX of this evening’s walk):
Portmarnock with Val and Barra
Commentary

This is just a short blog tonight, which is mostly because there’s not actually a lot you can say about the fact that you stayed in and wrote Christmas cards and then went on a short walk.

Actually the day was mostly shaped by the weather – Storm Barra passed through (indeed it is still going on as I write).   But although it has variously been described as “code red” and “a weatherbomb”,  here in Malahide it’s just been a bit wet and windy and not too dramatic.   Though I do know it’s been a good deal more serious out on the west coast.  But nevertheless, it wasn’t a very inviting day outside so it did rob us of any excuse we might otherwise have had to go out and avoid writing the Christmas cards.   It also closed the local college, so my final Spanish lesson of the year has been postponed by a week till next Tuesday.

So we made the best of it and got to work writing, printing, stamping and gluing and by the end of the afternoon, we had more or less processed them all.   In a last big push we got all 80-plus cards down to the post office and into the letterbox before the last post went at 5pm.  To celebrate our freedom for this rewarding but time-consuming task I decided to take Val on my favourite Portmarnock loop walk – and fortunately she agreed.

It was an enjoyable walk mainly because it was so refreshing.   A buffeting in the wind, with a few douses of cold rain thrown in, was the perfect antidote to an afternoon spent stuck indoors.   Then on the way back we couldn’t resist dropping in to the local grocers’ to pick up a couple of bottles of Shiraz which were on special offer at €4.99 a pop.

So now we’re relaxing with a glass or two of Chateau Supervalu and listening to the wind in the trees as the rain continues to lash down.   A nice evening to be inside and for once not reeling from a massive overdose of history.

 

Today’s photos (click to enlarge)

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Hooray!   Cards were safely despatched into the letterbox just before the post office closed.   Job done. Val braving the wind and rain as we set out to Portmarnock after posting the cards.
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Down at the northern end of the Velvet Strand.   The most white horses we’ve seen on the sea since we came here – normally it’s pretty calm Having survived Barra and the Christmas cards, this felt especially well deserved this evening
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A large branch had come off an old cedar just up the road from us.   The tree surgeons were out in force sorting out the damage as we walked past – even as the storm continued to batter on around us.
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