Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. We have been busy this festive season with a family wedding the week before Christmas. We had some guests stay over, then a few nights out followed by Christmas dinner for seven this year. Overall it was really enjoyable but went very fast. I have a few more friends to meet up with and then time to ring in the New Year.

I haven't visited very much of Spain, having concentrated my holidays in France, Italy and along the Adriatic coast over the past few weeks. Two years ago I visited Barcelona and loved it. I hadn't gone abroad this year and was in need of some heat and sunshine so booked a last minute trip to the Costa del Sol. I was pleasantly surprised with this part of Spain. Transport was so easy and inexpensive. We spent a day exploring the beautiful city of Malaga and Muelle Uno with splendid views of the port. The sun shone every day and the heat did me the world of good. I love the heat so this holiday suited me with temperatures ranging from 23-26 degrees compared to 11 degrees here at home in Ireland. We also visited Gibraltar for a day and spent the rest of the time relaxing and exploring the coastline between Benalmadena to Torremolinos. In total we spent 5 nights away and it was just perfect!

Autumn has really set in here in Ireland. The days are getting shorter and there is a real chill to the air in the mornings. Here are a few photos of my recent trip along the Wild Atlantic Way...

As you may have noticed from my blog and Instagram I love built heritage and architecture. On my travels in August I visited Bantry House and Gardens and was not disappointed-it is spectacular! The owners live in the house and you can visit some of the rooms in another part of the house. The setting is stunning overlooking Bantry Bay on the Wild Atlantic Way. The photographs below are all of the back of the house with the back gardens... just imagine if all our back gardens looked this good. There are 100 steps leading up the back garden and the views are incredible down over the house to Bantry Bay beyond. If you are in West Cork you will have to visit as it well worth it and the entrance fee is going towards the continued renovations and restoration of the house and gardens.

This week we explored counties Cork and Kerry along the Wild Atlantic Way. Our first stop was Kinsale in County Cork, it is a really vibrant colourful town with lots of pretty shops and restaurants. I loved the varied colour palette used on all of the buildings and the traditional shop fronts. Here are just a few photos I took. We didn't stay the night here but spent a few hours exploring the town. Watch out for more posts from my travels.

This Summer I'm exploring more of Ireland with lots of day trips away. We have no holidays booked for abroad so I'm making the most of what we have to offer here in Ireland. One place I visited in the past few weeks was Carlingford in County Louth, it is such a pretty little town with a great buzz and lots to see and do. So if you are exploring Ireland's Ancient East, do stop off in Carlingford...

This weekend was a bank holiday here in Ireland and I took an extra two days off work. I visited County Louth on Friday and came across the quaint port of Greenore. It is very small but pretty all the same. There is a tiny village with brick houses which were built for the railway workers and the port workers years ago. There are also some arts and craft design homes which were originally built for railway drivers, they are so beautiful and very unique for Ireland. We spent a short time in Greenore as we didn't have much time and we wanted to visit Carlingford as well. I really loved this wee place and would love to return again.