Well, it's the day before Ty, Letty, and I leave for Ireland. It's been a long time coming, but the prize is in view. It's 4 in the afternoon, I'm already packed, and just doing some last minutes itinerary changes.

I started planning this trip back in May and was planning to go to Scotland. At that point, we were hoping that our friend David Wickliffe and his friend Kathy, would be able to go with us. A year ago, David has traveled with Ty and I to Amsterdam. We had a great time. As it worked out, neither were able to go. Maybe next time!

By the time we learned that David and Kathy could not go, airfares to Scotland were getting to much. No problem, Plan B. I started looking for fares to Ireland in July. Flights.com has a bunch of great fares, but American Airlines has just as good as fare, so I took that. With the flights out of the way, getting a car and places to stay each night was next on the agenda.

I looked around at a LOT of rental car places, but couldn't find anything reasonable. I then started looking a packages. I finally ended up with Brian Moore International Travels (BMIT). The people at BMIT are fantastic, and put up with a lot of my silly questions. They even corrected a mistake that was my fault! I would use them again. Prices for trips to Ireland fall after October 15th, so if you can wait, you can go for nearly half price.

I'll be taking my Kodak camera again. It's a little big, but it takes great pictures. I actually bought a Canon camera, but I returned it within two days. The pictures weren't as good as my Kodak. The camera has been acting a little weird since I loaned it to a friend. And yes, James, you will be in trouble if it messes up on this trip.

I'm also taking my Compaq Ipaq with me. I'll be able to take notes and type in my log when I have time. This was great on my trip to Amsterdam. People always look funny at the little keyboard I have.

The way I have the trip planned, probably won't be the way we do it, but who cares. We are going to have fun. We planning to go to 7 castles, 3 brewpubs, 3 lighthouses, 5 breweries, 2 distilleries, 2 churches, 1 horse race track, the Waterford Crystal Factory, and see a lot of scenery. There are so many things to see in Ireland, we are just going to have to live with what we can do in the time we have.

My only real concern in the Dublin bus system. I think I have it figured out, but I'm not sure. Finding detailed maps for Dublin has been a problem, and directions to the Bed & Breakfast (B&B) each night is going to be tough. Driving on the left will be a challenge, but I'm sure Ty is up to it.

The weather for the trip looks good. We should experience showers on the first day, then cloudy weather after that. The high EVERY day is 60 degrees, and the low EVERY day is 48. Pretty easy to be a weather forecaster in Ireland.

Oh well, I need to finish what I'm doing. I hope you enjoy the website!

Mark Reynolds