Beautiful Ennis

Before leaving Doonbeg this morning, we walked to the beach for a quick look and it was beautiful. The sky was cloudy and it was about to rain, but I will always take any opportunity to get close to the ocean. And this one had swans in it!

We decided to go to Ennis and to only take "main" roads after our experience yesterday, and that is where I am writing from right now. It is a beautiful, quaint town, the largest in County Clare. We're staying at a very comfortable hotel, did a little site seeing, had a light pub lunch and then had dinner at Brogan's, another pub that had excellent food. I am amazed by the quantity of food they serve here, especially the potatoes. I'm trying not to eat it all, but at times that's a challenge.

We went back a couple of hours later to listen to some traditional Irish music. It was great -- what a fun experience. It started out with three musicians and more gradually joined them. We sat next to a nice couple from Canada, who are at the end of their journey and they gave us a few tips, in between songs.

I'm not going to write much more tonight. I'm tired and ready to go to sleep. I know today was a tough day for the U.S. economy and I hope everyone is going to weather this storm and that our leaders show some signs of intelligence and wisdom. We may be 6000 miles from home, but this truly is a small world. We hear about it and feel the same helplessness and frustration that everyone at home must be feeling. I wish I had something really wise to say, but I don't. So, let's hope tomorrow is a better day, or maybe next week or next month. Good night.