The Cliffs of Moher

The Cliffs of Mohher sea cliffs at the southwestern edge of the Burren region of County Clare.  The cliffs rise above the Atlantic Ocean and at their highest they are 702 feet just north of O'Brien's Tower.

We traveled to the Cliffs of Moher on the sixth day of our tour in Ireland.  It was windy and cool on the day before this stop.  If it looked like rain on other days the storms seemed to pass us over.  It was not so when we arrive at the cliffs.  It was windy, cold and it was raining horizontally!  So what I did is resign ourselves to the fact the we'd not be getting any photos here.  Well, I was wrong.  After lunch and some time spent in the gift shop the storm died down enough so that we were able to walk out to the cliffs.  Yes, and photos were a lot of fun to take! 

Like many of the places we stopped in Ireland the sites were spectacular.  The Cliffs of Moher were no exception.  

O'Brien's Tower

O'Brien's Tower is  a round tower built near the midpoint of the cliffs, built in 1835 by Sir Cornelius O'Brien.  From the cliffs and the tower the Aran Islands, Balway Bay, and Loop Head can be seen.  

I was another grand day we had on this adventure!

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please join me for Mosaic Monday, image-in-ing, and Our World Tuesday.

Sojourn to the Holy Land

“A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new viewpoints” ~Wilfred Peterson

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Sanctuary of Our lady of Fatima

 Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes

Nearly a year ago we were on pilgrimage to Portugal, Spain and Lourdes.  I didn't think I could be more excited about a trip than I was for that one, but I was wrong.  I'm really excited about this sojourn.

I'm nearly organized.  Getting things together I want to be sure we take with us.  You know, the passport, tickets, tour book, lenten reading and, of course, the knitting.  These are LONG flights and this is a way to relax.  Then, our kids surprised  us with the most beautiful prayer shawl and yarmulke for our trip to the Western Wall in Jerusalem.  Oh my, yes I am excited.

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please join me at  Through My Lens, Travel Tuesday, Our World Tuesday and Mosaic Monday.

Monoco

I'm not sure what to say about these photos.  I was awestruck when I first saw the Mediterranean.  It is incredibly beautiful.  The palm trees, even with the chill in the air seemed unaffected by the cold.  Indeed, it was cold the day we were there, only 35 degrees and the wind was blowing.  The weather did not diminish the zeal with which we wandered the streets and byways.  It was grand!!   

France has been a wonderful adventure so far. I have enjoyed the countryside and the glory of the sea. And even walking all the steep streets has been good for me.

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

'm here to play and invite you to join Mersad at Through My Lens.  Should be fun!

Please visit Judith at Lavender Cottage for Mosaic Monday and share in the beauty offered there.

I think you should take some time to visit Imagin-in-ing.  You're sure to enjoy it!

River Walk

On a river walk

It was beauty all aglow

Sky was shimmering

The glow of the sky

 Mirroring its very light

Lights us on our way

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God

“A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new viewpoints” ~Wilfred Peterson

I'll be gone on a great adventure for the next two weeks so I'll not be visiting you all until I return.  It's the adventure of a lifetime for me as I will be traveling to Italy.  So, if you will pray for me, I will be praying for all my friends who is on this blogging adventure with me.  So until I return, God be with you all!

Please visit Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!! 

Finally, I am joining A Soulful Life for Soulfood Friday

I have found a new place to play and invite you to join Mersad at Through My Lens.  Should be fun!

And as an added treat perhaps stop by NC Sue's Image-in-ing.

Finding Fun In All the Right Places

After we had spent two days visiting Pompeys Pillar and traveling the Beartooth Pass into Yellowstone National Park we decided to have a different kind of fun.  We'd never been to Sheels Sporting Goods.  My brother assured us we'd have a lot of fun, but spending time in a sporting goods store was not my idea of a good time.  I had to eat my words. . .

There were so many exciting things to see.  Bronze sculptures and wood carvings as well as beautiful animal exhibits.

This is the closest I ever want to get to a bear. . .

These are some of the most beautiful exhibits I've see outside a museum.  This really was fun!  There can be a "great adventure" even in a sporting goods store.  If you have a Sheels near you visit it.  Take the kids and grand kids.  There are aquariums and a Ferris wheel to entertain them.  AND in Billlings they have a cafeteria and they sell FUDGE!

~~~^j^~~~

Adventures can come

In the most surprising ways

And it's simply fun

By a mountain lion
Have the wits scared out of you
To find out he's stuffed

But it's all in fun
When it's with loved ones you laugh
It WAS so much fun

~~~^j^~~
Thanks be to God

Cathy

I'm joining  Little Things Thursday.  Drop by by and visit!

Please visit Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!! 

Finally, I am joining A Soulful Life for Soulfood Friday

A Day With the Deer

She was there for most of the day.  She seemed perfectly comfortable just knowing we were interested in her.  Every year there are deer at Ron's sister's house.  But this year we were able to spend more time just sharing the space with us.

And then sunset came and she decided it was time to to move on.  She took just a moment to turn and bid us a good evening.  It was grand!

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please visit Judith at Lavender Cottage for Mosaic Monday and share in the beauty offered there.

I will also be joining Laura at I Heart Macro to day too.  Why not stop by and enjoy!

I'm also joining Mersad at Through My Lens.  Enjoy!

Once in a Blue Moon

Well, we've flown by Pluto, now, you know, the Dwarf Planet.  It's amazing that for 10 years there are those who waited patiently for this event to happen.  And the amazing thing is that the scientists weren't sure it would be successful.  TEN YEARS!!  I can only imagine the excitement, anxiety, or just sheer terror they must have experienced until the first photos arrived.

I, on the other hand, can never get a good photo of the moon...Well, "once in a blue" one.

~~~~~

When I imagine

Traveling in outer space

My head is spinning

Leaving Mother Earth

It's impossible to me

I have deep roots here

~~~~~

So, in my admiration to those who strive to gain knowledge of the unknown I say, "Thank you!"  Adventures like these only validate the beauty and complexity of God's creation!

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God

Cathy

I'm joining for the first time Little Things Thursday.  Drop by by and visit!

Please visit Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!! 

Adventure Tour Express

“A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new viewpoints” ~Wilfred Peterson

~~~~~

It was my pleasure to spend four wonderful days at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.  It is the site of the Mother House for the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods and Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College.  But first and foremost is was the destination of Saint Mother Theodore Guerin in 1840.

The Cabin

Saint Mary -of-the-Woods

 Replica

Let's here from Mother Theodore as she shares her words on her arrival at The Woods in 1840.  You can only imagine.

"I cannot tell you what passed within me during the next half hour.  I do not know myself, but I was  so deeply moved that I could not utter a word.  We continued to advance into the thick woods till suddenly Father Buteaux stopped the carriage and said, 'Come down, Sisters, we have arrived.'  What was our astonishment to find ourselves still in the midst of the forest, no village, not even a house in sight...[L]ed down into the ravine, whence we beheld through the trees on the other side a frame house with a stable and some sheds.  'There,' he said, 'is the house where the postulants have a room, and where you will lodge until your house is ready.'"
" We had agreed aong ourselve that our first visit would be made to the Blessed Sacrament, and that we soule not speak to anyone before having satiasfied this longing of our hearts.  The priest preceded us and we followed in silence to the Church.  The Church!!"

The church was a cabin, just as the pictures of the replica show above.  This was where Father said Mass and had only a cot in the corner where he could sleep.  Rude church but miracles still  happened here!

Today the Sisters and all who visit can enter and worship in the Church of the Immaculate Conception. You can walk the holy grounds.  You can enter into the silence.  The trees are the friends of reflection.  The buildings honor the wisdom of Saint Mother Theodore and all the Sisters of Providence since.  I find every time I visit I have been touched again by the love, energy, compassion and willingness to give of those who follow the charism of Saint Mother Theodore and the Sisters of Providence.

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!!  

Cathy

Please join now and offer one of your adventures and allow us to travel with you on your tour!

All Aboard!!!

Join here by linking so we can enjoy your adventure!

Haiku My Heart

Miner and his mule

In search of silver and gold

Hoping for riches

Seeking adventure

Looking for prosperity

But often found none.

Soon value is found

Finding what is real and true

Loyalty and friendship.

The miner and his mule are Stinky and Bernadine.  They are a reminder of the exciting past Virginia City once had.  A delightful man with a wonderful sense of humor and tales to tell.

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy 

Please visit Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!! 

Adventure Tour Express

“A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new viewpoints” ~Wilfred Peterson

~~~~~

Hannibal, Missouri

The first leg of our vacation journey this year took us to Hannibal, Missouri.  It's a river town on the Mississippi River.  But you all know that.  It is the hometown of Mark Twain (Samuel Clements).  The Mark Twain Village right downtown is quaint and at 8:00 in the morning it's not very busy.  A perfect time to take pictures and stroll along the streets.

Mark Twain

Paddle Wheeler on The River

Becky Thatcher's House

Boyhood home of Mark Twain (right)

Dad was Justice of the Peace

Looking up the street

Grant's Drug Store

The interior of the drugstore

In the garden a statue of Huck and Tom

And I learned something else while there.  There are ties between Hannibal and Denver.  You see Margaret Brown (The Unsinkable Molly) was born in Hannibal before she moved to Colorado and was passenger on the Titanic.  

It was a great beginning to a wonderful Adventure!!!!

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

 Please join the Adventure Tour Express and share one of your "great adventures".

All Aboard!!!

I must apologize for the "glitch" in Mr Linky. I don't have any idea what happened that the thumbnail did not appear. Be assured, as I have tried it, that your link can be accessed in spite of this. Now I know how a Tour Guide must feel when there is a disruption in the travel schedule...

Travel Journey 9

(Picture memories of Past Adventures}

“A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new viewpoints” ~Wilfred Peterson

Tomorrow we begin the journey home.  We will turn our backs on the glorious Rocky Mountains and travel east.  I have had a wonderful adventure.  I will return home refreshed and renewed!  I'll be ready to return the life I am meant to live happy to have had this time with family in the home of my youth!  

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Travel Journal Continued

Two nights we were able to stay with family in St. Charles, MO. There was torrential rains coming from IN through IL to MO. The temperature dropped 20 degrees, from 97 degrees to 75 degrees, in about 2 hours. The visibility was terrible and people were speeding past us like they didn't have good sense. As a matter of fact there was a horrible vehicular accident as we got to Belleville, IL. Traffic was backed up for miles.
Yesterday we made it to Sioux Falls, SD. We stopped in Hannibal, MO this morning. If you have read Tom Sawyer or Huckleberry Finn You've been there Through the eyes of Mark Twain. We walked down to the river front and walked along the Mississippi River. At 8:00 in the morning it was very quiet and we could leisurely walk the streets and enjoy the sights.

Then we were off again with our journey's end today in today here in Sioux Falls, SD. We drove through Iowa and saw all the glorious corn fields. Iowa also has miles of Wind generators. It's really quite a sight.

We entered Minnesota and found that all the rest areas were closed because the government there is shut down. This caused me to reflect on the individuality each state in the union and how they manage their business. We do live in a most unique nation. Can't think of any place else I'd rather be!!!

Last night we arrived  here in Billings, MT.  The trip across South Dakota and Wyoming into Montana is really beautiful.  It is "Wild West!"  I was reminded of that when I tried to  make a phone call with my cell and there was no reception. 

Got to visit with Mom  for a short while and then off for nigth of restful slumber at my brother's house.  Next installment of the Travel Journal I'd like to tell you about the Wall Drug Store.  See you then!

~~~ ^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!!

~~Adventure Tour Express~~

“A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new viewpoints” ~Wilfred Peterson

~~~~~~~

A League of Their Own

Bosse Field, is a baseball stadium located in Evansville, Indiana. Built in 1915, it is the third oldest ballpark used for professional baseball on a regular basis in the country, surpassed only by Fenway Park (1912) in Boston and Wrigley Field (1914) in Chicago.  (Wikipedia)

It's a grand adventure when you can travel to the local ball park and watch a baseball game with family.  It's grander yet when we all could sit in the same stand and watch this game where it was played nearly 100 years ago.  I have only a few memories of the this park and all are fond.

It's most recent claim to fame was the field used in the movie, A League of Their Own.  Bosse  Field is a hometown treasure.

My first was when we took the kid to an Evansville Triplets ball game in 1983.  At that time they were the farm club for the Detroit Tigers.  They became the Otters in 1995 and in 1997 our son, Wes, was the trainer for the team two years.

Last night though it was just a "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" night.  Great fun including catching that elusive ball in the stand!!!  Way to go, Dave!!!  Caught bare-handed!  Singing, clapping, cheering, and just plain having a ball!  Last night was a treasured memory.

 Ben holding the ball Dad caught!

~~~^j^~~~

Thank be to God!

Please join now and offer one of your adventures and allow us to travel with you on your tour!

All Aboard!!!