As Ireland's popularity as a travel destination reaches an all-time high, the lesser-known inland counties can provide a quieter and some would say, more authentic Irish holiday. Jill Fergus explores the heartland: the counties of Roscommon, Cavan, and Leitrim. I had experienced the nightlife of Dublin's Temple Bar area and the picture-perfect vistas of the Ring of Kerry and … [Read more...] about A Trip Through the Heartland with C.I.E.
Hidden Gems
Salt Spring Island:
The Land of Fairies
British Columbia’s oldest working farm, founded by Irishman Henry Ruckle in 1872, has turned into something of a fairy land.
Between a visionary immigrant farmer and an unknown planter of “fairy doors,” Salt Spring Island has liberal lashings of Irish magic, and that’s not counting a coastline that would put you in mind of Ireland’s rugged west.
Henry Ruckle, who left Ireland … [Read more...] about Salt Spring Island:
The Land of Fairies
The Celtic Heart
of North America
For nine days in October, Cape Breton Island is home to a unique celebration of music and culture, with the finest of storytellers, musicians, and dancers from around the globe taking part in the festivities. John Kernaghan was there, awash in nostalgia.The estrangement ran for more than 45 years, but when a vagrant Irish heart landed on the shores of Cape Breton, love was … [Read more...] about The Celtic Heart
of North America
Valentia Island’s Buried Treasure
Buried treasure on a remote Irish island, the descendants of a 13th-century Knight and a 19th century American entrepreneur – and the birth of the modern communications industry. It’s not the plot of some barely-believable potboiler, but the real-life back story behind a bid to have the small island of Valentia – off the coast of south west Ireland – recognized formally as one … [Read more...] about Valentia Island’s Buried Treasure
Tory Island: Rugged Beauty, Pirate Past
"...like it or not, we are, all of us, Tory Islanders under the skin." – Marius O'hEarcain The remotest of Ireland’s inhabited islands, Tory has Neolithic and Bronze Age roots and a fascinating mythology all its own. But for the past several decades the Island has been feeling its way into the Big World, venturing into new, uncharted waters: it’s become a tourist destination … [Read more...] about Tory Island: Rugged Beauty, Pirate Past