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My slice of heaven, aka the LazyB ranch, 125 Wildwood Drive,Wildwood, Georgia, come on by and set a spell!
My castle, aka Ballytarsna, in County Tipperary, Ireland.
(the short history is that the Norman family, the Hacketts came to the Cashel region of Tipperary in the 1100's and ruled that area. This clan slowly devided as some of them intermarried with the Irish and took on the Catholic religion. The family disbanded over the dispute, packing up the family crest and moving to the north claiming there were no more Hacketts in Tipperary. This clan was banished to family property south of here in Ballygambon, near Fethard. But they wanted nothing to do with the Hackett riches and wanted to return to the Ballytarsna region which they did, as land renters. Apparently a family named Murray had associated themselves with the Hacketts and moved to the Ballytarsna area with them, namely to Curraghtarsna. One Hackett daughter, Mary, married one Murray son, Patrick. I believe Patrick worked at the quarry owned by her brother, Walter Hackett. Their son, Thomas grew up and I think, also learned the trade at his uncles quarry for when he went to the US, he followed a classified ad to western Massachusetts to work at a sand quarry near Pittsfield. He married a young Irish lass named Julia Aherns and they had a large family, incuding a son, named Walter, my grandfather. So on behalf of my mother Constance Murray, her father Walter Murray, his father Thomas Murray, his mother Mary Hackett, I lay claim to Ballytarsna! (just dont tell the Texan who now owns it and is restoring it to its pre-1700 splendor!)
OK! I may have to relinquish title to the castle after all, LOL! More research shows my lineage to the Fethard line of Hacketts (themselves descended from Pagamus de Haket the patriarch who was in the service of King John given extensive land in Cashel, County Tipperary). But I cannot find a direct link between Sir William Hackett who built Ballytarsna (circa 1500) and my ancestor Major James Hackett of Ballygambon (circa 11700) later of Curraghtarsna. The family split due to religion appears factual however, I just can't place my line up in Ballytarsna before their relatives resided in Ballygambon.
My Varied Lives, aka cute kid, college kid, Cop, PI, Firefighter, Trucker, Irish guy, secret alter-ego :
The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
-Robert Frost (1874 - 1963), Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
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my son-in-law is arranging to take some college students to Iceland over Spring Break... do you have any suggestions for them while they are looking for good deals on lodging there?
Any suggestions welcome!
thanks,
Carol
Hotels and food were very expensive and with the dollar as it is, this is not a good time to go.
BUT, they just had an economic crash this past fall with their own banking scandal having to do with govt monies invested in British banks. I have not looked online to see if the US dollar has fared well against the Icelandic dollar or if in an attempt to keep up tourism prices have come down.
How big a group is going? I found a great apartment style place within walking distance of Reykjavik but last year the price skyrocketed and I stayed in Keflavik at the hotel there instead and did my touring from the peninsula.
Yes, they are back to around $100 US (10,700 ISK). http://hotelsiceland.net/
They are mini suites, single bed or bedroom apartments, very nice and private and convenient to the city. Don't know how easy it would be to book multiple rooms though. A hotel would be easier and would provide similar rooms for everyone.
In Keflavik, closest to the airport, I stayed at the Flughotel, very nice, simple, was undergoing some renovations last year. It is about $80 US per night. The hotel website wouldn't load, but it can be found and booked via hotel search engines.
Those are the only two places I stayed in my 3 visits - I would plan a day to tour Keflavik peninsula (location of sulphur spings and the famous blue lagoon). From Reykjavik the drive along the south coast is a bit more convenient to see the glaciers and the coastline as well as the original "geysir".
I have some videos of waterfalls posted at youtube with my bbmyls2go id.
The north of the country is a full days drive away so a lot depends on what the group is interested in and what time they have available. 4 days would be sufficient for touring the south and south west including the city of Reykjavik. Beer is expensive, food is expensive, gas is expensive (though its all relative, if beer is $8 a bottle, maybe gas at the equivalent of $8 a gallon isn't so bad? But it DOES make a difference in budgeting for the trip, a days drive that I enjoy, is around 400 miles, in a 15mpg 4wd SUV (recommended) that's over $200 PER DAY!
There are several good websites to be googled for city attractions, maps, weather, etc. Reykjavik is known for its late night life. Music clubs don't get rocking (or techno dancing throbbing) until well after midnight. Locals like to gather at home for a drinks and dinner in the late evening to save $$$ before heading out to the clubs around 1am. They will close when the drinkers and dancers are done, often at daybreak.
Next week I will be home and will look over my city maps to see if there are any hotels convenient to the downtown area. Drop me an email so I can send other links etc to you directly to forward to you S-I-L. - bruce
Seriously though, so sweet of you, I was touched and am so grateful for your friendship. God Bless hon! Lynn
