The Wedding day itself

Finally a chance to blog on the wedding itself. The day was great fun. The sun shone (despite lashing rain the day before and after) and everyone seemed to enjoy the reception. The all important food went down well and the quirky nature of the catle meant everyone was preoccupied. Carmel set the standard for speeches very high with a wonderful and relaxed oration. Tough one for Cormac and I to follow. I enjoyed giving the speech but how can you lose with some many family and friends around. Cormac did not assassinate my character but managed to find a few embarrassing photos. The night wound up sometime around 4.30am when a sing song was abandoned due to exhaustion! Only a few photos to post so far but promise I will put up some more later.
Eoin

The Stag

Many thanks to all who came to the stag in Carlingford. The damage began on Friday evening following by drunk football. Saturday climbing heights with the Carlingford Adventure Center was very interesting with our handovers. Kayaking in the afternoon refreshed us a bit and I believe we were sober by late afternoon when the process began again. Many thanks to Cormac for arranging it all in true best man style and a suspicious thanks to Diarmuid to making me look like the handsome devil above.

Where to stay

As the Castle accommodation is limited here are some suggested places to stay that are fairly close. Belleek Castle is approximately 1.5 kilometers outside of the town but taxi service is freely available.

Hotels

Ridgepool Hotel **** Barrett Street 096 24600
Downhill House Hotel ** Downhill Road 096 21033
Downhill Inn *** Sligo Road 096 73444
Hogans Hotel ** Kevin Barry Street 096 21350

B&Bs
Burton Street House Killala Road 096 22050
Errigal Killala Road 096 22563
Mrs Mongan Belleek 096 21074
Mrs Leonard Killala Road 096 32030
San Remo Sligo Road 096 70162
Woodlands Sligo Road 096 22072
Claddagh House Sligo Road 096 71670
Greenhill Cathedral Close 096 22767
Suncroft Cathedral Close 096 21573
Sycamore View Cathedral Close 096 21495
Red River Lodge Quay Road 096 22841
Rockport Blackrock Court 096 22775
Elm Grove House Station Road 096 70330

Other numbers
Ballina Tourist Office www.irelandwest.ie 096 70848

How to get to Belleek Castle from Ballintubber Abbey

To Belleek Castle

Turn left outside the Abbey until you reach the N84. Turn right in the direction of Castlebar. On the outskirts of Castlebar take the N5 exit on the first roundabout. Continue on this bypass and out of the town along the N5. Just at Bellavary village you will see signs for Foxford and Ballina (N58). Turn left and follow the road to Foxford. In the centre of Foxford turn left on the N26. This road leads to Ballina. When you reach Ballina town continue straight through two sets of traffic lights. This road veres left to become the the Killala road (R314). Continue on this road until you see a large Volvo dealership on the left side. Just after this there is a difficult to spot right turn and brown sign for Belleek Castle. Continue along this road past Beleek Caravan Park on the right for about a kilometre and keep an eye out for the Castle entrance on the left.

How to get to Ballintubber - From Galway

The route from Galway is fairly straight forward. Follow the signs to Castlebar and once you reach Ballintubber village look out for the signs to Ballintubber Abbey on the right (brown sign).

Detailed approach.

From Galway
Take the Headford Road (N84) at the Headford Roundabout on the outskirts of Galway City. In Headford turn right in the centre of the town and follow the signs to Ballinrobe. Follow the signs for Castlebar through the town (still on the N84). Pass through Partry and Ballintubber village. Just after the village you will see brown signs for Ballintubber Abbey on the right. The Abbey is about 5 minutes down this road. Journey time is approximately 70 minutes.

From Galway,GalwayTo Ballintubber,Mayo
Distance 39.8 miles

How to get to Ballintubber Abbey - from Dublin

There are a varied of ways to get to Ballintubber depending on which direction you are coming from. Below is one suggested route from AA Ireland if coming from Dublin. You will need to leave at least three and a half hours. The instructions below are pretty detailed but in summary you head for Castlebar, from there it is about 35 minutes to Ballintubber village. The roads are pretty good to Castlebar and you avoid having to go through Galway City.
Eoin

To Ballintubber Abbey

From Dublin
From Dublin take the Galway Road past Lucan and onto the M4. Pass through the toll gate and look for the exit for Castlebar and Mullingar (having bypassed Enfield & Kinnegad). The road bypasses Mullingar and goes through Longford turning at the Longford Arms. The road then passes through Strokestown, Ballaghderreen, Swinford and then Castlebar. Follow the Castlebar bypass and take the exit for Ballinrobe (N84). Ballintobber is the 2nd village on the road to Ballinrobe. Just before the village watch for the brown signs for Ballintubber Abbey on the left. The Abbey is about a 5 minutes down this road. Journey time is approximately 4 hours.

Eoin

The Reception

After the ceremony there is a 35 minute drive to Ballina to Belleek Castle. The staff there are exceptionally nice and following last weekends testing of the food and chat with the chief, we can both endorse the food.

The Wedding Venue

The wedding will take place on Friday Sept 22nd at 1.30pm in Ballintubber Abbey in Co. Mayo. The church itself itself is very historic and dates to 1216. It is also about 20 minutes from Carmels hometown of Cong

Welcome to Carmels and Eoins Wedding Site

7 Weeks to go and the invites should be out to all of you real soon