Sometimes, I’m just lucky.

I’m gathering together resources about Ireland.

I did not set out to write about Ireland, and actively resisted it, truth be known.  I’ve been to England, Wales and Scotland and so feel far more comfortable writing about them. But this book, it keeps pointing me to Ireland, and well, okay, where the muse leads, I must follow.

So.  If my trilogy sells, I will need to know more about Ireland. Hopefully a research trip will be in order. And so I’m gathering up my old faithfuls, a couple of new ones, and digging out what I already have.

When it comes to the UK, I love the Rough Guides. The Rough Guide to England is my favorite travel guide ever, but you first need to understand how we travel. We rent a car and drive. We seek out villages and out of the way places and stay in inexpensive B&Bs and eat in pubs. So the typical travel guides that only hit the most popular spots don’t work for us on the whole.

But this is truly a guide for readers. Very few pictures, lots of text. History, trivia, and a bit of attitude.  I love it, but if you want lots of pictures you’ll need a different (or additional) guidebook.

And yes, I have ordered and received my The Rough Guide to Ireland.

I’ve also ordered an Ireland (EYEWITNESS TRAVEL GUIDE) and (remember, the driving?) an Back Roads Ireland (EYEWITNESS TRAVEL BACK ROADS) which looks to be wonderfully inviting.

Yum.  I’m already tasting the soda bread and whiskey, and hearing the gentle Irish brogue in the music-filled pubs and…

And the lucky part? I knew I’d collected some books along the way, and I finally dug this one out, the Illustrated Guide to Ireland (Readers Digest).

Not quite a coffee table book, but this is a lovely, large hardcover that is filled with details and illustrations. I am sure we paid the listed $35 for it when we bought it, but it’s now bargain priced on Amazon, and I highly recommend it, whether you’re an armchair traveler or planning a trip of your own.

And why am I lucky? Because I had that on my shelf, the one with rave reviews, including the one from an Irish woman who concludes, “If you only buy one book on Ireland, buy this one.”

That was sheer luck, picking up this book.  Luck o’ the Irish?

And finally, because I can’t end a post on travel without a picture, here’s a pub where we ate in Dartmoor.  I guess the Irish pics will have to come later, after I’ve actually been there? Yeah, that’s a plan!

What are your favorite guide books?

How do you travel? First class or steerage? Fine hotels or B&Bs with the loo down the hall?

Tell me about it. I love to talk travel (and research)!

Sometimes, I'm just lucky.

I’m gathering together resources about Ireland.

I did not set out to write about Ireland, and actively resisted it, truth be known.  I’ve been to England, Wales and Scotland and so feel far more comfortable writing about them. But this book, it keeps pointing me to Ireland, and well, okay, where the muse leads, I must follow.

So.  If my trilogy sells, I will need to know more about Ireland. Hopefully a research trip will be in order. And so I’m gathering up my old faithfuls, a couple of new ones, and digging out what I already have.

When it comes to the UK, I love the Rough Guides. The Rough Guide to England is my favorite travel guide ever, but you first need to understand how we travel. We rent a car and drive. We seek out villages and out of the way places and stay in inexpensive B&Bs and eat in pubs. So the typical travel guides that only hit the most popular spots don’t work for us on the whole.

But this is truly a guide for readers. Very few pictures, lots of text. History, trivia, and a bit of attitude.  I love it, but if you want lots of pictures you’ll need a different (or additional) guidebook.

And yes, I have ordered and received my The Rough Guide to Ireland.

I’ve also ordered an Ireland (EYEWITNESS TRAVEL GUIDE) and (remember, the driving?) an Back Roads Ireland (EYEWITNESS TRAVEL BACK ROADS) which looks to be wonderfully inviting.

Yum.  I’m already tasting the soda bread and whiskey, and hearing the gentle Irish brogue in the music-filled pubs and…

And the lucky part? I knew I’d collected some books along the way, and I finally dug this one out, the Illustrated Guide to Ireland (Readers Digest).

Not quite a coffee table book, but this is a lovely, large hardcover that is filled with details and illustrations. I am sure we paid the listed $35 for it when we bought it, but it’s now bargain priced on Amazon, and I highly recommend it, whether you’re an armchair traveler or planning a trip of your own.

And why am I lucky? Because I had that on my shelf, the one with rave reviews, including the one from an Irish woman who concludes, “If you only buy one book on Ireland, buy this one.”

That was sheer luck, picking up this book.  Luck o’ the Irish?

And finally, because I can’t end a post on travel without a picture, here’s a pub where we ate in Dartmoor.  I guess the Irish pics will have to come later, after I’ve actually been there? Yeah, that’s a plan!

What are your favorite guide books?

How do you travel? First class or steerage? Fine hotels or B&Bs with the loo down the hall?

Tell me about it. I love to talk travel (and research)!