Alexa Whitewolf's Blog, page 3
May 6, 2018
A stroll in the City of Love – Part 2
Strolling through Paris and seeing its many historical monuments was amazing on its own. But if you’re looking for some experiences that will embellish your stay (as I did), try a few of these!
Walk in Sartre’s footsteps
I managed to do half the circuit before my feet gave way (lesson to wear more comfortable shoes!!!) but the article here outlines the perfect way.
May 4, 2018
A stroll in the City of Love – Part 1
You have to love it when family brings new opportunities to you! A few weeks ago, my grandmother was returning to Romania. Due to her age, she couldn’t travel alone so we took a family trip. Rather than go for a direct flight, we chose a pit-stop in Paris to see some family friends and experience a little bit of the old European charm.
And what a stay! Between amazing food, gothic cathedrals, the old mixed with the new, and parks that make you believe you’re in the midst of a forest and not t...
A stroll in the City of Love – Part 1
You have to love it when family brings new opportunities to you! A few weeks ago, my grandmother was returning to Romania. She had been visiting in Canada the better part of four months, but with summer around the corner it was time to go home.Due to her age, she couldn’t travel alone so we took a family trip. Rather than go for a direct flight, we chose a pit-stop in Paris to see some family friends and experience a little bit of the old European charm.And what a stay! Between amazing food, gothic cathedrals, the old mixed with the new, and parks that make you believe you’re in the midst of a forest and not the city… Paris amazed me from beginning to end! Scroll below for a few of the epic spots I travelled through.First viewsNothing quite compares with the first peek at a new country. After getting off the airport, I was surprised with my first name initial in the sky (don't even know how that happened !!) and then a bus trip to where we were staying (about 40min out of Paris). Here's a couple snippets:
Van GoghThe célèbre peintre spent his last days in an area of France called Val D'Oise, set around a river named Oise. Literally, the name translates to the valley of the Oise. When Van Gogh attempted to commit suicide, he semi-succeeded. That is to say, he didn't die immediately, but rather made his way back from the field he shot himself into the inn he lived in, where he died two days later. I got the chance to see the inn and his room (which has been kept unrented and untouched since his death) and hear a wonderful tour. If ever you're in the area, it's well worth the look and walk further up the hill for the cemetery where Van Gogh and his brother Theo were buried together (you'll see their two graves in the pics below too). The decorations on the various graves there were truly amazing! Well worth the tour of the house and drive! My only regret is they didn't allow pictures inside the house! http://www.maisondevangogh.fr/index-e...
CathedralsI’m not big on churches, but there is something about the gothic structure of Notre-Dame and Sacré Coeur’s beautiful architecture that blew me away!You can visit Sacré Coeur for free (after a security check) and Notre-Dame as well, but be mindful of the line ups in this one. If you’re lucky, you can even catch a few married couples having the pictures taken at each!Sacré Coeur (pics)You can take the never-ending stairs for an awesome workout (even national teams train here!) or take the elevator for a cheat day :) The last picture was a nice little surprise! 
Notre-Dame (pics)You can easily imagine Quasimodo and Esmeralda here, but if you do go, take the time to stroll through the gardens at the back! Beautiful and cool on a hot sunny day :) 
The MontMartre DistrictFrom Sacré Cœur, don’t just hop back down the stairs. Take a stroll through the Montmartre district and enjoy some cold beverages (and yummy food!) while having your portrait painted by professionals! (Sidenote: their fees can go up to 70 Euros, so make sure you ask before sitting down!)We took a bus down from the area to visit Moulin Rouge after. I was petrified by the tiny streets and large bus that zoomed through, up and down cobblestone paths, as if it was on a racetrack. But it was by far the most fun experience I had – if you can avoid throwing up, that is haha!Moulin RougeThe sex district is a must whether you’re traveling alone or as a couple. But for the single women traveling, a heads up: every store you see there will have men out ogling tourists to invite them to different shows for a fee.
The Eiffel TowerAh, la belle tour!!! The first time I saw the Eiffel Tower was from the Sacré Coeur cathedral, looking down across the beautiful landscape.It was my uncle who suggested, rather than getting off at the subway station under the Eiffel Tower, to go across to a plaza instead. And he was right! The view was spectacular and the plaza was filled with people, vendors and out-right fun.
The Louvre MuseumIf you’ve seen the Da Vinci Code movie (and if you’re a fan as I am) you’ll want to visit the Louvre. A heads up for the crowds and high-vigilance of security, but otherwise it’s an amazing sight. I didn't get into any of the exhibitions, but I would love to spend days just exploring it! Also, the Starbucks nestled in its center is pure heaven! (but more on that in the next post)
Stay tuned for Part 2, where I will share some experiences you cannot miss in Paris!
Van GoghThe célèbre peintre spent his last days in an area of France called Val D'Oise, set around a river named Oise. Literally, the name translates to the valley of the Oise. When Van Gogh attempted to commit suicide, he semi-succeeded. That is to say, he didn't die immediately, but rather made his way back from the field he shot himself into the inn he lived in, where he died two days later. I got the chance to see the inn and his room (which has been kept unrented and untouched since his death) and hear a wonderful tour. If ever you're in the area, it's well worth the look and walk further up the hill for the cemetery where Van Gogh and his brother Theo were buried together (you'll see their two graves in the pics below too). The decorations on the various graves there were truly amazing! Well worth the tour of the house and drive! My only regret is they didn't allow pictures inside the house! http://www.maisondevangogh.fr/index-e...CathedralsI’m not big on churches, but there is something about the gothic structure of Notre-Dame and Sacré Coeur’s beautiful architecture that blew me away!You can visit Sacré Coeur for free (after a security check) and Notre-Dame as well, but be mindful of the line ups in this one. If you’re lucky, you can even catch a few married couples having the pictures taken at each!Sacré Coeur (pics)You can take the never-ending stairs for an awesome workout (even national teams train here!) or take the elevator for a cheat day :) The last picture was a nice little surprise! Notre-Dame (pics)You can easily imagine Quasimodo and Esmeralda here, but if you do go, take the time to stroll through the gardens at the back! Beautiful and cool on a hot sunny day :) The MontMartre DistrictFrom Sacré Cœur, don’t just hop back down the stairs. Take a stroll through the Montmartre district and enjoy some cold beverages (and yummy food!) while having your portrait painted by professionals! (Sidenote: their fees can go up to 70 Euros, so make sure you ask before sitting down!)We took a bus down from the area to visit Moulin Rouge after. I was petrified by the tiny streets and large bus that zoomed through, up and down cobblestone paths, as if it was on a racetrack. But it was by far the most fun experience I had – if you can avoid throwing up, that is haha!Moulin RougeThe sex district is a must whether you’re traveling alone or as a couple. But for the single women traveling, a heads up: every store you see there will have men out ogling tourists to invite them to different shows for a fee.The Eiffel TowerAh, la belle tour!!! The first time I saw the Eiffel Tower was from the Sacré Coeur cathedral, looking down across the beautiful landscape.It was my uncle who suggested, rather than getting off at the subway station under the Eiffel Tower, to go across to a plaza instead. And he was right! The view was spectacular and the plaza was filled with people, vendors and out-right fun.The Louvre MuseumIf you’ve seen the Da Vinci Code movie (and if you’re a fan as I am) you’ll want to visit the Louvre. A heads up for the crowds and high-vigilance of security, but otherwise it’s an amazing sight. I didn't get into any of the exhibitions, but I would love to spend days just exploring it! Also, the Starbucks nestled in its center is pure heaven! (but more on that in the next post)Stay tuned for Part 2, where I will share some experiences you cannot miss in Paris!
October 29, 2017
Calling all indies to…use your free options!
Alright folks! Time to tally up some bumps and bruises gathered while fumbling through the world of *cringe* marketing.
SLXLM
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As always, feel free to check full blog (better quality) at http://www.alexawhitewolf.com/blog 
Calling all indies to...use your free options!
Alright folks! Time to tally up some bumps and bruises gathered while fumbling through the world of *cringe* marketing. 
AmazonKeywords keywords! One of the best uses of your marketing with Amazon, I've found, is to1. use the giveaways option for ebooks, as it ends up way cheaper than a Goodreads one2. read their content they suggest for marketingOne such read brought to my attention the importance ofkeywords!Check and triple check and make good use of them!Have a look in the marketing sections and don't be afraid to use their tools :)Facebook boost posts-great if you want some likes-not so great for sales-very low costI paid $6 ($3 each) to boost one post about Avalon Dreams, one about The Dragon Medallion. Simple stuff announcing a sale and includes the cover as pic. For AD, got 296 people reached and 16 engagements. For DM, got 216 people reached and 7 engagements. No sales as I mentioned, but one interesting fact is it seems to have put me on Facebook's radar as odd people are starting to like my page's pics and posts - outside of the crowd that follows me. This means I'm showing up on their news feed, and their friends' when they like my stuff.Btw, do pop by and say hello/like if you're in the area, I don't bite :) Bookoftheday.orgI was super excited about this because it was low cost $11.99 and they seem to know what they're talking about. Paid my dues, and...
....nothing. No sales, no website traffic, nada. Not to say it doesn't work! Maybe others have had better results? They did what they promised, but I found It just didn't do anything for me, despite the promising information.Moving on! Paid website submissions These are the websites you can submit your books to when you have sales. I would highly highly recommend using the free ones first and maybe 1 or 2 paid ones. I usually submit to as many as I can (30-40) free and Include 1 paid feature for each book in the series. I always get some traffic and sales and they're very low cost.If your goal is to get on BookBub, get started with creating your author profile! Always good for exposure :)One new thing I'll be trying for the following campaign: spacing out the days. To be continued...Social media 80% content, 20% promoOr so they say. Either way, I find it works. Since September I've been active on my twitter account @alexa_whitewolf and have managed to get myself up at around 160 followers (permanent ones). I mix it up with quirky posts, pics, gifs, shares...And to be honest, I like it better than FB. Go figure, eh? Maybe I'm holding a grudge for them cancelling my author account and forcing me to build a new author pageBlog toursReading this recent article about the use of blog tours. And that is my next item to be focused on. Here's a few Im considering http://www.selfpublishingreview.com/2... that's just the tip of the iceberg. I plan to try all the free/low cost ones first, then go from there. Author ResourcesThere are, quite simply, tons of author resource places out there. AuthorsDB is one of them, Readersintheknow,Indies Unlimited another, and many more. Goodreads goes without saying, one interesting thread (many more!) :) Use them! Read their articles, as some have already tried many methods and can tell you which fail and which succeed. Don't be afraid to do your research and keep track of such things.Readersintheknow has a very good post on the Amazon algorithm, full of information!Last but not least:Editing This article has a list of editing toolsthat can check over your writing. While they do not replace an editor, if you're more DIY like I am sometimes, they can definitely come in handy. And don't forget; whatever you try, keep records and try to track it as best as possible! If it works, repeat. If it doesn't, discard. 
Try to have fun! Marketing is my most dreaded item aside from formatting, but I've found ways to make it fun. Namely, a big colourful and rainbow-y calendar that marks what my days are like! And a reminder app on my phone so I'mNot stressing about what I'm forgetting to do :) I'm no good at full on selling what I write. But I am good at talking about my books and ideas, and that's why I'mfocusing now on exposure. I think so long as you find a way to fit marketing into your days, then you'll be the better off for it!What works for one of us doesn't always for the other, so don't despair! Pick yourself up and dust yourself over. Like my wise mom always says, "every kick in the butt is a step forward" :)Share below if you've had experiences with any of the above!
AmazonKeywords keywords! One of the best uses of your marketing with Amazon, I've found, is to1. use the giveaways option for ebooks, as it ends up way cheaper than a Goodreads one2. read their content they suggest for marketingOne such read brought to my attention the importance ofkeywords!Check and triple check and make good use of them!Have a look in the marketing sections and don't be afraid to use their tools :)Facebook boost posts-great if you want some likes-not so great for sales-very low costI paid $6 ($3 each) to boost one post about Avalon Dreams, one about The Dragon Medallion. Simple stuff announcing a sale and includes the cover as pic. For AD, got 296 people reached and 16 engagements. For DM, got 216 people reached and 7 engagements. No sales as I mentioned, but one interesting fact is it seems to have put me on Facebook's radar as odd people are starting to like my page's pics and posts - outside of the crowd that follows me. This means I'm showing up on their news feed, and their friends' when they like my stuff.Btw, do pop by and say hello/like if you're in the area, I don't bite :) Bookoftheday.orgI was super excited about this because it was low cost $11.99 and they seem to know what they're talking about. Paid my dues, and.......nothing. No sales, no website traffic, nada. Not to say it doesn't work! Maybe others have had better results? They did what they promised, but I found It just didn't do anything for me, despite the promising information.Moving on! Paid website submissions These are the websites you can submit your books to when you have sales. I would highly highly recommend using the free ones first and maybe 1 or 2 paid ones. I usually submit to as many as I can (30-40) free and Include 1 paid feature for each book in the series. I always get some traffic and sales and they're very low cost.If your goal is to get on BookBub, get started with creating your author profile! Always good for exposure :)One new thing I'll be trying for the following campaign: spacing out the days. To be continued...Social media 80% content, 20% promoOr so they say. Either way, I find it works. Since September I've been active on my twitter account @alexa_whitewolf and have managed to get myself up at around 160 followers (permanent ones). I mix it up with quirky posts, pics, gifs, shares...And to be honest, I like it better than FB. Go figure, eh? Maybe I'm holding a grudge for them cancelling my author account and forcing me to build a new author pageBlog toursReading this recent article about the use of blog tours. And that is my next item to be focused on. Here's a few Im considering http://www.selfpublishingreview.com/2... that's just the tip of the iceberg. I plan to try all the free/low cost ones first, then go from there. Author ResourcesThere are, quite simply, tons of author resource places out there. AuthorsDB is one of them, Readersintheknow,Indies Unlimited another, and many more. Goodreads goes without saying, one interesting thread (many more!) :) Use them! Read their articles, as some have already tried many methods and can tell you which fail and which succeed. Don't be afraid to do your research and keep track of such things.Readersintheknow has a very good post on the Amazon algorithm, full of information!Last but not least:Editing This article has a list of editing toolsthat can check over your writing. While they do not replace an editor, if you're more DIY like I am sometimes, they can definitely come in handy. And don't forget; whatever you try, keep records and try to track it as best as possible! If it works, repeat. If it doesn't, discard. Try to have fun! Marketing is my most dreaded item aside from formatting, but I've found ways to make it fun. Namely, a big colourful and rainbow-y calendar that marks what my days are like! And a reminder app on my phone so I'mNot stressing about what I'm forgetting to do :) I'm no good at full on selling what I write. But I am good at talking about my books and ideas, and that's why I'mfocusing now on exposure. I think so long as you find a way to fit marketing into your days, then you'll be the better off for it!What works for one of us doesn't always for the other, so don't despair! Pick yourself up and dust yourself over. Like my wise mom always says, "every kick in the butt is a step forward" :)Share below if you've had experiences with any of the above!
October 26, 2017
Kennel Woes (Take two)
LXLMS
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[image error] It’s taken me a bit to write this, mainly as I dedicated a lot of time to my dogs and also find this hard to talk about.
Having dogs, caring for them, raises feelings of guilt when anything goes wrong. Akin to if I had a brother who hurt himself while I was on vacation, I would feel guilty because maybe if I’d been around I could have prevented that.
Well, with my dogs, it was a traumatizing experience and it took a lot patience and self control to get back to where we are now.
If you’v...
Kennel Woes (Take two)
It's taken me a bit to write this, mainly as I dedicated a lot of time to my dogs and also find this hard to talk about. Having dogs, caring for them, raises feelings of guilt when anything goes wrong. Akin to if I had a brother who hurt himself while I was on vacation, I would feel guilty because maybe if I'd been around I could have prevented that. Well, with my dogs, it was a traumatizing experience and it took a lot patience and self control to get back to where we are now. If you've read my blog before, you know I have a deep love of all furry creatures, but dogs have a special place in my heart. I cannot understand humans that hurt them and never will. I eventually hope to get my own kennel and help rescue as many dogs as I can. But I digress. What happened was: we went on a trip. Left our dogs with a company who advertised proper dog care... but within 48hrs our dogs had to be taken to the vet, one by one. This blog is not to bash the company but rather to share what worked for us in bringing our dogs back to normal. I should probably start at the beginning, to give you some context. Our lab, Zeus, was first in the household. Achilles followed when Zeus was 4 yrs old. Both my dogs are not neutered - they came that way, and I don't believe the benefits outweigh the consequences. I am sure neutering works for a lot of people, but we left that as a last resort. Our dogs grew up in harmony. We trained them well, they go on walks together, share toys, enjoy meals together, even bones. When we have company over, they have their initial 5min of excitement, then get back to normal. When we are at work, they happily use our back yard and keep themselves entertained. Never have they viciously fought since Achilles became the dominant dog. In summary? Healthy, happy dogs. 
We boarded them before without issues. I shouldn't say that. One of the times we boarded them, Achilles came back very traumatized - I wrote a blog on that too. We switched kennels and the other 2 small experiences that followed were fine. This time around, the dogs were put in a joined room. The staff on site was unable to pinpoint if the time before they had stayed together or not. We gave them strict instructions, meant to avoid what happened, in case the new environment had them antsy: feed them separately. Achilles is the dominant one, make sure he is acknowledged first, etc. Needless to say, they were not taken into account or even written down.To make a long story short, the dogs were spooked by something and fought as a result - Achilles started it and despite this place promising 24/7 surveillance, no one noticed. Zeus got injured, and was taken to the vet. Thankfully, he only had some small scratches. While he was at the vet, they left Achilles unsupervised and he got injured. No one could tell me how, only guesses.The vet whom I called - from Ireland because by this point I was ready to hop on a plane back and we had barely landed - told me something definitely sparked this in the environment because both dogs were much too agitated. Needless to say, I gave the company shit and filed a complaint immediately, though it did no good from so far away.As the vet could not accommodate my dogs at their place for the remaining days, and no family of ours was in town, we agreed to put the dogs on anti anxiety meds for the remainder of their stay. We shortened our stay as much as possible, hoping to get back home at the earliest possible time.I will spare you the replay of my conversation with the staff there and their manager... It would the understatement of the year to call it backwards. But I did make sure to follow through and file a full complaint with everyone and everything I could think of, including social media, and get them to act on it - but this was much later. When we landed, after driving 8hrs from NYC back home to Canada, all I cared about was getting my dogs home.After we got our dogs back, they could not be in the same room. They could not cohabitate. We had the same evidence of it when we got them in the car. Before, they could both sit in the backseat. I had the foresight to separate them - one at the front, other at the back. Even that didn't help, as they almost immediately went after each other.Needless to say, I was afraid I'd never be able to get the situation resolved and have my dogs back to normal. For hours, I scoured the internet and phoned my vet, had a full check up, but nothing I found helped much. The vet suggested time, patience and avoiding fights.This one article offered some insight that was new and helpful, but for the most part I kept landing on forums and articles for dogs from different households being aggressive. They have great information on aggressivity in dogs, but not necessarily for the same household:https://www.cesarsway.com/dog-behavio..., we had to get creative.After two days of keeping the dogs separate and tending to them individually, me and my husband formed a plan of attack, so to speak, and it contained the below elements:-doubled the walks-doubled the training sessions-started from scratch and kept them separate-patience patience patience-avoid any fights. Walks were done early morning and late at night, with both dogs. We started off with Achilles ahead, Zeus behind and slowly (over the course of weeks) brought them side by side again. Training sessions were done individually for 5min each and jointly for 10min. They involved basic obedience and tricks, with food rewards. We re-iterated a training technique we had used in the past, called "Nothing in life is free".. It basically makes your dog work for everything - getting petted, getting fed, going for a walk, etc. There is a guide at this link that explains it very well, and we found it very effective.What quickly became apparent in these sessions was that Achilles especially was traumatized. Zeus got back in the swing of things easily, perhaps because he's older (9) whereas Achilles is 5. Either way, our husky developed a fear of the dark and would no longer go in the backyard by himself. He flinched when we went to pet him by bringing the hand down from the top - as though afraid we'd hit him. We have never, ever laid a hand on either of our dogs, and this new development broke my heart. Zeus, though a bit better, was antsy around his brother and was prone to bouts of agitation - not sitting down, restless behavior. We kept them separate when not at home - different rooms, but away from the master bedroom. They usually sleep with us, and that is a privilege we give them. If one of them had been allowed to stay there for the day while the other was not, it would have created tension. As such, we put them in neutral rooms of the house, and it worked. When we got home after work and the dogs were reunited, they were on their best behavior. At night when they slept together, again on their best behavior.We don't have crates and though I considered getting them, the dogs were not used to them and I feared they would bring back too many memories of the kennel and instead of a solution, we'd have another problem on our hands.All the above required a lot of patience, and I don't mean that in the sense that the dogs were a burden. On the contrary, on some level this allowed for a deeper connection between all of us. I do wish the tragic circumstances could have been avoided, but they happened. Nonetheless, what the pet parents needs to remember is that dogs don't think like us. Something that takes us a nanosecond to grasp, will take them longer especially if there is fear associated to the action/event.Avoiding fights was the most nerve-wrecking part of the process, and this started from the moment we stepped into the door at home. First, from the car we didn't bring them straight in. We took them for a walk, and only after they were tired did we go home. Over the next 72hrs we constantly kept an eye on them. A shift of the ear, a sudden movement, them passing each other in a tight space - anything could have triggered a fight. We wanted to avoid it because the #1 thing you want to avoid is your dogs thinking it's ok to fight. And the more it happens, the harder it will be to diffuse it.Now, everyone says it's a bad idea to get between two dogs who fight. Very true and I am not saying otherwise. But it's extremely important in such a situation to watch your dogs. Constantly. The minute I saw something that had the potential for escalation, I stepped in with a quick "no" and followed up with a calming command.It's very important to note what starts the fights. We saw what made them tick and made a list of things - anything from being too close, being too excited, fighting over food, treats, attention. Once we knew what the triggers were, we were able to address them one by one in the training session and manage them.It sounds like a lot, and it was. But what we did slowly brought results. All the above actions put the dogs in a routine. Little by little, they realized they were back at home and their "humans" were back in charge. There was no need to be anxious or afraid. The pecking order was ok, and they, in turn, were ok. The day I saw them play fighting I nearly had a heart attack, my heart was pounding so fast. But they were playing - running around and chasing each other. This was 3 weeks after the fact. And today, they're back to normal.
I hope this, if nothing else, serves as both a warning and a solution. Like I said, I found it hard on the internet to get articles specifically related to "how to stop dogs from fighting after a stay at kennel" or "my dogs won't stop fighting since they were at a Petshotel".I am no veterinarian nor do I have Caesar Millan's experience. However, I know my dogs. I've had Zeus for 9 years and Achilles for 5. That's 5 years of jointly owning them and caring for them, learning the specifics of dog psychology in each of the breeds and adapting their training to it. I am not an expert by any means, only a regular person with a deep love of dogs. If you encounter this situation and don't feel qualified to handle it, please speak to your vet or a dog trainer, there is no shame in asking for help. We did, and some things helped, others not so much. In the end, we found our own way.All things considered, this Canadian Thanksgiving I was extremely thankful for having my two pups back to normal. :)
October 8, 2017
A trip to the Emerald Isle (Pt 4)
The last highlights of Cork County
My second favorite after Killarney: Fota Wildlife park
It was amazing seeing the animals so well taken care of, living in their natural habitat and socializing amongst themselves. I am not a big fan of zoos or anything that holds wildlife in confinement, as I believe animals should always be as free as they were born.
However, even I had to stare in awe at the huge expanse of land, the care given to them, and the attention towards ensuring their safety.
I got to be less than a foot away from kangaroos, a peacock and so much more! Also, the park has these wonderful fact sheets that really give you information on the animal and even their endangerment. It was as much an entertaining trip, as an educational one.
Read more and view the pictures on www.alexawhitewolf.com/blog
A trip to the Emerald Isle (Pt 4)
The last highlights of Cork County My second favorite after Killarney: Fota Wildlife park It was amazing seeing the animals so well taken care of, living in their natural habitat and socializing amongst themselves. I am not a big fan of zoos or anything that holds wildlife in confinement, as I believe animals should always be as free as they were born.However, even I had to stare in awe at the huge expanse of land, the care given to them, and the attention towards ensuring their safety.I got to be less than a foot away from kangaroos, a peacock and so much more! Also, the park has these wonderful fact sheets that really give you information on the animal and even their endangerment. It was as much an entertaining trip, as an educational one.
Fota House and gardens We were happy to have gone by to see the Arboretum, the house and gardens! Situated off to the side of the wildlife park, you can find here multiple specimens of trees some old, some new, and a wonderfully large garden. The house itself has tours and a small cafeteria to rest your tired feet :)
County Tipperary A must-see: Mitchelstown Caves and Michelstown Our tour guide was very knowledgeable, and you can easily why these are among Europe's most visited showcase caves! The last pictures are of the epic view you can see once out of the caves.
County Clare (again) At this point, we were going back up towards the north to Galway, and ended up passing through The Burren and a small harbor town called Ballyvaughan.BallyvaughanRight near the Burren and Aillwee cave, this beautiful picturesque town also holds the Burren College of Art on the outskirts, at Newtown Castle.We did not get to go, unfortunately, but stopped by for some food in town. 
The Burren - Aillwee Cave and Birds of Prey A must to experience! The ruins you see in the first picture mark the turn on the road where you go towards the Burren. We missed this the first time around (on our first day) and ended up on the other side of The Burren, where the hiking trails are more woodsy. Here, we got to experience the true Burren, with all its archeological treasures and beautiful sights! Yes, those last pictures are real owls from their Birds of Prey centre.
The Birds of Prey show was...stunning! Various staff demonstrated the many talents of certain birds. We saw a falcon, a horned owl, and some eagles. Nothing compares to a falcon flying less than a centimetre above your head, at super high speeds! It's quite apparent each of the presenters had a long standing connection with their birds.
Aillwee Cave, only a short drive or walk up from the birds centre, was enormous and just as spectacular as the Mitchelstown caves, and our tour guide, as usual, amazing! 
Some highlights of County GalwayDunguaire Castle and Kinvarra town A 16th-century tower house on the southeastern shore of Galway Bay in County Galway, Ireland, near Kinvara. The name derives from the Dun of King Guaire, the legendary king of Connacht.
Galway city If you're there, visiting the Galway Cathedral and the university is a must!
Aughnanure Castle Within walking distance of our Corrib View b&b, this was a little hidden gem!
Ross castle (a different one than the Killarney one) More like a manor on the edge of a lake, with gorgeous gardens....
Glenlo AbbeyAnother beautiful gem was Glenlo Abbey, which has been turned into a hotel. Beautiful place and scenery!
And last but not least, some more pictures from our drives around Galway county:
Our last day was bittersweet, but the morning when we left from the b&b to head back to the Shannon Airport, I truly felt like I was leaving a part of me behind. Below are some more pictures of those last few precious moments.
In short, our vacation in Ireland was everything we hoped for and more. It is not a country that has the epic nightlife of Spain or France, nor the large wineries of Italy. But it has so much more... Ireland offers you peace and the chance to reconnect, to talk to people, to take it easy and breathe. I would recommend it to anyone who needs a break from the daily stress we all are buried under.We are looking forward to our next trip there, this time planning to spend an entire day at both Killarney and The Burren
Fota House and gardens We were happy to have gone by to see the Arboretum, the house and gardens! Situated off to the side of the wildlife park, you can find here multiple specimens of trees some old, some new, and a wonderfully large garden. The house itself has tours and a small cafeteria to rest your tired feet :)County Tipperary A must-see: Mitchelstown Caves and Michelstown Our tour guide was very knowledgeable, and you can easily why these are among Europe's most visited showcase caves! The last pictures are of the epic view you can see once out of the caves.County Clare (again) At this point, we were going back up towards the north to Galway, and ended up passing through The Burren and a small harbor town called Ballyvaughan.BallyvaughanRight near the Burren and Aillwee cave, this beautiful picturesque town also holds the Burren College of Art on the outskirts, at Newtown Castle.We did not get to go, unfortunately, but stopped by for some food in town. The Burren - Aillwee Cave and Birds of Prey A must to experience! The ruins you see in the first picture mark the turn on the road where you go towards the Burren. We missed this the first time around (on our first day) and ended up on the other side of The Burren, where the hiking trails are more woodsy. Here, we got to experience the true Burren, with all its archeological treasures and beautiful sights! Yes, those last pictures are real owls from their Birds of Prey centre.The Birds of Prey show was...stunning! Various staff demonstrated the many talents of certain birds. We saw a falcon, a horned owl, and some eagles. Nothing compares to a falcon flying less than a centimetre above your head, at super high speeds! It's quite apparent each of the presenters had a long standing connection with their birds.Aillwee Cave, only a short drive or walk up from the birds centre, was enormous and just as spectacular as the Mitchelstown caves, and our tour guide, as usual, amazing! Some highlights of County GalwayDunguaire Castle and Kinvarra town A 16th-century tower house on the southeastern shore of Galway Bay in County Galway, Ireland, near Kinvara. The name derives from the Dun of King Guaire, the legendary king of Connacht.Galway city If you're there, visiting the Galway Cathedral and the university is a must!Aughnanure Castle Within walking distance of our Corrib View b&b, this was a little hidden gem!Ross castle (a different one than the Killarney one) More like a manor on the edge of a lake, with gorgeous gardens....Glenlo AbbeyAnother beautiful gem was Glenlo Abbey, which has been turned into a hotel. Beautiful place and scenery!And last but not least, some more pictures from our drives around Galway county:Our last day was bittersweet, but the morning when we left from the b&b to head back to the Shannon Airport, I truly felt like I was leaving a part of me behind. Below are some more pictures of those last few precious moments.In short, our vacation in Ireland was everything we hoped for and more. It is not a country that has the epic nightlife of Spain or France, nor the large wineries of Italy. But it has so much more... Ireland offers you peace and the chance to reconnect, to talk to people, to take it easy and breathe. I would recommend it to anyone who needs a break from the daily stress we all are buried under.We are looking forward to our next trip there, this time planning to spend an entire day at both Killarney and The Burren
October 5, 2017
A trip to the Emerald Isle (Pt 3)
The best highlight of Kerry County
Killarney National Park
Easily my favorite part of our trip, was when we visited the Killarney national park. Over 25 000 acres of different types of trees, lakes, hiking trails, a waterfall…
Wikipedia can explain it better than I: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killarney_National_Park
We took a hiking trail and went up to Torc waterfall, then a little bit higher. Very steep climb, but apparently that was nothing because they have a hiking trail called Cardiac! 
