Travel Log
Like the majority of people, we love to take some time away from the hum drum of everyday life; time away to hopefully forget about work, paying utility bills, cleaning up and for some stuck in the school-run traffic stress!. We all need to take time to switch-off, our mental health and wellbeing needs time to refuel, to tap into, if you wish, the 5 A-day to Mental Health and Wellbeing. Nothing like looking forward to time away, either on a staycation or a trip away to a foreign destination, each to their own choice! Our travel thoughts and plans are heavily influenced by our pocket and what we can afford to spend. We have at times being able to treat ourselves to a “what the hell, lets buy it” attitude to a “penny pinching” holiday where everything and every cent spent is planned within an inch of its life…sounds a bit miserable but its not in reality; the experience of getting away to feel the sun on your face for a few days is worth it in the long-run for us.
Kings of the world, a birds eye view of the Andalusian coastline
Another issue we have to include is where can we buy Gluten Free (GF) food? We have travelled many times with two suitcases, one for clothes and the other for food…we look like two auld ones with the rashers, sausages, brown bread and of course the teabags, nothing like a proper cup of Irish tea in the morning to start the day. One of us would prefer to take tealeaves but the image of being arrested entering Spain with a tin foil bag filled with blackish grains is too much! One of us has been swabbed a few times in the past when entering the UK with tin-foil packages only for the police officer to discover gluten free scones inside ! We hope you enjoy our travel experiences and our reviews, especially if you are looking for Gluten Free choices.
Definitely getting in our recommended fruit /vegetable servings as recommended by the Irish Health Service Executive;
These reviews are based on our experiences of inclusivity…as opposed to being viewed / treated differently. We are going to use a “smiley/sad” face emoji to indicate, based on our experience only, if we would return again 😊 or not return ☹. We acknowledge individual experiences are very subjective and open to question, but this is our experience, and ones we are happy to share, hopefully you will find the information helpful.
Brogans Bar, 24 O’Connell Street, Ennis, Co. Clare, Ireland
Visited October 2020
A great Gastro pub, excellent gluten free food options available. Very attentive and friendly staff, while not over-bearing at the same time. This pub is well worth a visit 😊
11th May 2021 posting: so here are with some more posts of places we have been to
The Rose Hotel, Tralee, Dan Spring Road, Co. Kerry, V92 HKA4; visited October 2020.
T: 00353(0)66-7199100 E: reservations@therosehotel.com
We spent three days at the Rose Hotel in order to recharge physically and mentally. The previous few months, like so many, had been a challenge. The Rose Hotel did not disappoint on any level. The reception staff, especially Mary (hopefully she is still there, the housekeeping staff, right through to the restaurant and Spa staff; apologies if we left anyone or any department out, suffice to say, our experience was excellent. We had experienced the Rose Hotel previously from a work point of view, and even then everything was spot-on in how the service was delivered. The location of the hotel is also a plus, close the the town centre of Tralee, the Rose Garden across the road, the pedestrian and cycle walkways adjacent to the hotel and also being a good place to base wile exploring other parts of Kerry. We should also say it was good value for money; what more can you ask or say, other than, try it for yourself.😊 😊
January 2022 - Beginning to get out and about again…👍🥰🍷🔆🚗✈🚆🛥
Its fantastic that we once again start to move about without those horrible restrictions; yes, I know, restrictions have been necessary at times, but it is still great that eating out and travelling to other destinations other than our back garden is on the cards again. We have travelled to Spain during 2021 and while it was not without its moments, we applied some old-fashioned common sense and adhered to the respective Government requirements. We ended up having good experiences overall. Now we can chat again about some good Gluten Free eateries again 😋😋;.
We visited Barry’s Bar and Restaurant, Douglas, Cork City 00353-21-4891370.
Email dine@barrysofdouglas.com towards the end of 2021 and we return again in February 2022 for another special occasion.
Our visit to Barry’s was during Covid restriction times; Barry’s made the experience feel comfortable and unrestrictive in how they moved the customers around, from the Covid-Certificate screening, , to seating and spacing between tables. All four of us had a lovely time there, our food was excellent and the Gluten Free options were superb. We recommend Barry’s of Douglas, we look forward to our next trip where we have requested specific seating owing to a health issue for one of the party, lets see if all goes smoothly as before 🤞
