Changed the breathtaking landscape from Ireland with the seaside in France, as am currently on a dreamy beach in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, two steps away from the turquoise water, but wanted to share a few more things about Ireland. The Irish capital has become a haven for tech giants such as Twitter, Google and Facebook. There are many things to do not far from the capital, in case you are just around Dublin. Here are a few ideas of places you can go within an hour of the city…
Russborough Castle
The Russborough House & Parklands is owned by The Alfred Beit Foundation, whose mission is to promote education in the fine arts in Ireland, by preservation and making the house and collections accessible to the public.
Russborough House, with its wonderful Palladian architecture, was designed by Richard Cassels for Joseph Leeson, the First Earl of Milltown and built between 1741 and 1755. The interior of the house contains stunning ornate plasterwork on the ceilings by the Lafranchini brothers.
Russborough, Blessington
Wicklow, Republic of Ireland
Image sources: Mila Lova & Russborough
Malahide Castle & Gardens
Malahide Castle is a beautiful medieval castle built by the Talbot family back in 1175. On 260 acres, it is one of the oldest castles in Ireland.
The Talbots, an English family who held the titles of Earls of Shrewsbury, arrived in England during the Norman invasion with William the Conqueror. The French origin of the name was Tailbois or Talebot, as they had been Barons of Cleuville in Normandy before their arrival in England. Their name is thought to be first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086.
The castle’s interior is filled with 19th-century furniture, ancient fireplaces, Italian Marble, and an extensive collection of Irish portraits. It’s best to take a guided tour so you can learn more interesting details if interested.
Trinity College Library
The Library of Trinity College houses the 1,000-year-old Book of Kells, over 48 marble busts of eminent writers and philosophers and around 200,000 old books and manuscripts.
Left image via Fast Company
Glendalough, Wicklow Mountains
The park covers 20,000 hectares of incredible and breathtaking views. We did the Blue Route which took us to Glendalough Upper Lake. We took the upper trail from the woods to “The Spink” where we had the most stunning view of Glendalough and we returned through the mining road.
