More Mead M’Lorad Eire’s Medieval Parties Read Jetsetters Mag at the dublin westbury Read this complete feature FREE with pictures at : the westbury hotel in Dublin The Earl of Thomond greets me and my 2 accompanying wenches Carol and Mary at the gate of Bunratty Castle. He points overhead : “If you misbehave hot oil will scald thee. “The Earl points down : “and you may fall thru the trap doorway never to get heard from again. “The medieval ages have returned to Eire as the Earl of Thomond guides us up a serpentine staircase tunnel carved in the bowels of the limestone fortress, debouching into the Great Hall, or clan gathering place in the middle of the Castle.

The Great Hall served as the gathering place for the great Celtic clans for over 500 years. A harpist and violinist perform standard Irish ballads as the women sing in cherubic synchrony. Each woman is replete with period costume, heavy purple, indigo, russet, burgundy, or maroon velvet robes that move as gracefully as their lithe bodies. One of the Women of the Castle informs us that mead, made of honey, is served to newlyweds for a month, from one moon to the following, therefore the name, “honeymoon. Such towns sprang up around castles, where the merchants, serfs, farmers, and peasants lived and supported the nobility with their stuff and works.

Always in possession of naturally glorious ingredients, cooks started a revolution incorporating nouvelle cuisine, flavors and systems of the planet, and then all roads leading to a new level of ever developing impressive Irish fare. File Bia is an Irish food organization with a commitment to quality. File Bia arranged with the Cafes organisation of Eire , the Irish Hostels Federation and the support of the farm replying to growing patron worries about the quality and origin of food offered when dining out.

Members provide details confirming the quality and origin of the food employed in their kitchens. File Bia participators have commitment to sourcing beef, chicken and eggs from recognized Quality guarantee Schemes and gladly supply any buyer requests for country of origin info. One of those we visited was the Burren Smokehouse. Enjoy home cooked food, wonderful wine, and join in with song and dance. The Ceili is twice nightly ( subject to demand ), at 17:30 and 20:45. Bunratty Castle and Folks Park represent a small model of Irish history. When Lord Gort acquired the Castle there wasn’t any roof and rain had pitted the floor. During my afternoon trip to the Castle the perspectives of the Shannon from the tower slit windows and battlements are wonderful, with cows grazing peacefully like they went and did centuries gone in green lushness.

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