Ireland & Scotland 2000 - 2007

Dublin's story is of feast and famine - from its 18th-century Golden Age to its 20th-century struggles for independence to its boomtime today. We explore the town's thriving Grafton Street, patriotic jail, and Trinity College with its Book of Kells - a bright light in the Dark Ages.

We find the icons of Ireland strewn along its fascinating south coast: Waterford's much-loved crystal factory; the Kennedy family homestead; the Dunbrody famine ship; Muckross House; and Kinsale's star-shaped fortress. We also visit the Rock of Cashel and explore the medieval monastery at Glendalough, tucked in the scenic Wicklow Mountains.

Deepest Ireland is best experienced in its west coast Gaeltachts, where Gaelic is spoken and the rugged villages have changed little over the generations. After exploring the rugged and remote Aran Islands, we settle into Galway and venture into Ireland in the extreme - Dingle Peninsula.

No trip to Emerald Isle is complete without a visit to Northern Ireland. We tour bustling Belfast, sneaking a peek at its politically charged neighborhoods. Then we head for the Antrim Coast and go wild in Portrush, Ulster's Coney Island.

In Scotland, legends of Bonnie Prince Charlie swirl with pipers and kilts around crumbling castles. After tossing a caber (log) at a Scottish clan gathering, we remember Highland massacres. We play hide-and-seek with the Loch Ness Monster, tour a whiskey distillery, and take a ferry to sacred Iona.

Edinburgh is the historical and cultural heart of Scotland. We'll explore the castle, peek at the new parliament, dabble in the local literature, sip a little Scotch, get wrapped up in a kilt, and then stow away on Her Majesty's Yacht Britannia.