As of yesterday some relief has come to the west of Ireland.

Beautiful photo taken by Marie Dempsey at 7pm while saying the Rosary at the Grotto in Claregalway Church.
http://claregalway.info/nuacht/news/
I completely forgot to mention our landing in Dublin. It seems the country has been experiencing storms of late. During our landing  storm Desmond was blowing the country about with high winds and rain. The west of Ireland had been suffering severe flooding. Some said it was the worst in History, as of this post Galway on the west coast is finally getting a break from the severe weather.

Back to our landing. We had made what must be record time. Normally the flight is listed 6 hours 52 minutes, well not the day we flew. We arrived almost an hour earlier thanks to the Jet Stream. Here’s a neat article on just what that Jet Stream recently accomplished. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/11337617/Jet-stream-blasts-BA-plane-across-Atlantic-in-record-time.html

As we were landing it was reported that the wind was gusting to 70 MPH. We were on a wind blown adventure that reminded me of young geese long ago on the pond behind our home in a quaint Eastern Shore village. They always provided cheap entertainment on a windy day.

Much like those young geese from years ago, our wings dipped left and right, the plane shuttered and rain was pelting on the windows. We dipped, we rocked and the center overhead storage area swayed with all the movement. The shifting of suitcases added to drama of a difficult landing. Passengers were gripping the arm rests while knuckles turned white.

Flaps were adjusted and the wheels clunked and locked into place. As the runway came into view we were on a left lean, the pilot corrected, our wheels hit the tarmac, we jerked and shuttered a bit as the engines reversed. We were on the ground, rolling smooth now, passengers exhaled and broke out into a rousing applause. I felt like we were on a Southwest flight, not Are Lingus.

Great jobs by an obviously experienced flight deck. All I could think was, they must have been Pensacola trained and made many a carrier landing. Can you say “Great Job?”  I did, and with a exhale of relief. Thank you Lord.

I look to my watch, still on Eastern Standard Time, I move it forward five hours to the local time in Ireland . I’m ready to experience Ireland for the second time. Now to Acclimate. http://sleepdisorders.about.com/od/howcanisleepbetter/a/How-To-Adjust-To-A-New-Time-Zone-And-Avoid-Jet-Lag.htm

More to come.