Garinish Island

A wet and mizzly day but undeterred we sallied forth to Glengarriff. First we went around the woods and then we sailed (!) over to Garinish Island. This is an incredible place. Bought by a very rich Anglo-Irish family at the turn of the 20C they planned to build a massive Italianate House upon it  once they had completed the massive Italianate gardens. The gardens are incredible with species from all over the world- this pond plus temple/gazebo the most formal. By the time they'd finished it circumstances changed and they had no money to build the house. However, the gardener had a cottage and this has recently been restored and Lady Violette, when her husband died, sold her very posh house in London and moved into the cottage (with the gardener and the maid!) Late r her son added an extension at the back and when he died in the 1950s left everything to the state. The house was a delight, I could have moved straight in! All rich colours and strong patterns but very comfy. The nice thing is Her Ladyship, the gardener and the maid, a local girl, all lived as equals and very harmoniously until they all died. 
And there were seals to admire on the way.