We came home yesterday from our few days away. It's always nice to come home! A friend asked me a month or so ago how long we were going to be in Ballina and I said we were leaving on the Monday and coming home on Thursday, so 2 1/2 days there. It sounds like such a short time, but it doesn't feel like that when we're in a place. It seems like a good amount of time--we get a feel for whatever place we're in, but we don't get tired of being there. These little excursions also remind me every time that I'm pretty happy with my regular everyday life, so while I enjoy seeing new places, I don't feel like I need a holiday or to 'get away from it all.'
Anyway, Ballina seems like a nice town. Some areas looked sad, some seemed vibrant, and the river is the focal point. I posted first impressions the other day
here Today I'm posting some random things that caught my eye as we walked around and the next few posts will be less random. When we go places, what we like to do best is simply walk around. We get an interesting feel for a place this way and we see things that are not on the usual tourist trail. Bill enjoys having new places to photograph and I get to observe new things and notice similarities and contrasts between places. When we see something we'd like to check out, we do, otherwise, we just go where the mood strikes us. Usually, when making choices about what to do, we skip the more touristy stuff in favour of just wandering around, choosing this lane or that, as the mood strikes.
So here are some things I saw in Ballina.
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| mayo flag blowing in the wind |
I just thought this was funny wording. It's on one of those informational boards they put up for tourists. 'Spiritual attractions' seemed amusing to me--like a carnival or something.
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| colour |
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| colour |
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| and more colour--not sure what this building was when built, but it's now a tile and paint shop |
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| library building history |
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| library building history |
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| old bracket, new sign |
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| library |
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| chemist |
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| chemist |
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| chemist |
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| didn't see a dog |
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| gate was open, so maybe the dog is no longer in this house or on these grounds! |
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| plenty of pubs--this one is called The Snug |
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| old pump in the sun |
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| mural above Clarke's Salmon Smokery--Ballina is known for salmon and there's a Salmon Festival every summer |
I hope that, wherever you find yourself today, you're having a peaceful and very pleasant day!
2 comments:
Thanks Shari . . .
We like our “wandering” when we travel . . .
9 times out of 10 we visit a library.
Love our little “get-a-ways!”
Taking one next week if we can.
I liked your color pics, mural, “spirituality attractions”, (interesting) . . .
Liked the pewter like plate on the paint store, old pump, dog sign, open gate.
Enjoyed your post.
I love how you guys 'wander'. I wish hubby and I did more of that but work schedules prevent it at the time being. I do love a bit of travel but I am always glad to get home, too.
I hope you have a great weekend. xo Diana
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