That's fascinating Bucky, where I am from we practically all have Irish heritage . It's not far from me yet I have never been to Ireland, have you been or do you have plans to go ?
you might be sorry you asked.
why yes, my last trip to ireland was back in 2003. i saw a lot of ireland that most visiting americans have or will ever see (or will ever want to, really.)
i started in dublin staying with friends in the suburb of balbriggan for a few days, then went with them to their family's home in west belfast. while in belfast i visited a lot of political and historical sites such as the sinn fein headquarters, divis tower, both sides of falls road and shankill road taking pictures of the political murals along the way, paid my respects at the gravesites of bobby sands and the other hunger '80's hunger strikers, and a number of other places along the same lines.
i also toured up the coast road to see the place where the titanic was built, and then visited derry for a day, having lunch in a pub in the bog side and shopping along the wall where bloody sunday occurred. again, i can't really speak to these things here.
but then i went off on my own driving down through kilkenny and into ballinamore, the town where my dad grew up. i even found the house my grandfather built back in 1920, finally owning it free and clear under the saorstat eireann act (a free irish state) in 1922. when the current owner learned that i was in town, he invited me to visit for tea and videotape the house to show my dad when i returned to the states. he even showed me my grandfather's original plans and deed to the house as a free irishman.
next, i travelled across central ireland to co. sligo to photograph some castles, then to co. mayo to the town of westport, partying there for an overnight before doing my pilgrimage up and down croagh patrick, the mountain where st. patrick was said to have built a church and banned all the snakes from ireland. (he was a very thorough saint, even removing all of the snakes' fossils as well, lol).
finally, i went back to ballinamore and then down to mullingar in co. westmeath before heading back to dublin, then back home to america.
so yes, i've been to ireland.
back to downton abbey and the folks who were able to live that way on the money they made from enslaving other nations.
oops. that one slipped out.
i'm hoping that the tom branson/sybil relationship will mention some of the goings on in ireland in '22 in future episodes of downton abbey.