Kylemore Abbey, Lough Inagh and Connemara Marble

Day 9 of our Irish trip involved a beautiful drive through some of the country's wildest terrain -- Connemara.

Somewhat unexpectedly, our primary destination in this rugged, mountainous area was a gorgeous Victorian building -- Kylemore Abbey.  We arrived around the same time as another rain shower.

The mist-enshrouded view from the abbey across Pollacapall Lough.

I love the mix of sharp and shrouded textures in this shot.  So much so that I decided to take the color out so those textures can be the focus.

But as you can see, the scene in color isn't exactly unappealing.

Water droplets on flower petals have a special appeal.  Enough that again I didn't wanted color to detract from those textural elements.

I never made it around the lake to a Gothic church on the grounds, but did get a good look at it from afar.

As the rain stopped and the clouds lifted a bit, the view of the abbey got much more vibrant.

I mentioned the wildness of the Connemara countryside.  It was so captivating that we convinced our tour guide to stop the bus in an area of no particular significance just so we could all get out and take in the natural beauty, like in these cascades running down the hillside into Lough Inagh.

On the way back to our hotel we made a brief stop at Connemara Marble, where Stephen Walsh and his family have worked the beautiful, green marble for which the area is famous for three generations.  More than just green, though -- the marble in the area comes in a wide variety of colors, all of which were on display.

Another memorable day in this wonderful country!