Where are we going on the next Celtic Invasion Vacation? Listen and also enjoy some music related to the invasion. Plus, you’ll learn what you can expect to experience when you join an invasion. It’s Pub Songs & Stories #258 WELCOME TO PUB SONGS & STORIES I am Marc Gunn. This is the audio liner notes for the songs I record and play. The show is brought to you by my Gunn Runners on Patreon. If you enjoy this podcast and my music, please join the Club. You’ll get 2-3 podcasts per month. You’ll be able to download songs featured in this show, get sheet music, and access to Coffee with The Celtfather video concerts. You get a lot for as little as $5 per month. And you can save 15% with an annual membership. Thanks to my newest Gunn Runners on Patreon: Cecilia F 1:01 - WHAT’S NEW? This is a bonus episode. I finally settled on where to go for the next Celtic Invasion Vacation in 2023. I looked at Galicia in Spain, the Wicklow Mountains, south of Dublin, Ireland, and Westport in County Mayo, Ireland. And the winner is… Westport in County Mayo. I don’t yet have details about the trip. Nor have I opened it up to the public. I’m gonna spend the next month working those out. But there are few things I want to explore while we are there. First, County Mayo was the home of Grace O’Malley. She was known as the Pirate Queen of Ireland. A quick search revealed that there are not many records of her. However, there are some letters that were exchanged with Queen Elizabeth I, which show a mutual admiration of each other, two strong women in a time of men. I’m gonna research a bit about the Pirate Queen and see what we can find. And to give you a small taste, The Gothard Sisters have a song inspired by Grainne, as she is often called. 2:15 - “Grace O’Malley” by The Gothard Sisters from Mountain Rose 5:49 - MORE ON TRAVEL One of my regular invaders, Jim, once said that what he enjoyed about our trips is that there are frequently different types of travel that we do. Meaning we might take a boat or train, instead of a car. So I’m always looking out for something cool like that for at least one day. Happily, Clare Island is nearby. I honestly know very little about Clare Island. Although, it sounds like Gracy O’Malley spent some time there as well. What I do know about it is that The Saw Doctors have a fantastic song called “Clare Island”. It makes me excited to see it. That’s what I have so far. 6:31 - UPCOMING SHOWS SEP 28-OCT 2: ALEP, Shakertown, KY with Brobdingnagian Bards OCT 8: Ironshield Brewing, Lawrenceville, GA @ 7:00 – 10:00 PM. OCT 14-16: MultiVerse, Atlanta, GA NOV 4-6: Conjuration, Atlanta, GA I’m gonna share a replay from the Celtfather Unkilted podcast. I noticed after publishing that episode last month that there is one thing that is a bit off at present. That is the requirement of a vaccination card. I am not requiring that at present though the sentiment is still valid. These trips are small and your fellow invaders should be treated like family. Meaning I do expect that you will get vaccinated as needed to protect your family. 7:54 - WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT ON A CELTIC INVASION VACATION? If you go to the website you won’t find much information. I usually list the itinerary when it becomes available but that can be January or March before the trip. You will find podcasts and links to pictures and videos. I don't know that any of it really paints a good picture. So I thought I would try to break down how these trips work to help you decide if you want to join me in the future. Celtic Invasion Vacations are not your typical travel tour experience. Most tourists travel on big buses. They go place to place. You stay up late. You get up early. There’s 30, 60 or even 90 people packed on one to three tour buses. If you’re like me, that sounds pretty miserable. My first two trips were on tour buses. Everyone was a fan of my music. So that was pretty awesome. The bus drivers were awesome too. But that's a lot of people for an introvert li