A weekend away at a spa hotel just the two of us... What could be sweeter?
The perfect combination of alone time, spa treatments against the backdrop of stunning connemara. Heaven.
We were in
Delphi resort for the weekend - a departure from our usual getaways.
On the rare trip we get to take a deux, our priority is usually sleeping without interruption and lying comatose with a cocktail in one hand and a trashy book in the other.
But this is also an
adventure centre nestled very perfectly on the Killary Fjord on the Galway-Mayo border and as we pulled up I remembered we were booked in for kayaking and zip lining - something I hadn't really fully prepared my husband for.
Luckily, our first stop was the spa. After the long drive and the three children and well, just life - it was the perfect stress buster. We lay comatose afterwards admiring the view of the wild Irish countryside with a trashy book and ...this was just what I was used to on weekends away.
But sometimes you have to Change It Up. Things were about to get a little more adventurous.
A stunned realisation that our room didn't have a TV followed an equally stunned realisation that our mobile reception was quite weak.
"But what will we do?" we asked each other helplessly.
So we ate.
A few hours after a seriously memorable risotto and a very good pint (according to hubby) we retired to our cosy loft room with the stars as our view and slept and slept and slept.
So far, so great.
Wide awake, naturally, at 7.30am we spent a while looking at pictures of our children and then I felt it was time to explain that our day would be taking a little more adventurous a twist than we might have expected.
We spent a good 10 minutes laughing at each other struggling into wetsuits down at the pier and another 10 minutes quietly freaking out about what lay ahead.
Happily, our kayaking ride in the fjord was hugely enjoyable - our instructors TJ and Don talked us through the history
and geography of the area, we spotted a few wild goats and rowed past the vast muscle farms. We lay back and admired the silvery hues of this breath-taking landscape - our whole group agreeing that there is nowhere like it on earth. Also, I didn't fall in which is always a huge bonus.
After some very welcome hot showers and still weirdly enjoying our digital detox we got down to some serious eating in the restaurant at the resort. I devoured a very special goats cheese and beetroot creation with warm tomato bread followed by a hunk of perfectly cooked hake with crushed garlic potatoes. I finished up with a baileys coffee and a good thing I did.
Next was my Everest - Or in this case -the elevated, tree-top, sky obstacle course. Sh*t.
It's been a long while since I really pushed myself to do something so scary. We all lined up and got on our harnesses and hard hats as I questioned my sanity.
We marched through the trees and up a wooden structure a million stories high that someone (meanly) mentioned was like climbing up to the guillotine.
At this stage my knees were actually shaking uncontrollably - a few people opted out. My husband squeezed my sweaty hand encouragingly but I could tell he was as fearful as me.
Then we saw a very nimble 8-year-old scurry past on the high frame and we thought "what the hell"
It was such a rush - to feel so frightened and proud and encouraged all at once. I caught my hubby's eye a few times and we thumbed up each other. At the last zip-line where you have to leap into oblivion, I could hear him behind me cheering as I jumped.
At the end, we hugged each other, elated and pumped up on adrenaline. I seriously haven't felt that high since I had the kids.
We had dinner with our group - a nine-course tasting menu of the finest Irish dishes - scallops, connemara lamb, Galway oysters..everything served up beautifully with friendly staff and cosy surroundings.
That night - still blissfully digitally detoxed - we talked about how great it was to push ourselves to do something different and how this adventure made us revisit a side of ourselves we hadn't seen since before we had kids.
We left feeling refreshed, well-nourished and with a taste for adventure we didn't realise was missing from our lives.
Do it.
Check out
Delphi Resort in beautiful Connemara
