Malahide Castle and Gardens




Malahide Castle was a location that I was most looking forward to on this trip.  The castle itself was inhabited by the same family for nearly 800 years and the gardens are part of a larger park covering 260 acres. 



 I have visited living butterfly exhibits in Los Angeles, but this Butterfly House is the only one in Ireland.  
 
Despite the organized tour taking about 90 minutes, I spent almost 4 and a half hours at Malahide just exploring the grounds.  
 There is a Fairy Trail with adorable children’s tales and charming carvings and a 200 year old section of the garden that started out as a space for kitchen produce.  


There is much less organization in the plants at Malahide than some of the other places I’ve visited so far. 


 However, there seems to be a theme of having spaces designated and cultivated for wildlife and pollinators.  This is the third place that has had at least a portion dedicated for this purpose.  I had a lot of fun frolicking through the Fairy Trail and taking playful photos with the carvings. 
  

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