Tue 7 Feb 2012
A Move, a Mountain and an Irishman
Posted by Clare under dating in Ireland, Expats in Ireland, Los Angeles to Ireland, Mountain climbing Ireland
[52] Comments
“Lady, where ya from?”
His voice was raspy. And from the redness of his watery eyes and deep lines across his leathery skin, it was obvious he was from around these parts – these parts being the remote and blustery reaches of Leenane, a tiny village surrounded by mountains somewhere on the long inland road between Galway and Westport. He caught a trace of my accent as I ordered at the bar and he wanted to know from where it originated.
A few minutes after I’d satisfied his curiosity and returned to our table by the fireplace, the old man came over and pulled up a chair. It was about two in the afternoon, and Tom (he formally introduced himself shortly before hunkering down next to Mountaineering Man) had probably been at Gaynors pub most of the morning along with the half-dozen other men who lined the bar drinking and chatting up the middle-aged woman who pulled the pints there. We assumed he and the gang warmed the barstools at Gaynors most days, and any new folk was a welcome distraction to the same ol’ same old.
Me at Gaynors Pub. You can see Tom sitting behind me on the barstool to the left; moments later he came and sat with us.
“Lady, are you married?” Tom asked. When I told him no, he turned to Mountaineering Man and asked, “Are you gonna marry her?”
“Please God, one of these days!” MM replied, laughing out loud at the bravado of this complete stranger. With that, MM finished his Guinness and we bid farewell to Tom before heading on our way. In the car we chuckled about the inquisitive, funny man and chatted about the odd bunch of regulars at the bar. We’d stopped at Gaynors last year on our way to Westport and enjoyed a quiet pint, fantastic toasted cheese sandwiches and bowls of homemade vegetable soup. The bar is actually well-known in the area; scenes from the 1990 film The Field were shot here. But more than anything we fell in love with the warmth of the rustic pub and the authentic locals who frequent the place.
The village of Leenane; The Gaynors’ incredible toasties!
About 20 minutes later we parked on a shoulder along the windy road back to Westport and strapped on our hiking boots for a ramble. MM wanted me to see a hidden beach at the base of the Mweelrea mountains, one of his favourite areas to climb. He promised it would be lovely, despite the muddy bog we had to trudge through to reach it. With a pole to keep me steady I dutifully slogged through the flooded grass and followed MM, who occasionally turned around to see if I was still upright.
Skipping stones; the only witness was a lone sheep in the distance.
About 15 minutes later we reached the tiny shore, which was as breathtaking as he’d described. I immediately started looking for flat stones to skip across the glassy water, something I loved doing as a child. In fact I was so distracted with my search for the perfect skipping stone I didn’t pay much attention to what MM was doing; he had his back to me and seemed to be fiddling with something. Next thing I knew he appeared in front of me, with a blue satin box in one hand and said, “I need to ask you a question.”
And then, after getting down on one knee, “Will you marry me?”
The small beach area where MM proposed – what a view!
Though I’d imagined this moment in various incarnations over the last few months, I never thought I’d burst into a ball of tears – but that’s exactly what I did. After a few more sobs I managed a quiet but firm “Yes.”
Maybe auld Tom is psychic, it’s hard to say. I certainly could not have predicted that a mere 23 months after I moved from Los Angeles to Ireland – a single girl taking a leap of faith – I would be engaged to Cormac, the love of my life.
It’s amazing how these moments of pure love can make us cry (with happiness of course). Congratulations to both of you
We all cry like babies – there’s a photo of us in Paris & the state of my giant pink eyes. A prime candidate for Photoshop!
Can’t tell you how excited and happy and delighted I am for you & MM. Bet you didn’t think you’d be getting a rock for your birthday…
Fair play to MM for keeping it together when asked that question in Gaynors, he must’ve been quaking in his hiking boots at that stage! A thrilling story, and sure you’ve lots more thrills to come. 🙂
Catherine: LOL, right? Later he said he was about to box the guy for bringing it up just an hour before he was set to ask me.
Joanne: Thank you!! Yes I was a big emotional wreck after he asked me.
Babaduck: We have those pics too – with my red puffy eyes (but not for the blog, ha!).
**NOTE**
There seems to be a timing-out issue with comments on the first “submit” – but it should go through the second time. So copy your comment before pressing submit as you’ll likely have to do it twice for it to go through. Apologies while I try and sort this out!
You think that’s bad? We were in Paris (ring-less… the man knows me too well) & I scuppered his plans by commenting that Eiffel Tower proposals were SO tacky. Poor sod nearly died. Plan B worked well – at the top of a ferris wheel where there was no escape!!!
awh, what an amazing story! 🙂 Congratulations! May God bless you both with all the joys of this world! : )
I am planning on one day moving to Ireland so I goggled blogs for people who moved there. I came across yours not that long ago and am in love. I finally caught up with all the posts and what a day to catch up! Congratulations!I could only hope when i go to Ireland I will be as lucky as you with all the amazing things you have experienced. Thank you for sharing!
I, a fellow American, was proposed to on the little hill of Cashel, in Cashel in Connemara, by my Englishman, almost 11 years ago! And we’ve lived in Ireland ever since. Your MM chose a beautiful spot. May you be as happy together as we are.
How wonderful! Best wishes to you both
Love stories like this. x
Have so enjoyed your blog for the past year or so without commenting – but had to this time! What a wonderful thing to happen and in such a beautiful area. The very best of luck to youse both!
I’m tearing up and getting goosebumps reading this. So, so happy for you both! x
I’m so happy for you. It let you believe that any fairytale can make true 🙂
Congratulations Claire and Cormac!
Hi Claire,
lovely post, sounds like your man knows how to do things right….very romantic! Congratulations to you both. Enjoy this happy time:)
So lovely! I am so very happy for you both. Heart congratulations x
“No thats not a tear, I have something in my eye”
Hip hip hooray! So pleased for you both. Cx
Awww, so sweet! And such a rugged picture of Cormac. Congrats!
My favourite post by you and it doesn’t even have a recipe. Avid follower of your blog, congratulations to you and Cormac.
Congrats to you both and best of luck! What a romantic proposal!
That is the best proposal story ever! lol. Did you ask MM what he thought when Tom said that? *GRIN* Congrates and I am super jealous of your bravado and all that came of it…one day….lol
Oh, Clare. I’m so *happy* for you. Genuinely. It’s been so lovely to be able to read about the life you’ve taken on over there, and (even though it’s just a glimpse) to see how you’ve grown from the experience. Surely a love like this comes to us when we’re ready for it. What a great story. Congratulations!
Oh wow! Just read this and it moved me to tears .. congratulations!! I wish you all the best!
*So* happy for you & MM both Clare. Looking forward to wishing you well in person very soon!
Congratulations and thanks for sharing your journey to Ireland! You gave me hope and courage to dream of a life outside North America.
Aw gee, now I’m crying! What a wonderful story. I’m so delighted for you both! Congratulations x
Wow! Congrats! I am so happy for you both. Are you going to tie the knot here or in Cali?
Congratulations Claire!! I’ve really enjoyed reading your blog – I found it when my own Irishman and I were considering moving back to Ireland a year or two ago and so have been keeping up with all of your adventures since your move. So glad for you that all is turning out so wonderfully!!
What a great story! I love how Tom will always have a part to play in it when you tell it to people in the future. Congratulations!
Normally I respond to each and every post but there are so many!! So I just want to say a heartfelt THANK YOU for all these incredible comments and well wishes, I feel so grateful to “know” you, even if only virtually. 🙂 A million thanks to you all. 🙂 xo
Such a beautiful story. I offer up my congratulations and wishes for continued happiness here in Ireland.
Clare,
Congratulations on that special occasion. You have come a long way…what a perfect day and everything matched.
I believe this is just the beginning for you two.
Sofia in Estonia
oh my goodness – what a wonderful post!! I love checking in on your blog and today’s post just brought me to tears. Congrats! Taking chances and following your inner guide brings about crazy, wonderful things!!
Congratulations to both of you! I wish you a wonderful life together, with many more hiking and culinary adventures and lots of laughter, love and great times with family and friends!
I’ve been reading your blog for a few weeks now and I already love it…and I’m so happy for you! Congratulations to both of you! 🙂
Let’s see the ring:)!! Sorry I’m late in posting but YAAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Very happy for you guys. Woo hoo.
dreams do come true…they really really do…may the warmth and love of ireland hold you both in love and peace forever more…
I’ve been reading your blog for a long time but never left a comment. Congratulations on your engagement! Gives hope to us other American girls who one day hope to relocate to Ireland. :]
Congrats Clare!
Congratulations!!! What a beautiful story 🙂 Looking forward to reading more about your adventures together.
Congratulations! What a wonderful proposal story. 🙂
wow and big congrats! i’ve been following your blog since before you moved to ireland and am thrilled for you both! 🙂
I’ve been reading this blog for over a year now, but I had to leave a comment at this fantastic news! I actually got a bit teary eyed reading this post. Such a lovely proposal, and I wish you all the best for your future together!
I love reading your blog as being half Irish and half Swedish I definitely understand some of the “Irish quirks” and others I do not, so it’s interesting seeing how things are from a US perspective!
Congratulations to you two!! Thanks for sharing this beautiful story with us!
I spent six months in Westport last year, what a magical place! Huge congratulations to you both!
Holy crap, that’s an amazing story! I have been following your blog for a bit and love it – congratulations on your engagement!
Big congratulation, what a coincident (re Tom in the pub), love your blog.
Thanks again to everyone for such wonderful comments and congratulations. 🙂 We’ve had such a great time reading through them, MM also sends his gratitude! xo
Clare, I missed this post! I think it went up when we were on hols so sorry for the delay!
BIG CONGRATULATIONS from myself, Richard and Geoffrey (though Geoffrey is a wee bit jealous =)
We must take you out for an engagement dinner….maybe I can persuade R into coming up to Dublin for an evening…or maybe you could come to the farm and we can make dinner and celebrate.
I remember when you first started dating….spending hours with you on the phone talking about MM, so, so delighted it has worked out so wonderfully! AND, WOW what an AMAZING place to propose…PROPS Mr. MM.
Speak soon,
Imen xx