Aillwee Caves of County Clare, Ireland 1981 скачать в хорошем качестве

Aillwee Caves of County Clare, Ireland 1981

The Aillwee Cave in the the Burren, County Clare is a tourist attraction with an award winning visitor centre. The Aillwee Cave in the Burren, County Clare was formed millions of years ago by a great underground river. The cave first opened to the public as a visitor attraction in 1976 and since then it has become one of County Clare’s biggest tourist destinations. At peak season the Aillwee Cave attracts over 1000 visitors daily and employs as many as 25 people. The Aillwee Cave was first discovered in 1940 by local farmer Jack McGann. He describes how he came across the cave and dispels the commonly held belief that he was following his dog at the time. Jack McGann believes there could be another big cave in the region yet to be discovered, I have an idea where it is, not very far from here, yes, and it could be further on in the mountain than the Aillwee Cave. Turning the Aillwee Cave into a thriving tourist centre has cost a quarter of a million pounds to date. Originally from South Africa, company director Roger Johnson spent many months trying to persuade the banks to fund the development of the Aillwee Cave for tourist purposes. Eventually a backer was found, And that same source has backed us constantly. Roger Johnson’s efforts have not gone unnoticed. In December 1980 he Aillwee Cave visitor centre was awarded the prestigious Europa Nostra diploma. This award winning building at the mouth of Aillwee Cave serves as a reception centre, exhibition hall, shop and restaurant for visitors to the giant cave. The building by architects Andrzej and Danuta Wejchert is a well conceived design that blends into the grey limestone of the Burren hills. When inside the building it seems to be part of the actual cave. Roger Johnson is immensely proud of this achievement as it is only the second time the Europa Nostra award has come to Ireland. An RTÉ News report broadcast on 2 July 1981. The reporter is Michael Walsh.