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Avondhu reporter, Ellen Lynch, is in a more laid-back mood this week, after last week’s more serious column.

This week finds me in laid-back mood, after my outpouring on more serious matters in last week's column. One thing that gave rise to a rueful smile though, was the subsequent revelations last week of the former CRC CEO's massive and very secret pension top up. Not that I didn't find it disgraceful. I'm as outraged as everyone else.

I was just amused at how the timing of those revelations took the heat off Irish Water bosses. They must have been mightily relieved that the country's ire was directed elsewhere for a bit. They oughtn't rest too comfortably though and it's unlikely they'll indulge in any schadenfreude, knowing the spotlight will be turning back in their direction again soon.

But enough of all that! Ireland has had enough scandals in the past few years to deem it a completely corrupt little country, but we still have, in my opinion, the best scenery. Which is why I'm greatly looking forward to a holiday at home this summer.

I've cousins from Manchester coming to visit. Because they've only ever stayed on our side of the country in previous visits, they're keen to explore further afield. The Wesht to be specific. One cousin in particular appears to be regarding the planned trip as something of an odyssey. He wants to discover more of his late father's cultural heritage. My brothers and sister and I are joining them purely for the craic. They're great fun.

Some of my favourite holidays have been spent in Ireland. I love that I don't have to waste a day at the airport coming and going. I love that I can load everything I need into the boot of the car. (I seem to need an awful lot because not only do I fill the boot, I pile stuff into the back seats too. The car is usually down on its axles by the time I'm finished. And that's just for a weekend away.) Most of all though, I love exploring the landscape and the built heritage of Ireland. I can outdo the Americans in 'oohing' and 'aahing' at what this country has to offer.

Some parts I've only got to explore in recent years. Achill is one example. I can't believe I'm a latecomer to such a treasure. Now, having discovered its beauty, I can't wait to go back. So it's going on the itinerary for our epic journey Into The West this summer.

So too, of course, is Kerry. People are drawn to Dingle, I know, and I love it too but the countryside around it more so than the town. To me there's no place more magnificent than the view from the top of the Conor Pass. I love the Dingle Peninsula, the Slea Head drive and Dunquin with its view of the Blaskets.

There are many other places I'd love to bring my Mancurian cousins, but alas, there'll only be so much time and they want to visit Galway too. Not that I won't enjoy it, I love the buzz in Galway city. It's just that I'd have liked to take them on a grand tour of north Cork and west Waterford, two parts of the country I've only come to know myself in the past two years. I now promote the region with all the zeal of a born-again Christian.

Shortly after moving to live in the latter and work in the former in mid 2012, my sister, who shares my wanderlust, came to visit me for a weekend. It was a busy one as I'd drawn up a list of places I wanted to visit since arriving, using the excuse that I wanted to show her around.

Our feet barely hit the ground that weekend as we crossed various sights and attractions off my 'must see' list, Cahir Castle, the Swiss Cottage, Mitchelstown Caves, The Vee, Lismore Castle, St Carthage's Cathedral and the Dromana Drive. We travelled through a plethora of lovely villages that weekend, including Kildorrery, perched upon a hilltop with its commanding views of the countryside, Castletownroche with its picturesque mill and bridge and of course its castle and the equally lovely village of Ballyduff nestling in the countryside above the majestic Blackwater on the west Waterford side.

I'd thought west Cork, which I love, was the be-all and end-all without ever knowing the scenic beauty and attractions north Cork and west Waterford had to offer, but, as we traversed the Blackwater Valley that weekend and criss-crossed its neighbouring county, I realised I was wrong.

I've crossed many other 'must sees' off the list since and I'm lucky that my job entails covering stories in many areas of north Cork which has allowed me to familiarise myself with some more lovely parts.

Speaking of memorable outings, a couple of years ago I was visiting said sister, who lives in Kildare. We decided to go gallivanting one day with each of us choosing a place we'd always wanted to visit. I picked Newgrange. I'd never been there, not even on a school tour as a child, when it was practically an obligatory place to visit. We were both blown away by it. If ever I was made conscious of the fact that life is but a grain of sand in the grand scheme of things, it was there.

We were in awe of the genius of our Neolithic Irish ancestors who were able to align the passage into the main chamber with the rising sun on the winter solstice. And the ingenious way their successors later placed a series of stones around it which cast shadows perfectly from one to the other when the sun shines on them.

I think both of us were even more impressed than the Americans who were there that day, who didn't seem to be able to get their heads around something that old and amazing. I had to stop my sister from poking one particular American visitor in the ribs, so anxious was she to impress upon him the wonder of the stone carvings within the tomb.

I had to pull her away, so nonplussed was she when he told her they were no big deal; he'd already seen such art work in other places around the country. "Where?" she demanded. "In gift shops, on souvenirs and postcards," he told her.

It was her turn next to visit her always-wanted-to-see place. She chose … wait for it … Ikea! Talk about incongruous! This strange juxtaposition saw us veer from the ancient to the very, very modern in the one day. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed our visit to the football-stadium sized repository of Scandinavian modern style furniture and accessories which, in their own way, were cleverly created too.

My cousin Eamon, tells me his desire to see more of the country was sparked by the book 'McCarthy's Bar' in which the author, a well travelled individual who had never visited his mother's homeland, embarks on a voyage of discovery, beginning in Cork and making his way up the west coast as far as Donegal.

In the process, he obeys the rule to 'never pass a pub with your name on it', leading to many memorable and humorous interactions with locals. The visits to areas of scenic beauty and historical interest are to be liberally interspersed, it seems, with regular stops at pubs.

So, if you're planning on visiting the west this summer, pay no heed to the boisterous group that will be the Kavanagh family cavalcade, on tour. We're a high spirited lot. Roll on summer!

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