Arriving In Ireland
Monday October 7 and 8, 2024
Arriving in Dublin, we picked up our rental car and headed for Kilkenny. The route we followed and the sites we saw for the first 7 days is captured in this Google map.
https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1ygm2k0DnVa4OuRByNi_vDApEaxojXVk&usp=sharing
We had an amazing BnB for two nights with a wonderful and engaging hostess. During our first full day there, we headed south and visited some ruins, small towns and did a short hike. The historic significance of the different ruins is amazing.
To fully capture the history of Kilkenny, we did a walking tour and learned the history of the community and how things came to be. Restaurants were plentiful in town and we dined at Kytelers. This is a pub that goes back to the 1300’s. The original owner was married four times, each time her husband died shortly after they were married. Not surprisingly, she became richer after each husband passed. Her fourth husband was a widower and his children were none too pleased he left everything to her.
Through influence, the children from her last husband arranged to have her tried for witchcraft. After the evidence was presented to local noblemen, the sentence was for her to be burned at the stake. Being wealthy, she managed to escape to England and was never heard from again. Of course, as we were visiting near Halloween, the place was decked out with witches’ garb and we took a photo in the requisite hats.
Wednesday October 9, 2024 – Heading to Killarney
Moving on south, we headed to Killarney. Here we stayed in our first Manor, the charming Cahernane House Hotel. We had a beautiful room with a small patio on the ground floor that overlooked pastures and cattle. The Manor is set back from the road by 500 meters, which limits road noise. We were encouraged to book dinner reservations at the manor, however, being tired, we politely declined.
Our first afternoon we headed into town and wandered around. The town is 100% a tourist town. There was no shortage of businesses that would sell you sweaters, hats, beer and anything else. It was very quaint. When we had seen enough, we returned to the hotel to rest and then walked to a nearby brew-pub. Both the beer and pizza were great.
Thursday October 10, 2024 – The Ring of Kerry
We were up early and had a great breakfast in the dining room. Our plan was to drive the Ring of Kerry. Leaving at 08:30, there were a few stops along the way. In the end, we drove 22km of the 175 km as we simply spent too much time at each of our stops!
We started at Ross castle. It was not yet open for the day, however we saw the spectacular early morning sun on the building. Carrying on, we explored the Muckross Friary – a beautiful, unrestored but abandoned stone building. Like so many other Friary’s in Ireland and England, it fell into disrepair after King Henry VIII shut them down. As it was still early, I managed to capture a stunning shot of the sun coming through a small window. I reflected on how many times in the past 1,000 years the sun come had come in that window.
Finding stops on the Ring of Kerry
Our next stops were at a waterfall, followed by a stone circle. We ended up in Kensame for lunch and then headed out to see a sheep dog demonstration. Both the sheep and dog know the rules. The dog runs like the mad hatter and sheep head in the direction they are told. At times the dog will nip at the sheep’s hind legs, so there is respect. A few years back, some farmers tried to get rid of the dogs and use drones.
This worked well the first time, however sheep are not as stupid as one may think. After a few times, the sheep figured out that drone would not nip at their heels. Then, the sheep ignored the drone and went where they wanted. The dogs were brought back in and everything returned to normal.
We considered our options after the sheep dogs. Seeing as the next site of interest was over an hour away and it was 2:30, we decided to return to our Manor. It was a good call. A group who were staying at the Manor had arranged for a falconry demonstration. We watched as falcons, hawks and owls were brought out.
We dined in town at a local restaurant.
Friday October 11, 2024 Bunratty Castle
With a bit of a later start, due to the Manor grounds being so charming to walk around, we headed off to Bunratty. Arriving at a standard B&B, we ditched our bags and headed over to the castle. It was a 1KM walk down a very country road. There we took part in the Medieval feast and celebration. It was a very enjoyable experience and well worth the money. Interestingly, some guide books say to skip it as it is too touristy. It was a bit of history of the castle, a show, a four-course meal with unlimited wine or mead and a musical presentation. We very much enjoyed ourselves and sat next to some locals.
Saturday October 12, 2024 Galway via the Cliffs of Moher
It was onto Galway via the Cliffs of Moher. On this day the Cliffs were WINDY! Arriving around 10 AM, there were very few tourists and we wandered around. As the morning progressed, coaches continued to arrive and it was time for us to leave. Galway was next and after checking into our accommodations, we took the bus into town and wandered about, walking back to the hostel. Based on our level of activity the last few nights, it was an early night.
Sunday October 13, 2024 – Galway
We headed into Galway to find a laundromat and caught up on laundry. Then, returning to the hostel, we returned to town for a walking tour. Normally walking tours are great and they provide a lot of history. We both agreed this one was a let down. The guide, during our 1 ½ hours together, provided only a bit of history. He focused more on pointing out his favourite bars.
There was a microwave at our Hostel and we took advantage of it to have a lighter meal from the supermarket. Then we headed out to a local pub but were not able to find any music. One pint later we returned home.
Monday October 14th, 2024
We did another look at Galway and bought an Aran Island sweater. We had planned to go over to the Aran Islands, however the timing was too tight. The wind was supposed to pick up, which could cancel the return ferry. Not wanting to get stranded on the Aran Islands, we passed.
We will publish Part II of our Irish tour soon.
Thanks for reading, please feel free to leave any comments below. You can contact us on the form below.
Cam and Meg