Traveling the Emerald Isle -- Day 8, Friday, August 26, 2022

 

The Ring of Kerry, Ireland  – Day 8, Friday, August 26, 2022

It’s such a beautiful, picture perfect morning, as I look out the window of our room and see the horses grazing in the yard!  It’s an early breakfast and out the door for us.

The Ring of Kerry is a narrow, winding coastal road around Iveragh Peninsula. The region is mountainous, dotted with lakes and beautiful shoreline and inlets of the Atlantic Ocean.  It is one of Ireland’s busiest tourist areas, though we were fortunate as it was really not crowded at all.  We drive on very narrow, bumpy, zigzag roads, climbing up, then down again. The vistas of the valleys with its patchwork of fields dotted with white sheep lazily munching on grass are stunning.  One farmer along the way is said to have over 3,000 acres for the sheep to wander about.  Sheep were spotted all along the Ring not only in green fields, but up the sides of the rocky mountains as well … plus the occasional escapee just grazing or sleeping along the edge of the roadway!  We did, however, see one little fawn at one of our sightseeing stops. 

Near the town of Waterville is where we first saw the Skellig Islands. Both are very rugged, but the main one, Skellig Michael, is pointed, is a mile in circumference and is 700 feet tall. It is accessible only by boat, a trip we had hoped to take; but given the time requirement and cost, we passed up the opportunity.  It was first inhabited by Christian monks in the sixth century, who, for 500 years, collected rainwater in cisterns, mainly ate fish and birds, and gathered bird eggs to trade for goods, candles and furs for clothing and scripture writing.  They built six stone igloo-type buildings which still stand solid today. It was a harsh, disciplined, lonely existence.  The smaller island is home to a large colony of gannets that fly up from Africa every year.  These large gull-like birds are protected, so no one is even allowed to step foot on Little Skellig.

Skellig Michael and Little Skellig

We continue to work our way around the Ring, enjoying the mountains, the wild and varied shorelines, the occasional sandy beach and the remnants of ancient ruins scattered over the countryside that are left as a reminder of past history.  It’s truly been a memorable and exciting day.  We finish up by returning to Killarney, where we visited St. Mary’s Cathedral  -- another beautiful church  where we took the time to say a Rosary.  Then we strolled the streets of town and enjoyed the entertainment of two 8-10-year-olds on the sidewalk playing their concertinas for coins.  They were very good.  Actually, it is quite common throughout the country to have entertainers on the streets to provide some “craic” (pronounced crack) … Irish for “FUN”!    And we did have fun … throughout the day, listening to the entertainers, dinner with loved ones … doesn’t get any better! 

St Mary's Cathedral
Killarnery, Ireland

Traveling the Emerald Isle - Day 7, Thursday, August 25, 2022

 Cork and Kinsale, Ireland – Day 7, Thursday, August 25, 2022

Our first stop today is in the City of Cork, County Cork, in southeastern Ireland. It is the second largest city in Ireland and is a magnet for the shipping industry.  We walked to the English Market, a large bustling place of vendors packed side-by-side with three rows for shoppers between them.  It’s been in operation since 1788 and is where you can find vendors specializing in anything from the most delicious olives, cheeses, and breads; meats and seafoods – including displaying the entire fish of various types – locally made soaps, wine and honey; souvenirs, fresh fruit and sandwiches for a picnic lunch across the street! Our next hike was up to St. Peter and Paul’s Catholic Church, then the Cathedral of St. Mary and St. Anne.  Both are so beautiful, dating back to the 17^th and 18^th centuries.

Olives in The English Market

Meats

Cheeses

Deli 

Sanctuary of St. Peter and Paul, in cork

We did get some sandwiches from the English Market and ate lunch in the park, then headed down the coast to Kinsale. This town has two forts – Charles Fort, which is mostly intact, and James Fort, which is in ruins. Because we had already done quite a bit of walking today and time was a factor, we decided just to relax a bit along the edge of the inlet to the Atlantic.  It was beautiful and peaceful. 

Cathedral of St. Mary and St. Anne in Cork

The newly renovated Baptismal Font 
in the Cathedral of St Mary and St Anne
Cork, County Cork, Ireland

Typical street scene in the cities of Ireland!

It took a fair amount of driving to get to our B&B outside of Killarney, much of it on back roads.  Frank is getting quite skilled at this left-side shifting and driving, maneuvering the many roundabouts and avoiding collisions on the very narrow roads.  So the width of many of the back roads is less than two lanes, no shoulders, hedges on both sides.  In Ireland, there is no “my side” or “your side” on those the roads.  The roads are community, commonly shared by all vehicles, including tractor, and animals (the occasional cow or sheep!); and you are expected to pull over or back up if need be to allow passage of on-coming traffic.  Buses, however, do have the right-of-way and all other vehicles need to pull over or even back up to let them through.  Fortunately, even though this is still Ireland’s high time for tourism, we haven’t encountered very many buses in our travels.  

Muckross Riding Stables B&B is pleasantly located and has rabbits and horses to enjoy, as well as several carriages.  We’re here for two nights, so it felt good to settle in for a bit.  After going into town for dinner, we return to relax, again expressing the wonders of all the beautiful sites we have meandered through today.

Traveling the Emerald Isle -- Day 6, Wednesday, August 24, 2022

 

Waterford and Kilarney , Ireland – Day 6, Wednesday, August 24, 2022

We’re up early again, stopped for coffee and croissants and took off for the town of Waterford.  Again, the roads are either narrow two-lane, no shoulders with either vegetative or stone hedges on either side or are the faster two-lane motor ways.  The countryside continues to be beautiful … green fields sectioned mostly by stone, but sometimes by vegetation, often dotted with either sheep or cattle … though mostly sheep!

Waterford is considered the oldest City in Ireland, established by the Vikings in 914. By the 18^th century, it became the center for glass making as well as being a major port for the country.  Of course, we went to the Waterford Crystal’s Visitors’ Center, drooled over the most gorgeous crystal and booked a tour of their factory.  It was fascinating learning the painstaking time taken to create each piece of cyrstal by hand, whether it is a line of glassware or a special order for some special presentation. Their expert craftsmen are required to study 8-10 years, then take a test by doing their “job” absolutely perfectly to become “master” of their skill, whether it is blowing, etching, inspecting, etc.  The Waterford Crystal name is well known for its quality, as you can know it is authentic because every piece has its name etched on it somewhere.  The more fascinating pieces were that of a Cinderella carriage and horses, a huge bear, a beautiful harp which represents Ireland, horses, a train, a football … and hundreds more.  However, note that the price tag reflects the quality.  I didn’t buy but Suzanne did!

Another Irish symbol is the harp.  This is all glass!

We walk around some of the town and the harbor of Waterford, then caught a bite for lunch before heading to The Rock of Cashel.  The “Rock” is actually a church in ruins rising high above the Plain of Tipperary. This is where it is said St Patrick baptized King Aengus around 450 A.D.  The Rock was fought over by local Clans for hundreds of years until it was given over to the Catholic Church in 1101.  We had an excellent guide who told us all about the history of the area and about the church itself.  Most of the Church buildings no longer have roofs and are in ruins, because wooden roofs do not last as long as stone walls. However, a Chapel on the rock has recently been restored with a steep pitched stone roof, unique to Irish buildings.  Unfortunately, it was closed to our group because the number of people going into it is restricted to preserve the fresco art works within. It was particularly interesting to listen to our guide’s passionate explanation of his family’s personal history around this Rock … him being a fifth generation of his family to be working for the Rock of Cashel!  Of course, the Rock provided commanding views of the surrounding County Tipperary Plain with its iconic patchwork of fenced off fields, cows grazing, green, green, green and the mountains behind it.  Again … Stunning!

The Rock of Cashel

We then headed toward Cork to settle into our Hotel. It’s been another busy day of around 14,000 steps. We found yet another Irish Pub, enjoyed the gastro meal and drinks, then called it a day, pinching ourselves for how Blessed we are to be able to meander through this beautiful country!

Traveling the Emerald Isle -- Day 5, August 23, 2022

 

Glendalough and Kilkenny , Ireland – Day 5, Tuesday, August 23, 2022

St. Kevin's Cross
Glendalough

Today we begin our tour of the rest of the Republic of Ireland.  Suzanne and I got everything packed and went for coffee and a croissant while the guys went to get the rented car. I’m told that the coffee here is far superior to what we have back home, possibly because it is freshly pressed coffee.  We’re now on the road, Frank driving a stick on the left side of the road … he successfully navigated us out of the City and on the road south to the Wicklow Mountains.  The motorway is four lanes, but when turning toward the mountains, the back roads are just barely two lanes wide with no shoulders and either brick or stone walls or vegetation hedges bracketing both sides of the narrow road.  It is only through the few areas of lower hedges that we glimpse the beautiful terrain. 

We stop at Glendalough, meaning Valley of the Two Lakes, which was a sixth century monastery founded by St. Kevin. It was destroyed by the English in

1398, and finally abandoned in 1539 during England’s Dissolution of the Monasteries. There still remain some ruins of the church, an out building and many grave sites.  An old Celtic cross dedicated to St Kevin stands guard over the site. The tower is also standing, which would have been used to house the church bells, storage, but was primarily a place for pilgrims, and a last resort place for refuge during Viking raids. We then hiked to the lower, then upper lake … and up some more to a lovely waterfall.

 

A delicious lunch was had at the little hotel in town before heading out to Kilkenny, through fields and mountains, narrow roads and the motorway, stone fenced and/or hedged fields, many with sheep grazing

or just laying in the sunshine.  The city boasts of its Castle, which was the seat of the Dukes of Ormonde for 500 years and has been restored to its Victorian splendor.  It was interesting to view the stateliness and opulence of the various rooms, but the restored Long Gallery was amazing.  It has a hammer beam roof painted with motifs from the Book of Kells and numerous priceless paintings hang from the walls.  My favorite was a beautiful picture of the Madonna and Child painted in the 1500s.   After another day of 12,000 steps, dinner and evening drinks, the pillow awaits.  It has been another grateful day meandering in Ireland.

Traveling the Emerald Isle -- Day 4, August 22, 2022

Dublin, Ireland – Day 4, Monday, August 22, 2022 

Once again we’re out the door by 8:15, grabbing a cup of coffee (except me!) and croissant, then walked over to Trinity College again for our tour of the Book of Kells. This is an amazing work of art

created by monks in Scotland in the late eighth century as they transcribed the four Gospels of the Bible. Prior to seeing the book, there’s a wealth of information on how it was done, the painstaking work that went into it, the meaning behind many of the symbols and drawings, why things were done in particular instances, where and how the colors were created, etc. The Book of Kells actually consists of four books, each representing one of the four Gospels, totaling 680 pages; but only one book was on display in an enclosed glass case that is temperature and light controlled for preservation. We saw two beautifully decorated pages. I heard two different things about the turning of the pages … one that a page is turned every day; another that a page is turned every three or four months. It is truly a art masterpiece. 

Though there was another surprise in store for us. As we left the Book of Kells, we ascended a few steps

The Long Room, 
Library at Trinity
College

to the 200-foot-long main chamber of the Old Library known as the Long room. It is stacked to the extremely high ceiling with over 200,000 of the library’s oldest books and has been a working library since 1792. At one end is Ireland’s oldest harp, which is an image used to represent the Republic of Ireland on all official documents and elsewhere around the city and country. It is still a working library where students come to do research and is quite an impressive sight! 

Next, we hop back on the Hop-on, Hop-off bus to St. Patrick’s Cathedral. In 1539 England’s King Henry VIII’s Reformation dissolved all Catholic monasteries in England and Ireland; so today neither Christ Church nor St Patrick’s Cathedral are Catholic, but are the Anglican Church of England. In the late 19th century, the wealthy Guinness family donated funds for the restoration of St. Patrick’s Cathedral … and the wealthy Jameson family donated funds for the restoration of Christ Church. We did go inside, but it was more of a museum than a church, in my opinion; though, of course, there’s always something to learn! 

After another Irish lunch, we caught the bus to the must-stop Guinness Storehouse for a tour of how they make their most famous beer. Arthur Guinness started brewing his beer in 1759. By 1868 it was a thriving business, and today the more than two-block long company brews 10 million pints of Guinness a day world wide. You know, when in Ireland … one does drink Guinness! We strolled through the floors of information, to the tasting, then up to the 7th floor to the Gravity Bar for our free drink. It is up here that we got a 360-degree view of the city and had a chance to simply “be”, savoring the moment, the views and especially the company! 

Back on the bus, we get a quick view of Phoenix Park west of the city which consists of over 1700 acres of recreational areas. About a third is wooded, with over 500 feral deer wandering about. There are many open areas, sports areas, walking paths, benches, etc. that seem to be thoroughly enjoy by all, and the official residence of the President of Ireland is allocated in the park as well. Our last tourist stop is at the Jameson Distillery. Not wanting to take yet another tour, we just sat down to taste their creations! Suzanne discovered she loves Old Fashions. Bob and I sampled a flight of their different whiskies and Frank just enjoyed the Jameson goodness. For our last dinner in Dublin, we enjoyed yet another Irish Pub in the Temple Bar area, then walked the streets enjoying the sites and sounds of the area one last time, generating almost 14,000 steps before calling it a day! How Blessed we are to be able to experience all this.

Temple Bar
Dublin, Ireland

Traveling the Emerald Isle -- Day 3, August 21, 2022

Dublin, Ireland – Day 3, Sunday, August 21, 2022

We awoke refreshed after a good night’s sleep, ready for more walking and exploring of Dublin.  After

St. Steven's Green

purchasing a 48-hour Hop-on, Hop-off bus pass. Our first hop off was at St. Steven’s Green, a one-mile square park within the city that is beautiful with its wide walking paths, ponds and creeks, ducks and swans, beautiful flowers planted in so many areas, people enjoying the beautiful morning by sitting on benches or on the grass or just laying in the grass.  It is very serene and lovely, as well as educational as we learned about some of the country’s heroes and the 1916 Irish “Rising” …  an effort to gain independence from England … and the struggle that occurred in this vicinity. 

Next top, Trinity College where we met up with an old friend Peter.  We were privileged to host the then 11-year-old Peter for six weeks in the 1980s when an organization helped “rescue” children from the “troubles” in Northern Ireland at that time by bringing them to the States for six weeks. It was during these troubled times in Northern Ireland that there was a lot of violence as groups tried to gain independence from England.  Oh what a beautiful reunion this was after over 30 years!  He spent the rest of the day with us before heading back to Northern Ireland.  It was also so fun to learn from him the “correct pronunciation” of certain words and places, get a personal experiential view of those troubled times, learn more about the cultural and day-to-day living on the Isle and even delved a bit into the political air of the day.

The Book of Kells is located at Trinity College, Ireland’s most famous school; but we were not able to get in today.  Reservations have been made for early tomorrow morning! So we kept on walking down to the Temple Bar area where we had lunch at a typical Irish restaurant. We all enjoyed delicious Irish specialties, drank Guinness or Jameson and Ginger, relished sitting around a small sidewalk table with the lovely sunny weather, talked and talked, laughed and laughed  … and afterwards spent a little time listening to some fantastic Irish music in two different pubs.  Oh what fun!

Because the weather was so grand, we continued walking to the end of the Temple Bar area to Christ

Christ Church, Dublin

Church Cathedral, the center of the City for almost 1,000 years. It is the cathedral of the United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough.  We decided not to pay the $$ to explore the inside, but we did enjoy the beauty of the architecture of the building and some of the grounds. 

A few blocks away is the Dublin Castle, built over the first Viking fortress. This site was the seat of English rule in Ireland for over 700 years.  When Ireland gained its independence in 1922, the transfer of power ceremony was done here.  Since then, the Castle has been used for fancy state affairs and charity functions. We took a tour of the Castle, enjoying the lavish rooms where

Grand staircase entrance
at the Dublin Castle

the English political elites lived and hosted gala functions, and also learning of the many significant functions hosted here since Ireland attained political autonomy. 

By now it’s nearing the end of the day.  We said good bye to Peter as he had a two-hour drive home, but

Not a good picture,
but great dancers!

we anticipate meeting his mother near the end of our stay on the Isle.  Dinner at JW Sweetman was amazing.  The building, as are many of the other Irish pubs, is a converted residence; so you feel like you’re walking into someone’s front door, then probably up the ornate dark wooden staircases or into a small paneled room with cute tables and chairs, unique Irish decorations on the walls, and in this case, lively Irish music with a couple of talented Irish dancers!  This was just heavenly.  The Irish people overall are very friendly and helpful, always willing to share a bit of history, though Dublin is a thriving metropolitan city with people speaking a huge variety of languages.  At this point we don’t know whether most are tourists or have taken up residence of the city.  In either case, it makes for interesting people watching!  It’s another long day of over 13,000 steps (for the third day In a row!), so off for some shut eye we go, so grateful for the day with Peter and getting to explore more of Dublin.

 

Traveling the Emerald Isle - Days 1 and 2, August 19 & 20, 2022

 

Dublin, Ireland – Days 1 & 2, Friday & Saturday, August 19 and 20, 2022

For about ten years we have shared dreams and discussions, tentative plans made and cancelled, and plans made and actually paid for!  However, that 2020 excursion was never made because of the world-wide lockdown.  But this time it’s for real … Off we go to the Emerald Isle!  The flight to Ireland, including a three-hour layover in Boston, was uneventful … but flying into Dublin at sunrise was thrilling with its beautiful green, its checkered fields, cliffs at the ocean’s edge and the City crowded with buildings.  Navigating our way to our hotel was a bit challenging, but the hotel Staff was very accommodating and was well prepared to store our luggage as we immediately began our sightseeing adventure.

Ha Penny Bridge over the Liffy River

First up, The Irish Immigration Museum. It was very interesting with many unique features, though the history was somewhat skewed in that the extreme suffering of the Irish people because of cultural and religious persecution, the domination by the English, wars, famine, etc., was glossed over.   Afterwards, we are starved; so we walked along the Liffy River, which pretty much divides Dublin north and south

The famous Temple Bar

but has numerous interesting bridges crossing it.  The river also hosts many birds and some kayakers as well.  There was quite a bit of hiking while we explored the Temple Bar area of town.  This is where everything is happening!  Many of the narrow streets are pedestrian traffic only; the buildings are old and often beautifully decorated with numerous flower pots; people are milling around the hundreds of bars and restaurants or shopping in the stores.  The traffic pattern still seems weird, as it’s difficult to get used to people driving on the left side of the street. After lunch, we strolled the Temple Bar area some more, then headed to our hotel for a much needed nap before attending Mass this evening.

St. Mary’s Catholic Pro-Cathedral church had some very nice stained glass windows, side alters, mosaic tile floors, altar and various statues.  After Mass we walked back toward the hotel, we found an authentic Irish restaurant, Bennigan's (naturally!), serving delicious fish and chips and, of course, Guinness and Jameson and ginger!  We strolled along  O’Connell Street  named for Daniel O’Connell, The “Liberator” of Irish Catholics… the main drag through down town with its beautiful tree-lined sidewalks and center, numerous statues in the middle commemorating various Irish heroes and buildings with so many unique architectural features from days gone by.  It reminded me a lot of being in Barcelona!  The pillow is now calling since it’s been about 36 hours without sleep ... but what a wonderful day to the beginning of our meandering through Dublin!

The Irish have some very
interesting expressions!

Bob & Frank & Guinness!