Ring of Kerry, County Kerry

After an 8 am breakfast, we drove about 90 minutes to the west to explore the historic "Ring of Kerry" - a circuitous route around the coastal southern county of Kerry that weaves in and out of small towns, between cliffs and valleys, across plains of grazing sheep and fieldstone walls, and alongside breathtaking views of the sea and estuary bays. We pulled over occassionally where the road allowed and snapped a few pictures, but the driving was intense - hugging the side of the road close enough to avoid mighty oncoming trucks and speeding cars, but staying far enough away to avoid a plunge down the side into the cold water.

About halfway through the trip (the ring in total is about 120 miles) we stopped at the Kerry Bog Village - a bit of a tourist trap that boastas recreated traditional Irish homes with thatch roofs. At the village, Jim got to live out his lifelong dream of petting his favorite dog breed - an Irish Wolfhound.

After a bit it was back on the road - luckily we have eluded the bicycles and tourbuses of the forthcoming holiday seasons. We stopped at Ross Castle and Muckross Mansion - both just south of Killarney (a relatively large town that marks the typical starting/ending point of the Ring). Ross Castle was quite a site - built in the 1400s. Muckross Mansion - built in the 1800s - was perhaps even more breathtaking because of its manicured grounds dotted with ancient trees, dazzling view of the inlet, and dozens of chimneys.

We made it back to our base in Kinsale (about 90 minutes from the Ring of Kerry) before sunfall. Then we went down for a great dinner at The White House down in town. Road work being done in advance of the tourist season has left only one road open into town: a steep, hilly twist that would not be wide enough for two small cars but for the three rows of paving bricks that have been added to each side (probably in hindsight).

Tomorrow we depart Kinsale for a trek up the west coast to Galway, but with stops at the Cliffs of Moher and The Burren on the way. Due to a clever use of a USB drive, some pictures from our trip through the Ring of Kerry are now available below!

VIEWS FROM AROUND THE RING OF KERRY




KERRY BOG VILLAGE (TRADITIONAL IRISH HOUSES)



ROSS CASTLE

MUCKROSS MANSION





For more about the Ring of Kerry, click HERE.
For more about Muckross House, click HERE.
For more about Ross Castle, click HERE.

Kinsale, County Cork

After a long drive we arrived at our next stop on the trip: Kinsale, an ancient sea village on the south coast. We had just enough time to check in and head down to some of the sites. Because we are a bit ahead of the tourist season, the town was a little sparse. We went up to Charles Fort, a 350 year old fort built by the English, then to a famous old bar called the Spaniard for a pint, then to a couple of shops downtown and for a rather unimpressive fish-n-chips dinner at Dino's (don't believe their sign). Now we're back at the B&B, but my Internet connection is rather poor - so no pictures yet... UPDATE: I'm putting a couple of pictures below...

VIEW OF DOWNTOWN KINSALE FROM ACROSS THE INLET

CHARLES FORT

THE SPANIARD


Here is a video clip of the harbor at Kinsale:



For more about Charles Fort, click HERE.
For more about Kinsale, Ireland, click HERE.

Enniskerry, County Wicklow

We spent our second day in Enniskerry, just south of Dublin. My dad's friend's daughter's fiance's parents own a bed and breakfast there, so that is where we stayed. They - Ann & Noel Barry - are marvelous people. We drove to their place from our hotel in Dublin and, after getting lost a couple of times, we eventually found our way to their house. We went for a walk up the drive next door for a bit, then went out for a drive with Noel. He showed us the Wicklow Mountains, including Glendalough - a place over 1000 years old that once housed seven churches and a lookout tower that still stands (pictured below).

We stopped for a pint on the way home at Noel's "local," then we briefly stopped by a man named Neil Lenaugh's place - he told us all about Galway and what we should see/do while we are there. Then we went home for a fantastic dinner of corned beef, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, and beet chutney - prepared by Ann.

In the morning, we had a traditional Irish breakfast before pushing off for a long day of driving to Kinsale. It was a phenomenal stop - I can't wait to go back.

I have a rather poor Internet connection right now (in Kinsale) so I will post more, larger pictures a couple of short film clips later.





For more about Glendalough, click HERE.
For more about the Wicklow Mountains, click HERE.

Here are a couple of short video clips of the scenery in Wicklow:

Horses in the Hotel Plaza

We woke up this morning to the sound of neighing horses, then looked out at the cobblestone plaza below to find at least two hundred horses all being shown and traded. Rather unusual for a city of 1.5 million people. Apparently there is a monthly horse show in the plaza. After breakfast we went down and walked around the horses - quite an event. Little kids riding and showing ponies, older farmers showing draft horses, young men whipping up and and the cobblestone road in horse-drawn carts and wagons. There are a couple of pictures and a short video below.

Dublin Bus Tour, Pub Dinner

This afternoon we went to the Jamison's Brewery tour (which is right across the street from our hotel) and then caught a tour bus (there are dozens of tour buses driving around on a continuous loop to all the major sites in Dublin (Trinity College, St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Guiness factory, Squares, Gardens, Parks and Museums, etc.). The weather turned pretty cold, wet and windy as the day went on. We regrouped at the hotel for a bit and then took a cab to "Temple Bar" - a busy area with a lot of shops and pubs - for dinner. There are a few pictures from the bus tour below...

Welcome to Dublin

We had a leisurely flight over the Atlantic thanks to Chad, my dad's boss, bumping us up into business class. The chairs were motorized and would rotate down into cot-like beds. The food was awesome.

We arrived in Dublin around 8:30 am local time, after figuring out immigration, baggage claim, currency exchange and car rental stuff, we were off and running. I had the fortune of being the first to test my skills on the left side of the roadway. After a couple of wrong turns and some confusing turn-abouts, we actually got to our hotel relatively easily after about a 5 mile jaunt straight through the city. My dad was overly nervous about my driving - I'd be even more nervous with him behind the wheel.

We checked into the hotel a few minutes back - free Internet means I can quickly upload a couple of photos - here is the view from our hotel balcony of downtown Dublin. We're probably going to hop on a bus tour and get a bite to eat after a few minutes. We are a bit tired and disshelved but have to keep going to fight off the jet lag.







More to come later...

Final Itinerary

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March 1, 2008: Arrive at Dublin Airport, pick up rental car from Thrifty ("A")

March 1, 2008: Stay at Comfort Inn Smithfield in Dublin, Dublin County ("B"); while in Dublin, the travel agent recommended this sight-seeing company (click here)

March 2, 2008: Stay at Nash's in-laws' B&B in Ennis Kerry ("C")

March 3-4, 2008: Stay at Four Winds B&B in Kinsale, County Cork ("D")

March 5-6, 2008: Stay at Marless House B&B in Galway, Country Galway ("E")

March 7, 2008: Stay at Flemingtown House in Ratoath, County Meath ("F")

March 8, 2008: Return rental car; Depart Dublin Airport for O'Hare