Dingle and the Cliffs of Moher

[Fri 5/26 - Sat 5/27 - We're home now... I'm just trying to catch up!] 

It's an easy - and beautiful - 1 hour drive from Killarney to Dingle. As usual, we stopped a few times along the way to take in sights and attractions. We started back in Killarney National Park with a stop at Ross Castle, then continued along the coast toward Dingle.

15th-century Ross Castle

Boats tied up near Ross Castle

16th-century Minard Castle on the shores of the Irish Sea

Beautiful, quiet beach in front of Minard Castle

We arrived in Dingle around 2pm. Drove along the waterfront edge of town, which was packed with tourists, then continued a few minutes to our B&B, Milltown House - a waterfront spot with views back across the water to town (and where Robert Mitchum lived in 1969 while filming 'Ryan's Daughter').

Our home for the night

We relaxed a bit, then decided to find some lunch and explore the peninsula. Karri found a driving loop and a few places of interest to check out along the way.

Taking advantage of the view from our room

Lunch at Paidi O Se's outside Dingle - great spot

Cliff overlooking the Irish Sea

Beautiful Coumeenoole Beach on a postcard day

1000+ year-old Gallarus Oratory - an ancient church

The drive around the Dingle Peninsula was spectacular. We both thought it rivaled the Ring of Kerry in terms of beauty, with fewer tourists - which was a blessing, as the roads were the narrowest we experienced!

We relaxed back at our room for a bit, then walked to Dingle to explore and find some dinner. Dingle turned out to be much larger than our initial impression from driving the waterfront. It's a bit touristy, but there were plenty of locals walking the streets and hanging out in the pubs.

Houses along the road into Dingle

We ended up at The Dingle Pub, which had live music and a crowded bar. We got one of the last tables in the restaurant section, which was perfect as we were able to hear the music and watch the dancing while we enjoyed Guinness stew, fish-and-chips and a couple pints of Guinness - a fun night!

Saturday morning we had breakfast at the B&B then hit the road for our longest drive of the trip. Our ultimate destination was Dublin, but we had decided to detour north to the Cliffs of Moher, adding a few hours to the trip. An hour or so into the drive, we realized that Google Maps was routing us to a car ferry crossing of the Shannon Estuary that, if all worked out, would save us 40 miles of driving. As is often the case in our travels - all worked out! We pulled up to the ferry 10 minutes before the scheduled departure with only a few cars in front of us. We watched the ferry pull in and unload before driving aboard. My dad would have loved it - the boat was reminiscent of the landing ship he served on in WWII.

Ferry arriving

Unloading

That's our car (black one in the center)!

Short but pretty ride across the estuary

Once on the other (north) side, we had about an hour drive to the Cliffs. Google routed us through some narrow, rural roads. On one single-lane road we noticed a sign warning drivers not to rely on GPS routing, so we turned around and rerouted via a highway, adding a few minutes but getting us there safely!

We arrived to a long line of cars and buses at the entrance to the parking lot. We waited in line, paid, parked and walked to the cliffs - weaving through throngs of tourists. We decided to climb to the highest point to check things out, then work our way back. The views were spectacular - especially on another gorgeous, cloudless day.

First views of the Cliffs of Moher

We waited in line to take in the view from the top of that castle

View from the castle

More Moher

The park has a great trail system running along the edge of the cliffs. We wandered a bit, catching different angles and views. We realized we could spend several hours there walking/hiking, but still had a 3+ hour drive ahead of us and needed to return our car by 9pm. So after about an hour of exploring, we headed to the car and got back on the road - destination Dublin!

On to Ireland - Kilkenny, Cork and Killarney

[Tue 5/23 - Thu 5/25] 

Flight from Lisbon was easy, arriving in Dublin a little before 7pm. Grabbed our bags and spent nearly 20 minutes talking to a gregarious rental car agent before we were on the road around 8. The car was a new adventure for me - I've driven right-side-drive in a left-lane country before, but never in a left-hand 6-speed manual transmission - fun! We had about a 2-hour drive to Kilkenny and hoped to arrive before dark given the narrow, winding Irish roads. We were pleasantly surprised to pull in to our B&B, Butler House & Garden, at dusk - a few minutes past 10pm! Dropped our bags and walked across the street to Blue Bar - a traditional pub - for a pint. Walked the town a bit, stopping in one more pub, before heading back to the B&B and to bed.

Welcome to Ireland! At Blue Bar

Had a nice breakfast at the hotel Wednesday, then set out for a quick walking tour before hitting the road again. We had picked Kilkenny as a quick stop-over on our way to the coast but wish we had allowed more time there; it's a quaint town with lots of history - and not too touristy.

Beautiful gardens behind our B&B

Kilkenny Castle

Parliament Street

St Canice's Cathedral; parish dates to 6th century; current building 13th century

The Black Abbey - Dominican priory dating to the 13th century

We easily could have spent several more hours or a day exploring but were anxious to get back on the road. We grabbed our bags, checked out and drove to Cork City for a dose of family history.

My great-great grandparents (Dad's mother's mother's parents) were married at St. Finbarr's Church in Cork in 1848 before migrating to the US (Covington, KY) in 1850. My brother Bob had done some research and visited the church a few years ago, so we knew exactly where to go. As we were pulling up, an older gentleman, who turned out to be the caretaker, flagged us down and asked if we were looking for a priest(!). We told him our story and he directed us into the church while he went to look up the wedding in the parish registry. He returned with notes about the wedding and the baptism of their first son (my great-great uncle) in 1850, months before they boarded a ship to the US. Pretty cool!

St Finbarr's

Some history

Simple and cozy church

Drove another hour or so to Killarney and our B&B - Foley's Townhouse, right in the heart of town - our home for the next 2 nights. Karri did some research and mapped out 5 top-rated pubs, so we set out exploring the town with a purpose!

Comparing Guinness and Murphy's Irish Stout (both good but Guinness is better)

Irish stew at the bar at Laurel's Pub

Moved on to Irish whiskey after dinner; Barry, the friendly bartender at Courtney's Bar, shared his 'Top 5 under 10 euros' (we eventually tried all 5 - not all in 1 night!)

Thursday we drove the Ring of Kerry, a 110-mile driving loop around the Iveragh Peninsula - a beautiful drive with amazing sights and views.

Passed through miles of farm/ranch country - lot's of sheep dotting the green hillsides

Cliffs of Kerry

More Cliffs of Kerry

Rocky islands off the southwest coast

Passed several ruins along the way, including Staigue Fort - believed to date to Early Midieval period (5th-11th century) 

Last stop on the loop was Killarney National Park, a 25,000 acre park that's home to McGillycuddy’s Reeks (the highest mountain range in Ireland), the Lakes of Killarney, and a 19th century mansion.

Torc Waterfall

Muckross House - built in the mid-1800's

The lawn connecting Muckross house with Muckross Lake

There was plenty more to see in the park but we decided to head back to our B&B, just a short drive away. We relaxed a bit, then set out for a pint, dinner and to find some live music. You can't walk 20 steps without passing a pub in Killarney. The hard part is deciding which one to step into. We tried a couple, had a nice dinner at Murphys Bar, then found our way to O'Connors Traditional Pub just as a couple musicians were getting ready to start a set. We grabbed a couple barstools and ended up staying for their entire, amazing show!

Great music in a great setting

We slept in a bit on Friday, had breakfast then packed up and hit the road to Dingle. Absolutely loved our time in Killarney.

Lisbon

[Sat 5/20 - Tue 5/23] 

We drove into Lisbon midday Thursday, dropped our bags at our Airbnb - near the Tagus River and the Arco da Rua Augusta - then Karri and I returned our rental car while Thomas and Caroline wandered the city. We took the scenic route walking back to the Airbnb, hoping to get our bearings. 

Lisbon was destroyed by an earthquake (and subsequent tsunami) in 1755. It was quickly rebuilt, but the formerly winding streets of the city center were replaced by a grid, including several grand avenues and squares. It's a beautiful - and very busy - capital city. 

Statue of Marquês de Pombal - chief minister to the king in the 1700's

Tree-lined Avenida de Liberdade

Statue at the center of Plaza Dom Pedro IV 

Arco da Rua Augusta, near the riverfront - and our hotel

We spent the afternoon wandering around various neighborhoods and taking in the sights, then met up with Thomas and Caroline for a cocktail before heading to a nearby tapas bar for dinner. We were all pretty tired - with a full day ahead on Sunday - so had a relatively early night.

A travel podcast recommended we try sardines - pretty tasty!

Karri had booked an all-day walking tour with a private tour guide for Sunday. We met Theresa at 9:15am Sunday outside Jerónimos Monastery, a large, gothic cathedral - and one of the most visited attractions in Lisbon. There was already a long line of people waiting for the museum to open at 10, but pre-arranged tour groups can enter at 9:30 and Theresa had a friend holding a spot for us at the front of the line, so we were the first 5 people allowed in - nice!

Hallways surrounding the main courtyard

20 minutes later the arches were packed with people

Dining hall - easy to imagine 16th century monks silently dining here

The crowds waiting to get in as we were leaving

Neighboring cathedral - we caught a quick glimpse between Sunday masses

After the monastery and cathedral, we walked a couple blocks for a mid-morning snack - the famous Pastel de Nata - from Theresa's favorite bakery, Manteigaria. While we were sitting outside enjoying our treats, we heard a marching band approach - turned out to be the once-per-month changing of the guard ceremony at the neighboring National Palace of Belem.

Marching band and honor guard

Changing of the guard ceremony

From there, we walked to the nearby waterfront to see a couple more attractions.

Beautiful Monument to the Discoverers

Tower of Belem - one time guard tower turned prison

We walked the riverfront a while, then caught an Uber to the city center and Time Out Market Lisbon - a beautiful, massive food court with amazing food options - for lunch. 

Time Out Market

After lunch, we walked a nearby neighborhood taking in a few more sights, then finished up the tour behind the Nacional Theatre, near plaza Dom Pedro IV.

Appropriately named Pink Street - popular nightlife spot

St Dominics Church - built in 1241, survived 2 earthquakes and then a fire in 1959

Capping off the tour with a ginjinha - cherry liqueur

With our wonderful guide, Theresa

After the great tour, Thomas and Caroline went back to the room to relax a bit while Karri and I pressed on, checking out another neighborhood we hadn't yet explored before heading back to clean up for dinner. We had an 8pm reservation at Boa Bao - owned by a relative of Thomas and Caroline's friend Fara. It's a popular spot that doesn't take reservations... unless you know someone, apparently. 

A popular way to avoid a steep hill climb

Menu at Boa Bao... and my darling

Pork belly boa - so good

We had a great meal that lasted nearly 3 hours (European style) and were all exhausted by the end of it. Headed back home and to bed, with an early alarm set to, sadly, send Thomas and Caroline off to the airport for their flight home. Monday morning we said our goodbyes and sent them off in an Uber, then went back to sleep for a bit, enjoyed a leisurely morning, then headed out to brunch and to explore some more.

Brunch feast at Basilio - right next to our Airbnb

View from Miradouro de Santa Luzia - with thunderstorm blowing in

It started to drizzle - and looked like it might pour, so we ducked into a wine bar for impromptu happy hour.

Traditional braised pork cheek appetizer and a red wine from the Duoro Valley

Afterward, we walked a bit more, but were pretty much wiped out, so went back to the room to unwind - only to feel the gravitational pull of the couch. Ended up grabbing a small pizza and salad and watching some TV, then heading to bed. 

Tuesday morning we went for a quick walk before packing up and checking out of the Airbnb. We stored our bags at a tourism office, went back to Basilio for brunch(!), then walked the Alfama neighborhood - one of the few we hadn't yet explored.

Praça do Comércio on the waterfront

Narrow alley in Alfalma

Street market behind St Vincent Church

More beautiful tile work

We headed back to grab our bags and hopped in a taxi to the airport - sad that our time in Portugal was coming to an end but excited for the final leg of our trip in Ireland.