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.