Portmagee Day 1

We started the next morning with a delicious home made Irish breakfast. Irish pudding is my new favourite thing. It's basically oats mixed with pork and spices and you fry it in a pan with some butter. I adore it! There is also black pudding which is good but when I found out it's that color because they put blood in it, it sort of lost its appeal. Traditional Irish breakfasts consists of white and black irish pudding, irish sausage (the best sausage ever), fried eggs, and a fried tomato. No complaints from me! While we enjoyed our breakfast some girl was crying in the other room. I felt incredibly awkward for the owner of the B and B but she handled it tremendously well. After traveling now for almost three weeks I completely understand how the crying backpacker felt. When you are so overtired and haven't had a good nights sleep in weeks any little thing that goes wrong will evoke tears. I've cried at least 3 times in the past week. 


After breakfast we headed back into town. We found a place called the Garden of Senses but we only ended up using maybe two senses so I was a little disappointed. They just barely get away with using the plural tense. It was pretty cool though even without the other 3 senses.

After enjoying the heightening of our sense of sight and smell we saw Irish Riley again and he took us to a beautiful bridge over a rushing river. 

We stopped for a photo op and then proceeded to do a bit of shopping. My mom would be proud! 

We checked out of the B and B (I can't find the and symbol on this keyboard in case you were wondering) and continued on our journey around the ring of Kerry. The Ring of Kerry is stunning. We saw a gorgeous beach and stopped to walk it. Since it was our honeymoon and all I thought it appropriate to write Erin and Danielle in the sand with a heart around it. <3 <3 <3

After the beach we stopped for some terrible lunch. Serves us right for going to the spot all the tour buses were stopped at. The view was pretty amazing but the food was shit. Continuing on to Portmagee we had to stop at Skellig Chocolate. They offered a free tasting session and each piece of home made chocolate was more delicious than the last. We shared the best hot chocolate I've ever experienced in my life then continued on.

 We couldn't find our hostel so we asked the cutest little old Irish lady for directions. I wasn't paying attention because I only focused on how adorable she was so it was lucky that Danielle was listening. The hostel was really nice. It looked new with polished wooden steps and everything had that new building smell. I liked that about it. The kitchen was very nice as well. The pans were newer, which now having been to several hostels, was a blessing and a rarity. Once we settled in I worked out. I decided on 50-40-30-20-10 pushups and double unders with a 150 m run in between each round. It was miserable but Danielle sat close by to say the occasional word of encouragement. Afterwards we had a mediocre dinner at the Fishermans bar in town. Portmagee was my favourite town in Ireland. It was a tiny fishing village that smelled like the sea. The main strip in town was simply one road against the water with a few fishing boats at the pier and the air was thick and salty. The stores and restaurants were all painted different colors. Portmagee also contained the toilet that won best toilet award! What a town!

Sneem

The weather was not fantastic on our journey to Sneem but a little rain never hurt anyone! The rain in Ireland is different. It doesn't pour. It's almost like a mist but constant and the wind combined with the constant mist pretty much soaks you through if you're out in it for any extended period of time. We had our rain gear on and when we arrived in the town of Sneem I parked in the parking lot of a church. It was Sunday so I figured we might as well go in. The church was beautiful and Dan and I were the only ones there.  I wanted to ring the church bell as soon as I saw the rope but Dan wouldn't let me. Outside the church was a sign that read "where the fairies went" which Dan knew from the nuns at work means supernatural things.

Behind the sign were several little TP shaped structures made of stone. It was really cool exploring them and going inside them. In one you could see the church from one of the openings in the stone. 

Shortly after exploring we met Irish Riley, a chocolate lab that must have been around 2 years old. He was such a puppy but reminded me so much of Riley. He even growled at rocks and kicked them around the way Riley does! We quickly became best friends and played together in the rain in Sneem. We didn't have a plan for Sneem but it ended up being such a cool day. I was glad to explore and pretend Irish Riley was actual Riley because I miss him like crazy. After exploring town we headed to our Bed and Breakfast. The woman who ran it was very nice. She was Irish but lived in Boston for something like eleven years. I don't blame her for wanting to come back. Sneem is amazing. One of my favourite places so far. Once we were checked in I went for a long hike, that was really only a walk. Danielle was more interested in a hot shower mostly due to the fact that it was raining and foggy so you could barely appreciate the beautiful views anyway. Despite the weather I still enjoyed getting out and exploring a bit. There was a really cool bridge over a river and the walk took twists and turns over the farmland of Sneem. I passed a lot of sheep and cows. When I got back from my 3 hour walk we got ready for dinner and headed to a small pub/restaurant. They only had a kids table available so we sat there next to a tiny TV and colouring books. If I hadn't been so exhausted I definitely would have coloured. We went to bed that night before the sun went down after learning about the potato famine on TV.  

Killarney

The drive to Killarney was amazing. The roads were small enough to be a one way (a tight one way) yet they were meant for two way traffic. When a car approached we had to pull over into the bushes to let them pass unless they pulled over to let us pass. It was certainly an experience. Conor was telling us that there is something like a thousand dollar fine for being on your phone while driving and you could get jail time. It makes perfect sense because there wasn't a chance in hell I'd ever attempt to look at anything but the road. This was disappointing when I wanted to check out the stellar views but couldn't tear my eyes away from the road in fear of crashing. We pulled over quite a bit to take it all in though.
Once we got to Killarney we found our hostel, the Sugan.

Don't let the cool outside appearance fool you. Read on.

My mom picked this one because they were a drug/alcohol free hostel. This was the only redeeming quality. The Sugan was a nightmare. I felt really bad for subjecting Danielle to it. Once we checked in the man at the front desk was Sweden, which was great for Dan because that's apparently the only accent she can do, Yaaaaa? He explained that we could use the kitchen as long as we cleaned up after ourselves. We decided to go out to eat. Once we got back Danielle tried to take a shower. I say tried because the shower wouldn't stay on. Earlier when she tested it it wouldn't turn off and got water all over the floor. She gave up on that endeavor and attempted to wash her face. Unfortunately the mirror was designed for someone my height only and she could barely see the bun on top of her head in the mirror.

Sorry Dan. This mirror is just for me

We gave up and decided to go to bed. The good thing is you could feel every single spring in the bed and we each got one flimsy pillow. Another benefit was that we were directly across from the public shower where people were noisily showering for a good portion of the night. When we weren't listening to water running we heard drunken people shouting outside from the pubs across the street. Needless to say, the Sugan was not our favorite place to stay.

In the morning I woke up around 7:30 unable to handle the springs in my back any longer I trekked outdoors in search of coffee. Unfortunately no one wakes up before ten in Ireland I discovered and my search was unsucessful. Hangry and exhausted I decided we should check out the breakfast situation at the hotel next door. The waiter approached us and asked for our room number as I helped myself to some cereal. 102 I mumbled (I felt bad for whoever was in room 102 but I was hungry!) He asked me to repeat myself and I said 102 again a little louder feeling the fear of being caught twisting my stomach. He nodded and asked me what I'd like for breakfast. I asked for a poached egg with toast. When he came back out he asked if we were room 102 or 112. I'm a terrible liar so I said oh yeah it's 112. I thought for sure we were busted but he came out with my egg a moment later. Sorry room 112 but breakfast was delicious.

Before heading to our next destination we checked out Killarney national park. We saw the very impressive Ross Castle and walked around the lake a bit.

Ross Castle

Ross Castle was huge and beautiful. It was in better condition than some of the other castles we've seen. The castle overlooked a lake with some islands and mountains in the background. The weather was perfect. The sun was shining and the sky was a magnificent shade of blue with contrasting white clouds scattered about only occasionally blocking the sun. We decided to take a small boat operated by an adorable old Irish man to one of the islands called Inissfallen Island. The boat ride took about 20 minutes and we learned a little about the surrounding islands. Most of which I forget already. 

We had an hour to play around unsupervised on the island. Naturally I scaled the wall of an old building made of stones. It was secluded and untouched. The building was mostly in tact still but you could tell it was extremely old. 

There were some deer nearby and we followed them to a trail around the island. The island was much bigger than I realized and it reminded me of Jurassic Park. There were dense wooded areas covered in overgrown ferns and everything had a shade of green from the sun shining through the leaves of the trees. We thought it would be funny to film me near the deer pretending to be part of the wildlife and scattering with the deer as they got startled. It was but I lost my phone in the process and we spend the next half hour backtracking and searching for it. Luck was on our side because Danielle spotted it on the ground right before panic set in. Because of the lost phone we were a few minutes late getting back to our boat but the man was extremely nice about it. I can't imagine anyone being so nice in America in the same circumstance. 

After we got back from the island we walked around the lake a little and I made my own trail because the main trail was a bit boring. Danielle was not a fan of this because there were times when we had to use our hands and feet. She draws the line at activities that involve both her hands and her feet. She prefers activities that main require using her eyes. She was also rather concerned about poison ivy but I assured her that there is no poison ivy in Ireland. I've yet to confirm that. Overall it was a perfect morning. Our next stop would be Sneem, part of the Ring of Kerry.

Last Day In Kilkenny

On our last day in Kilkenny Conor took us all over. First we went to town to climb the largest tower in Kilkenny. It towered over the town next to a beautiful church and graveyard. The stone architecture of the church was charming, like everything else here.

 To climb the tower we entered at the bottom and had to climb several tiny ladders. It was actually a bit of a workout to get to the top but once we got up there it was well worth the climb. On the top you could see the entire town of Kilkenny and the farmlands that surround it. This was not someplace you'd want to be if you were afraid of heights. I used to fear heights but I think it's safe to say I've gotten over that judging by the crazy things I've done on this trip already. The tower wasn't crazy because it was safely enclosed at the top but it was still pretty incredible to be so high above the rest of the town and be able to see every inch of Kilkenny.

After checking out the tower Conor took us to his friends farm. His friend Dougie was a 66 year old retired farmer who has his own farm and castle. Yes, I said castle. We didn't get to meet Dougie because he was out but we met his father who also lives on the farm and is 101 years old. He's still VERY with it which was incredible. Dougie has two dogs who accompanied us on the trek to the castle. We had to walk through the cows pasture, which was actually a little scary. One of the cows lunged at me and the dogs, who took their herding jobs very seriously, barked and scared the cows away. After we were walking for a bit they got used to us being there and stopped following us. The castle was incredible. It had tree bark and ivy climbing up the side and loomed over the pasture.

We went inside and climbed the spiral stone staircase to the top. At the top you could see the whole farm and it was peaceful and quiet. The view was beautiful and I could stay there forever. I imagined what it was like when someone lived there. If they looked out the window, or what was once a window that I was so mesmerized looking from. The dogs sat on the edge of the window and looked out over their farm with us.

I wanted to live there forever. To spend every day just sitting in that castle, of course I'd need Riley to be there with me. It was just so peaceful and beautiful. There isn't anything like that at home. Unfortunately all good things must come to an end so after sitting a while at the castle we had to head back. On the walk back to the house Conor showed us that the dogs knew how to climb trees. I found that incredibly amusing. He signaled to the dog and sure enough he scampered up into a tree and perched there like an owl. 

Once we left the castle Danielle and I had to drive to the ring of kerry for our next destination. Before we left, Dougie's 101 year old father insisted that we stay for tea/coffee and bickies. Bickies are cookies that go with tea. These bickies were home made and one of the most delicious things I've ever had! We talked with Dougie's dad for a bit and although he was difficult to understand at times with his thick Irish accent he was interesting and sweet. 

It was sad to leave Kilkenny after having such an amazing time there and I am so thankful to Conor for being an incredible host and tour guide. He gave us an authentic experience that I never would have gotten without him. Thanks Conor!

The drive to Killarney was insane. The roads were tiny, yet still had two way traffic (you had to pull over into the bushes to let a car pass if one came) and they were windy and sometimes they went straight up a mountain. The views were breathtaking. The ocean was a stunning blue and it spanned out over the horizon as we drove over a mountain to get to Killarney. Nothing looks real here. Everything looks like it came straight out of Google images. It was the type of view you have a hard time believing you are actually seeing when you're seeing it.