Dublin/Kilkenny/Killarney

Yesterday was a day of driving. We began the day by waking up and enjoying breakfast at "La Pizzeria". Thom enjoyed the breakfast special which included eggs, sausage, bacon (which was more like thicker ham), tomato, toast, beans (baked) and coffee. I enjoyed a breakfast panini which had sausage, bacon, and cheese.  After checking out we began our journey to the General Post Office followed by Kilmainham Gaol.

At the General Post Office (GPO) we saw the gun bullets where people were shot during the 1916 rebellion.

Kilmainham Gaol was amazing. The history behind it is powerful. We learned about the 1916 Rebellion/ Uprising. It was also home to the President of Ireland for awhile.  There is also a popular song called "Grace" written about a woman who was wife of a prisoner there. They married just hours before his execustion for being one of the leaders in the rebellion.  Thom really likes that song. We stood where people were the 14 rebellion leaders were shot, where people lived in cells, and where they had "exercise" (which consisted of walking in a circle and chipped stones). Our tour guide did a great job.

We then walked through Memorial Park (we thought we were in Phoenix Park). It was a beautiful park with fountains and gardens.  So many people were out with their families.

This began our trek to Kilkenny.  We arrived in Kilkenny mid-afternoon.  Our main stop was the Kilkenny Castle. It was beautiful! Unfortunately, we didn't get many photos because I found out (by getting caught) that taking photos was against the rules--oops.  In Kilkenny Castle we saw real paintings of Charles the I and II. It was owned by the Bulter family.  (can you tell what details Thom wants me to include in the blog....?)

After our tour we were hungry, so we ate an early dinner at Key Largo, a restaurant recommended to us by the local bookstore worker.  Thom enjoyed a spicy chicken, ham pizza with chips and salsa and I had spaghetti carbonara with a swiss salad. It was very good. Due to time, we had to leave Kilkenny rather quickly to get to Killarney.

The drive from Kilkenny to Killarney took over 2.5 hours. The roads were very narrow and windy. Thom did a FABULOUS job driving. It was amazing how some of the streets said the limit was 100kph, but we were going like 70 and it felt like flying. No way could we have ever done 100kph without flipping. It was very enjoyable because it was country roads.  It was BEAUTIFUL. Along the way we saw many rolling hills, sheep, cows, and cottages.  The Irish must take pride in their homes-every house was in perfect condition and very well kept.

We arrived at the Killarney Country Club a little bit before 9:00.  However, the reception had already closed so they left us a nice note informing us how to get into our cottage.  Our cottage is super cute.  It was stone outside, two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, living room, and dining area.  It is two stories.  After we got settled a bit, we went to the onsite pub (which is primarily attended by locals).  It was quite a fun experience. Thom and I met many locals. There was a golfing tournament, so they came here to present the awards.  I made friends with the golfing ladies and wifes and Thom made friends with the local farmers.  They called him "Thom-boyo".  It was a little bit difficult to understand them (the accent is stronger in the south).  Thom compared types of farming with them--they did not know what soy beans were. A lingo here is "You alright?" but they aren't asking if you're alright, they're saying "what's up".  They also call Guinness "porters" and pretty ladies "lassies" or "lambs".  I am finding the grammar interesting. They do not make the "th" sound. So "think" sounds like "tink", "they" sounds like "tey" etc.  Irish people really are friendly--they bought us a drink for our honeymoon. We haven't met any unpleasant Irish person.