DAY NINE
SUNDAY, MAY 26, 2019
A road trip from County Cork to County Kerry... and a very memorable birthday
Today we checked out of the Celtic Ross Hotel and hit the road, heading northwest to County Kerry.
Our first stop was at Molly Gallivan’s, a local visitor’s center that recreates a traditional farm to experience what life was like in rural Ireland 200 years ago. We had a great little tour of the farm and animals before learning about (and sampling) homemade poitín, a clear whiskey.
Today also happened to be my birthday! And while I am not usually a birthday celebrator, my fellow travelers made sure to make this one special. ❤️
Getting the party started early…
The farm also had a really impressive shop of homemade Irish things, particularly wool, so we all took some time to stock up on gifts and souvenirs before heading into the town of Kenmare to walk around and have lunch.
Kenmare is an adorable little town… and also home to another stone circle, so after lunch a few of us walked over to check it out (past some really charming houses!) before getting back on the bus.
Back in New York, I find myself on Kenmare Street pretty often, and since getting home from the trip it’s really made me smile. I looked it up recently, and sure enough it was named for the same town, which makes sense since NYC has such an extensive Irish emigrant population.
After leaving Kenmare, we continued our drive through County Kerry and ended up on the edge of beautiful Killarney National Park, stopping to take some photos at the “Ladies View.”
That’s Paddy on the right, who was an amazing bus driver… but also clearly a planning ninja because I had no idea until the last night that he was also handling all of the organizing and reservations throughout the tour.
While we were admiring the view, we saw that Billy had gloves on and was picking a bunch of rushes that were growing naturally in the park. When we got back the bus, he explained why… he was making a Brigid’s Cross, which has had various meanings and uses over time (see the link), but is traditionally placed above a door to protect the home from harm.
Sims providing some music on the road
Back on the bus, we drove for a little while and ended up at Inch Beach, a beautiful little inlet on the Dingle Peninsula. The weather was really perfect that day, and the sky was particularly gorgeous, making for some dramatic photos.
After walking the beach for a little while, we stopped into a little coffee shop there and I had my first Irish coffee, which was a perfect warm treat on a blustery day!
After leaving the beach, we arrived in the town of Dingle, our seaside home for the next couple of days. We checked into the hotel, then met up for our second group dinner where the staff surprised me with a little birthday treat.
This hotel was surrounded by the most peaceful scenery! Seriously considering making a wall-sized print of this for my apartment. It’ll have to do as my computer wallpaper in the meantime.
Tonight we were on our own to enjoy a night on the town in Dingle, so a bunch of us walked to O’Sullivan’s Courthouse Pub for some live traditional music courtesy of local guitarist & fiddler Tommy O'Sullivan and Jeremy Spencer. They were a great traditional Irish music duo, but threw some non-traditional music in their set as well, including Tom Waits’ “Shiver Me Timbers”… which is one of my all-time favorite songs (random!) and the best possible birthday coincidence.
Thank you to my fellow travelers (and the locals whose paths I crossed that day) for the very entertaining birthday! Definitely one I’ll never forget. 😊