The town was just coming to life as we wandered along the quiet streets and along the pier. Huge fishing nets and large boats were poised for a day's work, tour guides for boat rides, kayaking and snorkeling prepared for the day and a cat crept along the sea wall hoping to find a fish. The bay area was large enough that boats could spend a great deal of time exploring just the bay, but small enough that we could easily see the outlines of the homes on the other side. We had hoped to see Fungie, the friendly dolphin that has made the harbor his home for the past thirty years, but we only saw his bronze statue in town.
Few places were open for breakfast, so we opted for grocery store breakfast of freshly made pastries and fruit-perfect!
Dingle peninsula was advertised as one of the most beautiful drives in the country, so we could not move on until having a peek. While only about 40km long, the drive took us a great deal of time due to our frequent stops to take photos of the views... and the adorable sheep. We stopped at some "beehive homes" that have been around for over 2,000 years. Hardy farmers had built these homes on the hillside above the water rock by rock, carefully placing each one so that the home made a large circular pattern which eventually got closer and closer at the top before placing a large stone on the top. Rock fences were created for keeping animals in or out of certain areas. They believe that a single family probably occupied this space for generations of over 1,000 years.
The views from the beehives were beautiful, almost like mini Cliffs of Moher. From here, we could see the island off another peninsula that monks had once secluded themselves to. Skellig Michael, an island that is practically sheer steep rock and subject to all sorts of harsh weather. Another hardy lot of people!
We stopped at the next pull out on the road to once again admire the view, the fluffy sheep that didn't seem to mind our presence, and see a famous spot. Part of the movie Far and Away starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman was filmed here.
Knowing that we had many miles left to drive in the day, we continued on, planning not to stop as often. But then... There were two young lambs with black faces right on the road, so of course they warranted a stop. We watched as one decided to rejoin his mother, so he climbed up the steep hillside to try chewing on the flowers his mother seemed to enjoy.
We passed by what is said to be the western most tip of all of Europe and once again had to pull over for some beautiful scenic shots at a small beach hidden by large cliff walls.
Gorgeous scenery after gorgeous scenery, finally, it was time to move on. The GPS programmed for Blarney, we drove east for about two and a half hours to the crowded little town of Blarney. Once again, we were not the only tourists around, but we knew we were coming to a tourist trap and yet we still wanted to be there. The Blarney estate is a huge garden, home and castle. Like most people that visit the area though, we were there almost entirely to see the Blarney Stone. Are you picturing a large rock you walk to and kiss? Not exactly... First one must wait in a lengthy line. Although our wait was about 30 minutes, the time passed quickly as we wandered through the castle, read some information about the castle and the stone, and concentrated on our feet as we climbed steep spiral staircases. At the top of the castle, probably about five floors up, the hard work has not yet been done. To kiss the stone, you must sit down, lean back, pulling yourself close to the wall with metal bars and then kiss the stone while upside down. Why not just bend over and kiss it? Oh, did I forget to mention that the floor underneath the stone has warn away, so it's a sheer drop to the ground below? Sure, there are two metal bars to stop large humanly objects from falling to their deaths and a friendly man there to help you, but still, the act is not for the faint of heart.
Why go through all this trouble just to kiss a stone? Well, in the land of story tellers, there is no one clear story, but rather many. The two main ones however are similar in nature, the Lord in the area was off to argue to keep his lands and was worried. He was told to kiss a particular stone and he would be given the gift of eloquence and flattery. After kissing the stone, he was able to speak eloquently and keep his lands. So, he had the stone with seemingly magical powers placed in his castle. Now, travelers from across the globe come seeking this same gift.
We wandered through the gardens, into the caves and dungeon before grabbing some ice cream and heading on our way.
It was after five and we still had a long way to go before reaching our home away from home, but we decided we could at least take a peek at one more popular site since it was practically on our way home.
The Rock of Cashel is an old castle and cathedral that elegantly sits atop a hill in the small town of Cashel. It's an impressive site right in the middle of a modern day town. Sadly, it was closed when we arrived, but that did not stop us from marveling at its magnificence from the outside. One side was covered in scaffolding, a sign of restoration I know, but always a disappointing site to travelers wishing to see it in all its glory.
Another two hours home with a stop in a small town for a simple dinner, views of rolling hills dotted with sheep and cows and a gorgeous sunset just a few minutes before arriving "home" at about ten were a wonderful way to end our expedition.
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