Ireland

Now that I am a real deal Irish citizen it was great to finally set foot on my home turf for a week of touring. We covered over 1000 miles in our Nissan - from Cork in the South to Derry in the North through the lush green fields, rugged coast and dry stone walls. A country filled with quaint character and characters where the little things matter. We steered clear of the cities and so we have good cause to go back and see Dublin and Belfast.





Old friends

It was a real highlight to meet up with the Elliotts (no relation to Gabrielle - well we hope not!) and Coopers and see around their farms on the border - interesting to see how the boys are preparing for the challenges of winter. It's nice to see where the family's roots are and Audrey's guided tour left no stone unturned! We also managed to meet the Minister of Agriculture - quite a bonus!

Killendarragh - the Starrett dairy farm:

Looking across to Northern Ireland from the front lawn

Blarney

We did the compulsory tourist deed of kissing the Blarney Stone that supposedly gives you the gift of the gab for 7 years and had a walk around the surrounding grounds. It was a great start to the trip but do you think we could shut up in the car afterwards?

Cashel Rock

Cashel Rock was a spectacular structure (no longer used) where we added to our thin understanding of Irish history. When you come from NZ, it's mind boggling that buildings still stand from over 800 years ago.

Bunratty

Bunratty (love the name) was another history stop with a well maintained village from the 18th century. We had a quick look around, a cuddle with the horse and then quickly went back to our centrally heated B&B to avoid the Irish rain.

Kilkenny

Kilkenny Castle is right in the middle of the town of Kilkenny and has tremendous grounds surrounding it - we went on a quite a walk around them and subsequently missed the tour - but the views of the outside were great.

Walking

There are plenty of good walking stops and we tried to get a walk in a day but laziness or Guinness often won over. However, the better spots we went walking were in Gorten:

and Killarney National Park:

The were plenty of other noteworthy sights - the city walls that surround the "old city"of Londonderry:

Kylemore Abbey in Galway (which is now a school):

My first swim in the Atlantic (Ireland's weather isn't that bad):

The town of Dingle and the coast around Dingle and the Ring of Kerry:

Our accommodation in Killarney:

So that's that - after the Irish breakfasts, the stews and the Guinness I think we may have to go on a diet for the next 7 years as well. Farewell until the next instalment.