This Old World: Interested in Ireland

I’ve lost my heart. The last time I saw it was in Killarney, Ireland. If you find it, please return it to me.

Ireland is everything I’ve ever pictured, a true “old world” where ruins remain on the side of the road as a testament to the days long past.

We left for Ireland at eight PM on Wednesday, four hours after the end of our first British Studies Exam. It is about a four and a half hour drive from Harlaxton to Holyhead where we caught the ferry to Ireland. So at 2:40 we finished boarding the Ferry and departed for Dublin.

Full moon the night we left for Ireland.

This ferry was nothing like the ones back home in Washington, which is both nice and sad. There were better places to sleep on this ferry, but I could not stand on the front deck and throw my arms out behind me as if I was the woman from Titanic. I couldn’t even wave to the ship captain as I gazed at the stars (not that I could really see them from Port).

Name of the ship we were on.

It has a movie theater on it.

Floor plan of the decks, and elitism at its finest (the front view was reserved for club members).

Overpriced shopping center on the deck below.

The lights from the Holyhead port.

We arrived in Dublin at about 6 AM, got breakfast, and headed off to Blarney. During the three hour drive I alternated between taking pictures and napping.

Blarney is very picturesque, almost the perfect Ireland. The lush green grounds and quaint river flowing next to a ruined Castle, I am already longing to go back. I could have spent days there, but sadly only had two hours. In that time I did climb to the top of the castle and kiss the famous Blarney Stone.

The park around the Castle

View of the Castle from the distance

I'm kissing the Blarney Stone

That is what I kissed.

The river beside the castle

The climb consisted of tightly spiraling wet stone stairs.

As the guide said, there were a lot of plants mentioned in Harry Potter found in this garden.

After Blarney we went to our first town of the trip, Killarney. With hours of daylight to spare, we wandered around town spending more money on sweets than anything else. We also visited one of the Saint Mary’s cathedrals in the area. Apparently there are several of them.

All the street signs in Ireland are in both Gaelic and English.

The next day we went around the Ring of Kerry to explore some more interesting parts of Ireland. Our first stop was the traditional Kerry Bog Village and Red Fox Inn, where we saw what traditional Irish life was like and tried some Irish Coffee (at about 10 am).

Irish Coffee, the only coffee I can stand.

Next we headed to Dingle Bay stopping for some amazing photo shoots and to stretch our legs before heading off to Waterville.

Ruins on the side of the road.

Don't let the grass fool you, it is a long way down a steep hill to reach the water.

In Waterville we visited the Charlie Chapman statue and wandered the beach. It was kind of amazing to think that the only thing really separating me from my sister was the Atlantic ocean. I left a message for some people in the sand and we all headed up to see the Madonna statue and Coomakista Pass, where on a clear day you could see water on both sides (sadly low-lying clouds prevented me from seeing the water from there).

We stopped for lunch in a little village called Sneem where every house is a different color. This is either to help the drunks stumble home after a night in the pub, or to help sailors home in the dark.

After that it was the famous Ladies View where the ladies-in-waiting of Queen Vicky really enjoyed the view, and Torc Waterfall which is only 30 minutes from Killarney.

In the spring it looks nicer because flowers are blooming, but it was pretty nice for us.

We returned to the quaint little town for a Jaunting Tour that never showed and dinner before heading to the pub under our hotel. About four of us shared a half pint of Guinness and I tried someone’s family cure for crud, a Hot Totty (lack of sleep plus sleeping in a smoker’s room did some damage on my body).

The next morning we left for Dublin and I was sad to see Killarney go, even more so when I got to Dublin. My walking haunted tour guide in Edinburgh remarked that he thought Edinburgh was still the filthiest city in Europe, but compared to Dublin Edinburgh was spotless.

Waiting for the jaunting tour and watching my camera die on me.

Christchurch Cathedral (it is all fake).

Part of Dublin Castle.

Trinity College was not horrible, but it was probably the only free place to visit that was clean; although to visit the Book of Kells and the library cost money, something I skipped out on doing. Perhaps my favorite part of Dublin was seeing three cos-players. After that we wandered, got food, and returned to our hotel room after all our shopping was finished.

Trinity College Courtyard facing entrance

The cos-players

While I was sad to leave Ireland the next day, I was actually glad to leave Dublin with its dubious stores and dingy streets.

I certainly want to return to Ireland one day, perhaps during the spring when the Heather and Rhododendrons are blooming, but I don’t think I’ll be staying in Dublin very long. Maybe just long enough to visit St. Patrick's Cathedral.

While on our way back to the manor, we made a quick stop in the town with the longest name in Europe. Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrbwllllantsyiliogogogoch, or “The Church of Mary in the Hollow of the White Hazel Near the Fierce Whirlpool and the Church of the Tysilio by the Red Cave.” Yay for the Welsh and their desire to make things difficult for the people who speak English.