Ireland Part 1

Our 2 weeks in Ireland and Northern Ireland are coming to a close. We spent the first week down in Ireland and are currently in Northern Ireland until Saturday when we fly to Scotland.
Here is the itinerary we planned for Ireland:
-Newcastle: hike Slieve Donnard
-Dublin: Temple Bar, Guinness Storehouse, Dublin Castle, St. Patrick’s & Christ Church Cathedral, Ha’penny Bridge
-Kilkenny: Smithwick’s Brewery, Kilkenny Castle
-Waterford: Waterford Crystal tour (quick stop)
-Middleton: Jameson Distillery (quick stop)
-Blarney: Blarney Castle & House
-Killarney: Killarney National Park (Muckross House, Torc Waterfall), Ring of Kerry
-Kinvara: Day trip to Cliffs of Moher, day trip to Galway

We have had the most wonderful start to our travels and have been so lucky with the weather! It rained the day we were supposed to hike Slieve Donnard so we had to skip it. I was a little bummed but was also pretty drained from our flight back from Dubai and enjoyed just lounging around Ross’s parents house that day.

Side Note: Ross’s mom is an AMAZING cook! Every time we come back to visit she bakes these delicious cakes and cooks wonderful dinners! Think meat, roast veggies, roasties (potato’s roasted in duck fat) Yorkshire pudding (similar to a popover), and gravy! She also made lemon drizzle cake and Guinness chocolate cake with cream cheese icing…it’s the dream!

Since it rained the day were were supposed to do our hike, we decided to just drive down to Newcastle late in the day and stay at our hotel, then get up early the next morning to finish the drive to Dublin. Our hotel in Newry (near Newcastle) was so cute and had the best (free) breakfast! We woke up the next morning, went down to the bar to eat and were greeted by the most friendly man with the best Northern Irish accent around! He offered us a “wee” table in the “wee” bar. Asked if he could make us a “wee” coffee and told us to help ourselves to the “wee” bread and fruit while we looked at the “wee” menu to pick out what we wanted to eat! The Northern Irish love to use the term “wee” for everything and it’s fantastic! The breakfast was amazing and we stuffed ourselves silly!

After we ate we headed down to Dublin to spend the day and that night. It was still a little rainy in the morning, but by the time we arrived in Dublin the sun was shinning and it was actually hot! We immediately changed into shorts and hit the streets. Our hotel was not great but it was in the heart of Temple Bar area so we could walk everywhere. Because it was beautiful out and we were in Dublin, we headed straight to Temple Bar for a pint of Guinness. The bar was packed but we were able tot snag table in the open air part of the bar. There was a man playing traditional Irish music and we sat there for a while and just listened to him and enjoyed the ambiance. After we finished our pints we walked around the area for a while. I feel in love with the Temple Bar district. All the bars are brightly colored with Guinness signs out front and beautiful hanging baskets of flowers. The flowers are insane in the summer! So bright and massive and just overflowing the baskets! On our way to do the Guinness Superstore tour we walked by Dublin Castle and Christ Church Cathedral. The Dublin Castle wasn’t that impressive but the Cathedral was very pretty.The Guinness tour was a lot of fun. It’s a self guided tour through the brewing process and you can also learn how to properly pour and drink a pint. They have a cool section as well dedicated to advertising. Being from the US I had never seen any of their adverts and there were really good! Reminded of me of the classic Budweiser commercials that we all love! The only thing I wish they did different would be to offer a guided tour instead of having to do it yourself. We spent quite a bit of time there and were getting tired and hungry! Ross introduced me to Boojum for dinner. It’s kind of like a Chipotle and I have to say, for Irish “Mexican food” it was pretty good. We stuffed our faces and decided to call it an early night. We were up bright and early the next day (probably due to the construction in the alley by our room). We went to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, grabbed a quick breakfast and headed to Kilkenny.

 Learning how to pour the perfect pint at Guinness Storehouse

Temple Bar

Side Note: The island of Ireland is really far North! We don’t realize it because it doesn’t get as cold as other places that far North but it’s up there! Therefor, the sun is up forever! It sets around 10pm in the summer and is out around 4am…so crazy!

Kilkenny was lovely! We only had 1 night there and I definitely could have spent another. It was pretty small and all the streets were lined with old, brightly colored shops with hanging flower baskets. It was a little cloudy when we arrived so we decided to do the Smithwick’s Brewery tour 1st. This was by far my favorite tour. The groups were small and we had a guide who took us through the grounds and taught us all about Smithwick’s. The beer or “ale” was originally brewed by monks in the area straight from the river that flows through town. It was later brewed by a Catholic man who had to have a Protestant man front as the owner since Catholics were not allowed to own business during that time. It was a very interesting story and really touched on the Catholic/Protestant divide that is still an issue to this day. By the time we finished the tour the sun was out and shinning! We went to see the Kilkenny castle and on our walk through town we saw 2 young boys jumping off a bridge into the river. My first thought was, good god that water has to be freezing! It was pretty funny though because the cops showed up and were basically chasing the boys. They would climb out of the water, run up to the bridge, the cops would chase them, and as soon as they got close, the boys would jump back in the river. Once we arrived at the castle we never wanted to leave! Not only was the castle beautiful but the grounds and gardens were unreal! Fountains and flowers and huge trees everywhere. We found a spot in the grass and just laid there and people watched in the sun. As I said before, I loved Kilkenny!

Downtown Kilkenny 

Kilkenny Castle

Next on the agenda was Blarney. We made two stops along the way: Waterford Crystal tour and Jameson Distillery tour in Midleton. The Waterford Crystal tour was very interesting. We got to see the workers blowing, cutting and etching the crystal. The process was so time consuming and detail oriented and the time it takes to become a master at any of these skills is years! Now I understand why crystal is so expensive! Jameson Distillery was great as well. The one we did in Midleton is where they still distill Jameson to this day. We got to tour the old grounds and distillery and see how they did it years ago. Then we got to sample Scotch, Irish Whiskey, and Bourbon and learn the differences. I learned I DO NOT like Scotch….barf! The grounds were very pretty and they have done a wonderful job refurbishing and maintaining the old distillery. We even met a couple there where the husband was from Northern Ireland and the wife was from the USA…wahoo!

Jameson Distillery 

Waterford Crystal Tour 

We stayed in Blarney that night so we could get up bright and early to go to the Blarney Castle. Honestly, I don’t know how that little town accommodates as many tourists as it does! It is really small, has maybe 5 restaurants and a tiny grocery store, and a few small hotels. We stayed in a B&B in town and I think the big tour bus groups must stay in Cork. Blarney Castle and House open at 9am and we were there around 9:30…it was already pretty crowded. We went by the castle first, which is pretty from the outside but rundown. The line to go up and kiss the Blarney Stone was already almost an hour long and looked awful! You basically just stood in a line to go up all the stairs inside the castle, hang upside down 4 or 5 stories in the air, and kiss a stone that millions of others have put their lips on. Since we both already possess the “gift of gab” we decided to take a pass and went and explored the grounds instead. Best decision we could have made. The hidden treasure is the Blarney House and the gardens. The gardens are massive! There are huge trees, a lake, cows, horses, donkeys, waterfalls and the Blarney House, which is so much prettier than the castle. We spent at least 2 hours walking the grounds and were not disappointed.

Side Note: I have never seen more American tourists than I have in Ireland! Usually the English speakers I meet are either, British, Canadian, Aussie or Kiwi. Americans are everywhere in Ireland, especially Blarney Castle! Ross had said to me once that when he was younger he had wanted a sweatshirt with a college name on it because all the Americans wore them. I never really noticed it, but he is right! Every other American we saw had a college sweatshirt, hat, or t-shirt on…it was hilarious! We (Americans) are also really loud…hahaha!

Blarney Castle 

Blarney House and grounds

After Blarney we headed to Killarney for 2 nights. We stayed right in the city center at this cute little hotel that had a pub attached to it. We were sold on the hotel when we first saw it on Hotels.com because there was a picture of the pub and an old Irishman sitting there drinking a Guinness! The second we checked in I went into the pub to see if there was an old man sitting drinking a pint and sure thing, he was there haha! After checking in we headed to Ross Castle and Killarney National Park. Yes, Ross has a castle named after him in Killarney (he was pretty excited). Again, it was a beautiful day so we spent quite a bit of time walking around Killarney National Park. There is a beautiful old house there called Muckross House and tons of hiking trails. We wound up doing one that took us past the house and out to Torc Waterfall, which was beautiful. We even saw a rainbow! Ross does not understand my excitement over rainbows because they happen all the time in Ireland, but I love them! I could have easily spent a whole day in the National Park and would happily go back there in the future. We were lucky and had the chance to meet up with Ross’s cousin, Stephanie, and her boyfriend, Matt, that night. They just happened to be doing some traveling down South and we were in the same place at the same time. It was so nice seeing them and getting a break from just talking to each other all day! We may have had a few too many drinks and far too much to eat, but it was worth it for the fun night!

Muckross House-Killarney National Park 

Ross Castle 

Torc Waterfall-Killarney National Park 

We were up bright and early the next day to drive the Ring of Kerry. It is a 111 mile long scenic drive around the Iveragh Peninsula and it was epic! The morning started out a bit grim. It was really cloudy and raining off and on. We decided to start the drive and hope for the best. Even though it was rainy to start it was still really beautiful! Ireland is so green! We were driving by green fields, old bridges and ruins and tons of cows! About 2 hours into our drive, as we were coming up on the coast, it finally started to clear up. We made several stops through the trip at different viewing points and tried to take photos, but there is no way the photos did the views justice. We found this huge, really old and run down castle near the Cahergall Stone Fort that I was obsessed with. I don’t know what it is, but I love all the old, really run down churches and castles here…we don’t have anything like that in the US. Portmagee was fantastic and we stopped there to walk along “Kerry’s Most Spectacular Cliffs”. The cliffs run along the coast and are over 1,000ft high. From there you can see Skellig Michael Island and Puffin Island. We spent a good hour just walking around and enjoying the sunshine and beautiful views. After that, we continued our drive around the peninsula stopping at other beautiful spots like Molls Gap and Ladies View. We didn’t get back to Killarney until dinner time. The Ring of Kerry is definitely an all day excursion and not something to rush. Overall, I think Killarney was my favorite stop. I loved the quaint little city and all the natural beauty surrounding it.

Side Note: Ross was an absolute trooper dealing with me and my photos! I asked him so many times to stop in some random spot so I could take a picture. One time we wound up down this terrible dirt road, full of pot holes while it was pouring rain. He had to stay there while I ran out on the road, with not much of a shoulder, to get a picture of a bridge I liked. Then, I ran back to the car, made him back it up, and ran back out onto the road to retake it because the car was in the picture a bit. He must have been so nervous about what I was doing, but he kept quiet. Anything for a best shot, right?

Old Castle 

View Point-Ring of Kerry

Kerry Cliffs 

Beautiful View-Ring of Kerry

After 2 nights in Killarney we moved on to Kinvarra, which is a small coastal town between The Cliffs of Moher and Galway. We met up with a couple of Ross’s friends (Darryl, Jenny, Chrissy, and Katherine) who drove down for the weekend. It was a pretty long drive from Killarney to the Cliffs of Moher and we arrived around 11am. Thankfully we got there when we did because the park staff told us around 1pm there would be a line down the road for over an hour to get into the parking lot. Again, we had absolutely perfect weather and the cliffs were stunning! When you walk up to them you can walk to both the left and the right for at least a mile each side just exploring the views. The right side was pretty “safe” with stone walls along the edges, but that was not the case to the left. When you go left, you walk about 2 minutes and come across a sign that says something along the lines of, “after this wall you are leaving the park and we are not accountable for anything that happens to you” (aka, you can’t sue us if you fall). That was by far the prettiest part of the cliffs but it was probably not the safest. Everyone was just walking along the edges, getting super close, taking pictures, videos, selfies, etc. I was just waiting for someone to walk off the edge taking a selfie. I was pretty brave and was able to get a few photos near the edge and Ross scared me a few times with how close he would get. Chrissy even slipped taking a photo of Darryl and Jenny! We all lived to tell the tale though and only came away with a few sunburns. We got back to Kinvara in early evening, walked over the the castle and then freshened up for dinner. Darryl made reservations at this restaurant near the water and we had the most amazing food! Ross and I both got this spicy Thai seafood bowl with mussels, clams, crab claws, and shrimp in a sweet and spicy broth. Ross always eats fast, but I think that was the fastest I have ever seen him eat. After that we walked back into town and went to a bar to see a band that Jenny had seen a poster for the day before. They were called Dr. Jiggle and the Wiggles and with a name like that we just had to see them! The bar looked tiny when we walked in…almost like an underground cave. Once you were inside though, there was a room off to the left where the band was setting up and then another section behind this room that opened up to an outside patio. We waited in anticipation for the band to come out…they were actually very good! They had a large set up with drums, bongos, bass, guitar, and harmonica. They didn’t sing, but they were playing all their own music and that was kind of a jazzy, blues mix. I love live music and really enjoyed them.

Cliffs of Moher

Cliffs of Moher 

The Gang at Cliffs of Moher

We actually got to sleep in the next day and met everyone in Galway for half a day. We spent the afternoon walking through the Latin Quarter and Quay Street and seeing the Galway Cathedral. There were tons street artists and performers out and the people watching was fantastic. There was a guy dressed up like “Irish Santa”. He had a huge beard and a cap with a massive feather sticking out the top. He stood on a box playing some strange instrument that had puppets attached to it that would dance. It was pretty random and funny. We wound up sitting at a coffee shop for a long time just taking in the city. Everyone left around 1pm to drive back up North and Ross and I took the opportunity to have a lazy day back in Kinvara. I went for along run around the city and Ross chilled and watched a movie back in the room. That night we went to the grocery store for salads and sandwiches and ate in our room and watched TV. We are trying to find time to do “normal” day to day stuff and also have some alone time as well, which can be challenging when you are on a year of travel. We were up early the next day to drive back up North.

Street band playing in Galway 

Walking along the river-Galway

Overall Thoughts: I absolutely loved Ireland! I think it definitely helped that we had such nice weather. That could have drastically impacted our trip if it had rained a lot. I loved all the small towns with brightly colored pubs and hanging flower baskets everywhere! Killarney was my favorite city and I loved driving the Ring of Kerry. I am also happy that we booked our hotels in advance. We are trying to be more “relaxed” and less planned on this trip, but with it being high season it was nice having it all sorted in advance.

Negative: Ross always makes fun of me for being excited about everything so I am going to try and find at least one thing I didn’t like or would have done different. Looking back I could have skipped Blarney and maybe chosen a different spot to see. It was super touristy and crowded around the castle, which I am not the biggest fan of. I still enjoyed it, but looking back, I might have preferred to go to Dingle instead.

This has been quite a long post so will do a second post in a few days on Northern Ireland. Until then…