Part I/Ballycotton, Auld Sod
We landed in the coastal town of Ballycotton on May 1. We will be staying for the month of May, and on June 1 we will move over to Ballycroneen, just 13 kilometers away—because apparently, we like to commute for atmosphere. Our rental is a small mariner cottage of certain ancient vintage, but it is clean, comfortable and located directly on the Celtic Sea/Atlantic Ocean, with a mesmerizing, million-dollar view. It stays light here until about 10:30pm at this time of year so often we just sit in our chair after dinner with a glass of wine and stare out at the water and the harbor.
a bird’s eye view!
We also discovered the Tidal Clock in the cottage; something I have never seen before, and which Jim has studied and made one of his latest past times, while waiting for the cup of tea to brew. He’s gotten quite good at reading the clock in tandem with gaging the high/low tides seen from our front window.
Can you tell the time???
The cottage’s charm is enhanced by being within walking distance of The Salty Dog Pub, the famous Ballycotton Cliff Walk, the Sea Church and the Blackbird Pub. We Flynn’s like to cover all of our bases: nature, Pubs, church, oh, and more Pubs!
We chose this area for its relative proximity to Cork, its coastal location and the research we had done which hinted it was having its “moment in the sun,” meaning becoming a hot spot. The town’s profile has been raised in part thanks to a local man — look up Pearce Flynn if you want the long version of his impressive story. The fact that his last name is Flynn has absolutely nothing to do with our lineage. There is a resemblance; however. Having met him in the first hour of our arrival, I found him to be an iconic Irishman; warm, friendly, the life of every party and more stories than a Grimms Brothers fairy-tale book! Sounds just like Jimmy Flynn, doesn’t it?? Shortly thereafter, we met another of the Flynn clan (there were 9), Liam and his lovely bride, Helen. They are truly wonderful people, with whom we hope to remain lifelong friends. We had a great deal of fun with them, breaking bread, drinking Baby Guinness shots until 1:30am and sharing life stories.
Back to Ballycotton… it is an old maritime village and the harbor is small and picturesque. We had a birds eye view of the harbor every day from our living room, watching small fishing boats that bob like they’re keeping time to some Irish reel alongside large fishing trawlers chomping at the bit to get out to sea and bring back enough fresh fish to feed the County of Cork. Here are some pictures of the lovely little crabby creatures one can see from or on the peer…just waiting to be served!
On our long walks, we met several of the locals, including the fishermen, who warmly welcomed us to town. Although what would normally be a short “hello and welcome to the neighborhood” in the US, invariably turns into having to put my exercise tracker on pause. I quickly learned there are no short hellos in Ireland. There are stories about the area and how many generations their families have been here, stories about relatives they have in the US and “do you know them” and advice on “being about” in Ballycotton. They will explain the weather to you, where to buy your fish and meat, the good markets to go to for your veges and what to be sure to see when you are here. Just lovely people who treat most everyone like they have known them for years, including the “blow ins” (anyone not born in the village of Ballycotton).
There are surprisingly quite a few things to do in this small village. First and foremost, experience the cliff walk. We think it is Ballycotton’s main dramatic offering: a path that hugs the coast and delivers views so incredibly beautiful that you will find yourself thinking that the gods and goddesses were in a really good mood the day they created the cliff walk. Word of warning, bring a windproof jacket and hiking shoes. The wind is always wicked, and the ground is uneven and very rocky. It is called the cliff walk because you are literally walking along sheer cliffs that drop dramatically to the roaring and wild Atlantic Ocean. Unless you are good at cliff diving, be very careful taking a selfie on this walk!
Then, there is the lighthouse, dark and forbidding, sitting atop its rocky island. It looks like something from the movie set of Wuthering Heights! There is a boat excursion to the lighthouse island, but it operates only when the weather is cooperating, which is almost never. The locals say it is worth the 90-minute booking but don’t be disappointed if it doesn’t take off, apparently the sea has opinions of its own and will cancel plans without prior notice. We plan to book an outing before we leave the area. So, I will report back on the Lighthouse Tour (see below).
We have eaten 3 times at The Salty Dog Pub, where the food is excellent, the service is tip-worthy, and the Pub part of the equation is just great craic. We have also seen 2 concerts while here. There is a beautiful old church called Sea Church located in the center of the village. Pearce Flynn purchased the church and the land across the road. He built a car park for the village and a large children’s playground where locals and visitors alike can enjoy the sea views and tell a few stories while the kiddies run around the swings, slides and monkey bars. It’s a beautiful space and sits right on the water. Mr. Flynn purchased the old, abandoned Sea Church and turned it into a 1st class restaurant, bar, and concert venue. It is just delightful. Himself and I bought tickets to see Donovan there – Donovan of Mellow Yellow and Sunshine Superman fame (circa 1965)! Donovan lives in a neighboring town and came to perform this concert at the Sea Church on his 80th birthday. It was a real blast from the past and filled with, yes, you guessed it, lots of old-time rock and roll stories. We also saw Susan O’Neil there – talk about an epic talent! check out her music if you are into listening to good tunes. She collaborated with a famous Irish singer, Mick Flannery, on an album called In the Game in September 2021. It is excellent. She released a solo album in 2024 called Now in a Minute; also excellent!
Then, there is the Ballymaloe House. According to Wiki, the Ballymaloe House traces back to an Anglo‑Norman castle from the 15th century. It is located within 5 miles from our little village center and is now a famous country‑house hotel and restaurant that the Allen family has stewarded since Myrtle and Ivan bought the estate in 1948. Myrtle’s “Yeats Room” opened in 1964 and set the tone for a simple, seasonal approach to Irish cooking that later earned a Michelin star. Ballymaloe House is also the home of the internationally known Ballymaloe Cookery School.
Darina Allen, daughter-in-law of Ivan & Myrtle, is the force behind Ballymaloe Cookery School and the woman who made farm‑to‑table “a thing” in Ireland. She opened the cookery school in 1983 on the Kinoith organic farm and has since written dozens of cookbooks, fronted TV series, and reshaped how Ireland shops, cooks, and eats—championing local producers, seasonal cooking, and putting local farmers’ markets on the map. She reminds me of our own Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa, although here she is known as the Julia Child of Ireland. Either way, the woman is a force in the culinary world. She has written and published more cookbooks than there are roundabouts in Cork City! Hahahahaha
Each May (and we are here in May!) the Ballymaloe Festival of Food takes over the grounds for a weekend of demonstrations, hands‑on cooking classes, food & wine tastings, pop‑up dinners, market stalls and music—think local producers rubbing elbows with visiting chefs while you learn to turn the day’s catch into dinner and then celebrate it with a pint. We bought 2 tickets to Saturday’s events and are looking forward to a fun day of eating, drinking and maybe meeting some famous chefs!
Unfortunately, Saturday started out very rainy, windy and quite cold. We forged ahead to the Food Festival anyway. We were not disappointed. Most of the demonstrations, panel discussions and food eating took place under large tents with some protection from the elements. Our coats and gloves took over from there. We attended 2 cooking demonstrations; 1 given by Michelin star winner, Adam Byatt showing off a “simple” dish with zucchini flowers, fish mousse and sauteed turbot. He made it look so easy! The other demo was given by pasta master and Season 22 winner of Hell’s Kitchen, Ryan O’Sullivan. This man was born to host a TV cooking show! Funny, quick, smooth and easy on the eyes and he made pasta-making look like a walk in the park. I cannot wait to give some of his techniques a go of it when we get back to Florida. Speaking of which, Ryan works at a country club in Palm Beach Gardens! Talk about a small world. He has been there for 9 years, is married to an Italian-American woman and has hopes of opening his own place one of these days – hopefully, in our Florida backyard. We introduced ourselves after the show and warm hugs were shared with promises to follow Ryan’s future plans.
We listened to some very interesting panel discussions on the future of farming in Ireland and EU policy affecting farmers. We also attended a panel discussion on growing vines in Ireland accompanied by tastings of 8 wines of grapes grown in Ireland. While Bordeaux has nothing to fear in the near term, the efforts made by these Irish vintners is not to be dismissed. We tasted some very worthy wines from Ireland. The sun eventually peeked through, just in time for us to head back to the cottage. We are having dinner at the Salty Dog and listening to some live music. Promises to be a fun night!
Exploring County Cork
We have driven to both Dungarvan and Tramore, in County Waterford (yes, of Waterford crystal fame). Both are beautiful harbor towns where the scenery coming into both towns was quintessential Ireland – rolling hills and luscious green fields; complete and total sensory overload. Of course, there are the fields of potato plants everywhere, right next to the fields with the beautiful dairy bovines.
Most of Ireland seems to be farmland. The food here is of excellent quality as there are strict rules governing raising of animals and food for consumption. It is a breath of fresh air actually. In Wexford they are famous for the strawberries they grow. I recently purchased a bin and they were the most beautiful strawberries and sweet as fine chocolate!
look at these beauties!
dairy cows in the distance amid beautiful pastures
Potato plants!
Driving in Ireland is not easy. There are more roundabouts than there are ants in an anthill. Have you ever tried to navigate a roundabout in a major city where there are 5 “exit” options, multiple lanes of traffic and you are on the wrong side of the car and the wrong side of the road? It is chaos, I assure you! And those are the major highways! If you get off the major highways the roundabouts become LESS frequent, however, the rural roads are narrow and one-way only – the way that you are going, that is. Allow me to explain…. The roads claim to be 2-way roads but they are not. Much of the time, one car pulls off to the side so the on-coming car can pass. By anyone’s math table, that is a one-way road. Oh, and do not take the corners fast because as you turn a corner on said-two-lane road, you could suddenly come upon a parked car/truck in your lane with a car coming at you in the opposite direction. You must hit the brakes to avoid hitting the randomly parked car and to keep the oncoming car from becoming one with your front seat. This is not just a story; it is the absolute truth. The pictures here do not tell the whole story but you maybe get the “picture”…
driving along thinking everything is good.
turn the bend, and we are smack head on with this chaos!
Mind you, the speed limit around the bend and on this road is 40mph!
Jim asked me if I wanted to drive as long as we are in the “country” and I emphatically responded ABSOLUTELY NO! This old dog does not need to learn to drive on the wrong side of the road on the wrong side of the car in a country that has no Rules of the Road.
Our dear friends Fay & Bill Clark will be coming to Ireland later this month. They have wisely hired a driver.
Anyway, we are meeting Fay & Bill in the lovely seaside town of Kinsale and spend the day and evening enjoying each other’s company and catching up on all the good stories, both here and back home in Florida. In anticipation of their visit, we took a day trip to Kinsale to test some of the local fare and get a lay of the land. Most of the restaurants we wanted to try were either closed for the day or don’t open until evening. So, we found Dino’s just walking down the street and decided to give it a try. It was a really good. Jim had fish and chips and I had salmon. Fish was great and we washed it all down with a vanilla sundae which made it a very special lunch (we subsequently learned that Dino’s is a franchise here in Ireland but no bother, the food was not typical of what we know to be chain restaurant food). It was a really beautiful day, so we spent the rest of the afternoon strolling down the main drag, admiring all of the boats in the marina and enjoying the sunshine. Looking forward to spending an afternoon here with Fay & Bill. Hopefully, the weather will be just as lovely.
We made a trip to Cork City, mostly to check out the living situation there. If ever we were to decide to move to Ireland, we may want to start out in Cork. It is a larger city, about 250K people, has a large airport, hospital system and is a vibrant university town. The food and cultural scene are noteworthy and there is just generally plenty to keep one in trouble. There is also a train straight through to Dublin if one needs to get to Dublin for some reason, like an international flight for example. Anyway, it was a cold, rainy day. We visited the farmers’ market at Mahon Point. It is a fairly large market with lots of food stands, organic veges, fresh fish and meats. So, we bought dinner, checked out a few neighborhoods and looked at some high-rise apartment buildings before calling it a day and heading back to Ballycotton. We spent the night in our little cottage eating good food and enjoying the wood burning stove to take off the chill, while later enjoying our dessert staring out at the ocean. Life is good, very, very good.
We recently met our next-door neighbor Lorraine, who is here in Ballycotton for 3 months attending the cookery school at Ballymaloe. When Jim was mowing the grass today (don’t ask, just know he came in to tell me how much fun he was having mowing the grass. Mind you, today there are gale force winds of 35mph and a temperature of 45F/feels like 35F). Anyway, when Jim was mowing the grass, he met Lorraine (I think she came out to meet the crazy man whose hair was doing summersaults in the wind!). Lorraine is a geophysicist and has taken some time to learn “new life skills”, hence the 3-month course at the cooking school. She advised that she has some tests coming up at the cookery school and will be making a ton of dishes in anticipation of these upcoming tests and would we mind being her guinea pigs? Jim wisely responded with an enthusiastic “YES” to that question. We recently shamed her into sharing some homemade scones with us and these were absolutely divine!
When not impressing our neighbors with his ability to weather most any storm, Jim has tried his hand at grilling outside despite mind numbing winds and near-Arctic temps. Me, I watch the grilling “troubles” from the front room window and cheerily wave with wine in hand! I just love that man – he is a source of never-ending good stories and after nearly 40 years, still makes me fall down laughing.
Watching Chill & Grill action from the cottage window
Chill & Grill (emphasis on “chill”) – this picture was pre-lawn mowing…
We continue to try and stay fit. The pints and fish & chips are murder on the waistline! So, we joined the local gym for the 2 months that we are in this area. We head over there 3 mornings each week and on the off-gym days, we hike the Cliff Walk and in the late afternoon, supplement our exercise routine climbing the steep hills of this little village whilst on our way to one of the local pubs. Tonight, we are heading to Blackbird Pub for some early dinner, live music and a few pints. Aloha on the Move! Slainte!
Cobh
Our latest Auld Sod adventure involves a trip over to the coastal town of Cobh (pronounced Cove). Cobh is a small town of about 15,000 inhabitants. It is located on a small island in Cork City’s harbor and is home to Ireland’s only dedicated cruise terminal. Very often, large cruise ships can be seen in the harbor from one of the city’s remarkably steep streets. If you visit Cobh, be sure you have been doing leg presses at the gym for at least a month prior to your visit. The town’s hilly streets are murderous!
At one time, Cobh was called Queenstown. The town was renamed Queenstown in 1849 to commemorate Queen Victoria’s visit. Being the ever-humble monarch, she ended up with a town named in her honor; hence, Queenstown. Sound familiar, America??? In 1921, when the Irish Free State was established, the town once again became known as Cobh.
Cobh is famous for several things, besides being the only dedicated cruise terminal in Ireland. It was the departure point for more than 2.5 million Irish people who emigrated to North America between 1848 and 1950. There is a statue on the waterfront of Annie Moore and her brothers. They left for America from Cobh, with Annie being the first emigrant to be processed through the newly opened Ellis Island.
Cobh is also home to one of the tallest churches in Ireland, the beautiful Cathedral of St. Colman. It sits atop the highest hill in the town and stands at approximately 300 feet. It is a stunning piece of architecture, one of the most impressive Catholic churches we have seen, and we have seen A LOT of Catholic churches! In addition to just being magnificent,
St. Colman houses the largest carillon in Ireland and Britain and is considered by many sources to be one of the best examples of its kind. The 49-bell carillon is fine-tuned to sound like a musical instrument. The Cathedral also includes Ireland’s largest bell, St. Colman’s Bell, weighing in at a hefty 3.6 tons. The carillon is played in the belfry and consists of a keyboard and pedalboard. It is still played today by Adrian Gebruers, the son of the first carillonneur of St. Colman, Staf Gebruers.
Too much detail? Well, hang on.
Now, the Irish being the world-renowned storytellers that they are, there is, of course, a story that accompanies Staf Gebruers, the aforementioned 1st carillonneur. Staf, a Belgian, was recruited to Ireland by the Bishop of Cork. After a number of years, Staf was homesick and wanted to return to his beloved home of Belgium. The Bishop is said to have arranged for Stef to meet a local young woman, Maureen Kidney. Before long, romance bloomed and Staf remained in Ireland with his wife, Maureen. HOWEVER, before agreeing to marry Stef, Maureen insisted on going to live in Belgium with her mother-in-law for six months to ensure she was making the right decision to marry him.
Now, this is where the story falls apart for me. Why would she go live with her mother-in-law for six months to ensure that Stef was the man for her??? Anyway, they married, and their son followed in his dad’s carillonneur footsteps. That’s the story!
Back to Cobh…
The town is a multi-layered checkerboard of beautifully colored buildings, resembling a riotous mixture of primary colors (think a pack of 8 crayolas!). When we were in Greenland, the buildings were also a mixture of bright primary colors. The colors signified the type of building (red = hospital, blue = school, and so on) so that sailors knew from way out at sea whether the town had the facilities the ship needed at the moment. Given its maritime history, we thought the same might be true of Cobh. However, no one and nothing was able to confirm this hypothesis, so the story we are telling is that the Irish just love beautiful color!
Cobh is known also for it being the final port of call for the mighty Titanic before she set sail for her watery grave on April 11, 1912. There is a museum erected at the site of the original pier where the tenders docked to take the passengers to the ship. The original pier is still standing and fairly well preserved, considering it is more than 100 years old. It is no longer in use except as part of the story of the Titanic and a quick stop on the tour of the Titanic Museum. We did pay a visit to the Titanic Museum. We fully anticipated a cheesy display and were pleasantly surprised to find the short, 30-minute tour to be quite interesting. It had the right mixture of artifacts, stories of the people who did and did not survive, and the science behind the sinking of the magnificent Titanic. Admission was $15 U.S. per person and well worth the investment.
An afternoon in Cobh will cover all the bases. There are a never-ending number of “authentic” Irish pubs advertising fish and chips and smash burgers as well as many international type restaurants. We did not go to Cobh for the food—lunch was okay but the sightseeing was much better!
Back to Ballycotton
Sea Church restaurant is part of the Sea Church complex which includes a concert venue and a monthly movie showing. The restaurant is the star of the show, although we saw 2 concerts there which were both great in their own way.
We had brunch at the Sea Church. The restaurant is situated in a glass atrium directly across from Ballycotton Bay. The views are stunning, especially on a sunny day! The restaurant plays right into the rugged outdoors by blending with its surroundings rather than trying to outshine what nature has created.
The food is sourced from local land and sea vendors and can taste the passion with which it is created. Jim had the Sea Church Mini Irish (nothing mini about this dish!) and I had the Colcannon Hash. The Irish is a modern take on more trad Irish food, Sausage, Black & White Pudding, Smoked Bacon, Sauteed Potatoes, fried eggs and toast. The Colcannon Hash is another update to more traditional Irish cooking and includes crispy potato and cabbage hash with poached eggs on top. It was absolutely delicious! I ate every single bite and at 13 euros, it was an absolute steal. I washed all of that down with an Aperol Spritz and left feeling very happy. Jim felt similarly about his brunch. If you find yourself in Ballycotton on a summer day, do make a booking at Sea Church restaurant – we don’t think you will be disappointed.
Our next adventure will be to try Cush in Midleton for dinner. Cush, having been given a Michelin nod at one time, is said to be the crowning jewel of the Cush-Flynn (no relation) restaurant group. I am taking it upon ourselves to be the judge of that!
Speaking of Midleton, what a great little town. It is known for its farmers’ market every Saturday, rain or well, rain. 😊 It has several large supermarkets, butchers, fishmongers and a host of little boutique shops. Of course, there are the local pubs and a few restaurants that are supposed to be work checking out, including aforementioned Cush. You can also get a train into Cork City from Midleton, which many locals take advantage of rather than driving these crazy roads.
Let’s talk a little more about crazy roads. Jim and I ended up on a road that was unpaved and used by farm tractors only. The cows were gazing in our window as we drove down this road.
I’m not kidding when I tell you the cows were looking into our car window as we drove down the road!
I took a few videos while Jim was driving. Not sure they will attach well in this blog but I will give it a try. It was crazy! Plus it had rained for the 4th or 5th day straight so yes, the unpaved tractor road was deep ruts of mud. I was on my knees in the car saying a novena that we didn’t get stuck. We would have had NO WAY of communicating where we were! I can hear the call to the Garda now:
Garda: What’s your 10-40, ma’am?
US: Well, we are between farm A and farm B. There are several spotted cows on Farm A and a few thousand sheep on Farm B. They are telling us you can help get us out of here.
Garda: Lady, someone’s “pulled the wool” over your eyes. You are what we call in Ireland, frecking screwed.
I will be “milking” these jokes for a good long while! LOL
Well, try as I might I could not get the video to attach so hopefully, you can simply envision the terror we felt at the prospect of getting stuck in the muddy grooves made by the big tractors, but we made it home safe and sound.
One of the things we love to do is get out and explore the surrounding areas. We have visited historic towns like Bantry, Youghall (pronounced “yewoll”), Crosshaven, Tramore and Whitegate. All are really cool little towns/villages, each with its own history, story and beloved pub. If ever you get the chance to visit Ireland, and you have the time, get off the beaten path and explore some of these off the tourist grid places; even if it is only to have a Guinness 00.
Fota Island
Fota deserves special attention. It is an island off the southern coast of Ireland. It is the home of Fota Wildlife Park, the historical Fota House and Gardens, and the Fota Island Golf Club and Resort. It was a rare sunny afternoon and so we decided to visit the wildlife park and just stroll around to see the plants and wildlife. It was amazing! The park gets as many as 400,000 visitors per year making it one of the most popular attractions in Ireland.
The rose garden The gardens The historical Foda House
Foda Wildlife Park
The Park has more than 70 species of wildlife including ostriches, penguins, monkeys, sea eagles, giraffes, kangaroos, zebras, and antelope, lions, tigers and cheetah, Oh My! Most of the animals are allowed to roam more than 50 acres of mature grassland, except for the cheetahs and other predators, which have fenced enclosures. Lemurs and wallabies and other animals freely roam the park. Check out the baby lemur hanging out on mom’s back and they skip down the pedestrian path! Also, baby kangaroo pouching it with mama while they both feed on the grass along the pedestrian path. It was an amazing experience.
Interesting factoid: Cheetah do not work for their food if they don’t have too and so the park has set up a pulley system from which the food is dangled and travels around the cheetah run at 40 mph, mimicking what cheetah experience in the wild!
Many of the species are endangered or near extinction and so the Park also acts as a breeder of these animals.
Even if you aren’t a big Zoo person, this is worth seeing. First, it is really not a Zoo, second, the grounds are gorgeous and third, who doesn’t love a little wildlife encounter?? See for yourself!
Penguins at feeding time The little lemurs walked right up to us and here is baby hitching a ride!
there was nothing between this gibbon and us except a little stream!
take a close look at the baby pouching it while it and mama feasted on grass
this was an amazing grooming exercise observed
We left the Wildlife Park via a ride on the “panoramic wheel”; a giant Ferris Wheel where Jimmy and I snuck a little kiss at the very top (where no one could bear witness; after all it is not a public display of affection is there is no public to observe the display!)
Kinsale (again)
We had the distinct pleasure of meeting up with our friends, Fay & Bill Clark, as they were touring Ireland. We had a lovely afternoon strolling around Kinsale. Kinsale is a big tourist town and known for its food scene, harbor full of activity in the summer and its quirky and colorful buildings.
I also learned something about Kinsale via my friend Fay. In Kinsale, there is a memorial for Irish-born firefighters and first responders who died on 9/11. An Irish nurse working in a NY hospital at the time eventually returned to Ireland to her home in Kinsale. When she returned, she planted a tree for each of the 300+ firefighters of Irish descent who perished in the 9/11 attacks. She planted the trees in front of her family’s home and added the pictures and stories of each person under his/her tree. What a beautiful story…
The Clark’s and Flynn’s broke bread and drank wine at a cool restaurant called Man Friday. They specialize in beef; steaks, short rib, etc. The wine selection was very good and we all partook as there was no one driving that night. The food was also good although the results were not consistently good. I think I threw everyone off by asking where Hereford beef came from. I can just see my husband’s and Bill’s face when I asked the waitress where the Hereford beef comes from. Like, what is this crazy woman up to now??? Only my friend Fay showed no judgement. There is something to be said for Sisterhood!
The funniest part of that story is the waitress’s response which was: ooooh, I don’t know because they don’t tell us that!
By the way, I had a good reason for inquiring where the Hereford beef came from.
When we were in Kinsale this time, we stayed at the Blue Haven Inn. It is very old and needs an update. Also, the “air conditioning” is a small desk fan. On a warm night, the room is very warm indeed. But it was very clean and the staff were incredibly happy, helpful and accommodating. We would stay again but, in the winter, when the fan isn’t so critical.
The next morning, we bid adieu to Kinsale for the last time this trip. Back to Ballycotton and our next adventure, The Lighthouse Tour!
Ballycotton Sea Adventures
Ballycotton is a very small village and yet it has a number of enjoyable venues and things to do; most of which can be covered in 2 or 3 days. We stayed here for the month of May and enjoyed many visits to the local pubs and music venues. One of the interesting things we did was to visit the island right off the coast of Ballycotton with the famous Ballycotton Lighthouse, taking a tour of the lighthouse which was led by one of the lighthouse keepers back in the mid-60’s, when the lighthouse was still operated by keepers and not computers. Eddy was a real trip. The lighthouse tour was a great experience made greater by his experiences as a lighthouse keeper. He had wonderful stories to tell about living on the island and his work as a keeper.
For almost 50 years the lightkeepers and their families lived permanently on the island. During that time the children would be rowed across to Ballycotton village to go to school. Can you imagine that? Being rowed to school on the wild Atlantic Ocean everyday. They eventually moved the families off the island to small cottages by the harbor. Every Sunday, the wives and children would walk down to the pier and the husbands would stand on the island and they would wave to each other. Hmmm, no wonder those marriages lasted so long! LOL
The mechanics of the lighthouse are fascinating. For years the light to guide ships was a multi-wick whale oil lamp. This was later converted to a paraffin lamp in 1902 and stayed like that until 1975. Eventually the generators that replaced the paraffin lamp in 1902 were replaced by solar panels. The lightkeepers were also replaced by the generators in the late 1970’s. Eddie was happy not to have to wave to his family from the pier anymore and retired his lightkeeper card in 1974. He went on to become a very successful electrician while still getting his beloved lighthouse fix giving tours several times a week.
Let me tell you a little bit about the journey over to the lighthouse. Eddie plus the boat captain and 11 of us tourists load up on a small little fishing boat to make the journey to the lighthouse. It’s best if you do this in low tide for several reasons. The first is, the water is a lot less rough and when tide is up, the stairs leading up to the lighthouse island landing are covered by water. Once you arrive on the island, there are a series of steep hills to climb to get to the lighthouse. Once in the lighthouse, you have a 3 or 4 story narrow circular staircase to climb to get to the top. Our 82-year-old guide, Eddy, did this without even breaking a sweat, while 11 of us huffed and puffed our way up the 45 degree inclines. At one point, Eddy turned to see how we were doing. He saw we were all going rather slowly and so he counseled us on how to navigate the steep hills – “take baby steps, you see” was his advice. I wonder if he could see me flipping him off as I slowed down to take the baby steps as he suggested 😊?? As a lighthouse keeper, Eddy did this trek several times a day and as a tour guide, he still runs up those staircase and walks those hills several times a day. No wonder he is fit as a fiddle at age 82!
Eddy told some wonderful and entertaining stories about his life as a lighthouse keeper. He told the stories with such reverence; you could just see the pride he felt about his lighthouse career and the love and caring he has for that old lighthouse. It saved many ship from wrecking on the treacherous coastline and he is very proud of the part he played, as well he should be.
The island keeps a herd of 7 goats; always 7. The goats used to be the source of milk and cheese for the lighthouse keepers. Eddy told us that when one dies, it is replaced. There will always be a herd of goats kept there as they are so much a part of the history and story of the lighthouse island.
Other “wildlife” includes the many birds of the area. The seagulls mate and lay their eggs on the islands, as we saw evidence of a nest with eggs waiting to hatch. We also saw remnants of eggs already hatched. As we were getting ready to disembark the boat on our tour, 2 seals popped out of the water for a look at the intruders (us). They were even so kind as to put on a little show; leaping and diving out of and in to the icy waters of the Atlantic.
Look closely and you can see the seagull eggs in their nest
Our friend, the little seal 
O
It was a lovely and very interesting/informative tour. If ever you find yourself in the Ballycotton area, give it a whirl. I cannot imagine that you will regret it. ballycottonseaadventures.com
This is an aerial picture of the island that I “lifted” from the website; you can see how steep the climb is up to lighthouse!
Hurling?
So, in the spirit of living local, we (and by “we”, I mean Himself) recently adopted hurling as a new sports fixation. Here is my understanding of Hurling (which really, please change the name because it sounds like something that happens when you don’t feel very good). Anyway, you travel to a “pitch” (aka a big open field), you stand around in the rain/wind/freezing cold and you watch a bunch of guys in shorts and jerseys “hurl” a ball around with a stick that has a cup at the end of it and try to get the ball in the opponent’s goalie net. It is like a cross between baseball and hockey, except not really. The pitch is conveniently located directly between the Church and the Pub (Goal Post Inn). So, following 10:15am Sunday Mass, you walk to the pitch to watch guys hurl and then you go to the pub to celebrate the win/loss and again, watch guys hurl!
When you cannot travel to a pitch to cheer on your local team, you travel to a pub to watch playoffs. We have undertaken both exercises. Of course we have! The pub where we caught the hurling playoffs is called Poc au Bruile (The Wild Goat) and is the iconic, old school Irish Pub; cozy, comfortable, everyone is friendly and the Guinness is delicious!
In either scenario, I had no idea what the Hades was going on, so I did what all observers do when they haven’t a clue what is going on – I cheered when everyone else cheered. Now, in my defense, the ball is really small, the field is huge and the game moves very fast. How anyone follows what is happening is beyond me.
But really, at the end of the day, I am just here for the shorts 😊
P.S. While watching the Hurling match playoffs at the Wild Goat Pub, our table mate was celebrating his birthday. His buddies bought him a “Guinness birthday cake” (the candle was inserted in a bar coaster and then placed on top pint of Guinness). How clever is that??? From now own, I will be decorating many a glass of Guinness on April 20 each year!
Green Acres here I come!
Most of you over age 65 will remember that TV show called Green Acres whereby Eva Gabor was plucked from Manhattan by her husband and planted in the middle of a farm called Green Acres. Well, that is where you will find us for the month of June – the middle of Ireland farm country in a very small and remote town called Ballycroneen. My heels and dresses remain in the suitcases and only the jeans, boots and sweaters hang in the closet, along with the omnipresent raincoat!
The location is stunning. we are surrounding by rolling pastures, grazing horses and the loud mooing presence of hundreds of bovines in the surrounding pastures. In the morning and early evening, we are treated to hare sightings as their den is located in the brush along side our front area. Last month our front windows formed a worthy frame for the Wild Atlantic. This month, its more than 40 acres of farmland, barley in particular, that we are treated to every day. Couple that with a 1/2 mile walk up a paved lane and we are literally staring at the ocean, once again.
view of ocean across farmland
view of farm from our front room
inside of present-day farm house 
the garden courtyard
The inside of the house we rented has a short and interesting story. In the late 90’s the owner’s father (an architect) bought this land and on it sat a derelict building. In Ireland, there are strict rules about what can be done with these old stone buildings. Short version is, you can take down the walls and rebuild but you must maintain the original footprint. The owner’s dad maintained a large journal complete with renderings and pictures showing the transition from old derelict stone cottage to modern day farm house. It is really a lovely book and the story of the rebuild is very engaging.
Every day we are entertained by the fauna and local wildlife, including the neighbor’s stunning black lab (POPPY) and Angora cat (SHE/HER) and the other neighbor’s 2 retired ponies; all of whom we have adopted in the short time we have been here. We enjoy daily walks with Poppy, rain or shine and have become friendly with owners on both neighboring farms. Next Sunday we are attending a small get together with the owner of the horses, her father in law, husband and children. Just tea and biscuits, she tells us, and a good chat. Nothing fancy!
I love the people of Ireland. They are the most lovely, welcoming and charitable people.
Me & Poppy out for a walk; rain or shine!
from the bedroom window (it’s not a Robin!) 
and it’s not a bunny rabbit!
now this is what I call “up close and personal”! we captured this down at the beach where these beauties were grazing
We love to take a walk down to the beach and we have easy access thanks to our generous neighbor, Adrianna. When the tide is out, it is easy to walk the beach but beware you don’t venture down there without knowing the timing of the tides! I laughed at Jim’s fascination with the clock that told tidal times. I was singing a different tune when he accurately predicted (thanks to said tide clock) the low tide!
a windy day beach selfie
Garden strolling
Jim and I love to stroll through gardens and wildlife sanctuaries. Some like museums, others like architecture, others like the beach. Give us a beautiful garden any day. This past weekend, we drove to Lismore to see The Gardens at Lismore Castle and they did not disappoint.
The 1st Lismore Castle was built in 1185. It has been occupied by Sir Walter Raleigh, John King of England, the Boyle’s and Adele Astaire, Fred’s sister! The Castle is still occupied and is lived in by the Lord & Lady Burlington as their private family home. It is not open to visitors but the massive 10-acre gardens with spectacular views of the Castle and surrounding countryside can be enjoyed by all who wish to enjoy a day of beauty. There are 3 levels to the gardens and interestingly, they all contain sculptures embedded in the greenery. The sculptures include works by famous artists. The area is also known for its rich community engagement program providing learning opportunities for the local community and engagement with local artists. The pride in the area is evident throughout the town, not only on the castle grounds.
Check out these gorgeous blooms!
Even the scones are decorated with beautiful flowers!
these are the Yew trees – what a beautiful, gnarly tree!
The Castle/Private Residence
The wall in the 3rd picture dates back to the 1500’s!
These are sculptures in the garden – pillars carved from Oak trees and rendition of the Berlin Wall
and this lovely piece is wall art carved from moss growing on the stone wall! How clever is that?
and 2 modern day garden “sculptures” 🙂
Our farewell to Lismore included a stop at St. Carthages Cathedral. The cathedral is in disrepair and not used for traditional Masses. However, it sports one of the most interesting ceilings and one of the tallest spires we have seen in recent memory. Funny that the ceiling mimics flowers. Note the little faces set in the “flowers”. I’m sure there is a story here. If there is, I will find it!
Back to the farm! Tomorrow we are going to check out some more local sights, including Mizen Head; a beautiful force of nature.
Mizen Head
We had heard a lot about the beauty of the Mizen Peninsula so decided to drive the 2+hours (each way) to see what all of the fuss is about. It was worth every minute. Mizen Head is on Ireland’s most southwesterly point and stretches out into the wild Atlantic Ocean. The ocean’s crashing waves and the surrounding sea cliffs are the stars of the show. Located here is the Mizen Head Signal Station which has withstood the forces of the Wild Atlantic Way for more than 100 years. The Station was built to warn ships at sea of the treacherous rocks that form the shoreline here. To get to the station, one must trek down a steep set of 99 steps that start at the Visitor Center. Then, you cross a immensely high arched bridge that connects the Station to the land. Luckily, we started out on our journey late in the day making it impossible to complete the 99 steps, walk along cliffs that dramatically drop to the ocean and cross the immensely high bridge to the Station before closing for the day. Thank the Good Lord! It was impossible cold and windy on the day we were there, adding to the drama. One look at that bridge and I was OUT! But I did find a photo of the steps and bridge on the visitor site so I can always remember the very good reason I took in all of that great Atlantic beauty from the safety of the lookout point!
the bridge on a bright sunny day; NOT the day that we visited!
Windy, rainy, misty; the day we visited!
Rostellan Farm
Near our stay in Ballycroneen is a lovely town called Aghada. It sits on the Cork Harbor and has a number of charming shops, cafes and a nice pedestrian walk. It is also home to Rostellan Farm, a 3rd generation dairy farm which has served fresh milk to the local community since 1927. The locals visit the Farm to purchase their milk from a vending machine along with a range of other sustainably sourced food from neighboring farms and local producers. Beautiful, just picked rocket, new potatoes (meaning the new potatoes of the season), and vegetables like broccolli were for sale that morning that we visited. The Farm Shop also offers an array of delicious pastries, quiches and nappies (sandwiches) for sale to be enjoyed with a glass of fresh milk or a coffee/cappuccino/tea. Of course we had to walk around and check out the story of the dairy process.
It all starts with ensuring healthy cows and top notch milk quality
and eventually ends up as a beautiful cheesecake, like this one
or, a glass of fresh milk, if you prefer. Guess which one I chose??
They also have mini goats and some sheep on the Farm roaming free in large grassy areas just enjoying life. Aren’t these little guys cute?
I particularly identify with this little pumpkin 🙂 
Fota Gardens
Earlier on in our trip, we visited the Fota Wildlife Preserve. We did not have time to visit the Fota Gardens that day as there is just too much to take in. If you only have one day to spare and animals in the wild aren’t your thing, then spend your day wandering these amazing gardens, which date back some 200 years! Admission is free and if it is a lovely day outside (it was gorgeous the day we visited), you won’t regret the spending a peaceful day viewing the spectacular architecture of these gardens. Allow about 2 hours to stroll through and enjoy the scenery. It will blow your mind that this is entirely cared for by one master gardener and a collection of volunteers.
There is one section of the gardens that is particularly interesting and worthy of a visit. We happened upon a volunteer while we were visiting this section which was really fortunate because she added some context to what we were seeing. The Victorian Working Garden is a walled garden with an orchard, pit houses and working glass houses (like greenhouses). Much of what you will see is a window into what it was like to live here and care for these gardens in Victorian times. They offer a tour of the Victorian Working Garden and the restoration project that has taken place. The Tour requires booking in advance so be sure to book the tour (online, if you wish) before you go to the Park. It was an amazing day; beautiful weather, restorative beauty and a bit of exercise as well.
Cashel
The Town of Cashel is located in South Tipperary and is known as the City of Kings because it was home to the kings of Munster (one of 4 provinces in Ireland), who ruled this area for centuries from a magnificent site known as the Rock of Cashel. This is an absolute “must see” – I think one of the most spectacular tourist attractions I have seen thus far.
Cashel is about a 5 hour round-trip car ride from where we are staying in Ballycroneen. In hindsight, there is enough to see here that an overnight could be warranted. We pulled into Cashel around lunchtime on one of the most stellar weather days of our trip (so far). We had a great lunch at the Baileys Hotel, where we sat outside and enjoyed a salad and a glass of wine. Service here was great, the food was really good and it had a nice outdoor patio where you could sit, enjoy lunch and take part in some great people watching.
After lunch, we began our stroll towards The Rock of Cashel. This is a heritage site and widely known for one of the greatest collections of medieval architecture and Celtic art. On the outcrop of limestone rock sits one of the most complete Romanesque churches in Ireland, a Gothic cathedral dating to the 13th century, a 12th century round tower and a restored 15th century Vicars Choral, which holds the 7 foot high St. Patrick’s cross. On the outside grounds, there is a replica of the original St. Patrick’s cross where Jimmy Flynn got up close and personal with his heritage!
As the story goes, The Rock of Cashel is the result of a big battle between the Devil & St. Patrick. The Devil was holed up in this cave on Devil Bit Mountain. It’s said that St. Patrick evicted the Devil from the cave with such force that a piece of the mountain was propelled all the way to Cashel, 20 miles away, where it still stands today. On this rock, the kings of Munster ruled. It is here that St. Patrick is said to have converted the King of Munster to Catholicism in the 5th century. In 1100-something, the Normans took over and the king donated the fortress to the Catholic Church. Today what remains are the Cathedral, the round tower, the Vicars Choral and Cormac’s Chapel.
We took a tour of the Rock of Cashel and all of its buildings. The tour cost 15 Euro per person and lasts about 1 hour. We had an excellent tour guide. We learned all about the history of each of the buildings and the on-going restoration process. There is not much is left of the sites original ancient roots; however, the restoration of the Vicars Choral and preservation of the Cathedral and Cormac’s Chapel is on-going. There is also a burial ground here that is still “active” but only if you can establish lineage and you were born before a certain year. Once everyone dies who meet this criteria, no one else can be buried on the grounds.
If you decide to visit the Rock of Cashel, it is worth the time and money to invest in the tour. The pictures we took do not do it justice. But one thing I’d like to point out – take a look at the beautiful, blue Irish sky!!
various shots of the Cathedral; the only way to get to the top of the rock and take a tour of the buildings is to walk up a very steep incline; you do your penance on the way up! 🙂
Jimmy standing with the replica of St. Patrick’s cross
A limestone sepulcher and a restored mosaic arch in Cormac’s chapel
After seeing the Rock of Cashel, I am in awe of St. Patrick’s power, now more than ever. After this trick, he went about driving all of the snakes from Ireland! What a man he was, for sure.
Knockadoon
We will be leaving Ballycroneen in the next few days, having spent the entire month of June on this beautiful farm. Before leaving, we decided to visit one last place of natural beauty, Knockadoon (don’t you just absolutely LOVE these names??). We heard that Knockadoon has a spectacular cliff walk. We are in the mood for one final mind-numbing, body punishing hike so off we go to Knockadoon! It is a little coastal, fishing village known primarily for its cliff walks, no fancy restaurants (well, there is the Lobster Pot located on the pier where you can get freshly caught lobster and soft serve ice cream, all to go) nor loads of shops or pubs. Just nature at its finest.
We started out on the walk and found ourselves on the ocean floor! The pictures are worth a thousand words… The one picture I will spare us all is the one Jim took of the massive seal that had washed up on the rocks and when the tide receded, he was stuck on the rocks and perished. So very sad…
at the top of the cliff walk looking down – it made my knees go weak!
These are all pictures of the ocean floor where we hiked through for about a mile before getting back on terra firma. In a few hours, this would all be water again
So this will end our adventures in East Cork. On Wednesday, we head for County Kerry where we will once again visit the land of the Ring of Kerry. We will be staying in the town of Glenbeigh, about 10 miles from Kilorglin, where we staying in 2024 for two weeks. Once again, we will miss the Puc Festival! One of these years we will get our timing right. So, Aloha Glenbeigh, here we come!
Part II – Glenbeigh and the Ring of Kerry
When we visited here 2 years ago, we stayed in the town of Killorglin, which is about 20 minutes from Glenbeigh. It is typically considered that Killarney is the start/finish of the Ring of Kerry, a 136 mile experience that doesn’t stop giving. The bus tours start and end in Killarney. If you plan to do the Ring of Kerry while you are here, you may want to park your car and get on one of the many bus tours that do the driving for you. There is so much beauty to see on the Ring, the roads are often narrow and a bit treacherous and the driver of the car misses out on all of the beauty of the Ring. It also helps to take the tour of the Ring (about a 7 hour drive total with scheduled stops along the way) when it is a clear day and not raining or foggy. Good luck with that! May want to avoid prebooking your tour of the Ring and just wing it. If you wake up one morning and the sky is blue, book that bus tour asap!
When we were hear 2 years ago, we toured the Ring over several days, taking time to explore off the beaten path towns and places. Even after 2 weeks, we didn’t cover everything we wanted to see on the Ring and so, that is the plan on this trip. Over the next 3 weeks, we will tour the Ring for those off the beaten path areas of rugged beauty and still find some time to revisit some of our favorites from the last 2 trips we took to this lovely part of the world.
On our 1st Friday in town, we went back to Killorglin and had dinner at Bianconi.
Bianconi has been around about 150 years as both an Inn and a restaurant. It has been voted Ireland National Pub Restaurant in 2025 and Best Casual Dining in Kerry for 2026. We didn’t eat there last time we visited because we were so enchanted with 10 Bridge Street. However, 10 Bridge Street is an ‘event only’ venue these days. So, we decided to try Bianconi, where the “LOCALS DINE”. Wow! it was delicious and the wine list was very respectable and reasonable. Jim had the duck confit and I had the teriyaki salmon bowl, dessert was ice cream with expresso on the side. Including drinks, an appetizer, 2 mains and dessert, it was 128 Euro, with tip. And, the service was excellent and typical, Irish-friendly.
So figuring our luck had to continue, we had lunch the next day at the Glenbeigh Hotel Pub. Bonus, there was a huge Hurling match on (more shorts!) between Cork (where we just came from) and Galway. I had a goat cheese and beet salad and Jim had fish & chips. Both of us enjoyed our meal and would eat there again.
The Celtic Camino
Right at the foot of the hill where the house is located that we have rented for these 3 weeks is the road called The Kerry Way as well as the path on the Camino. When we stayed in Santiago de Compostela, Spain 2 years ago, we stayed at the finish line of the Camino (if you were not tuning in to Aloha on the Move at that point, you can check out the story of the pilgrimage routes and what the Camino is all about – it is very cool). The Camino has multiple trails from multiple countries, all ending in Santiago; one of the pilgrimage trails goes through Ireland and the house we are on sits on the Camino trail in Ireland! What a small world it is.
Anyway, The Kerry Way is a walking trail that loops the Ring of Kerry. It is a 136 mile walk and goes through and over some pretty rugged landscape based on the 3 miles that we walked. We set out walking on the first day we are here in Glenbeigh to get a flavor of what the walk would be like. Oh boy. In the first 1-1/2 miles, we gained about 700 feet in elevation and about half of that was fairly steep; had the old ticker really pumping! The path of the trail goes through farmland, traversing some fairly steep mountain cliffs, including mountain streams and climbing ladders to cross over from one farm to the next. We met some hikers who were taking the 136 mile hike around the Ring; they were starting Day 3 of their hike and told us about some horrific hiking conditions the 2 previous days that involved mud, rain and heavy winds. Still, they were cheerful and happy for Day 3 which was starting out to be a better day weatherwise.
In these pictures, you can see some of the beauty as well as the crazy cliffs and narrow trails we were on and we did only 1.5 miles one way. Jim and I both agreed that we didn’t need to go any further once we saw the drop off from the cliff we were hiking. We both got a little dizzy from the height and without the proper hiking equipment, we did not need to continue down this trail. For another visit!
the top hiking symbol identified The Kerry Way; the blue/yellow claim shell sign is the universal Camino trail identifier
Farm animals along the trail, including an alpaca! Do you see the black cow? 
the circle shows how narrow the path and the arrow attempts to show the dramatic drop of the cliff; and it kept climbing!
look close and you will see one of the ladders we had to climb; it was traversing that narrow path and crossing from one farm to the next
some of the beauty to be seen from the hiking trail
We were on the “heels” of this family of sheep. We figured best to follow them as surely they knew where they were going…
Next steps (pardon the pun!) are to determine how much of The Kerry Way we will cover when we hike the Camino trail in 2027.
The Kerry Cliffs
So, in past visits we visited the Cliffs of Moher; the iconic tourist attraction along the Ring of Kerry. Thousands of people visit the Cliffs of Moher each year. The cliffs are gorgeous and dramatic and not like anything else I’ve seen in Ireland. UNTIL, we ventured out to see The Kerry Cliffs. Wow, wow, wow. Stunning. We googled hikes near me on the All Trails app to which we subscribe and the Kerry Cliffs came up as an easy hike, which we were both up for after our experience with the start of The Kerry Way hike. Off we went for a 1.5 hr drive to the Kerry Cliffs.
I think the pictures speak for themselves. Check out how the fog rolled in as we stood there! lovely Irish weather, ’tis.
These cliffs were formed more than 400 million years ago – check out the deep fissures in the rock formations. When these cliffs were forming, Ireland was located below the equator – no lie!
Sneem
Sneem is one of those County Kerry villages that feels like it’s been carefully curated by the gods of “pretty but practical.” It sits on the Iveragh Peninsula, along the River Sneem as it opens out into Kenmare Bay, and it’s right on the Ring of Kerry route—so it’s small, but it punches way above its weight. You can stand on the bridge over the River Sneem and observe some of the coolest rock formations that I have ever witnessed in a small river ed.
Or, you can stroll through town and observe all the colorful and fun little shops, pubs and restaurants. During our stroll, we happened upon the Garden of the Senses, a truly cool project with a great story behind it. It’s a 2.5-acre garden that began in 2002, and it was designed specifically for visitors who are visually impaired and wheelchair users—so the experience isn’t just something you look at, it’s something you feel, explore, and move through with intention. We spent our time experiencing the whole garden, before heading out for lunch.
For lunch, we went to The Bull Bar, which is a great little spot—casual, cozy, and full of character. I ordered a goat cheese and red beet salad, and it was genuinely delicious. Jim had a salmon salad, also really very good, and we each washed everything down with Heineken 00 (non-alcoholic beer). The best part may have been our server: a delightful, kooky young woman who felt like a total throwback to the Flower Child era, even though she was only about 19. She had the vibe, the energy, and the whole “main character” aura.
After lunch, we walked back to the car—which was perfectly positioned just beyond an ice cream vendor selling his own homemade ice cream from a tiny portable stand. It was clearly handmade, and it was delicious (the kind of delicious that makes you immediately question whether you “need” it or you simply “want” it. The answer is always both).
The road home: God-knows-where-we-are Road/Crazy Road
On the way home, we decided to get off the highway and make our way back to Glenbeigh via the god-knows-where-we-are road fondly known as the Crazy Road. It was quite an adventure… and it also had the potential to be a disaster. But we channeled our inner adventurers, bravely left the safety of the highway, and followed the signs and the sheep.
The road was about three feet wide, and it was surrounded on both sides by mountain cliffs. It was the quintessential Irish two-lane situation: the kind where you sometimes have to back up into the mountain to let an oncoming car pass. There was a time this kind of road scared the sh*t out of me. Now, I’m basically immune. If it’s ever needed, I could get out of the car and guide the backing-up process—though I can report that Himself is now a very experienced driver, so we haven’t had to test my backing-up leadership skills.
On the Crazy Road, you’re guided—almost religiously—by the local wildlife. Sheep and goats leisurely stroll down the middle of the road, lounging in the sun or the shade wherever they feel like it. And because they enjoy attention, it can make passing another vehicle… interesting.
Jim and I were also amazed by how many farm tractors there are—enormous ones. Between the tractors and the wildlife, it was slow going, but we didn’t mind at all. We were in no hurry to not have the experience and we were fully committed to enjoying it.
Enjoy the photos!
Visiting “Dignitaries”
Two of Jim’s college buddies are in Ireland this week, golfing like true champions across the ridiculously hard links around County Kerry. We have the distinct pleasure of hosting them for five days.
Their time is mostly filled with golf, but we’ve had plenty of time with them—filled with laughter, shared stories, and lots and lots of memories. I learned a lot about Himself’s college days. Thank goodness I came along; the lad was clearly on the road to a life of decadence and debauchery back in the ’80s—at least according to the accounts I was treated to.
In between golf and reminiscing, we shared a few pints, had great meals, and enjoyed the Glenbeigh Music Festival. On their last two days, we made a trip to Dingle Town, which was just fabulous.
Dingle Town
Dingle Town is a large town and is very touristy. There are tons of restaurants, pubs, B&B’s, souvenir shops and boutiques. It’s #1 claim to fame, imho, is its location on the Dingle Peninsula and the Wild Atlantic Way. If you visit Ireland, you probably want the Dingle Peninsula on your playlist. Driving the Dingle Peninsula provides some spectacular views and once in Dingle Town hop on a boat tour out to the Blasket Islands. It is here you will see incredible rock formations, the Atlantic Puffin, dolphins galore, not to mention the seals and minke whales! We were fortunate to see a sample of all of the local wildlife in action (both on the water and in the pubs!). We had a beautiful weather weekend making the experience that much more enjoyable.
We spent the night in Dingle Town and stayed at Murphy’s B&B. It was perfect. Great location, super clean and comfortable and a really nice breakfast. It is located on the main street in Dingle Town and right across from the boat ramps and booking office, making access to the boat tour super easy.
When we weren’t gazing at the wildlife out on the Atlantic, we got a good dose of the local wildlife in the pubs!! Kerry played Dublin in the semi-finals in Gaelic Football and thankfully, Kerry won. There was plenty of good-natured celebrations and camaraderie. We enjoyed a pub food lunch and a few celebratory pints.
The star of the show was a fresh seafood dinner at The Boat Yard. We enjoyed excellent service from a young woman from Mesopotamia. She was a hoot and good at her job. Oh, and the seafood was excellent. Jim & I each had the halibut which was so fresh and nicely prepared with a sweet potato puree and a very light Beurre Blanc sauce. Our two friends had the chowder and an enormous mixed seafood platter, which received rave reviews from both. My parting critique of the evening centers on the decadent desserts; chocolate fudge ganache with homemade vanilla ice cream and an apple crumble (warm) with homemade vanilla ice cream.
Speaking of ice cream, THE local vendor is Murphy’s and it is for real homemade ice cream. That was lunch the next day. We left Dingle Town satiated following a weekend of good food, good times and good friends. Life is very good. Before leaving Dingle Town, we treated ourselves to a boat tour of the Blasket Islands, a real treat, indeed.
The Blasket Islands
The Blasket Islands are a cluster of uninhabited little flecks off the west coast of the Dingle Peninsula where the wind has been working overtime for centuries and the name “Wild Atlantic Way” is on full display; even on calm, sunny days.
At their peak, the islands had about 175 residents and by 1953, only 22 people remained. So, in 1953, the government evacuated most of the remaining residents to the mainland. The story goes that the Ó Suilleabháin family were famously reluctant to go, and they ended up being the final family to depart Great Blasket Island in 1954.
Meanwhile, the islands didn’t just have residents; they had jobs. The westernmost island had lighthouse keepers until 1988, when the lighthouse was automated.
And if you’re wondering what took over after humans left: wildlife did. The Blaskets are an important breeding site for grey seals in Ireland, and the seabird situation is seriously impressive—at least 13 species of breeding seabirds, including the North Atlantic Puffin.
In short: the Blasket Islands were once home to a tightly knit, fully Irish-speaking community that survived against some of the Atlantic’s most dramatic mood swings—then left when the weather finally won. Now the seals and puffins carry the torch, and the wind famously blows it out regularly.
The day we took a boat tour of the Great Blasket Island the weather was gorgeous. Blue skies, full sun, wind from the east and choppy, choppy waters. The scenery was stunning; everywhere you looked there was further evidence that a Supreme Being really got it right.
Kenmare
Jim & I have heard a lot about Kenmare and so decided to take a day trip to see what is all the fuss about? Kenmare is a fairly large town and loaded with pubs, shops, souvenir stores and tons of tourists. It is well-kept, pretty and located close to the water. We had an “ok” lunch but that was not why we went to Kenmare. We had heard it was a pretty town, and it was indeed that; tons of beautiful flowers, a really lovely church and an amazing music store with a noteworthy (pun intended!) inventory of Irish musical instruments. We did not invest in one of said instruments; instead we (and by “we”, I mean “I”) elected to contribute to the local economy by purchasing 2 much-needed dresses. LOL
It was a long day driving and sightseeing, so we decided to eat dinner out. We stopped in Killorglin and had pizza at our favorite pizza joint, Kingston’s Pub. The chef is Italian and the pizza is straight from a wood burning oven with fresh mozzarella and a spicy Italian sausage. It is delicious. No dessert; none required after devouring the pizzas (yes, pizzas plural).
Next up: Skellig Ring and Skellig Michael: The main event is Michael
The Skellig Ring is the wider ring of islands and rocks offshore the Ring of Kerry and it is the context for Skellig Michael: the dramatic coastline and open ocean that turn the whole area into a kind of natural amphitheater. We took the Skellig Michael Cruises to cruise the Skellig Ring and pay an up-close-and-personal visit to the star of the show, Skellig Michael. We highly recommend this little 2-hour adventure, the Skellig Michael Cruises does a great job. Be sure to try to get Nicky as your boat captain/tour director. He is very knowledgeable on the area and takes you to the out-of-the-way places within the Skellig Ring.
Skellig Michael is an early Christian monastic settlement, established roughly between the 6th and 8th centuries. The monks built stone dwellings, terraces, and beehive-like structures all because they wanted a quiet spiritual life. The layout sprawls across the rock with buildings perched in layers. The structures have a remarkable sense of planning, which is impressive when you remember they were working with nothing but stone, weather, and pure stubbornness.
The island includes cells and oratories set on narrow terraces near the North Peak, reached by long climbs of 700+ steep, rocky steps. There’s also a more perilous South Peak hermitage area (largely closed to the public), which basically tells you that the monks weren’t interested in the “moderate difficulty” option.
A very limited number of visitors are allowed onto Skellig Michael to do the 700-step climb. We elected to NOT be part of the elite few. Our tour guide noted the helipad added to Skellig Michael to be able to quickly reach and transport any injured visitors. In the last 20 years, there have been 2 fatalities. I Himself and I needed to hear nothing more. Thankfully, we were madly in love the day of our visit and so neither of us were encouraging the other to “give it a try”!
Skellig Michael is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which is the official way of saying “this place is historically important, and we would like you to behave respectfully,” and it’s famous for being remarkably well preserved. The island’s harsh, exposed setting is part of why it survived so intact: it kept visitors (and intrusions) to a minimum for a long time.
Skellig Michael is also one of Ireland’s most standout seabird hotspots. Puffins and other seabirds nest there in large numbers. The North Gannets number around 95,000 during “high season”, matching the number of tourists almost 1:1. The Gannets are an interesting species. They mate for life, have only 1 chick and arrange themselves on the jagged rocks in order of seniority. The closer you are to the top, the more senior the bird. And when you witness a “spat”, you know these birds take their seniority seriously.
The puffins are gorgeous. They just need to decide whether they are penguins or birds. They don’t fly all that well, although they certainly try! When trying to “land” they resemble a helicopter, twirling down frantically flapping their wings until they crash land into the ocean or against the nearest rock. They are just adorable little creatures.
Skellig Michael is the rare historic site where the setting over delivers. The monks wanted remoteness; the rock delivered. The birds arrived; the rock approved. And we mere mortals? We climb the steps, or gaze at the Skellig’s magnificence from a tour boat, take the photos, and try to convince our that we could surely climb those steps, if we were in the mood today…
Bottom line, have your camera ready at all times and wear a hat – with 95,000 birds circling overhead, you don’t want to be the one with bird poop in your hair when you go to the Fisherman’s Bar for the BEST, and I mean, the BEST, fish and chips and ice-cold Guinness that you will taste in all of Ireland! It’s an absolute must stop for a bite and a bit of craic before driving back on the Ring of Kerry, where the beauty never stops.
Kells Bay Gardens
We paid a visit to this little known garden, mainly because we were looking for something different to do. The garden and house were built back in 1838 and was owned by 4 families until 2006 when it was purchased by Mr. Billy Alexander. Billy is a world-famous pteridologist, an expert in the propagation, growth and care of ferns. Kells Bay Garden is an enormous fern garden!
When he bought the house and formal gardens, both needed a lot of work. Since 2006, he set out to restore the house and sustainably reimagine the formal gardens to what they are today. Kells’ centerpiece is a forest of 600 tree ferns all descended from a single mother fern planted in the garden in 1890!
The gardens also sport pathways, dinosaur sculptures, a waterfall, Ireland’s largest palm tree and The Skywalk. This is a rope-bridge positioned way-too-high above the ground for my taste and was inspired by the owner’s work in the Himalayas.
The whole experience is a lovely 2-mile easy hike on gravely paths, up and down hill, walking along a babbling river stream, a large waterfall, the dinosaur garden and ending with The Skywalk. You either cross via the Himalaya rope bridge or turn around to return the way you came. Skywalk or Walk of Shame – your choice. Maybe the pictures will help make up your mind?
Waterville
On Sunday, there was a fund-raising event in the city of Waterville which we decided we would like to support. The event is organized to raise money for a young boy from the area awaiting a kidney transplant. He is currently undergoing 8 hour of dialysis daily, while he waits for his forever donor.
The event was a vintage car/tractor/farm implements and farm animal extravaganza. We saw some old, old tractors and autos, witnessed a sheep shearing demonstration, met Pearl and Primrose, the pet Kula Kula pigs and 2 adorable donkeys, whose names we didn’t catch. It was a beautiful day and a chance to see some fun stuff and support a worthy cause. These are the things we enjoy about living local – spreading aloha along the way.
Worth noting – we had lunch at The Burton Arms in the Waterville Hotel. The Waterville Hotel is an elegant water-front hotel that hosted the likes of Charlie Chaplin so regularly that the town of Waterville erected a bronze statue of Charlie on its waterfront. The hotel is a 4-star experience and we have always wanted to try its restaurant. The views are beautiful and the service is excellent. We both enjoyed our lunch and will definitely return again.
A Word about the Hiking
This part of Ireland has some great hiking experiences, from Advanced to Easy. We did 4 hikes while we were here, 2 moderate, 1 easy and 1 moderate/advanced. As I mentioned earlier, The Celtic Camino pilgrimage goes through this part of the country. One of the moderate hikes we did early on tackled a 3 mile, there and back, stretch of the massive Camino pilgrimage. It took us uphill along jaw-dropping cliff drops and down again. The 2nd moderate hike we did entailed hiking a 3 mile, in and out, trail over ankle-breaking rocks to end at a gorgeous stretch of Rossbeigh Strand (beach). The moderate/advance hike was a doozy. It too is a stretch of the Celtic Camino and really one of the more difficult hikes either one of us has ever done.
This 5-mile, 3-1/2 hour loop involved a 1,300-foot climb to the top of Curra Hill. Here’s the thing about Curra Hill. It starts out as a walk through a community-made “faery forest” with little faery houses/doorways and whimsical touches tucked into the trees. So, you are lured into believing that this will be a walk in the park, so to speak.
About half of the first part of the loop was a marked, graveled path. Easy-peasy. The climb went from 85 feet above sea level to 1,300 feet. Not so easy-peasy. But once at the summit, the views are astounding! So, you think, well, okay, that was a little tricky, but the scenic payoff can almost makes you forget that your legs feel like rubber.
Then comes the fun. The last half of the loop was completely unmarked trail through waist high overgrowth and straight downhill! Definitely not easy-peasy! Most of the time, we could not see the ground, which of course was mainly mud (no sun gets to through the overgrowth to dry the ground) and the decline was anything BUT gradual. There were stretches where it felt like we were sliding straight down. When we finally got below the tree line and back to the faery forest, we hugged each other, high-fived and said, “we are bad-ass”. No need to repeat.
Final words: The weather
I could write this entire blog based on the weather here because it is famous for changing within minutes/hours and certainly, day-to-day. You could be out taking a walk/hike in beautiful sunshine and the next thing you know, the fog and mist is so thick you can hardly see in front of you. The Irish say the only difference between summer and winter is the temperature of the rain! So, that tells it all. During May and June, it rained a lot. It was chilly, a lot (like low 40’s to mid-50’s and windy). However, July has been spectacular. Sunny and 75 just about every day. The thing is, it seldom gets extreme anything here, which is nice. And hell, the rain, well, it brings the gorgeous flowers and the incredible and endless green to this lovely island.
We came to stay here for 3 months to answer the question: Could we live here? We got our answer, in spades.
Tomorrow, we leave the Auld Sod and head to Italy for 9 days. Aloha Italia!