Dateline – Tralee, Ireland
And the end of the tour of the Irish countryside approaches. One more day as we head back to Dublin tomorrow, then a few city days before heading home. Even though I return stateside on Wednesday, I am not going back to work until Monday the 9th as planned. There is an extra bonus sequel: Vacation II in between that will go direct to Netflix as no one asked for it and no one much is interested and it’s not likely to engender a daily update as it’s a destination I’ve been to and written about many times. In the meantime, I will keep writing about Ireland with other random thoughts thrown in as they strike.
Today was a relative sleep in day and I didn’t have to be down to breakfast until sometime after 8:15 for my oatmeal and yogurt (my staples when I’m a bit uncertain about the eggs and breakfast meats at the hotel buffet) prior to boarding the bus. This time, we headed south to the road around the Iveragh peninsula known as the Ring of Kerry, one of the most scenic on the island as it veers from the waters of Dingle Bay to passes between the highest mountains in the country all in the matter of a few miles. Mind you they aren’t terribly high mountains, even in Appalachian terms, but they’re pretty darn impressive as they more or less rise directly out of the sea. The weather held (cloudy but fairly clear) and most of the morning was spent stopping for photo ops and oohing and aahing at the scenery. Lunch was in Waterville, at roughly the halfway point. The rains descended while we were safely inside the pub, dropped an inch or so of water and then cleared up just as we finished lunch and thoughtfully stayed away the rest of the day. I guess they were making up for yesterday at the Cliffs of Moher.
After lunch, a stop at Daniel O’Connell’s family manse, Derrynane house with a ramble along the beach in the company of an expert on the growing and preparation of seaweed for human consumption. Samples were provided for tasting. This was nothing new. After all, my mother was a marine botanist by training. I was encouraged to try a number of seaweeds on beach walks as a child. I did not develop a taste. Then back on the bus for more scenery (wild little islets, steep green cliffs falling into mountain tarns with their own wild little islets and the occasional red deer hanging out in the fields along with the cattle) arriving in the town of Killarney late in the afternoon and told to amuse and feed ourselves for a few hours. As it was the Saturday of June Bank Holiday weekend (more or less equivalent to our Memorial Day Weekend and the start of the summer season), the town was hopping, especially with a large motorcycle festival in town. I was getting a bit tired of meat and potatoes so I looked around and found an Asian restaurant and had a bowl of Thai green curry with rice.
I’m having a quiet evening in tonight. Tomorrow promises to be a fairly long driving day with only one significant stop prior to Dublin, at Blarney castle. I’m not sure if kissing the Blarney stone is involved. If I come back with a new accent and even more of a tendency to get up on soapboxes than I already possess, you’ll know.
Having not felt great for a couple of days, I’ve cut the last few of these missives a bit short. There are some of you who are offering prayers of thanks, I know, but others like heading into the woods of my prose and ideas. I’ll make it up to you in a couple of days. There are a bunch of things percolating that will need to be written down soon. Just not tonight.
Life, The Universe, and Everything 