On our third day, we took a bus tour that traveled to Kilkenny, described as the prettiest inland town in Ireland. For a short time it was the capital of Ireland and there is an opulent castle that we visited. Our guide took us on a quick tour of the lovely little town which was festooned in black and gold, the county's colors, in support of the Kilkenny Cats' appearance the next day in the national hurling championships. Apparently, the way you show support for your team is to yell "Up Kilkenny," or "Up Cork." which leads us to wonder how confusing it is when the team from County Down is playing.
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Finally, we stopped at Glendalough, site of St. Kevin's monastery with a round tower, stone church, and two beautiful lakes. Fortunately, the skies cleared just as we arrived and it was simply beautiful.
We did get to experience karma at work. We sat behind two tourists who ignored our guide's warning about having hot food on the bus. They were eating some really foul-smelling sandwiches they had packed for the trip and the odor wafted all over the bus. They also ignored our guide's very explicit warning about being back on the bus at a specific time. He waited about two minutes and then told the bus driver to head back to Dublin, leaving them behind. It took an hour to drive back to Dublin. I don't know how long it took to walk. They may still be guests of St. Kevin. |
The next day we took Mary Gibbon's tour to Newgrange, recommended by Rick. Newgrange, pictured at the top of the page, is a 5000 year old tomb built by prehistoric people who figured out how to situate it so that the rising sun illuminates it on the winter solstice for only seven minutes. The stones used in the construction were transported from many miles away. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is a must-see if you can possibly arrange it.
We next traveled to the Hill of Tara, the place where the ancient kings of Ireland were crowned. This was an excellent tour and our guide was outstanding. Highly recommended!
We next traveled to the Hill of Tara, the place where the ancient kings of Ireland were crowned. This was an excellent tour and our guide was outstanding. Highly recommended!
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