Making It Stick: Checking out Ireland!!

In February, we headed north to Ireland and flew into Kerry airport, the tiniest airport I've ever seen. We picked up the rental car, a small sedan that seated six in three squished rows of two. Driving on the right side took some getting used to, as did shifting with the left hand, but after a bit of practice Mike was an old pro driving on the left. Navigating the clockwise roundabouts took some getting used to, and all in all we only clipped the side mirror once! We navigated following the Gaelic signs to our cute house on the Dingle Peninsula that had a great view of the beach.

The first place we visited was the Muckross House. It was a Victorian mansion, built in 1843, in the gorgeous Kilarney National Park. We had a great guide who took us through the mansion describing life in the 1860s. Queen Victoria gave the home 6 years advance notice that she would be coming for a stay in 1861. It took them all that time to make renovations and get her majesty's room ready. After 6 years of work, the queen arrived for a three night stay! The kids had fun walking the rock paths in the gardens. We also checked out the Ross Castle and fed the swans and ducks.

We drove the next day along the Conor Pass Drive. It was a insanely narrow, twisty, mountain cliff road, 1300 feet above the sea. Traffic is coming and going both directions, even though there is only enough room for one car. If you meet up with a car going the opposite direction, one of you must back up till you get to a narrow shoulder where someone can pass the other. It was a thrilling experience to say the least, but the views were beautiful! Instead of cotton ball looking sheep, they have hairy looking sheep all over the mountains grazing. We checked out the small seaside town of Dingle for the day, grabbing some pub grub, walking around collecting shells on Inch Beach, and finding the hidden Minard Castle which overlooked it's own little rocky beach. The kids loved watching the curious sea lions peek out over the water to see what we were doing.

It was also kind of spooky seeing the abandoned famine houses all over the countryside. They are left standing as a sign of respect. During the Potato Famine, it is estimated that over a million people died and another million emigrated. The population never recovered from this 25% decline. Seeing these houses still standing is a haunting reminder of all those who were lost.

We did the Dingle Peninsula drive and the Ring of Kerry loop. I will write about some of the sights we saw along those drives. Dunberg Fort, dating back to 500 BC, was a cliffside defensive fort built of stacked rocks. The Beehive huts, dated back to 2000 BC, were stone igloo-type homes in a family compound. The Oratory Church looked like an upside down boat made of stacked stones. The rocks were fitted so tightly together, the church was waterproof. Quite amazing since it was built 1300 years ago! We walked onto someone's farmland, through a herd of sheep, to find the Fairie Fort. The kids had fun running all around the circular rooms of stones.

One day, we drove up north and took the car ferry across to the Cliffs of Moher. The Cliffs went on for 5 miles with waves crashing below.We stood at the top looking down 650 feet. The same day, we also checked out the Burren, which means "rocky place." Boy, do they mean it! The ground was covered with limestone rocks that were once at the bottom of the ocean. In the Burren was the giant stone table called the Poulnabrone Dolman. It is a tomb with the remains of 33 people buried inside. This dates back to 5000 BC! I think that is one of the oldest sites I have ever seen!!

And last, but not least, we drove out to Blarney Castle to kiss the Blarney stone and get the gift of gab. I think we were one of three families in the park that day. The place was dead. It was so nice, the kids ran all around the grounds. We walked up the 242 windy steep stairs, and at the top, we were all alone with the two bored workers who assisted us in kissing the Blarney Stone. We walked through the Poison Garden, where they grew plants and herbs that were, of course, poisonous!! We were very careful to follow the sign's advice that said not to touch ANYTHING!! We walked/crawled through the dark dungeons of the castle, and found the cave belonging to the witch of Blarney. The kids liked the wishing stairs. We each took turns walking up and back down with our eyes closed so that the witch would grant our wish! The grounds were very pretty, with the owner's old mansion "The Blarney House" in the background.

It is true, what they say, about Ireland being many shades of green. The place was very green, even in the month of February. We had a great time exploring the southwest of the island and would like to have the chance to explore Northern Ireland and Dublin sometime!