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June 28, 2008

It’s always nice to begin a trip with a flight delay!  We ended up taking off about 1 hour late from Dulles and the whole time I was thinking about how much it would stink if we had to skip one of our planned stops.  As it turns out – we arrived on time!!!  We sped through immigration and Aer Lingus had our luggage on the carousel within minutes of us arriving at baggage claim.  After checking my phone credit, we picked up our rental car at Avis (an Intermediate size) and to our delight our two large suitcases and two carry-on bags all fit in the back.  What a great beginning.

As we headed into the Dublin City Centre to meet our friend, the only damper was the intermittent rain.  Upon our arrival however, the rain stopped.  We spent a few minutes catching up, but it was now 9 AM and we were hungry!  We walked from the Coombe to the Queen of Tarts on Cow’s Close and had a nice breakfast (€9 for a full breakfast).  We then said our goodbyes and headed south to Avoca.

Even though I love Ballykissangel and have been to Ireland countless times, I had never been.  It looks just like it does on TV, nothing special, but something any fan will want to see.  The man in the Post Office was especially nice! (we sent a few obligatory postcards from Bally K)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From Avoca we headed to Glendalough.  Glendalough is home to a medieval monastery that was founded by St. Kevin.  As St. Kevin’s fame grew his monastery became more influential, eventually becoming a pilgrimage site and one of Ireland’s most important religious sites.  For visitors today, that is all enhanced by the stunning beauty that surrounds it.  The settlement was built in a valley surrounded by mountains that also is blessed with two beautiful lakes.

It also developed into a nice day to be outside — 16 degrees and sunny!

We bought the Heritage card, got some food at the stand next to the hotel and then joined the guided tour.   If you intend to see very many of the historic sites that are operated by the state, the Heritage Card is a good bargain.  If you end up visiting 5 or more sites, it should save you money.  In the past this also has encouraged us to visit some places that we would have skipped otherwise.

 

The tour was good.  I hadn’t visited this site since 1999, but the buildings are still amazing.  The round tower is still as they built it, St. Kevin’s Kitchen is still perfect and the High Cross has been standing for 1100 years!  After the tour we walked around the lakes toward St. Kevin’s Cell.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the budget conscious, the park is free (the fee is for the monastic site) and is beautiful.  It makes a nice break from driving and I would recommend it as a nice place to stop after first arriving in Ireland if you are headed to the southwest of Dublin.

Here are some of the views from the park:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next stop — Kilkenney.  Only, we ended up in the parking lot for the upper lake.  When I asked the fellow at the gate if he knew which way for Kilkenny he replied, “No, but I’ll ask this fella.”  It turns out, “this fella” was his father who then led us with his car to the correct road.  It had to be well out of his way and was certainly well beyond the call of duty!

We made it to our B&B in Kilkenny exactly at 6 PM (check in is from 4-6).  It’s called Dunromin B&B and it is lovely.  After arriving, we immediately walked down to the river to eat.  We ended up at Langston’s (Val from Dunromin’s recommendation) and were satisfied.  We had a lot of food and 3 drinks for €38.

We had a VERY full day and are both exhausted after arriving early this morning.  I think that the time outside helped us through our initial jet leg though.  I can’t wait for tomorrow.

Day 1 Ireland Itinerary:

Breakfast in Dublin (20 minute drive from Airport)

Avoca (1:30 drive from Dublin)

Glendalough (40 minutes from Avoca)

Dunromin B&B – Kilkenny (2 hour drive from Glendalough)

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