ABC (Another Bloody Castle!)

After having our own walk around Dublin we were soon on the bus again for another look at the city. Molly Malone selling her seafood was enshrined in this sculpture in a Dublin street. There were not a lot of tall buildings in Dublin and also very few shops with protective verandas keeping off any rain. Luckily for us the weather was fine but cool.

Then another bloody castle, this time it was Dublin Castle. The guide was great and filled us in on some of the history of the Republic Of Ireland. The Brits had sure given the Irish a hard time! Some of the afternoon was then free to look around more shopping areas of the city. Trish had a cider while I enjoyed a Guinness at the pub near our hotel. That night we attended a show with plenty of Irish Dancing and a wonderful Irish comedian. The photo appears below.


We were up early next morning for our trip to Killarney and around The Ring Of Kerry. We stopped at the Irish National Horse Stud and saw the Vintage Crop grazing peacefully. The horse had won the Melbourne Cup back in the '90's. From there we pushed on to spend the night at Killarney on the south west corner of Ireland. An evening meal in the Pub there completed a long day. I had developed quite a head cold too. Today Killarney is a tourist town and reminded us of any touristy spot, souvenir shops and plenty of eateries with 'specials' for the visitors. It was a bit disappointing really.

The weather for trip around the Ring Of Kerry was cold and windy! This can be a pretty stark part of the world with cold rocky mountains, pebbly beaches, beautiful lakes and many picturesque small Irish villages. The beach seen here is one of Ireland's most popular summer holiday spots. The scenery can be beautiful and this spot was one favored by Charlie Chaplin as a wonderful spot for him to get away from it all. It was not my 'ideal' though!


The photo above is view from a mountain pass back down towards the coast. The wind blew so hard here it was nearly impossible to stand still to take a photo! Below is a photo of one of the beautiful lakes found near Killarney.


Tomorrow we were off to visit Blarney Castle and eventually stay at Waterford the night and to see the glassworks there. Hopefully the weather will improve a little!