June 23

June 23rd (sunny, cloudy and cool)
Left Dingle for a nice ride along the Dingle Bay and it really wasn’t “a long way to Tipperary” after all. We stopped at Cahil and walked around the 13th century Norman castle and had our lunch on the side of the main road. The roads in Ireland are very narrow and do not lend themselves to bicycle riding. No one compares to the Dutch when it comes to being bicycle-friendly.
Besides the bright-coloured, freshly painted homes, sheep and cows and never-ending green fields of grass, bushes and trees, Ireland has not really done it for either of us. To take the ferry from Scotland to Ireland and return to Wales, the cost including camping and petrol was well over $1,000 Cdn. This does not include the cost of the round-trip cost to England from France which is another $500 Cdn. This explains the lack of campgrounds. Even though they are still $35/night, they have not been very well cared for. Scotland was a much more interesting country to drive through as mentioned before.
With only 4.5 million people and so much land, there is building everywhere. There also seems to be a fair amount of cash flow and employment seems to be good. We see the children engaged in games and activities that we were at the same age, not what our children (in North America) are doing, i.e. video games, etc. etc. We believe it is a more family-oriented society per se.
Besides an abundance of road-killed wild rabbits and other little creatures, a fox ran in front of the van today. We see a fair amount of deer and of course, the sheep still appear on the road out of nowhere.
Pulled into Kilkenny at 2 pm and after getting settled, walked through the most well-restored medieval town in Ireland. While in the grounds of the Kilkenny castle, we talked with a couple of young guys who were carrying hurling bats and were informed of a tournament being played. Although we were pretty hungry (and thirsty), we walked over to the grounds and were educated about the unusual sport of hurling. This game is only played in the Tipperary district of Ireland and is especially played in Kilkenny. Very rough sport I must say, but interesting. Girls also play, but it is called “camogie”. I certainly know a couple of girls in my life that would have been KILLERS in this game. It is played with 15 players on a very large pitch and boy do they swing that bat. The only protection is for the head.
Came home around 6 pm after a great afternoon, had a goulash and mashed potato dinner, played our usual cards and crashed around 10. We decided to just drive through Dublin, and catch the ferry to Holyhead, Wales tomorrow. We have seen enough Irish pubs, hotels, shops and churches and are ready for a change.