Colorful Kinsale to Pleasing Portmagee

We chose to spend the night of September 1, 2021, in the colorful southern coastal town of Kinsale. I wanted to see the brightly painted buildings of the small port city, and that was about the extent of what we did in the few hours we were there. For dinner, we enjoyed the traditional Irish soda bread and tomato basil soup. Soda bread is made without yeast, but as the name implies, calls for baking soda as a leavning agent. This give it a distinctive texture and taste, being a bit heavy for my preference. Don't the bright colors of Kinsale just fill your soul with joy?  It reminded me a bit of the island of Burano in Venice, Italy. (See here)

The following morning we set off to tour Blarney Castle and it's gorgeous gardens.  The castle ruins are interesting, with the main draw being to experience kissing the Blarney Stone, and being endowed with the "gift of eloquence" (or "gab", as most would say). The process is a bit unnerving, as you must be lowered down to the stone and kiss it while hanging upside down. Being in the final phases of the Covid 19 epidemic, we were required to wear masks and show vaccination cards throughout the first half of our vacation in Ireland. Perhaps that's why I don't seem to have acquired the gift - although I do believe Bob has! The traditions surrounding the history of the Blarney Stone are numerous, and it was fun to read the colorful panels which explained many of these theories.

The real showstopper here were the gorgeous castle grounds. Magical legends abound throughout the garden, which include such features as a poisonous plant garden, water and fern gardens, the stones of the Seven Sisters, a druidic sacrificial altar, a hermit’s cell, a witch’s kitchen and more.

The Blarney estate include the Blarney House, built in 1444, and is the home of Sir Charles Colthurst who has expanded and enhanced the gardens and maintains the estate.  It was gorgeous, as you can see from the photos below.  We had lunch at the carriage house before leaving the estate.

We began our drive toward Killarney, to begin our tour of  the southern half of "The Ring of Kerry". Our hotel reservation for the night was in Portmagee. The plan was to visit Killarney on our return, and our first stop was a short hike to Torc Waterfall, which was pretty, but not much to write home about. Moll's gap, and Ladies' View was a spectacular place to see the beauty of Ireland. A cute little church was nestled in the mountains overlooking the valley below.

Staigue Fort was the first of many "Ring Forts", which we discovered in Ireland.  It was fascinating to consider that these walls were originally erected in 300-400 A.D. as a stronghold for a king or ruler. What a beautiful location for the fort.

Portmagee was a welcoming little town.  It likely survives because it is the launching site for visitors wishing to tour the island of Skellig Michael, one of only two UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the Republic of Ireland. We enjoyed some delicious seafood from Fishman's while sitting outside near the harbor, while dreaming of what tomorrow would bring.