Raffle Travelers Heard From, Part 3

As you get ready to slog off to another soul-killing day at work this morning, Rich and Beth, our 2007 raffle winners of the trip for two to Ireland would like you to know that they have a another day of eating, drinking, sight-seeing and music ahead of them. Why, it's like living in Irish Fest.

Sorry for the delays in getting this post to you, but we've not had internet service since we left Limerick. So, we'll be just a few days behind and catch up as we go along.

Saturday started out as a complete opposite of Friday - cool and rainy. We left Limerick and headed for Adare, a sleepy little village where many of the homes and shops still have thatched roofs. As it was only a few miles from our previous nights stay, we arrived around 8:30 for a very short visit. We toured Holy Trinity Abbey Church, a Trinitarian abbey that dates from the 13th century. Simply beautiful.

From Adare we traveled southwest through Tralee and out to the Dingle Peninsula. Jim, our driver, gave us numerous opportunities for photo op's, including a stop at the beehive huts. These stone huts were used by monks on retreat. Made completely of stone, they were shaped like beehives. As they are located on private property, we weren't allowed to get closer than the road for taking pictures (although for 2 Euro, the owner of the house would let us walk up to them).

We traveled out along the coast, and into the town of Dingle, where we stopped for lunch and some shopping. For lunch we enjoyed toulouse sausages with onion gravy over mashed potatoes - bangers and mash!. And yes, we never missed an opportunity for a meal, especially the local fare.

Jim filled us in on the history of the area, the struggles between the English and the Irish, land ownership, local customs and language (Dingle is one area where Gaelic is still spoken rather exclusively.

We then traveled back the peninsula and on to Killarney, where we made our stay for the next two nights. A street festival was going on Saturday and Sunday, so we were able to take in the sights and sounds of local musicians and dancers. The first night in Killarney we went to one of the local establishments, Danny Mann's, where we enjoyed a pint and the music of The Molly Maguire's, a four person band. Good food, good drink, good company, and a great time so far.

Thanks again, Irish Fest, for the trip of a lifetime.
Rich and Beth

Just wait 'til it's you out there next year. Irish Fest raffle tickets are $5 each, or 5 for $20 will be available during Irish Fest.