KILKENNY.  We were going to walk to the Butler Castle for one final look at this historic city before departing for Dublin.

Instead the drizzle and cold made us board the bus for the short trip to the Castle.  The imposing building was built-in the 13th century.  The occupants — the Butler family — were actually Fitzwalters, but they changed their name when the King named the patriarch of the family, Earl of Ormonde 600 years ago. Along with rental income from their thousands of tenants the Butlers also collected 10-percent of the price of all alcoholic beverages sold in all Ireland. The Butlers were socially conscious with their wealth and it is said were loved by the populace.  However, the family’s nobility was placed “in abeyance” in the mid-20th century when no more males were born to inherit the title of Earl of Ormonde. The docents prohibited taking pictures while inside. But the formal garden in the rear sits on some of the property’s 21 hectares.  We then took the bus to Dublin for the final leg of the tour, and my first walking tour was to see St. Steven’s Green.

DUBLIN – SOME THOUGHTS WHILE SITTING A WHILE IN ST. STEVEN’S GREEN.  This is the same St. Steven’s Green, opened in 1663, in which so many of Ireland’s renowned writers and famous people have walked.

The park is wonderful to experience.  Flowers, shrubs, trees, small lagoons with ducks, swans and other fowl, fountains, and more.  All away from city noises and worry.

And then there are the statues of famous Irish personalities like Yeats, Joyce and others dotting the walkways in this park.  They are seemingly everywhere.  Some statues are old.  Others are newer.  Thus it has been since the park’s inauguration in the 17^th century.

However, there is something that is no longer here — the equestrian statue of the English King George II.  An article from the 1937 archives of the Irish Times newspaper reports that on the morning of May 13, 1937, “unknown persons” used TNT to destroy the bronze statue of King George II and his horse, parts of it landing 30 yards away.

The King and his horse had reigned over St. Steven’s Green from its place of honor at the center of the park since 1758 when Ireland was still under British rule.  Vandals had tried two other times unsuccessfully to destroy it, according to the Irish Times.   Back in 1919, a mere 3 years after the Easter Uprising by republicans against British rule, G.K. Chesterton visited Ireland and went for a stroll in St. Steven’s Green.  He wrote that tall trees and shrubs had been allowed to grow wild, obscuring the King’s statue from street view.  Today, in the circle where the King once ruled, I see hundreds of various kinds of flowers peacefully accepting the soft rain or swaying in the bright sunshine.

Yet, at the same time that he saw the King’s statue negligently obscured by plants, Chesterton was “moved with admiration and amusement” when he saw the bust of 19^th century Irish poet, James Clarence Mangan within plain sight.  Passersby, including children and families then, as now,  enjoyed the colorful scenery and fresh air.  Mangan (1803-1849), shall I repeat? was an Irishman.  The poet inspired Yeats and Joyce by his experimentation with verse forms, says the Writers’ Museum of Dublin.

So, in the meantime, I sit here under this tree, safe from falling rain, enjoying this wonderful, historic park.  And today, I know I can’t hope to understand the complexity of the Irish nature or its long struggles with invaders by just sitting in a park for a few hours.  But, anyway, today I relish the spirit of Ireland that seems to alternate between drizzly moody and brightly sunny.  And the natural beauty of St. Steven’s Green is here to sooth the constant transitions between dark and light.  And King George is nowhere in sight.

• Friday was a beautiful sunny day. Our destination was Kilkenny and so we took the N22 highway along the rolling hills — of “40 shades of green” as the song goes — of the southern part of the island. We first stopped in Cork, the second largest city of the country, County of Cork (colors, red and white), and in the province of Muenster.   And, while in Cork one MUST visit the Blarney Stone. The Stone is located at the top of a castle tower. You must walk up 122 very steep steps to get to it. Queen Elizabeth I first used the term “Blarney.” She was frustrated after hearing the McCarthy clan’s evasive answers to her questions. Today, it is said that to kiss the Blarney Stone is to become “eloquent.”  You also need not to be scared of heights!
• Here is how it looks from the inside of the Blarney Castle Tower.  These people have already climbed the 120 steps up the inside of the tower.

  

  
  

• We then travelled to Waterford where, yes, Waterford Crystal is expertly, artfully, and painstakingly made by master craftsmen who spend 15+ years in apprenticeship before being trusted to mold, blow, cut, etch, sand blast, and make perfect stylish, beautiful glass artifacts of all kinds. Utilitarian items, and then there are articles you can admire forever.

  

  
  

• From Waterford it was a short hop up the M9 highway to Kilkenny, a city where the infamous Statutes of Kilkenny were forced upon the Irish/Scandinavian peoples of Ireland in the 1300’s by the conquering Normans. The discriminatory laws consolidated the Norman lords’ control over the native Irish people. Today this historic town worries more about its success in the All-Ireland hurling games — a very Irish sport similar to lacrosse only the long stick has no net, just a paddle to carry the ball. Downtown Kilkenny is very much alive with fun and of course, tourists from all over the world.

  

• Our group was invited to Kyteler’s Pub to learn to play the Irish drum, the “BODHRAN.” Damien was our music teacher.
• And the Guinness and Smithwicks helped just a bit, but not much.

• Started the day at 9 am and promptly stopped for Irish Coffee and shopping at Macken of Ireland, Fossa, Killarney, where I found some T-shirts for grand-children and grand-nieces and nephews.   Then, as the clouds gathered, we took a quick group photo.
• The early morning was the driest part of the day.  As we started on the road, an Atlantic front came roaring in and quickly covered Ireland with fog, mist, drizzle, rain and cold.  So, the “Misty Isle” lived up to its name.  Our planned scenic tour of the Ring of Kerry turned into a splashy, foggy trip.
• Along the way, Guide Maria Burke told us how Ireland for many years heated its homes with peat by mining it from bogs as long bricks, left to dry in the open fields, and then — in the old days — sold from house to house by vendors from donkeys.  An entrepreneurial County Kerry man, his donkeys and dog, this day provided photo ops for passing tourists who eagerly jumped out into the rain to take pictures.
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• The Ring of Kerry was supposed to be next, and we did drive along the usually picturesque, bumpy, road, hoping for a break in the mist and rain but that did not happen.  So, back to the hotel.  I had time to attend Mass at the great Cathedral of Killarney.  August 15 is the Feast of the Assumption, a Roman Catholic Holy Day.   The drizzle stopped long enough for a brisk 10 minute walk to the Cathedral from the Hotel for the 6:15 pm Mass.  Following Mass we were able to finish the day with a hearty meal of roast beef and potatoes, and a toast to the Pope — for the Catholics among us — at the Killarney Towers Hotel restaurant, and a restful night.

• Left hotel on time, on the way to visit a sheep breeding farm whose owners like to tell how a working sheep farm works, debunk myths about today’s sheep farm in Ireland and share their secret about how to make the best scone in all Ireland. 
• We passed through Galloway where “Galloway Hookers” are brewed by a micro-brewery — just to be sure, that’s a BEER and incidentally also a type of Irish boat, so stop thinking what you thought Galloway Hookers were!
• Next, our attempt to view the breathtaking Cliffs of Maher didn’t come to much due to a persistent drizzle and fog.    
• So you can see what I WOULD HAVE seen, I took this picture of the official National Parks photo of the cliffs as displayed on the wall at the visitor’s center.  Couldn’t have done better myself.
• Ireland has a lot of historic castle ruins, some dating back to the 12th century.  They sit in open fields exactly where they have existed since Vikings, Danes, Normans, Anglo Saxons, etc., built them.  
• On the way, we also passed “Spanish Point” from where the Spanish Armada gathered and then departed on its fateful — and tragic — voyage which encountered gale force winds destroying ships and drowning many a Spanish sailor.  Those who survived, it is said, swam back to shore, married Irish/Celtic women and thus engendered what some call the “Black Irish.”
• We crossed the Shannon River estuary, landing on the shores of County Kerry (colors, Green and Yellow) and finally reached our destination in the Southwestern city, Killarney.  After a brief rest we set off for Molly Darcy’s Pub for Guinness and Galloway Hookers (look at my definition, earlier in this blog!), a tasty dinner and excellent musical and dancing entertainment. 

• Long morning ride on N-4 highway to Longsworth, for rest stop, coffee, and to change larger Euro notes to 1-Euro coins.
• On to Strokestown, where we viewed one of the 600 remaining “Great Houses” of 19th century Ireland.  The Lord of the manor here had somewhat difficult times with his thousands of tenants.  Magnificent living within the manor but squalid conditions for the tenants, brought to a climax 1864-67 during the Potato Famine.  The original Lord was shot to death one night.  Not exactly Downton Abbey…
• River Shannon and a river cruise while eating sandwiches, chips and enjoying the music two Irish musicians on board.  Swans on the river and peaceful countryside views.
• The Shrine of Our Lady of Knock.  The Mother of God appeared on the side of the church at Knock, County Mayo, about the time of great civil distress for Ireland.  Many persons saw her silent image.  Our Lady  was accompanied by St. Joseph and the Evangelist St. John.  Tens of thousands of people on the grounds.  Pope John Paul II visited here.
• Finally to rest at Ballina, at the beautiful “Downhill Hotel” in sylvan retreat area.  Fell asleep to the sound outside of a stream that feeds the Moy River.   The Moy river is known throughout Ireland for its bountiful fishing.

Breakfast at Ballsbridge Hotel.

The morning began with a 7am breakfast at the hotel.  The bus left at 8:30 am sharp.

Posted from WordPress – Frank Agraz

I write this as we pass over St John’s Island and the plane begins to increase altitude. We are beginning the long trek over the Atlantic. We have been flying 4 hours. Dinner was offered at about 5:45 Houston time, 10:45 Dublin time. From this point forward until I return I must live by Dublin time. So as I write this I am seated comfortably in my Business Class reclining seat flying at 667 mph toward Frankfurt. I slept about 2 hours but awoke to the loud whimpering of a 3-year-old girl (to the right) and loud protestations of a 6-year-old boy (to the left) screaming “I don’t want to go to sleep!” it is not yet 9 pm in the body clock of those two young Houstonians. The don’t appreciate yet the finer points of traveling halfway around the world in roughly 9 hours. Cabin lights are turned out now. One more observation. The graphic representation of the globe in front of me on the screen showing the flight of our vessel at 38900 ft altitude reminds me Europe lies at latitudes significantly closer to the North pole. I knew that but it shows up so plainly I had to say it. well it is now 2 am. Time to get some shut-eye.