Killarney, Ring of Kerry, and Tatler Jacks

Hi Everyone!

I just got back from my weekend in Killarney!  Erik, Allison and I stayed at a great Hostel right in town and we did the Ring of Kerry Tour which was beautiful despite the rain.

I had my first and probably only pint of Guinness at a bar called Tatler Jacks.  We listened to live folk music that was very Irish.  I'm sure we looked like tourists lol.

We did a paid tour that the hostel offered at a really good price.  A van came and picked us up around 10am.  The ring of Kerry is very long so the van was a good idea.  We stopped at some scenic spots for a chance to take photos.  As well as a town or two.  One town was called Bog Village and Allison and I found the Bog Pony!  Apparently this Pony is famous in Ireland...we have no idea why.  Each stop was beautiful and we could not pull ourselves away from the van windows for very long.  

The Ring of Kerry is home to the largest mountain peak in Ireland.  It had many hills, rivers, and lots of coastline.

The ocean was amazing!  The cliffs and coastline seemed endless and the water was very rough on account of the weather.  We stopped at this beach and got to walk down to the water.  The beach was filled with these beautiful stones and pebbles.  Erik, Allison and I each got some.  I picked up about 10 and all I could think was how Tammy would love to see all these stones!  Don't worry I saved some for you Tammy!

However Sunday was not as successful due to the large amounts of rain that lasted throughout the day.  We tried to walk down to Ross Castle (the main attraction in the National Park in Killarney) but due to the rain we couldn't find a bike rental place so we had to walk.  We walked what seemed like hours until we were completely soaked that our shoes were filled.  We decided to stop at a B&B to ask how much further it was.  We came to find out that the castle was closed for the day.  The people were so nice, however, that they agreed to drive us into town!  We were so happy after such a miserable day.  Once we got back to the hostel we got dry and headed back to Cork.  We might try and go back in the spring for maybe a day trip and try the national park again.

Next Saturday Allison, Erik, and I are going to Blarney Castle and are going to kiss the Blarney stone!