The Ring of Kerry

Today was a very relaxing, entertaining and educational day. We spent the entire day exploring the Ring of Kerry. You can learn much more about the Ring of Kerry at http://ringofkerrytourism.com/, but it is basically a giant loop that you drive around. It takes you through many small, quaint, little towns but the main attraction is the stunning views of the beautiful landscape. Mountains, the ocean, grazing sheep in the fields, huge cliffs of stone and beautiful trees, flowers and foliage. It was exactly what you have read about in books and what you have seen in movies. It was so beautiful, I felt like I was on a Hollywood movie set.

The weather is so interesting in Ireland.  In 8 hours you can experience hard rain, sunshine, fog, mist, sunshine again and then a chilly breeze. You get it all! As quick as the rain comes, it disappears again. You are constantly putting your jacket on and then taking it off again.

We made several stops in towns to do a little shopping. Woolen items are extremely popular and made of very high quality. We also stopped to take in the views and take pictures.

Lunch was at this small pub that overlooked the ocean. We ate our soup and sandwiches while watching the green hills and water. Our tour guide was sure to let us know how fortunate we were. In most cases, it is too foggy to really appreciate the view for what it is.  It just so happened that while we were there it was sunny.

Along our route, the tour guide told us about many stories of Ireland's history. What was of particular interest to me was the potato famine. Millions of people either died or immigrated to the United States. How do millions of people die when they live on an island? Why couldn't they fish to survive?  She explained that unless you were a wealthy land owner, you had no rights to fish, hunt, gather berries or plant any other food for yourself. What was perfect about the potatoes is that they provided an extensive amount of produce in a very small space. The potatoes were also very nutritious.  When you take them out of the equation (the potatoes suffered from a disease that killed all the plants in the entire country) people could not survive. To increase the economy, the government started exporting their other food sources like beef and sheep. Starving workers were loading up food to send out of the country when they had starving children at home. The government didn't care and other countries turned a blind eye. It was a very dark and sad time in Irish history.

Something else about Ireland that I find so interesting are their tiny roads. They have extremely small lanes with NO shoulders. Trees and bushes literally brush against our coach as we drive by. Sometimes when 2 large vehicles meet either other on the highway, one of them has to pull as far over as they can so the other can get by. Everyone drives very small, economic vehicles. It's nothing like the Escalades, Tahoes, Expeditions and Navigators that you see in the states. In fact, it's a rare occasion when you see a 4x4 pickup.

This evening we walked through the town of Killarney and shopped at their quaint little stores. Fish and chips are a popular menu item as well as lamb stew and Shepperd's Pie at the pubs and restaurants. What is the most popular item that shows up on your plate in several different forms?  You guessed it!  POTATOES!  It's not uncommon to receive mashed AND fried potatoes served on the same dinner plate.

I am really looking forward to tomorrow.  We will be off to visit a real working farm in the countryside. Tune to hear all about it!

Ray, Michael, Penny and Jodi by the ocean and mountains.