On day 5 we continued our stay in killarney.. our driver had us to breakfast and on the bus quite early because it would be another full day! As we pulled away form the hotel we were onto the street that ran through the town... as you can see Killarney is quite a lovely area!
and very soon we were out among the rolling hills of county Kerry..
the view from inside our comfortable coach...
about 30 minutes later we could see the gap of Dunloe ahead... this is one site I was so hoping to visit.... I believe it was used as a scene in Leap Year, the movie... I always told Lynn I wanted to see that very spot!... and now we were nearby!!
The serenity of Ireland and grazing sheep is just exactly what one expects to see in reland!One notices too, that trees only exist in ireland becasue someone planted them The mountains are basicly completely bare of trees!
Right at the narrow entrance to the gap of Dunloe,, a road in which lur bus couldn't travel.. we stopped at Moriarty's.
THis is a stock photo pof this great place to purchase Irish treasures.. Many very stylish sweaters were purchased here.
And I purchased a beautiful print of Dunloe Gap.
Then more meadows
and just as suddenly as you can say jackie robinson our guide said.. dont miss these standing stone on the left... I had been scanning every meadow and field for historic structures and almost missed this one.
We entered into a bog land , low flat and wet... this was where peat was dug to for heating homes in Ireland!
By mid-morning we had a rrived at the Bogland heritage park where we could see how the early Irish lived.Below is a stack of peat piled beside a cottage.. peat is very lightwwight like charcoal.
This area has a summer fair celebrating the oldways and it is called Puck Fair named after a famous billy goat!
You have to admit is a handsome fellow!
a typical Irish cottage with thatched roof
ruin of the village church
inside an Irish barn
the forge
and following this we were all invited over to the tavern next door for a bit of something to take off the chill!
Such a quaint establishment and the proprietors and local regulars were so friendly!
And so I enjoyed ( truly) my first Irish coffee... Very delicious!
We sat right there and enjoyed the ambiance..
all too soon it was time to depart for parts unknown but quite an adventure awaited us!
