VoM2: Ireland Tour South And West

So far, my tour is going pretty well. It’s actually kind of fun to have somebody else handle all the logistics for a few days. I’m especially enjoying the fact that there are no plans in the evenings, so I can easily have my alone time.

We left Dublin yesterday on a 7am train (Ugh!) and pulled into Cork before 10am. We transferred to a bus which took us on a quick tour of the city (nothing great) then to the castle at Blarney (famous, yes, but also nothing great). From there we went to Cobh for a very interesting visit in the heritage center’s exhibits about the famine and emigration (both really, really big deals!) and the Titanic (which made it’s last stop there). Two more little trains got us to Killarney, a nice town to spend a nice evening.

This morning, we loaded onto a bus at the reasonable hour of 10am and drove around the “Ring of Kerry.” The driver was very informative, and didn’t try to be “funny” (if you know what I mean), so the day was nice. I can’t say I was particularly struck by the scenery, but that may be from the combination of the less-than-perfect haziness and the fact that I’ve so recently had such stunning views in Wales and Cornwall.

Nevertheless, what little I’ve experienced of non-Dublin Ireland so far is quite pleasant. The tour continues tomorrow… Stay tuned!