Cahirsiveen to Dingle

    This morning, after another fantastic Irish breakfast, we worked with Kathleen to straighten out the whole voucher confusion. She was very helpful and let us use her phone to get things worked out with the Irish Travel folks. She also let us call Christina to let her know that all was worked out. What a nice lady!! 

    We left and today was planned a short travel distance day, but planned for a full day of sightseeing. We have only traveled a third of the Ring of Kerry and we also wanted to see the Killarney National Park. From there the plan called for us to drive up to Tralee and enter the Dingle Peninsula for the short trip to our next B&B in the town of Dingle. We were here on our last trip and we really love this part of Ireland. The views are always spectacular and the people are so friendly. 

    In the small town of Waterville, there stands a tribute to Charlie Chaplin. Seems that he stayed here frequently during his lifetime. 

    One of the things that is interesting is the stone fences. There is so much rock that you have to find something for it once you’ve cleared the land for farming. The answer was to make fences with it. All through the Ring, you can see patchwork hills, separated with stone fencing. 

    And of course, the locals always come to check you out if you stop by the side of the road...

    The National Park is magnificent, even this early in the season. The trees are beginning to bud out and many flowers are in bloom. Tucked away in the Park is Torc Falls. This is a very popular tourist site in the summer and pictures of the falls are frequently seen in travel books and brochures. 

    From here we took the short drive into the Dingle Peninsula. Here there are more spectacular cliffside panoramas leading up to the fishing village of Dingle. 

    The village is a popular tourist site in the summer and a hub of fishing activity year round. The brightly painted shops are quaint and the pub food is excellent!

    This part of Ireland prizes its Irish heritage and Gaelic is the predominant language spoken. 

And its translation...

    Just outside of town begins the Slea Head drive. This road follows the Peninsula coastline and returns along the base of the mountains to Dingle. It was cloudy and overcast when we drove it, but it just adds some mystique to the views. 

    Then, as is our habit this trip, we settled down in the commons room and read until long after sunset. We enjoyed the views and the warmth of the fireplace. We also took some time and chatted with others who were staying the night and had come down to visit.