Ugh.

I think I hate blogging. I've been trying to do this for days but have obviously gotten nowhere. I always have good ideas in my head but they never come out right on paper. Or on internet. Or whatever.

So Ireland. I should blog about it before the memories slip from my brain. Let's see.....we started off in Dublin. Delays, long lines for taxis, and the origin of 'weee!' Stayed at the fancy schmancy Hilton north of Dublin. Spent Saturday in the city. I found it to be rather boring. Trinity College, the Book of Kells, and a really upscale-looking bar. The rest is a blur. Not because I took advantage of Irelands best asset but because I didn't find the city to be all that exciting. In the evening we ventured off to Malahide Castle. Saw Radiohead play on the grounds of the estate. First time seeing them and I was amazed. Will be seeing them again Tuesday and Wednesday, weee! Wandered the grounds at night and made a note to return there the following day.

Which brings us to...the following day. Rental cars in the form of red VW Golfs. Nuvi our trusty GPS was the third person in our relationship for the week. Recalculating. Spent Sunday with Kim and Ezra. Can't find Newgrange and Knowth. Finally succeed and take two tours. TTV photo fun while waiting for the bus. Back to Malahide. Explore in daylight. Peacocks, beautiful gardens and (mostly) yummy smells. Has anyone else smelled the tree that smells like male semen? Anyway, the floral TTV photo above was taken here. On to Howth. Felt like I was in a larger version of Port Jeff. Climbed a bit, then returned KimEx to the airport.

Out of the Dublin vicinity. Next stop: Kilkenny. Bad parking but had a 4-person room to ourselves. Cute cafe for dinner. You can't drive on this street...or can you? Kilkenny beer on a Kilkenny street. Wandered more castle grounds the next morning. Drive away. Rock of Cashel. Tour guide who blamed his tired voice on his hurling match the day before. Is it a match? Southern Ireland likes their hurling. Hore Abbey? We're there. Wander off to find it. Deserted ruins and I was much more impressed with that than I was with the Rock of Cashel. Off again. It's a long way to Tipperary. But its not worth the drive. Southbound towards Cork. Detours made possible thanks to Nuvi. Found us the Moor Abbey, not to be confused with the Hore. Ireland back roads are awesome. They're mostly narrow and sometimes not paved. Some have an awning of trees, some allow you to see for miles. Ireland is much more green than I expected. Apparently it looks a lot like New Zealand. Which makes me want to go there more.

Spend the evening in hostel in Cork. Not so easy to find, and not as lucky as last night, as we're sharing with 4 others. Serves the purpose however. Make a last minute evening trip to Blarney Castle. I was too scared to lean over and kiss the stone. They make you lay on your back and lean backwards. Really high off the ground. And your head dangles down. No thank you. Castle was pretty however.

Next morning and we're off to Baltimore, a south eastern fishing village. Didn't live up to expectations, so off again towards the Ring of Kerry. End up at Killarney National Park. Wasn't expecting it to be so big. Where is the visitors center? All I know is that the views are amazing. Mountains, lakes, waterfalls, and bus loads of tourists, mostly American. Why is Ireland overrun with Americans? I think this is the day we didn't eat anything but Pavlova until the early evening. Yummm. Ireland isn't known for their great food but they sure do know how to work their meringues. Topless woman on remote beaches with Kiwi graffiti. Red trail, blue trail or yellow trail? Finally decide that we needed to head in the direction of our bed and breakfast for the night in Waterville. Beautiful scenery on the way. Wish we could have explored the Ring of Kerry a bit more. Stopped for a scenic view or two, and made our way into Waterville, on the eastern coast. Met Breda, our super friendly host for the night. She may have been the nicest person ever. And she cooked us a yummy yummy breakfast the next morning. Can't ask for anything more.

And this is the end of this post for now. Will continue in the coming days. Maybe.