What day is this?

I had to ask what day it was. I think that is a good sign.

So Tuesday, our first stop was Blarney Castle. Yes, it was touristy, but something one does. Yes, we waited about 40 minutes to kiss a stone, or at least I did, since the other two in my party thought it highly unsanitary. I used hand sanitizer on my lips when I finished. (Thought to self: what about a chapstick that disinfects?) But I'm a fundraiser - any help I can get, even from a rock, is a good thing.

So here are a few shots from Blarney:

We then had a pleasant lunch at a pub in town and hit the road again. We had to drive to Kinsale, down on the southern coast of Ireland. Distances here don't match up with distances at home. It may seem like a drive of 40-50 kilometers is no big deal for those of us used to interstate and wide roads. But here, that is another matter. There are no shoulders on the average road, so branches and vegetation are always hitting the left side of the car, my side, and I occasionally remind Vicki where that left curb is, or could be. Sometimes verbally, sometimes by snatching my arm away from the window, even though it is closed. Then there are the tractors, taking more than their half of the road, or the village streets, where parking already takes one lane and everyone takes turns weaving in and out of limited space. Not a calming experience. But Vicki is handling it. 

So our plans were to make multiple stops, but we were thinking about timing and we buzzed by several of the towns we intended to visit. We diid stop at the 12 Arch Bridge:

but mostly moved on until the Dromberg Stone Circle, a scaled down version of Stonehenge. It is dated to at least the Bronze Age (11,000-8,000 B.C.). It is out in the middle of the countryside, and is definitely not touristy. Pretty hard to find, pretty hard to get to, but I thought it was well worth it.

This is the altar stone, on which one can find an item or two left for whatever reasons.

Last night, we made it to the Rock Hill B&B in Schull. As noted in the previous blog post, it was absolutely wonderful. Our host, Cornelia, welcomed us and poured us a glass of wine. We went into town for a special dinner and I made it well past my bedtime. 

This morning, I woke early, so I went out and walked until sunrise. 

There is an old church ruin and a large cemetery overlooking the water. 

There are gravesites within the walls of the old church.

And I saw a pheasant and rabbits on the way back.

So now, I sit and type, waiting for my kippers, drinking good Irish tea, and very glad to be here. If we could stay longer, I would want to. This place is wonderful.

Tuesday's checklist

✔️ Visit the English Market in Cork. Look at lamb liver and tripe and not throw up. 

✔️ Go to Blarney Castle, getting lost on the way. Look at Dan kiss the Blarney Stone (as if he needed help with the gift of gab). 

(This is Dan being held by the Blarney Stone dude. Someone actually gets paid to keep people from falling through the hole as they put their lips to a stone in a castle. This stone has just been kissed by who knows how many people carrying who knows what diseases.  Cody declined the honor of getting germicide, and I got vertigo just thinking about putting my head in that position.)

✔️ Cuss the Irish for not using fecking directional signs on their roads. 

✔️ Manage to drive without killing anyone. This includes rounding a very tight corner to see a truck not too far ahead of us in our lane. 

✔️ Book a KICK ASS B&B. (See Dan's photo.)

✔️ Take a photo of Cody being a dork: 

✔️ Enjoy a lovely three-course dinner with my two man dates. 

Too tired to blog, but...

I had to share a shot from our B&B tonight. We made our way from Cork to this place outside Schull, and it is fantabulous. This is the 180 view from the back yard/patio:

More to come tomorrow.

Dan