The Dingle Peninsula

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I set the alarm for 9am this morning and then turned it off when I woke up tired. I did get out of bed around 10:30am so that’s a pretty good start for the day. I could hear the water running for forever this morning and then when I go to climb in the shower, no stinking hot water! So if you ever wonder, you now know why I am wearing a hat in my pictures today. I’ll have to get up super early in the morning in order to get a shower. Two days in a row is a No Go.

I think we actually made it out of the house well before noon today, probably since Robert and I didn’t have to take a time-consuming shower. We took the bubble car today with Matt at the wheel. The Dingle Peninsula is just north of where we are staying so it was a fast and easy drive. Dingle is a gorgeous area though. I think that it is just as beautiful, if not more so, than the Ring of Kerry. At least we had a lot more beach access to the ocean. On the Ring of Kerry, I kept seeing the beautiful shoreline but we couldn’t drive anywhere close to it.

The first stop today was the town of Dingle. If we look across the bay from us, we can see the village of Inch. If you travel a little farther west, you reach the town of Dingle. We parked the car and walked all over the town, up and down the streets. Here there were two shops that were clearly designated internet cafés. You would think in this day and age of the globetrotting tourist that they would give us direct access to the internet. I tried to hang back today and not lead us about town but it is very difficult when I have people who stand at a corner and don’t know where to go. Hell, just go wherever you want to go! While I enjoy the company, it can be different with so many different personalities. I know that next week I have all the time in the world to just spend a whole day in town doing nothing but browsing through all the little shops so I’m not as worried. On the other hand, I have Robert pouting for some reason or another.

I am looking forward to driving myself next week. Robert and Matt have been doing all the driving so far because I don’t want to listen to the men whine about my driving, or vice versa. It does seem to be getting easier to navigate the streets and highways though. When we head to Dublin tomorrow, we’re taking both cars so each couple can pretty much do whatever they want.

All in all, Dingle Peninsula is a great strip of land and we didn’t even cover the majority of it. We pretty much followed the signs for the Slea Head Drive and it paid off well. Along side a winding road we came across an "old homestead" called beehive huts. They are just fascinating! Completely built of stone with no mortar to hold the rocks in place. We just made it to the Blasket Heritage Centre before they were closing their doors for the season. I wish we had had time to fully explore the place because it was full of information about the history and culture of the Irish people. It was full of exhibits, a theatre, descriptive videos, mosaic art, etc. We got to walk down to the beach at several Strands and I collected up a little paper sack with some sand in it to add to my scrapbook. I have collected sand from each of the different countries that I have visited, with the exception of Iraq and Kuwait.

We made our way back into Dingle for dinner and ate at Murphy’s Bar Dingle which was very good and the price was VERY reasonable. I had the potato and broccoli soup with brown bread and Robert ordered the dressed cheeseburger which came with bacon. We had the garlic bread with cheese for an appetizer and I saved my piece to go with my soup. Robert wants to add that his slab of bacon resembled a piece of fish with a head, dorsal fin, and tail. It took him some renovation and removal of several layers to be able to fit the burger into his mouth. I guess they mix their hamburger meat with onions and other ingredients before grilling it up. My soup came as a puree which is the norm for soups here. The service was pretty great, although they did forget to bring me the bowl of soup but I can understand how things can get missed, especially when you order an appetizer as a main course. Even in a pub, you get several courses.

Afterwards, we stopped by an ATM so I could pull out some Euros to use at the internet café and we walked over to the Valley Forge Internet Café which ran about €4 an hour, in 15 minute increments. The connection was fast though and we could print as well for 20¢ a page. I noticed on the way out that they only charged 10¢ a minute to call the United States. Damn, I’ve been paying about €10 for a calling card that only gets me 21 minutes! I posted yesterday’s blog, checked my email real quick, not a lot there, and researched a hostel in Dublin where we are going to try to stay tomorrow night. Their online booking system wasn’t working so let’s hope they have rooms available when we get there. The hotels want an arm and a leg and we just need a bed to sleep on. We are headed for the Marlborough Street Hostel in Dublin (www.marlboroughhostel.com) if you’re interested, lol.

I also researched some geocaches in Dublin and prepared two of our travel bugs to be dropped off while we’re there and they can race each other home. I’ll post more details on them once they are set in motion. Our Rino GPS FINALLY picked up some coordinates today and we located the map that covers the Macgillycuddy’s Reeks. I am planning to hike to the top of one of the mountains where there is a geocache hidden. It is supposed to take approximately 4-7 hours to hike the 7 mile round trip but I think it will be well worth it!

The ride home was uneventful. We played the travel game I bought yesterday for the kids, it is called Discovering Ireland. I figured that I could pass it along to Genivieve and her boys if they end up making the trip over here. I have been keeping my eye out for the different things that would interest their family and their tastes. Anyway, I didn’t end up winning at that game either. We tried to play another round of Phase 10 but Robert got a little pissy so we just folded our cards and called it a night. I think he’ll be staying sober for the rest of the trip or trying to hitchhike back home across the Atlantic Ocean. Speaking of which, I wonder how many countries are bordered by the Atlantic Ocean. I have now been on the beaches of Georgia, Connecticut, and Florida and see the Atlantic. Now I’m on the beaches of Ireland and it’s still the same Ocean, how crazy can that be!

Tomorrow we’re off to see the sights of Dublin and much more. I think Robert and I will be returning to the house on Saturday evening while Matt and Billie will be flying out of the Shannon Airport late Saturday morning. We’re taking our two-way radios so we should have the ability for everyone to explore and see what they want. My list of things to see includes the Guinness brewery, the Jameson Distillery, Hard Rock Café (yippie!), the Book of Kells in the Trinity College, and hit a few geocaches; just to name a few.

If anyone wants me to bring them home anything, please post a comment and I’d be happy to!

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Photos

Beehive Huts
For the low low fee of 2 Euros, we got to step back in time!

Fungi the Dingle Dolphin
The story goes that this dolphin wandered into the bay of Dingle and never left so the town adopted him.

The Bubble Car
No blog is complete without descriptors and their pictures. Here is Matt and Billie with their compact Hertz rental, the bubble car.

2 Suitcases or 1 Robert
And in the boot of the bubble car, you can fit two small suitcases or 1 crazy Robert.

Dingle Peninsula
There were so many beautiful spots along the Slea Head Drive. I took almost 200 pictures. Thank God for digital cameras!

Dingle Peninsula 2
The same vista point looking south.

A Strand Along Dingle
The areas leading down to the beach are called strands. I can't remember the name of it right now but I'll look it up on the map later.

Army Strong
I like this shot of Robert standing on the cliffs overlooking the Strand with the sun backlighting him.

Traffic
This little fellow was wandering the roads as we cruised along.

Waterway
In one area, the stream just follows straight across the road and you slow down for it!