Rain in Killarney


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Europe » Ireland » County Kerry » Killarney
December 21st 2013
Published: December 21st 2013
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Yesterday I spent my last morning in Cork. I had just enough time to walk downtown to St. FinBarre's cathedral before going back to catch my train to Killarney. All told, the train ride was relatively short, and when I got to Killarney it was raining. Hard.

I had booked a hostel which was thankfully only a 3 minute walk from the train station. Upon ringing the doorbell, I was greeted by the host, Martin - a young guy with a mohawk and a thick Polish accent, not exactly what I expected to see in Ireland. The hostel itself is very cozy, with a woodstove and dim lighting in the main room - very rustic and good for relaxing. As of checking in time, I had my own 8-bed room to myself! The rain didn't discourage me from walking about downtown.

Killarney is significantly smaller than Cork. It reminds me of quaint little towns found around the edges of National Parks in the US. Coincidentally, downtown Killarney is located less than 3 kilometers from Killarney National Park. After returning from my walk, during which I was successful in obtaining a loaf of Irish soda bread, I discovered that I had several new roommates. Two recent graduates of UCLA in engineering, a med student from Quebec, and a father & son from Ausralia had all moved in during my escapade. We all spent nearly three hours sitting beside the woodstove, conversing and drinking tea.

Later in the night, we ventured out to a town venue that had live traditional music, which was EXCELLENT. Think "stereotypical Irish pub music" and that's what it was. The band was composed of a guitarist, an accordian player, and a guy playing the bodhran (Irish hand drum). Traditionals tunes were played while the locals made merry and often danced and jigged in the middle. It was my most classic Irish experience so far.

My plan for today was to visit Killarney National Park. To rent a bike from the hostel owner is only 10 Euro for the day. I set off, expecting rain, but went undeterred, as I was prepared for rain. Not five minutes into my ride the rain began to POUR down. Due to all of the rain during the previous day, many of the paths were flooded. I could ride through some, but others were too deep. And waterproof boots are only good if the water can't come in the top, otherwise they become very effective at retaining water, not unlike a bucket.

Despite the water and several wrong turns, I did get to see some of the National Park. The Park centers around three large lakes. On the shores of the largest lake is Ross Castle, built sometime in the late 15th century. Most of the roads leading to the castle were flooded, and the castle itself was closed, but I at least got to walk through the outer walls. Most of the land on either side of the paths is composed of either bogs or marshy grasslands. Several red deer, many sika deer (originally introduced from Japan), ravens, mute swans, and a great blue heron were among the wildlife that I saw.

My highlight for the day was Muckross Abbey. In the southern part of the National Park, there is an area along the lakeshore where stands the Muckross House, a very ornate mansion from the 1860s. A few kilometers from this is Muckross Abbey. The Abbey was built in the 1440s and was inhabitat by Franciscan monks for a couple hundred years. It has not been rebuilt or maintained, meaning that only the stonework remains, all wooden roofs are long gone. Some staircases and hallways are very dark, and I was the only person walking through the Abbey in the rain. It was a very peaceful, yet eerie feeling. The entire Abbey is surrounded by a graveyard with several hundred headstones. Though I saw a few from the 1600s, most were from the last half of the 20th century, with some even from the last 10 years. Thankfully, the sun finally did come out. This made the view of the mountains surrounding the lakes even more spectacular. I revisted the Abbey in the rain, and was able to take my pictures without having to fear for my camera getting wet. All good things must come to an end, and so naturally the sunshine gave way to pounding rain when I was not five minutes away from the hostel.

I'm sitting in from of the woodstove in my hostel as I type this. All of my clothing from today is spead out in front to dry. Tonight likely holds more traditional music downtown. And due to the wet and chilly nature of the day, I think I will head into town for a shepherd's pie. Tomorrow, I will likely go to a nearby Methodist Church with Sid and his son (the guys from Australia) for an early morning service and then catch a train for my final destination in Ireland: Dublin.

More cultural curiosities I have learned:
In Ireland, they say "half seven" or "half ten" instead of "7:30" or "10:30" when discussing time.
Pudding is NOT a chocolate or vanilla flavored sweetened dessert like in the US. Think more along the lines of jelly-like meat.

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22nd December 2013

:)
Sorry about all the rain. Glad you're making new friends. :) I really do enjoy reading the tales of your journey.

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