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Geo: 52.0579, -9.50747
Today we just took a long drive around the Ring of Kerry. It's just this famous drive that lots of tourists do- it's very pretty and takes you along the coast past mountains and cliffs, green hills, rocking regions, forests, lakes, you name it we probably drove through it. Okay... maybe no deserts... but you get the idea. We didn't take as many pictures since there was a lot of driving involved... there's also some pictures of stereotypical Irish towns and stores (I just love the architecture).
Our tour guide also told us about the Travelers (I know a lot about them already, but I'll recap since my last trip). I find them pretty interesting- they're modern day gypsies in Ireland. Have you seen the movie Snatch with Brad Pitt? His character is a Traveler, but they use the name "Pikey" in the movie- which is the derogatory term. And he plays a pretty damned accurate portrayal of them. They travel around in groups in caravans (lil RVs), they do speak really fast and with such a thick accent you can't understand them, they will swindle you, and they are great boxers (especially bare-knuckled). They're completey
Ring of Kerry Drive
Me ridin King Puck the Goat first thing in the mornin like a champdiscriminated against in Ireland. Even our guide said that he hated to admit he was prejudiced, but he was... it's just the feeling he's gotten from the Travelers he has met. He thinks that, like every society, there's good and bad people, ya know? So the bad people just give them a bad rap for the most part. But the stories we hear are pretty bad, ya know? Ripping off poor old people, stealing, etc. We haven't met any personally, but we've seen the caravans on the side of the road. They tend to travel in large groups from place to place within the country. The kids don't really ever finish school since they're constantly moving. They have little if any healthcare access. They marry very young and produce alot of children. (Keep in mind, these are all things I have been told by other Irish.. not based on any hardcore facts that I have). Anyway, I just find it very interesting that the Irish have their own group of people that are segregated from larger society (like we've done in the past in the States with various groups), and it's still going on. They've tried to assimilate the Travelers
back into regular society, but for the most part, they just don't want to. They'd rather be their own group.
Anyway, it's off to find dinner and drinking for tonight. Only three days til St. Paddy's Day!
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Eric
non-member comment
What the Puck