Ok, I am just at the front by the entrance, but found a great little cafe that has free wifi! We have kissed the Blarney Stone and learned to play a little hurling ( video coming) and met wonderful people, but we are off to do more exploring. Heading towards Kilarney and Dingle areas.

It has been a long time since I have been to Ireland and I am enjoying sharing it with our child! It feels so strange to be in an English speaking country after 2 years away. Funny.

Now I know why they and the Brits are so sun starved though, in Spain, always on the terraces soaking up every ray like there is no tomorrow. The summer here is colder than the winter in Spain. LOL!

We got a peak of sun though this morning and had to laugh when our Irish friends got out their bathing suits to get some sun while we kept our sweatshirts on! Soon the clouds rolled back and ruined their fun, but we all had a good giggle.

Love the music, people and the green!

Hi WT! I am Irish, but have never kissed the Blarney Stone. But I have only been to Ireland twice - really need to go again and see more. Have a great time!

We did not have the time for the Blarney Stone, but expect you to have a great time in Dingle and Killarney.

I am English and remember taking advantage of any sunny days, no matter how brief.

We have a son working on motorway construction near Limerick, and he tells us that as soon as the there is a little bit of sun the local workers start complaining about the heat.

Finding free and good wifi has been just horrible on this trip thus far, so I am just getting back to this post. ( Found wonderful free wifi at a posh hotel near Trafalgar Square).

I have to admit, Pauline, that I did not kiss it either. The way up is not for one with issues of vertigo! It was thrilling for our 7 year old ( who is very sad she has already lost her pin from there), but hubby was not keen on kissing the same spot as millions. He managed to do a far lean to find a pristine spot. lol.

It is a tourist trap no doubt, but the grounds are really lovely with lots more trees than most places in Ireland.

We did love Dingle John ( and Killarney too, but it was more touristy). I loved the area in Dingle where Ryan's Daughter was shot.

We also really loved The Burren in the north and of course a mini family Pub crawl in Dingle.

Ireland is beautiful with great people, but surprisingly one of the hardest countries for us. The roads are quite a challenge even with a small motor home, so what would take two hours normally, would often take all day. Not to mention the challenges of driving on the wrong side with a vehicle not made for it.

There were some thrilling moments, especially since we had been rear ended in France right before coming and only have a temporary fix on the RV. Meeting a big bus or truck on some of those roads does not do much for the nerves.

As an Irishman told me, they have the worst mass transit in Europe, which seemed very accurate to us. Thus we had to drive our RV to everything, so poor hubby never got a day off and there was way too much packing and unpacking. We have been much too spoiled by good mass transit in Europe ( it is superb here in London!)...so that added to the strain.


It was also quite gloomy for much of our visit. What a difference when the sun came out! This Californian needs sun ( but not heat..lol), so liked it much better on sunny or at least semi sunny days.

We have lucked out with pretty great weather in Wales and England thus far. Lots of sun and only brief showers.

What a joy it is to be in London again and seeing old friends!