Another weekend spent in the picturesque countryside of Éire! My friend that I met at EAP orientation took a bus from Dublin to Cork to stay with me for the weekend, and a group of us planned a day trip to the port city of Kinsale. It's located Southwest of Cork, which is supposed to be the most beautiful area of Ireland (think of the coastal Ring of Kerry). We also heard that it claims the best seafood in Ireland, so you can only imagine my incentive for going. Interestingly, Kinsale reminded me of Mykonos and Santorini in Greece, mostly due to the architecture of the houses and the relaxed charm of it being a tiny, coastal town. After exploring the city center, we walked to Charles Fort, made our way back to Fishy Fishy Cafe (yay, puns) for local seafood chowder & brown bread, stopped at a local pastry shop for dessert, did a little shopping, and headed back home.
Slowly learning bits of Gaeilge.
Laura, Nicole, Kasey, and Jacqueline
The obtrusive door leading to...nowhere?
Built in the 1700s to protect Kinsale from the invading English.
We were actually able to climb on top of the bastions!
Mmmm...pastries
Without a doubt, Kinsale is my favorite city in Ireland from what I've seen thus far. Why couldn't there have been a study abroad program here?
I have to say that every time I read your travel blog now, I feel a little sad, I really miss you. Not sad that you are growing up and becoming quite the young woman, or that you are bright and createive, and that you will have great memories of this trip as you grow old, but that I am so proud of you and still think of you as my little girl! I really appreciate as a mother who values education, your recent comment in your blog; "I honestly think that the Irish have the educational system down...a laid-back atmosphere where you aren't pressured to race through novels and cram for midterms and final exams, in effect, actually enjoying what you're reading and applying it to your life."
ReplyDeleteI love and miss you very much! Mom