Kilkenny and Kildare

Kilkenny is a great little city here in Ireland. Roberta took us right before our fall break in October to see the castle and walk around the city before going caving. We visited Jerpoint Abby and learned about how the abbeys functioned and ran until they were outlawed by the British before visiting Kilkenny city. Kilkenny Castle was amazing to go through. I didn't take many photos, but it was amazing how they had the original wallpapers and beddings. The Castle was extravagant.

My favorite part about traveling with Roberta is that she always picks the best restaurants for us to eat at. We are guaranteed to have great food and even better dessert when we are with her. We usually try to order all the desserts offered and share them amongst the group. It always works out the best and I am forever grateful that the other Belles I'm traveling with are so laid back. Our trips are always the best. We definitely give Roberta a run for her money with all of the shenanigans we pull– climbing trees, going to the edge of cliffs and poking our heads over, etc– but she takes it in good humor.

The cave we visited was awesome. It was a long walk down but once we got into the cave, it was like we were in another world. Dunmore cave housed over 4 different species of bats and had been growing for over a thousand years. There are still parts of the cave unexplored simply because they cannot be accessed at the moment. The scariest part was at one point, the tour guide turned off all the lights illuminating the cave. It was pitch black. You couldn't see a thing. We were unable to tell if our eyes were open or closed, for it all looked and felt the same.

The Oblisk

Later that weekend, our group was lucky enough to be given a tour of our home county Kildare by the leading historian on the area! Shamus Cullen is this absolutely remarkable little old man who has a thing for tragic romance stories. No joke, I love this man. He met us on campus, sat at the front of the bus, and just talked the entire day. It was great. Shamus took us all over Kildare, starting in Maynooth where we visited the Oblisk. The Oblisk was built by the Guinness family as a grand entry way to their manor house. It was massive.

We also went to Celbridge to visit the garden where Jonathan Swift courted his pupil Vennessa. We walked where they walked for four years before Swift married his wife (not Vennessa). Shamus explained their love story to us as we walked through the gardens, taking in the beauty. The gardens are not open to the public currently, but Shamus was able to get us in.

Gulliver's head as a tribute
to Jonathan Swift in the
garden we visited

We also visited Rathcoffey Church, which is one of the original stable churches. These were used when Christianity was outlawed and still a small sector in Ireland. Mass was held in the stables of farms, and many, like Rathcoffey, still stand today. I love being able to walk into churches that are over 200 years old and just think about how many people have come and gone through these walls, sat in the pews, and celebrated mass like we do today. It's remarkable to think about.

Shamus also took us to Bodenstown which is a burial ground and showed us where Wolf Tone made some of his most famous speeches. Tone was a nationalist who died trying to come back to Ireland from France where he recruited an army to overthrow the British. We were able to stand in where the politicians back in the day would, elevated above the grave yard. It was spooky, but cool.

Shamus and Rathcoffey Church

The coolest thing Shamus showed us though was in Donadee national park. He showed us the castle at Donadee, which is structurally compromised. He explained how they are expecting the castle to collapse on itself any year now, so it was awesome to see it still in one piece. While we were in Donadee we visited the 9/11 memorial located there honoring all of those who perished in the tragedy. It was a somber visit, but incredible to see how much the tragedy affected the world, not just America. We ended our trip with Shamus with visiting St. Patrick's Church. We stood where they believed his original church was built and admired the new building (new meaning it was still built before the 1800s).

The view of the castle at Donadee
 from St. Patrick's Church

It was a great way to end our weekend excursions with Roberta. Our 6 weeks were up and after fall break, we were set to travel alone wherever we wanted. Shamus was awesome to have, as he offered all of these great tales from around the county. It's even cooler that he's lived here his entire life and is Roberta's neighbor!