Wednesday

The sun was shining when we arose. Elaine did a walkabout while I breakfasted and showered. We missed the church ruins yesterday because it started raining, so we headed that way again. The object destination was Kilmalkedar Church. It’s nearby one of the most famous sites on the Corca Dhuibhne (Dingle Peninsula), so we decided to stop their first – the Gallarus Oratory. We were the only tourists in sight on site. But there was a professional photographer who was doing some work on new publicity and promotion photos of the site. We had a nice conversation with him, a Kerry native now living in Cork. More history information (which you are permitted to skip):

The Gallarus Oratory resembles the upside-down hull of a boat with two slightly curved sides meeting at the apex of the roof. The inside measures approximately 16 feet long by 10 feet wide, which is why it is more fitting to call the building an oratory (chapel) than a church. It is still possible to walk inside, but expect the interior to be dimly lit. This is because the building has only one small, round window in the east wall and the main door in the west wall, so daylight barely filters inside. Outside the chapel is a three-foot tall stone which reads “COLUM MAC DINET” and is topped with an encircled cross. This slab is often interpreted to be a gravestone. When visiting the chapel, take time to admire the masonry. The rocks, which were all likely brought from cliffs along the sea, have been cut on every side. The large stones fit perfectly together and were clearly shaped and assembled with great care. This sturdy construction is what has allowed the structure to stand over the centuries with very little damage. It also made the building completely waterproof – allowing that Irish rain to run right down the sides.

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On to Kilmalkedar Church? Nope. It started raining so we missed it for the second straight day. Maybe tomorrow. We went back to Dingle and bought some lunch stuff as the fridge is almost empty. (We still have wine and vodka!) Then reading, tv, naps, blog writing, etc.

Dinner tonight was at Ashe’s – our third visit. If it was good enough for Gregory Peck (a distant relative of the Ashe’s), it’s good enough for us, and, in fact, is one of our Dingle Top Four. Their seafood chowder is top notch, so I finally passed on oysters. Elaine had chowder too followed by scallops. My main was fillet of Kerry beef – scrumptious. All accompanied, of course by a Pinot Noir, this time from France. (As an aside, there are no Irish wines – restaurant menus have wines from France, Germany, Portugal, Australia, New Zealand, and Chile but almost never from the USA.) Elaine had a beautiful looking sticky toffee pudding for dessert while I sipped on a glass of port. Dingle was strangely quiet tonight. We stopped in at O’Flaherty’s not expecting any music. There was none. We sipped one drink and headed home to bed.

Jan Weiler requested interior house photos of our digs. 23 Ard Na Mata has four bedrooms, all en-suite. Three are on the ground floor along with the kitchen/dining area, the living room, and yet another half bath. You could have visited! The second floor is the master bedroom suite with bathroom and walk-in closet. Here are the requested photos. Excuse the clutter in the house.

Monday

Not today, it wasn’t. The day was as dreary as expected although the sun tried to come out late at around 7:30 PM. Sunset isn’t until 9:15 PM. We had a restful do-nothing day with lunch and dinner at home. By the way, this is the 423rd post on this blog. There have been over 1,100 comments. That doesn’t include stats from the old (pre-2013) blog which can still be accessed via a link on the title page of this blog.

Tuesday

When we arose the sun was out. The sun rises at 5:50 AM. We decided to take a ride to Lispole (Lios Póil in Irish), just 8 km east of Dingle. Then it was another couple of kilometers down a narrow road to the site of the ruins of Minard Castle. It is badly damaged, the most damage resulting from a siege by Oliver Cromwell’s troops in 1650 and subsequently the weather. It sits above an impressive storm bay where the rocks are rounded by rolling around the ocean floor before eventually being deposited on the beach by storms. This natural storm beach is considered one of the finest in Ireland. Elaine chatted with a group of young American women who were doing a hike of the Dingle Way (well, part of it anyway – the whole Dingle Way is 179 km long and takes a fit adult 8-9 days to complete).

A short walk takes one to the visually unimpressive St John’s Well (Tobar Eoin) dedicated to St. John the Baptist. A nearby prayer tree was very bare – previously it has been covered with ribbons and mementos, perhaps because on our last visit it was in the fall near the end of the tourist season and not after a two-year pandemic. Here’s your history lesson for the day (easily scrolled past):

A particular association of the well which has contributed to the long survival of religious observance here is the legend connecting St John the Baptist with the Corca Dhuibhne ( Dingle Peninsula) people. This legend asserted that John the Baptist was beheaded by an Irish druid called Mogh Roith (the Slave of the Wheel) from Valentia Island on the other side of Dingle Bay, and prophesied that the Irish people – and especially the Corca Dhuibhne – would be called upon to pay for the crime at a date when certain time divisions coincided. In 1096 it was thought that the appointed time was approaching, and Ireland was seized with a panic, similar to the millenialist hysteria that had gripped many in Europe a century before. Rigorous fasting and prayer were undertaken, and it is probably from this date that the well derived its importance, along with many others dedicated to St John the Baptist.

A short walk from St John’s Well is a small boat landing spot on Dingle Bay with a view back to Minard Castle. I like the silhouette picture of me on the dock with Dingle Bay all around me and the clouds hanging over the Ring of Kerry across the bay. Good shot, Elaine.

On the way back to the main road we stopped briefly at the Lispole cemetery. Those buried here have a nice view (if only they could see it).

Then it was back to Dingle. We headed off to see the ruins of a medieval church, but it clouded over and started raining, so we went home to lunch instead.

Dinner tonight was a third visit to Out of the Blue. Don’t go here if you don’t like seafood – there is only seafood on the menu (except for dessert). Don’t go if you want French fries – they don’t do them. It’s hard for me not to get oysters wherever we go. Oysters it was then For my main, I had Grilled Sea Bass and John Dory followed by Lemon and Vanilla Posset. (Posset, you ask? Google it.). Elaine chose Salmon and Smoked Salmon for her starter and then Skewered Monkfish followed by a Rhubarb Tart with Whipped Cream. We met a couple from Philadelphia seated at the next table. Then it was off to the Dingle Pub to say goodbye to Richie O’Brien, the singer from Dreams of Freedom. We won’t see him again until next trip. The pub was packed, and we ran into and chatted with the women we met at Minard Castle. We didn’t stay long.

The forecast for the next few days, our last in Dingle, looks promising. Slán go fóill

Sunday

Quiet Sunday; cloudy but mostly dry. The cleaners came in this morning for the final clean during our stay, so we got out of the house at 9:30. For lack of a better idea, we drove to Inch Beach (30 minutes). It’s probably the most famous beach on the Dingle Peninsula. It juts out three or so miles into Dingle Bay reaching toward the Ring of Kerry just south of the Dingle Peninsula. It is flanked by sand dunes. Cars can drive right on the beach (we didn’t). There are walkers, dog walkers, children, joggers, surfers, swimmers, and horses on the beach. It’s a well known surfing spot, but today the seas were too calm for any serious surfers. As you walk down the beach, you get closer and closer to the Ring of Kerry, specifically Cromane and Glenbeigh which are both noted for their oyster farms and where most of the oysters served in Dingle come from. We strolled about two miles out and then two miles back.

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We stopped in Sammy’s Shop at the beach where Elaine found some of her preferred Inis perfume at a good price. Sammy also has a restaurant (that is pretty good), but we had our mind on fish and chips for lunch at Sheehy’s in Dingle. We drove home a slightly different route over a lonely mountain road.

We did the fish and chips thing at Sheehy’s, had an ice cream cone at Kool Scoops, and retired to home for the day. We had a nice fire, cocktails and cheese by the fire, and leftovers for dinner. It’s time to start emptying the fridge as we move into our last week in Dingle.

Monday Morning

Just got up to lashing rain and wind. It looks like a hunker-down type of day, but the forecast for tomorrow is better. We certainly have no complaints whatsoever about the weather – it’s been fantastic. The blog will take tomorrow morning off and be back on Wednesday morning with Tuesday’s report.

Friday

Pouring rain, as expected in the morning. We expected it to continue all day. It didn’t. By afternoon the sun was shining brightly. We didn’t do anything except a load of wash, a trip to the supermarket for a final stock-up, some reading, and cocktails on the patio. Both lunch and dinner were at home. Dinner was lamb pilaf with fresh minced lamb from Kennedy’s accompanied by fresh spinach. The camera(s) never came into play.

Saturday

It’s Marathon Day in Dingle. Well, actually a half marathon. The runs had been postponed in 2020 and 2021. The actual marathon day in Dingle is in September, and that will take place as scheduled this year. Today is a half marathon to give runners something to do. It’s fully booked. It starts at 9 AM from Dingle Marina and goes out along Slea Head Drive to Dunquin. They could not have had better weather.

We walked down to watch the start from the bottom of our street. There were almost 3,000 runners. A blind runner and a wheelchair participant had a head start.

Awaiting the Start

After the runners all went by, we continued to walk into town and then out of town in the other direction past the Skellig Hotel (where our friends Barb & Kris will be spending two nights in October on their tour of Ireland). Past the hotel we continued on along the shore to the other (not Eask) tower and on still more to the lighthouse that we couldn’t get to from the other direction. This was the longest walk of the trip.

Then it was double back to town for a much needed diet coke and a water (and an unneeded piece of carrot cake) at An Cupán Tea near Dingle Harbor and on still more back to home. It was the longest walk of the trip. Lunch was at home after which I had a must needed nap.

Later in the afternoon I drove into town for a beer (or two). I had one at Curran’s where I met the manager (and his wife) of the Dingle Distillery. We had a good chat. Then I went on to the Dingle Pub for a pint. Luckily Eddie, the original owner, came in for a beer. It was good to see him. We reminisced a bit before I headed home for cocktails on the patio. Weather still gorgeous. Quite amazing weather really.

Dinner was a repeat performance at the Half Door Restaurant. This is no definitely on the must visit list.

Elaine: Seafood Chowder and the Halibut Special
Joe: Haddock Gratin and Grilled John Dory
Dessert: Decadent Chocolate and Vanilla Ice Cream (no picture – forgot!)

No music tonight. Home to bed early. The pubs were packed with marathoners and weekend tourists.

Aside: Well, I wouldn’t have had that Derby winner. $163.00 to win and $4,000 exacta. Never heard of the horse (a former maiden claimer), the trainer, or the jockey. He only got in the race at the last minute after another horse scratched out.

Wednesday Night

You’ll remember from yesterday that we were off to the Dingle Pub at 8:30 PM. Here’s probably more than you probably want to know about the Dingle Pub. (You can always scroll down.) It’s our Dingle local – the place we go first and last. When we first came to Dingle, the pub was owned and operated by Eddie, a transplanted Londoner. He’s in his eighties now and rarely comes into the pub anymore, but he’s full of great stories when he does come in. Tom Geaney, Eddie’s son-in-law, took over the pub early in the 2000’s when Eddie retired to a life of leisure. Tom has become a good friend. His daughter Suzie recently married and is pregnant with the first of the next generation. She is often bartending at the Pub. His son, David, is a five-time Irish Dance Champion. David, who both bartends and serves tables, has appeared on Britain’s Got Talent and has toured several times in the US. He has his own show (Velocity) that he produced and stars in on his tours. He, along with another Irish dancer, have also toured with and accompanied Cherish the Ladies. Interesting story (to me anyway) – the last thing we did before beginning pandemic isolation in March 2020 was attend a concert by Cherish the Ladies at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix. We chatted with David after the show. That was the last appearance for the touring group as the rest of the tour had been cancelled because of Covid. They escaped out of the US that very night back to Ireland just before international flights were shut down. We joked with David that we would see him at the Dingle Pub in a couple of months on our May 2020 planned trip. That trip was, of course, cancelled and rescheduled to October 2020. That was also subsequently cancelled and rescheduled until October 2021. Cancelled yet again. Finally we are back, baby, we are back!

Richie was in fine form singing. Here’s an excerpt from the song Rattlin’ Bog followed by a clip of David dancing. Fair warning – you can hear me singing along in both videos – try to ignore that if you possibly can. And there is a uTube video of the Irish Rovers performing the entire Rattlin’ Bog here.

Thursday

Not much happening today. We walked together into town and did a few errands. We had a beer sitting outside at Paudie’s Bar, a new spot for us.

Weather was nice. For dinner we did a return visit to Fenton’s Restaurant. The owner’s sister-in-law lives next door to us – it’s a small town! The Fentons are former fishermen and there is a boat over the bar. Elaine had calamari followed by local scallops. I had oysters (as usual) and rack of lamb. We shared dessert.

It being a very quiet day in Dingle, we didn’t expect music at O’Flaherty’s, but, since we parked right outside, we went in. There was a group of four people from Tennessee performing – O’Flaherty’s encourages outside musicians to perform. They were good. And Fergus, as normal, joined it. He plays lots of instruments extremely well – tin whistle, flute, fiddle, banjo, etc. But he also has a great voice. Here are clips of the group from Tennessee followed by Fergus O’Flaherty singing Elaine’s favorite, Dingle Bay.

It was almost midnight when we got home. Friday is supposed to be our first really bad day – lots of rain. But the weekend forecast is good. Unless something special happens, the blog will be dark tomorrow and back on Saturday.

Wednesday

An odd day. Clouds and frequent showers were forecast. But the sun ruled the day. We went into town – cheese store closed (oh, well), bought a baguette and some brownies at the Bacus Bakery, bought some needed batteries, Elaine scheduled a follow-up haircut, and we returned home.

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So, today (in America at least), it is National Stars Wars Day. Since the last Star Wars movie was partially filmed in Ballyferriter, we thought there might some an event or two. So we drove out (11 kms). Nothing happening! Still, we had a quiet lunch in a small pub in Ballyferriter that we had never visited. Views from the Pub and from the lovely little church in Ballyferriter (we lit candles again):

Then we drove on to two favorite sites that we hadn’t stopped at on this trip: A pier near the very end of Slea Head Drive was our first stop. Great pictures of the Three Sisters from the bluff overlooking the pier.

Next stop – Brandon Creek. It was from here that St. Brendan took off on his voyages across the seas. It’s one of my favorite spots

Then it was Dinner was at home – leftover chicken cacciatore. Cocktails were enjoyed out on the patio in bright sunshine.

At 8:30 PM in Scottsdale we would be thinking about bedtime, After dinner at 8:30 PM in Dingle it was off to the Dingle Pub for libations, Dreams of Freedom music, and David Geaney dance. More on that tomorrow..

All in all, a very pleasant day.

You already saw pictures from our Tuesday morning walks. The rest of the day was mostly sunny despite the forecast of rain. Not much more to say. We didn’t do a lot. We did stop in at St Mary’s Church and lit candles for Lena and Peg – an annual tradition.

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Dinner was back at Out of the Blue at an early (for us) 6:30 PM. After dinner we stopped in at the Dingle Pub, but it was crowded. We went instead to Neligan’s for a quiet drink and a little music.

Dinner at Out of the Blue
Elaine: Seafood Chowder; Roasted Cod Fillet with Gambas; Apple/Pear Tart
Joe: Glenbeigh Oysters; Chargrilled Sea Bass; Blueberry Cheesecake

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Monday

Monday was the May bank holiday. That and the Féile Na Bealtaine festival meant Dingle was teaming with visitors. We took the day to drive to the Tesco Superstore in Tralee to get some things that Supervalu doesn’t stock. The Tesco Supermarket is beautiful. We also stopped in a few other stores in the Tralee Manor West shopping center. We took a different slightly longer route from Dingle and passed through Castlemaine, the home of Jack Duggan, the Wild Colonial Boy. The town has erected a new statue commemorating Jack right at the busy crossroads in town. We had planned on eating at Quinlan’s Seafood Restaurant in Tralee, but it is closed on Monday. The rest of Tralee was also pretty closed up for the bank holiday. Many stores open late on bank holidays. We were lucky the Tesco was open normal hours.

We had lunch and dinner at home. Soup and bread for lunch; BBQ lamb sausages (from Kennedy’s, of course) with potatoes au gratin and mixed veg for dinner. With cocktails we had a delicious cheese platter with cheeses from Dingle’s Little Cheese Shop, a treasure.

Tuesday Morning

It’s supposed to cloudy, chance of showers today and tomorrow and the next day. But when we got up at 7:00 AM, the sun was shining. We took separate walks, both of us taking pictures – me with my G7X camera and Elaine with her European cell phone (Alcatel). The galleries below are a hodgepodge of those photos.

Elaine’s

Joe’s

It’s 10:00 AM Tuesday morning right now. Back tomorrow morning or maybe not until Thursday.

Cheers!

Sunday

An Irish day at last – mostly cloudy with on and off showers. The Féile Na Bealtaine festival continues today (and tomorrow, a bank holiday). We attended a concert at St James Church (Church of Ireland) featuring Dingle-born Pauline Scanlon. Very good! Nice voice You can hear samples of her here. After the concert we had a brew at Neligan’s Pub including good conversational craic with a young couple from North Carolina, the young bartender from nearby Ballyferriter, and a local retired farmer (who I had met on previous visits to Dingle).

After a nap at home we headed out to dinner at Ashe’s Bar and Restaurant, our second visit this trip. Owned by a family related to Gregory Peck, it is one our favorite spots. We arrived ½ hour early (my bad!), so we enjoyed cassis and prosecco cocktails at the bar. Dinner was grand.

Appetizers:
Elaine: Prawn and Crab Dumplings
Joe: Six Glenbeigh Oysters
Mains:
Elaine: Scallops
Joe: Fish Special Duo (John Dory and Halibut)
Dessert:
Shared Chocolate Brownie with Whipped Cream and Vanilla Ice Cream
Wine:
Beaujolais Fleurie (France)

We stopped in briefly after dinner at the Dingle Pub, but we didn’t stay long. The town and the pubs were very busy with young people bussing in from Tralee and Killarney for pubbing in Dingle on the bank holiday weekend. Not our kind of crowd.

Saturday

Our second of four weeks in Dingle began today. Hard to believe we arrived two weeks ago. It was mostly cloudy today, but only the odd sprinkle. After last night’s late night out, we mostly just vegged. I did go into town for a Guinness in the afternoon and we did visit SuperValu to stock up the fridge. I very successfully lit the firebox using kindling, fire starters, processed peat, and nice dried wood. We enjoyed Elaine-prepared chicken cacciatore (chicken courtesy of Kennedy’s Butcher Shop) for dinner. And that was the day. Rain expected tomorrow, but we have afternoon plans and reservations for dinner, so it will be busier.

Until the morn . . .