It’s been a huge couple of days, first in and around Tralee and now that we are back on the move.
On our way to the most western part of Ireland Eoin provides us with lots more facts and figures about this fair land. I am sure I did know this, but must have forgotten but there are villages spread throughout the country where you must be fluent in Gaelic to buy a house, this is to ensure that the cultural aspects of the Irish are retained in some areas. These Gaeltacht districts were officially recognised in the 1920s in the early years of the Irish Free State, as there was a significant decline in the use of the Irish language. All kids are taught the Gaelic language in school, but the number of people who speak Gaelic daily and even weekly continue to decline. One of these villages is Dun Chaoin which we drive through on the Slea Head Drive has a population of 159, they are very close to the famous Blasket Islands, with a number of Irish writers having lived here over the years including Tomas O’Croimhthain and Muiris O’Sullivan. It is possible to walk around the Slea Head Drive but you would be crazy to do it this time of year, whilst it is very beautiful the wind is ferocious, and the rain is really tough on your face, yep soft I know. These roads are certainly not made for big coaches, so it’s a thrill a minute as we make our way through this wild and woolly countryside.
As we drive along the Slea Head Drive we come to Ventry Corner, this is the location of the famous battle between leprechauns and fairies to determine who would live above ground and who would live below. It is a fascinating story at I am really keen to hear more about, I will need to find myself a leprechaun expert, noting that they have been formally been recognised as being almost extinct 🍀.
We then make our way to Dingle for a lunch and shopping stop, Dingle is right on the coast line and they catch £32 million of fish a year. We find our self a little pub with good fish and chips, then make our way to the church for an inspection (of course), there is a lovely ice cream shop, I have Irish Whisky and vanilla ice cream scoops, there is even a fairy shop which sadly isn’t open. Dingle is a little bit like Batemans Bay in winter, quiet and blowy..but it was a great place to stop.
We then make our way back to Tralee for a quick shop before we meet up with the boys for dinner, it is one of the supporters groups birthdays and so we all dress up, initially it was for a prize for the worst Christmas jumper but as you can see from the photos some of the dads took it to a whole different level, it is lots of fun with sing offs between the boys and the supporters, as well as lots of great 80’s and 90’s music all picked by our group. We then head back into town, and some of us then head to Sean Og’s pub to listen to live music. It is terrific, I wish the boys could have joined us as they would have loved it. A really great night, having a few medicinal Baileys and Jamiesons respectively, and listening to music, the only thing missing was a game of cards!
An early start tomorrow as we head to Dungarven via Blarney Castle and a stud farm, with another set of games – another long, busy day.
Travelling with Fi 
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