Cork to Killarney

23rd August
Cork to Killarney
Well off we set this morning, maps and directions at the ready to face the roads of Cork. We were determined not to be beaten. Alas somewhere along the way the Irish road signs let us down and we finished in the Cork airport. I overcame my impulse to shred the map, took a few deep breaths while Den got us back on course leaving Cork well and truly behind us. We were on the N22 headed for Killarney. We noticed that we were the only car on the highway - Den thought maybe we were the only ones who had found it!!!!!
The beauty of the countryside soon soothed us and we enjoyed travelling along through pretty villages such as Macroom. In places the hillsides were at extreme slopes with sheep happily grazing. I kept on imagining sheep taking a tumble but they seemed happy enough. They have some very different road signs here. As you go from 100k zone and approach a town instead of a 'slow down' sign they have a 'traffic calming' sign.
By mid-morning we had arrived in Killarney. We drove out on Ross road to yes.... you guessed it ....another Castle ....this time it's....Ross Castle. This had been built as a family home in the 15th century. It had some history with tug of war of ownership between the Irish and the English but overall comparitively quite peaceful. Its' last owner (an Englishman) also owned a bigger more impressive castle and could not afford to pay the tax on Ross Castle as well. So as a result he burnt out the roof of Ross Castle - no roof no tax. Unfortunately with Irelands weather it didn't take very long for the whole castle to become a ruin. An American visiting Kilarney bought it in the 1970's and gifted it to Killarney council on the proviso that at some stage it would be repaired and conserved. This took 20 plus years to complete. It is only possible to go on a guided tour as included in the castle are many 16th and 17th century pieces of oak furniture. There are also three beautiful tapestry wall hangings dating back to the same period. The main bedroom would have housed the whole family - Mum and Dad in the bed and the children on straw mattresses on the floor. Nearby was a hallway which led to a toilet/wardrobe. It was like a longdrop toilet - the amonia smells would come up overnight, so a clothesline was hung over the toilet area. Overnight your clothes would be hung on the line and the amonia fumes that came up from the long drop would kill off any bugs in your clothes. I'm glad I live in this age!!!!
The spiral staircase was the only access up to the various levels of the castle. The steps were known as tripping or stumbling stairs. Fortunately the group all made it successfully. I hadn't heard the origin of the threshhold till today. The floor would have had straw spred on the floors and to stop the straw or thresh from going out the door there was a small step or hold to hold back the straw...ta da.... threshold. Because this had been a family home the guard house was on the ground floor directly behind the main door. It had a whole in the wall just the right size to blast any unwanted guest, or if that failed there was a hole above the entry way that boiling water etc. could be poured down on the unwanted intruder.
While we had a bit of lunch we had a nice chat to a family from Dublin. People here are all very friendly. They don't seem to be able to tell if we are from New Zealand or Australia. A bit like us with Canadians and some American accents. A man today asked if he detected a southern hemisphere accent - that was one way around it.
Killarney is exactly what we were expecting. Every one says how pretty it is and that is true. It is full of Irish pubs and accomodation places. If you took out all of the pubs, B & Bs hotels etc. there would only be less than a third of the town left!!!! We enjoyed our wander around the town. We are having dinner tonight at the tavern of Dromhall Hotel (our accom for the next two nights) - It is advertised as 'Gastro Bar Food'. We thought we would give it a go anyway.