By 
Cahir Castle (County Tipperary)
The view from St. Canice's tower (Kilkenny)
The Seven Towers of Kells, monastic ruins (county Kilkenny)
Where do I begin? I have done and seen so much the past three weeks it is hard to decide what to share. After Dublin I arrived in Kilkenny which has acted as a home base for me during my time in Ireland, staying in a quaint cottage with friends of friends who have taken in a poor Canadian traveller with open arms! Kilkenny is the county of medieval walls, castles, cathedrals…and beer (the home of Smithwicks, Bulmers and of course Kilkenny)! Ancient ruins are common place, with eleventh century monastic ruins, castles, and cathedrals sitting confidently among nineteenth century famine workhouses and mills. Throw in some SUVs, highways, and shopping malls and it’s truly a confusion of eras!
But staying with locals, I have learned, is the primary way to ensure an authentic Irish experience. My hosts have taken me all over Kilkenny and beyond to experience all the wonders of the area–from exploring castles to exploring caves! Some of my favorite spots have been those off the beaten track and not yet valued by Tourism himself. For example, the town of Kells is home to a very large monastic ruin known as “The Seven Towers of Kells,” nestled along the county’s rolling hills beside the south bank of the King’s river. This thirteenth century monastic community was the centre of a Norman town and is currently passed over by tourists. In fact, we may have passed only four or fiver other people as we walked freely around the ruins! In a country where at times tourists threatened to outnumber locals, this is astonishing indeed! It was a serene experience as there is something inexpressibly profound about grazing your hand along the same stones in the way that someone might have done 800 years before you! It is perhaps one of the only thing that has the ability to make time tangible.
Other highlights of my time in Kilkenny include the Cahir Castle (1142), which unlike the Kilkenny castle has not been “restored” but left in its ruined form for tourist to explore its watch towers, intricate stairwells and courtyards; the Dunmore Caves (a hiding place from viking invasions); and St. Canice’s Cathedral in Kilkenny city (where I accidentally dropped my camera down the 9th century tower!). I have also had the privilege of seeing what has become my favorite church; a church which is so tiny it would be full with just fifty people! What I found so remarkable about the church is that it is hidden very well down below the country road among naturally beautiful, lush greenery. In fact it is so well hidden that Cromwell himself missed it when he ravaged the area! And so it has remained preserved unlike so many other Catholic churches in this area that were seized by his army–a small humble church with a victorious secret indeed! Now I have had the privilege of being a part of the same church’s history that escaped Ireland’s greatest villain….Yes, another tangible moment in time.
But perhaps my most valuable moments have come from conversations with locals about history, politics, and of course, the economy–a favorite topic of conversation in Ireland these days. After the infamous “Celtic Tiger” (a period of economic boom in Ireland), the recession is hitting the country hard, creating extreme distrust with government and banks here in the Republic. It is not hard to see similarities in Ireland’s economy and culture (pre Celtic Tiger) to that of the Maritime provinces, and I am growing ever-more convinced that there is much we could glean from Ireland’s success…and her mistakes. I fear that things here will get much worse before they get better…but then again I am no economist.
There is so much more to tell but for now that is enough! Thinking of all my friends and family as I continue in my pilgrimage and wishing you could be here to experience this as well…
With love,
Shelley