Kilkenny, Ireland
Kilkenny Castle
We hit the road after three packed days in Dublin to begin our road trip around the country. First on the itinerary was Kilkenny, a small medieval town in the Province of Leinster. We hopped in our red Renault Clio (manual of course!) and began the hour and a half drive south. This was not our first time driving on the left side of the road, but it’s always a little tense at first until getting a feel for the roads. Ironically, we sold our car a couple months prior so it was somewhat like we were starting fresh, possibly making the transition to the left a little bit easier.
A “two-lane” country road. Not shown, Kirsten white knuckling it all the way to Kilkenny
When we arrived, we checked into the Fanad Guest House where we would be staying for the night. The B&B conveniently overlooked the Kilkenny Castle Park and was a short five-minute walk from the city center. We parked that car, dropped off the bags, and went to explore. After wandering the medieval streets for a while, we stopped at Kytelers Inn for lunch.
Kytlers Inn is known for being the oldest Inn in Kilkenny established in 1324. It was also the home of the Great Dame Alice Kytler who became the first person accused of Witchcraft in Ireland. As the daughter of a wealthy banker, her four husbands died “mysteriously” which led to her accusation of Witchcraft and murder. Alice fled her home just in time to avoid being caught; however, left her head maid behind to be dragged through the streets and burned at the stake in her place.
After filling our bellies, we strolled back to Kilkenny Castle for a self-guided tour. Similar to Dublin Castle, the complex was practically empty leaving us to experience the castle without anyone else around. Construction of Kilkenny castle began in 1196 with additions and modification made throughout the centuries that followed. The castle was historically the seat of the very powerful family, the Butlers of Ormonde, and was eventually transferred to the people of Kilkenny in 1967 for £50. The grounds are now managed by the Irish Government and open to the public.
We continued to explore the medieval streets for the remainder of the afternoon and stopped at a few of the more incredible sights including the Black Abby, St. Canice’s Cathedral, and Scrumdiddly’s. The first two were magnificent medieval buildings constructed in the 13th century with incredible histories, while the latter was only 10 years old but made the most delicious ice-cream sundaes!
The most delicious ice cream sundae we’ve ever had
One of the most memorable things we did was climb the 100 foot, 9th - century, St. Canice’s round tower. The tower was originally constructed as a lookout tower, well before many of the surrounding buildings were built. Even today, people can still climb to the top via a series on internal ladders. The wind was howling that day, but we thought if the tower had stood the test of time for the last 12 centuries, it probably wasn’t going to crumble from a little wind. When we returned from the climb, the attendant lightheartedly informed us the tower’s foundation were only 24-inches deep, reminding us that we were glad to be back on solid ground.
The evening continued with dinner and drinks at Matt the Millers, the Blue Pub, and another local pub, which we did not catch the name as things were becoming a bit fuzzy by then. After short stroll home through a quiet neighborhood where Brian found a cat he wanted to bring along, we were back at the Fanad Guest House ready for a good night’s rest and already looking forward to the full Irish breakfast in the morning!
Brian the cat whisperer found a friend on the way home from the pub
