After another Irish breakfast, we drove to the Kilkenny Castle, located on a hill in the city center. We took a self-guided tour, The medieval foundations date from the 13th century. It started as a fortress, became a home and then sold by a Butler family member to the Office of Public Works for £50 for restoration. Strongbow and other Norman knights came to Kilkenny in 1172, the high ground beside the River Nore was as an ideal site on which to build a wooden tower. The first stone castle on the site, was completed in 1213. This was a square-shaped castle with towers at each corner; three of these original four towers survive to this day. The Castle became the seat to a very powerful family, the Butlers of Ormonde. They bought the Castle in 1391 and lived there until 1935. The Butler family arrived in Ireland with the Norman invasion.

It reminded me of other houses we saw in Ireland, with the pre-arrival room, sitting room, library, bedroom, etc. It was impressive to see photos of the restoration, it was quite a feat they undertook. My favorite room was Picture Gallery. The stunning hand painted roof is decorated with Pre-Raphaelite ladies and naturalistic scenes and is significant for its architecture and design. The Ormonde family were important patrons of the arts and had over 500 paintings, 200 tapestries, oriental furniture, silver, and art objects.

The changes in society in Ireland, however, meant that, in the 1950s, the Butlers had to look closely at the viability of maintaining their seat at Kilkenny Castle. In 1955, they decided to leave, and so a great auction was held in the castle.

We left the castle, could hear thunder in the distance, and the sky was get getting darker. We shopped quickly at a craft shop across the street SMS’s headed back to the car. But on the walk back we saw a number of swimmers in the Nore river. It had to be cool. We hoped it was clean, but I couldn’t imagine swimming in the the Schukyle River. We e got lucky an missed the rain. But on our drove to Howth it poured.

Howth, while it’s in Dublin, feels much farther away. It’s a seaside town, and because the weather was do nice, everyone decided to spend the day in a Howth. Our accommodation were in the King Sitric Restaurant and inn. Since we didn’t arrive there until after 2pm, we decided to have s light lunch at a place within walking distance of our pub. After lunch I needed to take a nap; only two hours of sleep the night before. So mom and I went back, George and Carol went exploring. They saw the lighthouse and walked the pier. We heard such wonderful things about the food in our inn, that we chose to have dinner there. It wasn’t a Wednesday, but we all ordered lobster. Mom and Carol had it grilled, and George and I ordered the Dublin Lawyer. Everything was delicious. I found this recipe that I might have to try…it’s close.

Tomorrow morning I leave this beautiful country to head home. Thank you to my family for a wonderful vacation. And thanks to the humble, friendly, and kind people of Ireland!!!

“May the road rise to meet you, and the wind always be at your back. May the sun shine warm on your face. and the rains fall softly on your fields. And until we meet again.”