Day 6: Dogs, Sheeps and Rams... Oh My!

Our sixth day in Ireland was a Sunday. Therefore, we set our alarm for 7:45 and got ourselves ready for church at 8:30. We had asked the night before where they go to church and they suggested the smaller of the two churches in Killarney. It was within walking distance and it had a more ornate altar than the main cathedral. We set off for church bright and early.

We attended church at the Franciscan Friary Chapel. We sat in a pew near the mid-back on the right side. It was a magnificent church, with a beautiful altar that did not disappoint. We sat and soaked in the majesty of the space and waited for our first Irish mass to begin.

Ding...Ding... A bell rang out twice, we all stood and the priest, followed by two fully robed altar boys walked in through a door on the side of the church near the front. The priest was a very old gentleman, who seemed to be suffering from a cold. He spoke quietly and gently.

Suddenly, as quickly as it had begun, mass ended and the priest walked out the same door he had entered. Kristy looked a little shell-shocked and asked me what time it was. I looked at my watch and it was exactly 9:00. "Wow, only a half hour," we both thought. It was without doubt the quickest mass we had witnessed. There was no singing at all, which we figured would have filled at least another 10-minutes.

Well, our fears of missing our free breakfast back at the Kingfisher were unfounded as we walked in not more than 1/2 hour after it had begun. We both ordered pancakes and enjoyed the loaf of toast placed at our table. After a few minutes, our pancakes arrived. To us, they were crepes as they were very thin and rolled on our plates. They were different and not what we were expecting, but delicious nonetheless.

After breakfast we went back to our room and finished packing. As I carried both of our suitcases down the stairs, I set them by the check in desk and Kristy stopped to pay our bill and ask for Internet access. I went around back to get the car, when an English Cocker Spaniel and a Golden Retriever surrounded me and begged for attention. I obliged them and remembered that I promised Kristy a meeting with the dogs after they jumped on me the night before. So, I began to walk back around the building to get Kristy and the luggage when she met me by the front door.

"The credit card machine is broken and we need to pay in cash. The manager says there is an ATM in town- a four minute walk." Alright. We began to walk back into the city centre. After about 15-minutes, we found the ATM and took out enough cash for the rest of the trip. It was interesting that the manager did not make either of us stay back or even keep our luggage so we did not drive off without paying. Though we would never do such a thing, I cannot think of a single American establishment that would not at least keep a driver's license or credit card as collateral. The Irish are more laid back though, and refreshingly trusting of others.

Kristy and I paid our bill in Euros and as I loaded to car, the dogs introduced themselves to Kristy. She petted them and laughed as they were very friendly and cuddly, pressing themselves into her almost like a cat. Little did we know that this would be nothing compared to the animals we would encounter the rest of the day.

All packed up, we got directions from the wife of the Kingfisher. When we told her our plan, she suggested taking a trip through the Gap of Dunloe as part of the Ring of Kerry. She asked us if we minded driving on narrow roads... "Ummmm.... How narrow are we talking?" My mind began racing as images of the roads of County Cork flooded my thoughts. I must have blacked out for the rest of the conversation because Kristy got directions and decided that it would be the route we would take. Back to reality as we walked to the car and Kristy said that the woman had said it is one of the most beautiful places in Ireland.

We left the B & B and headed off. And, about 30-minutes later we drove back past the Kingfisher Lodge, this time going in the right direction. On the way out of Killarney, we saw road sign arrows that pointed in the direction of the Gap. So, we followed those for a few minutes and made the turnoff into the Gap of Dunloe.

The beauty of our surroundings immediately hit us. The Kerry Mountains rose on both sides of the road. The road itself was only wide enough for one car and wound up in front of us. As we drove very slowly, we wondered if cars came from the other direction as well. There were some gravel "lots" on the side of the road in some places allowing people to stop and hike or pull over to allow people to pass. It turns out after creeping forward for a few minutes, a car passed us going the other direction, answering our question.

We continued winding up the road, stopping numerous times to take pictures and just look at the scenery. It truly was amazing.

Increasing the grandeur of the Gap of Dunloe were the free roaming sheep that wandered all around us. Kristy was giddy with joy to see the fluffy "sheeps," especially the ones with the black faces. Every time she saw as sheep, or "sheeps," she would yell out "Sheeps!" and I would pull over so she could take a picture or pictures. Not to Kristy's liking were the rams that seemed to be disguised as sheeps but looked meaner and not as "cute."

We continued along the Gap without incident. Every time someone passed or we passed someone else, we nodded or gestured politely to each other. I had gotten used to the "Irish wave" as we called it. It was little more than a nod of the head and a extended pointer finger and a slight raising of the hand off of the steering wheel. While this took place, you always smiled to one another. It was quite the experience.

In the Gap of Dunloe there was only one route and we felt comfortable that we could not get lost in such a situation. Suddenly, as we thought we were exiting the Gap, there was a 3-way intersection. One of our possible paths had numerous labels and signposts, while the other direction had no signage at all. Well, we tried the more populous (at least in terms of signage) route. We drove through another intersection and ended up at a dead end at Lord Brandon's Cottage at the edge of the Killarney National Park. Hmm... This was perplexing.

We turned around and headed back up the narrow road. We went through the first intersection when suddenly a large Lexus SUV appeared coming towards us. He pulled over to the left and waved me on. I hesitated as I saw a large, prickly bush hanging into our path. However, I continued on and prayed that we would miss the bush. Then, I heard it... nails on a chalkboard... as we crept through the bush and passed the Lexus. Unbelievable, but still we hoped there was no scratches. If I was going to scratch the car, I wanted it to be doing something cool not awkwardly passing a polite Irish driver and scraping a bush. However, after inspection, there were thankfully no scratches.

After that heart stopping moment, we had the objective of finding our way out of the Gap. We continued along and took different paths in the intersections. After a few minutes we came upon a farmer and his dog walking across the road near a barn. We pulled over and asked for directions. He obliged us and pointed us in the right direction- back the way we came and out on our final option of the first intersection.

I tried to pull a U-turn with the farmer watching and his dog running around. To make a long and embarrassing story short, we turned around and began our journey out of the Gap of Dunloe, taking the route without any signage that we had immediately dismissed.