The Rock of Cashel and on to Kinsale

After a morning walk around Kilkenny and a climb up an ancient 100-foot roundtower for a look at the view Hal and I headed out for our next destination:  the Rock of Cashel.

The Rock of Cashel juts out of the rolling plains of Tipperary and was the place where the high kings of Ireland were crowned and lived.  Later (1170's) it was given to the church to keep it out of the hands of enemies.  The church built several churches on top and occupied it until 1747 when they finally abandoned it due to the harsh climactic conditions and upkeep.  The site is considered as one of the most important historic sites in all of Ireland.

Then it was on to our stop for the night, Kinsale. Kinsale is a harbor town near Cork.  The town's harbor is one of the best in Ireland and therefore was of strategic importance to the Irish, British and Spanish as they fought for control of the coastline and adjacent waters. We arrived in the late afternoon with our picnic lunch and were looking for a place to eat just as the rain started to fall.  We holed up in a bookstore for a while and then hunger drove us out into the mist.  We eventually found a small cave grotto near an abbey and broke out the food.  I'm sure the saints will forgive the weary travelers for snacking on their shrine!

Our night's accommodation was booked through AirBnB--the homestay rental website.
Our place was lovely, an apartment with a view of the harbor and friendly hosts. It was also considerably less expensive than the hotels in the area.