Day 7
Today was our vacation from our vacation. There was nothing on the "official" tour schedule so we were free to do anything we want. Or even do nothing at all.
We'd noticed a lighthouse out on the point and were told there was a path along the shore so after breakfast a whole gaggle of us decided to hike out to it and have a look.
On the way to the lighthouse we came across "Hussey's Folly". I didn't know it but a "folly" is a building with no purpose other than as an ornament. Follies are fairly common in Ireland. This particular "stimulus package" was built in the 1840's under the direction of Edward Hussey. The structure had no purpose other than to employ locals during the famine years.
Hussey's Folly
Part of our shoreline hike is through fields populated with the now familiar sheep and cattle. Most paid us no mind but it was obvious that one particular pair of sheep were thinking "what is the deal with these tourists?"
One of Dingle's attractions is a male bottle-nosed dolphin that took up residence in the bay in 1984. He was named "Fungi" by the local fisherman and can be readily seen at the mouth of the bay near the lighthouse. At least we were told he could be readily seen. Although we all kept a sharp eye out, no one was able to spot Fungi this trip. That's just a good excuse to come back to Dingle on a future excursion.
Trouble neglect you,
The angels protect you,
And heaven accept you.
At the lighthouse
I had mentioned earlier that I would like to take a swim and Karen and Dave had had the same thought so they had done some research and scouted out a nice swimming beach (Beenbane I think) for us a little further beyond the lighthouse.
Once we hiked to the beach, Pat C. joins Karen, Dave and me and the fearsome foursome plunge into Ireland's freezing water. Only it isn't freezing. I'm really surprised, it doesn't seem like it's any colder than the water I'm used to in Southern California. We had a really nice although short swim and there are plenty of cameras in the rest of the group to document our maritime madness.
Curious Sheep
Since there was a road that came all the way down to the beach we decided to walk the road back rather than follow our earlier trail. We were on the main highway for part of the return trip which wasn't such a smart idea but I can assure you that no tourists were injured in the making of this web page.
I'm glad we did this hike. The coast along Dingle Bay is quite rugged and beautiful. Jagged cliffs jut out of the bay and wildflowers grow everywhere. We didn't see another soul until we got to the beach which is accessible by car. It's a shame more people don't take advantage of the wonderful trail.
Fearsome Foursome
After we got back to the B&B and cleaned up, Robin and I had a nice lunch in town and did some reading back at the B&B. We found out that the finals for "Britain's Got Talent" were on in the evening so we bought some quiche and fruit at the nearby market and had a picnic in front of the TV.
Kerry and Susan returned from dinner and Sherrill came in about the same time and they all joined us to watch the show. We found it very interesting that when the phone numbers are posted on the screen for voting there is also a note explaining that citizens of the Republic of Ireland can not vote. Ahhh, politics!
This was a nice relaxing end to a great "vacation from our vacation" day. I'm rested , rejuvenated and looking forward to the second half of our tour.
