A Beautiful Day in Kinsale, Wednesday, August 2

 Barry, our local guide, walked with us around this small town on a bay of the Atlantic Ocean and gave us the historical importance of the location. In addition to the sinking of the Lusitania, a passenger ship the size of the Titanic. It was bound for Liverpool from New York and sunk into minutes after receiving a torpedo from a German U boat in 1915. This event brought the US into WW I. We visited an Anglican church cemetary with grave markers beginning in the first world war,we learned about the reclamation of land from the bay, as well as the town's participation in the annual "Tidy Town" contest; it has won the award several times in the past 30 years. The town is awash in color with flowers in pots and window boxes and hanging baskets.

  With Dennis, our coach driver, we rode to Fort Charles, a former military fort since England claimed this country in the 1600s. The stone structures, located on a hill overlooking the entrance from the ocean to the bay, housed 200-400 English military,  many of whom were young and untrained, andsome of whom bought their way into a higher rank. The parents of a six month old baby bought his rank so he could enter the military with a high rank. The fort is now a national monument. It sits across the bay from James Fort which also served the same purpose.

  With Lynn guiding our walking we returned to town enjoying the cool day and sun and the bay and ocean. The scenery is worth enjoying a long time.

  We ate fish and chips and mushy peas with Lynn and a couple from our group. I found it bland. I don't need fried fish again for a LONG time. We shared a cup of Murphy's soft ice cream after we left the cafe.  That was a welcome change.. Premilla and I then walked around town and stopped at a local craft Faire, located in the Temperance League building. Craftspersons, mostly older, shared their creations in wood, jewelry, pottery, knitting, embroidery,  and photography.  Premilla purchased a beautiful photo of the harbor and two forts and flowers.

  Back at the lodge we rested and watched Irish TV, RTE. It was Lynn's suggestion that we do that in order to become accustomed to Irish English. It wasearly evening and we walked around the town more and decided we really didn't want anything to eat.

It's now after 10, and we travel westward and up the west coast to Dingle tomorrow.

Good-night,  Susan



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