Kerry/Kilarney – Day 8

Day 8 – Tuesday, September 25:
Kerry (Killarney)
Left hotel at 10:00
First stop Kenmare for a short break. Charming little town.
The three main streets that form a triangle in the centre of the town are called Main Street (originally William Street, after Sir William, 1st. Marquis of Lansdowne), Henry Street (originally Sound Road), after the son of William the 1st. Marquis and Shelbourne Street (Henry Petty became the first Earl of Shelburne). This name was also later applied to Shelbourne Road in Dublin.
However, the area has more ancient roots. One of the largest stone circles in the south-west of Ireland^[9] is close to the town, and shows occupation in the area going back to the Bronze Age (2,200-500 B.C), when it was constructed. The circle has 15 stones around the circumference with a boulder dolmen in the centre.^[9]

Watch these video's: really beautiful footage of various parts of Ireland in this area.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9G6VjJBitts

The eternal beauty of the Irish landscape is most breath-taking with a sweep around the Ring of Kerry. And a great jumping-off point for this tour is Kenmare, with its cozy feel and close proximity to the peninsula.

Kissane Sheep Farm
Preserve an Irish Heritage
In the area of the Ring of Kerry mountain sheep have been in the hills and on the roads for over one hundred years. Every year thousands of tourists come over to see the beautiful countryside and make photographs of the ewes and little lambs wandering around, enjoying their freedom. The goal of Adopt a Sheep is to preserve the Irish heritage of mountain sheep, living in the mountains in the scenic area of Moll’s Gap on the Ring of Kerry (Ireland). In doing so also the heritage of a traditional family farm in this Special Area of Conservation is saved for future generations.Situated between Kenmare and Killarney National Park in Co. Kerry in the Republic of Ireland is Kissane Sheep Farm.

The color stained on their pelt are markings of the farmer owners. Each farmer in the region marks their sheep.

Windy road to Moll’s Gap, Ladies View The famous panorama of Moll's Gap is in the middle of the land, overlooking the farm and its sheep and lambs. Arrived at Kissane Sheep Farm 11:45 AM, light rain, watched sheep dogs herd sheep; a sheep shaved.  Very nice people; everyone enjoyed. This was our best day for seeing the country side. It was truly beautiful.

Interesting enough, all the mountains are named after women

Muckross house, walked around gardens. This nineteenth century Victorian mansion is set against the stunning beauty of Killarney National Park. The house stands close to the shores of Muckross Lake, one of Killarney's three lakes, famed world wide for their splendour and beauty. As a focal point within Killarney National Park, Muckross House is the ideal base from which to explore this landscape.
1,1400 acres of gardens, parks settings and walking paths. A beautiful piece of land.

Below is this mansions view

Rock gardens

Old trees and emerald green lawns

Muckross House was built for Henry Arthur Herbert and his wife, the water-colourist Mary Balfour Herbert. This was actually the fourth house that successive generations of the Herbert family had occupied at Muckross over a period of almost two hundred years. William Burn, the well-known Scottish architect, was responsible for its design. Building commenced in 1839 and was completed in 1843.

It was raining pretty hard by the time we arrived
but managed to get some pictures

Afternoon free time—
And now we're off to downtown Kilarney. Lots of shops, cafe's and flowers.

Our options were to either shop or to stop at the Roses of Tralee, we chose the garden.

There are two origin stories regarding the Irish folk ballad "The Rose of Tralee." It was either written by a lyricist named C. Mordaunt Spencer and a composer named Charles William Glover sometime in the 1800s (the more likely but far less romantic version), or it was composed by one William P. Mulchinock, a young Protestant man who fell madly in love with a Catholic girl named Mary O'Connor, who worked as a maid for Mulchinock's parents. There's more to the second story, and it's certainly far more charming, but unfortunately there's not a lot of documentation for either, so "The Rose of Tralee" remains a mystery.

"The Rose of Tralee" Festival:

Phot0s from the garden

An Irish personality, beauty, and charm competition, featuring young women of Irish heritage from around the world, The Rose of Tralee Festival is, as described by the About.com Guide to Ireland Travel, the event most Irish people claim to not be watching, ever. It takes its name from the song, and, like the song, seeks to find the young lady the most "lovely and fair as the rose in the summer." And Irish, of course.

The festival has its origins in the local Carnival Queen, once an annual town event, fallen by the wayside due to post-war emigration. In 1957, the Race Week Carnival was resurrected in Tralee, and it featured a Carnival Queen. The idea for the Rose of Tralee festival came when a group of local business people met in Harty's bar in Tralee to come up with ideas to bring more tourists to the town during the horse racing meeting and to encourage ex-pats back to their native Tralee. Led by Dan Nolan, then managing director of The Kerryman newspaper, they hit on the idea of the Rose of Tralee festival. The competition started in 1959 on a budget of just £750.^[2]
The founders of the organisation were: Billy Clifford - an accountant with the Rank Organisation who was one of the first recipients of the Golden Rose award (which was inaugurated to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Festival of Kerry); Dan Nolan, the owner of The Kerryman newspaper and involved with Tralee Races; Jo Hussey, a shopkeeper in Tralee and Ted Healy.
Originally, only women from Tralee were eligible to compete, in the early 1960s it was extended to include any women from Kerry, and in 1967 it was further extended to include any women of Irish birth or ancestry.

 Off to the hotel and dinner...we're all pretty tired.