We have seen our fair share of castles lately.  I thought I’d post a few from Ireland….

First of all, we ate in a castle on our way from Dublin to Galway.  At first glance, we thought it might be cheesy but it was the only open restaurant in town, Tyrellpass.  As it turned out, it was fully with locals.

Our 2nd castle-dining in a week. This one not a UNESCO site like Bellinzona.

Next we drove through The Burren and spotted a few on its craggy coast.

Dungary Castle

On the Ring of Kerry, we saw quite a few.   We spied this one from the road and it was completely deserted.  We thought it was quite cool with the growth.

Ballycarberry Castle

We also saw ring forts in the distance and explored two.   The ring forts were defensive structured.

Ring fort #1

Ring fort #1

Ring fort #2

Ring fort #2

Ring fort #2

On our way back from Killarney to Dublin, we stopped at Blarney Castle (home of the Blarney Stone) and the Rock of Cashel.  We found Blarney to be incredibly touristy.  We couldn’t wait to get out of there…

The Blarney stone is at the top

Rock of Cashel, however, was cooler.  It was a home for kings until one donated the grounds to the church for strategic reasons.  It then was used until only recently.  The roof has falled into decay so I am sure it is not that pleasant with the typical Ireland weather.

Approaching Rock of Cashel

Inside of Rock of Cashel

Nearby monastery

Beautiful gravestone