We awoke to unbelievably sore muscles. The short 13 hour break we had from the trail wasn’t nearly enough to rest our aching muscles. With both my feet in complete agony as I hobbled around our small room I began to doubt whether or not we would even be able to go 1 mile today, let alone the 16 we were supposed to accomplish… We made ready and went to get the breakfast being made by our charming hostess, Julia. She had taken our meal orders the night before, mine being pancakes and Bobby had opted for the omelet. We…
The Kerry Way: Day 7
Due to not being given the password to the wifi at our B&B we had spent the majority of the evening in town at a small pub that offered free wifi. We had originally ordered drinks, it was only 5:00, and hadn’t planned on eating dinner there. We have had our full of pub food but when our hunger and dinner time rolled around we still weren’t finished creating and fine tuning the latest blog post so we decided to eat there. We got dinner menus and ordered an appetizer and an entree to split. The ‘Bruschetta’ appetizer was crappy…
The Kerry Way: Day 6
The alert of our alarm went off a little early for our liking, but we wanted to get a good days start for the 11 miles ahead that was on the schedule for the day. The morning was dawning bright and sunny, just as the day before had and we once again we were smiling at the idea of yet another sunny day along The Kerry Way. We had packed our bags, eaten breakfast, and checked out before 9:00 and were back on the trail! Today was a rather uneventful day along the trail. The sun was our constant companion…
The Kerry Way: Day 5
Yesterday evening, after finally getting dry pants back from our host, Angela, we headed into town for a look around. It had been raining on and off throughout the day so we went prepared with rain jackets. Thankfully we did as it rained several times as we roamed around. The coastal village offers a sandy/rocky beach where we took off our Toms and walked along the ocean front as the waves of icy ocean water lapped at our bare feet. We ducked into a souvenir shop a little ways off the beach as the winds continued to rip through the…
The Kerry Way: Day 4
After a horrible day of Bobby having the stomach flu in a tiny town, in a tiny room I was beyond excited when Bobby woke up, after sleeping for more than 24 hours, and was feeling back to normal. I couldn’t believe how hard and fast the bug had hit him and was incredibly grateful that it was only a short lived illness. We decided to walk! We were now a day off schedule and we had all our B&B’s previously booked so adjusting the schedule would be tricky. We were scheduled to have a rest day the following day…
The Kerry Way: Day 3
The delicious steak dinner we ate the previous night was followed by an overly large Traditional Irish Breakfast in the morning. Freshly squeezed orange juice was the highlight of this meal! Not to mention the canine companion, Scruffy, who joined us periodically throughout the meal. Thankfully breakfast was served later, at 9:00, so we were able to sleep in an extra half an hour. I had set an alarm as a precaution but it was, once again, necessary. We’ve been sleeping close to ten hours a night and yet it still doesn’t always feel like enough. Our eyes droop as…
The Kerry Way: Day 2
We awoke at 8:00 am in our cozy B&B, Hillcrest Farmhouse, to the sound of the wind still howling away and the sheep bleating. I had had a rough nights sleep due to the thin walls and noisy neighbors. They had decided to stay up and keep their tv on until 1:00 am. We went down for breakfast at 8:30 and were greeted by Robert, the host we had met the previous day. “Good morning to you.” He said in his, somewhat, monotone voice without a whole lot of enthusiasm. We greeted him cheerily as we were filled with excitement…
The Kerry Way: Day 1
Last night ended on a high note for us. We walked around town, visited some of the local purveyors of tacky souvenirs and ended up at a pub that promoted live music on a large sandwich sign outside. We went in, intrigued by this promise and found ourselves in a large restaurant that had been thoroughly Americanized. A little disappointed, but hungry nonetheless, we ordered food and were grateful for the hardiness of the lamb stew I had ordered and the tastiness of the burger Bobby had ordered. As is our custom, we swapped meals halfway through, meaning 3/4 of…
Travel Day to Ireland
4:15 AM (Pacific Time) – Our alarms, set the evening before, go off simultaneously, jerking us out of a fitful nights sleep. I was barely able to sleep a wink throughout the night due to anxiety and excitement. Bobby claims he slept well but having been restlessly awake for the majority of the night, I can tell you his sleep was anything but soundless. Still, the of the day had us up and excited in no time. After packing a few last items we were ready for the walk to the light rail station. 4:55 – Thankfully, I had watched…
Playing the Tourist
We have lived in Seattle for 11 months now and in that time we have had several family members make the journey out here for a visit. Spending time with those closest to us in the state that we now call home has been wonderful. It gives us the opportunity to do all the touristy things we don’t usually do on a day to day basis. My top ten favorite places to show visitors in this rainy city and surrounding areas are as follows. 1. Pike Place Market The iconic bustling market located in the heart of downtown, a stones…