We decided to use our short time in Ireland to stay in a small town amid the famous green beauty of Ireland, rather than in the big city of Dublin. So we flew into Kerry and rented a nice townhouse with lots of room to spread out. Kenmare was a cute town where we could also do normal weekend activities. We went to the farmers market, where we bought some really delicious cheese, and experienced a bit of the local community by attending church as well as the local production of Little Orphan Annie. We were probably the only ones in attendance who didn’t have a child in the cast!

Kenmare is located on the Ring of Kerry–a scenic, circular drive that takes several hours by car. We really wanted to visit the famous Skellig Michael–a beautiful island off the coast of the Ring of Kerry, with an interesting historic background. The island recently gained popularity because of the scene filmed there in Star Wars: the Last Jedi. We took an eco-friendly tour around the island, not walking upon the island itself, which is home to many protected birds. On our boat tour we saw graceful dolphins, a whale, other unidentified porpoise, lounging seals, puffins and gannets. A colony of 70,000-80,000 gannets blanket an island near Skellig Michael.

Thousands of gannets cover island.

Seal with fishing net wrapped around its neck.

Hundreds of gannet nests.

Dolphin swimming next to the boat.

The building we hiked to later.

We learned how the monks used the island as early as 600 AD as an isolated place where they stayed for long periods of time. All the pathways were built by the monks back then, including the 600 steps to the top! H got a thrill out of driving the boat for a while. After the boat ride, we learned more about the gannets and monks at the museum.

Penguins

Helicopter landing pad

Skellig Michael

Afterwards, we took a spontaneous hike to an old ruin which we’d spotted from the boat earlier. The sheep, green grass and sharp wind kept us company on the walk up to the building and beautiful view.

On another day we drove all around the Ring of Kerry–we walked to a waterfall, everything was covered in bright, green grass and lichen. It practically glowed under the cloudy sky. It was a gorgeous drive; we always love things that just the beauty of nature is the focus. On the way back, we stopped at an ancient, circular fort where the kids climbed around and got some energy out.

Irish traffic jam (cows)

K running along circular fort.

Near our townhouse we found horse back riding. We especially enjoyed riding the horses through the woods and to a river–a beautiful and relaxing time. It was one of our best experiences ever riding horses.

By recommendation of a nice woman we met at the local church, we went to a pet farm. We miss our pets back at home so much; it was a perfect cuddly and relaxing way to wrap up our time in Ireland.

Next stop–Scotland!