Ireland: Castles, Cork, and Cobh

This is one post that I’ve been looking forward to writing. That’s how you know it’s good. Let me explain, I’m much more of a numbers girl than a writer. If every blog post was a graph, I’d be one happy camper! Monday’s post on my travel essentials was a little teaser but I’m thrilled to share the first photos from Ireland with you guys today! It’s taken a little longer than anticipated but it’s worth the wait!

I’ll be sharing pictures from our trip in a few posts! Bear with me, they’re a bit out of order but gorgeous nonetheless. There were just too many moments to share and squeezing it into one post just doesn’t do the beauty of this country justice. I’ll wrap this mini series up with our itinerary which should be really helpful for anyone planning a trip to Ireland!

When we first got to Ireland, we spent a few days in Dublin. I’ll come back to that but I wanted to start with one of the things everyone thinks about first when they think of Ireland: castles! The photo above was taken  outside Rock of Cashel. Not quite a castle, but I’m getting there! If you followed our trip on snapchat, you know we arrived about 5 minutes after last entry which is at 6:15PM. Oops! The outside was so beautiful though so we had no regrets!

We ended up walking down to Hore Abbey and wandering on our own while snapping a few photos. It wasn’t something we intended to visit but were so happy we did. The ruins were stunning. We got to see a herd of cattle up close – those animals are massive! You can see the back of one in the last photo! There wasn’t anyone else around which made for a neat ambiance too.

Earlier in the day, we stopped in Kilkenny for lunch which is a 60 minute drive from Rock of Cashel. Matt found a traditional Irish pub to to grab a quick bite called Matt the Millers. It was perfect – I ordered a salad and Matt got bangers and mash. We strolled through town afterward to stretch our legs from all the driving. It was really cute and colorful! I stopped every bright door and pastel wall to take a photo before Matt reminded me I would see hundreds more. I couldn’t get over how every building seemed to have a planter full of flowers in front of the windows. Swoon!

As promised, castles! Kilkenny Castle was one of the landmarks I was looking forward to most on this trip. I had thoroughly stalked photos online and fallen in love! Matt and I explored the gardens and sat on the expansive lawn instead of going inside. We knew we had a ton of ground to cover and more castles were in our future! As you can see from the photos, the weather in Ireland changed every 20 minutes. One moment it was sunny with clear skies and the next it was cloudy and grey!

This navy polka dotted dress was the perfect foundation for layering – I threw on this striped sweater later in the day when it got a little chilly! The dress is really lovely and I’m planning to wear it to work paired with a blazer.

Y’all, we kissed the Blarney Stone! What an exhilarating experience! The staircase winding up to the top of Blarney Castle was crazy small because it was built before the thirteenth century. You could see where the steps were worn down too from footsteps over the last 800 years. It was so surreal! Like something out of Game of Thrones or Downton Abbey. Get to Blarney castle as soon as it opens! Tons of tourists were coming in as we were leaving. We explored the cute little town of Cork for the rest of the morning. If you stop for a meal, I highly recommend Liberty Grill! It was right in the center of the city and the menu was delicious (lots of vegetarian friendly options too). After lunch we walked to Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral which was breathtaking!

We spent the afternoon in Cobh which is about 30 minutes from Cork. We wandered through the (even smaller) town and down to the docks to look at the cruise ships. Each street seemed to be more colorful than the next. What a adorable seaside city!

On the way back from Cobh, we stopped at Franciscan Well Brewery for a pint and a wood fired pizza. Delicious! Matt loves trying new beers and international breweries usually offer quite a few unique ones! Bellies full, we headed home to Hayfield Manor Hotel for the evening which was the quintessential Irish experience. Just look at the ivy on the walls! It was the perfect balance between modern amenities and a strong historical culture. The staff was beyond incredible plus they had a gym so I could sneak in a workout. We would both go back in a heartbeat!

Stay tuned for more from Ireland! Let me know if there’s anything in particular you want to see! If you have any questions, ask away!