May 23 Cahir

Day 15 - Thursday, May 23, 2002

We had our breakfast in the spacious dining room looking out on the harbor. The tide was out, so it wasn't particularly spectacular. I was goaded into trying the white pudding because it was "award winning". I have to say, it was borderline edible unlike the others I had tried. I still wouldn't make it part of my everyday diet. The owner seemed in a hurry to rush us out, so I wasn't as impressed as I had been on the last trip. Still, the food and the accommodations were wonderful.

We made the drive out to Mizen head with clear skies but it was cold and windy. We were there to early to make the trip all of the way out to the lighthouse, so I just wandered around the area while Felicity stayed warm in the car. Since we had left the camera at the B&B the night before, we wanted to go back and get some pictures of O'Sullivan's. Sadly, Billy wasn't there, but we got a picture of Rose and a few of the pub. We were convinced to sit for a spell and chat and had a quick drink and headed on.

Right after passing through Goleen, we came upon a very well preserved dolmen. Apparently, the Mizen peninsula has many ancient sites and this was just one of them. Mizen is not a heavily traveled area, and thus, there are not huge numbers of accommodation options available, but it is well worth the trip. It is beautiful and serene, and easy to get to as you tour the southwest of Ireland. I love the area.

We headed towards Cork, with the thought of possibly going to Blarney Castle. We hit a traffic jam in one of the roundabouts that had traffic stopped for miles. We had heard there was some construction going on in the area so we just completed the circle and headed towards Cahir. When we arrived in town, we had a terrible time finding our B&B, only because the sign to the Swiss Cottage (which was across the street from our B&B) was pointed at the side of a building and gave no real indication which way the cottage was. We finally had to ask for directions and found our way, only to find the entrance blocked by a large truck. Finally we got into Scaragh House and despite my foul mood, found the place to be quite nice. This was the only place that asked for payment up front, but it turned out to be a good thing, because we didn't have to deal with it at the end. I think they actually do it so they don't have to cope with collecting money and serving breakfast at the same time.

We walked around Cahir for a while and stepped into some shops. Oddly, Cahir is about the most difficult place I've found anywhere to cross a street. N24 is the major road through town and it is apparently the main route for large trucks. There is only one defined crosswalk and if that's not where you want to cross, it's a hope for the best situation. Dinner was at the Galtee Inn. The food was excellent. We each had some pork dish but with different sauces. Service in Irish restaurants is generally slower and even if you know to ask for the check, it can take a while. That supports the much slower pace generally found everywhere in the country. After dinner we were back to the B&B to hit the sack.

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