Today, we didn’t get up early. There was all kinds of midnight commotion associated with the wedding last night that included a parking lot fight at 1 am, very happy old friends at 2 am, two drunken men yelling and banging into walls and doors at 3 am, and, finally, an accidental fire alarm at 4 am! All true. I’m not making any of it up. Maybe wee were caught up in an episode of Fawlty Towers?

So, at 8 am we woke up, ate with the wedding party (many well rested) and headed out to see a few things. #1 on John’s list was the Kilkenny Castle, built by the Normans in 1260, that created the town. It fell to ruin during Oliver Cromwell’s rein and all items sold to pay taxes, and then restored when and all the items that were sold were returned  and donated to the family it to its former glory.

Then on to St. Mary’s Catholic Church, à neo-gothic design built in 1857. Lovely, historical, and about to hold a funeral, so we took quick photos and scooted out. From there, we took a few turns to get the most from this medieval city as we walked back to our charming River Front Hotel.

The road to Dublin is straight and mostly walled in by hedge rows so we didn’t see much other than the occasional peek at countryside. Very lovely. Checking in to Ryanair was tricky and costly. But it all ended well in the end for our expensive 30 minute flight to Liverpool.

There, we loaded our bags in an old fashioned white cab and headed off to the waterside Hilton, a very comfortable place for the next few days. After dinner and a few twilight photos, the day was done.  See you all tomorrow!