Medieval Mile, Kilkenny, Ireland

Kilkenny Castle ground, Kilkenny

We gathered our gloves, wrapped our scarfs tighter and pulled our woolly hats down over our heads. It was time to brave the cold again and leaving the cozy bar was going to come at a price. We had just finished an amazing tour: the Smithwicks brewery experience, and although our bellies were warmed by the golden draught it was still mighty cold outside.

We had ventured out early this frosty morning set on visiting the Kilkenny medieval mile; a compact route which links Kilkenny castle with Saint Canice's Church through the centre of the little city. Starting off strong we made our first stop at the large stone symbol of Normanism, the noble and opulent Kilkenny Castle. 

Butler gallery, Kilkenny Castle

Main gate, the parade

From the inner courtyard

Corner tower

Built in 1195 by William Marshall, 1st Earl of Pembrooke the castle has seen its fair share of sieges, conquerings, reconquerings and war. Oh if walls could talk.

Castle library 

Dining hall for guests

Informal sitting room 

Art gallery 

Kilkenny Castle gardens

We wandered around the gardens stomping on the frozen grass enjoying the little sunshine which peeped between the clouds. But as the morning would have it we quickly got slightly side tracked at the Smithwicks brewery.

Smithwicks brewery

Enter the brewery experience

Into the brew house

Our Kilkenny guidebook which we picked up at the tourist information centre read that when the Smithwick family moved to Kilkenny in the early 1700's they went enthusiastically into the brewery business. 

The trouble was that at the time Ireland had strict penal laws which meant no Catholic could own property or conduct business. This didn't stop them though and they stealthily kept private and began brewing. The brewery grew in size and output and today (nine generations later) the business is a thriving international success. We had tried a local Kilkenny down at The Dylan pub last week and we were easily sold on the idea of the Smithwicks experience. 

Real Craft is Born of Necessity

It was close to midday when we arrived and there were no other punters to be seen so our little tour of four set off with a guide into the sweet-smelling brewery.

Churning the grains

To say the least we were pleasantly surprised at the professionalism and high quality of the tour (and they're not paying us to say that!) it was fantastic! 

The tour was broken into three parts; the first: Real Craft is Born of Necessity where holographic monks (the brewery was built next to St Francis Abbey where in the 13th century monks also used a brewery type process) explained how water was filtered and cleaned during the medieval times. 

Warming of the barley

Awesome holographics

Relaxing over a Kilkenny

Then the second theme was: Forged in Adversity. There were talking pictures of the Smithwicks (pronounced smid'icks) family members explaining how they survived through many a hard time of Ireland's history and while we watched we sat in bathtubs.

Each area also had a unique smell and the guide was sure to point them out, explaining what it was. 

We got to try our hands on some of the old machinery, feel the heat of the fermenting grains, taste the unfiltered beer and then finally the third part of the tour: 

Perfected Over Generations, where we sat in the bar and shared a Kilkenny! 

St Canice Catholic Church

St Mary's Church

St Mary's Church

So back out in the cold winter's day after wrapping up warm we walked down towards St Canice's Church sharing a bag of Guinness fudge. The road winded slowly down the main street and we passed several other smaller churches.

Saint Canice's Church

Also sometimes called the Kilkenny Cathedral, St Canice's church dates back to the 13th century but was built on the sight of a much older church dating as far back as the 6th century. 

St Canice's church was originally named after the legendary saint 'Canice or Kenny' who lived from 525 to 599AD. It was such an important part of the ancient town that when Kilkenny became the ancient capital of the Kingdom of Ossory it received its name Cill Cainnigh which means 'Church of Canice'. 

Climbing the round tower

With a long and complicated history the church and its grand cathedral now sits quietly above the city on ancient Celtic sacred land.

Its bells chime out softly on a Sunday morning and the graveyard surrounding its perimeter is quiet and still. One of the unique aspects of the Church is its 9th century 100ft high Celtic Christian round tower which is open to the public! 

Steep and steady

That was our next stop and along with a young group of Chinese tourists we ascended the steep set of internal ladders. The round tower or Cloigtheach (that's a mouthful right?) which means bell tower wasn't easy to climb. Not for the weak or faint hearted or perhaps in hindsight those under the influence we had to grip onto the cold wonky wood for dear life.

Reaching the top of one of the only two round towers open in Ireland was breathtaking. The icy wind literally pushed us hard against the edge of the stone ledge. With the early setting sun glaring in our eyes we took a few photos of the grey city beneath and the approaching rain before quickly beginning our slow and wobbly climb.

View over Kilkenny

View to the South (here comes that rain again)

On top of the round tower, Kilkenny

Medieval Mile, Kilkenny

As we walked home down the chilly streets in Kilkenny looking into the warm low-lit windows of the corner pubs we were reminded how similar Ireland is to New Zealand.

As we turned and passed the small alleys we heard the voices of children singing English carols and their parents across the way carefully watching and gossiping about work. 

It made us homesick for our families. As we returned walking down the black marbled streets we took a moment to reflect on this last year. It has certainly been one full of adventure and a roller coaster of fun, sometimes up, sometimes down. For now, to close this year, we wish our family and friends a wonderful Christmas, full of love, happiness and cheer. MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone.

Oh how we miss you all!

Tot siens,

John and Kara

Carlow, Ireland

Carlow, the rural county

It was a bit nippy this morning, a fresh 4 degrees with a real feel of -2degrees. A little harder to get out of the warm bed but fortunately the sun shone against the winter drapes and without having somewhere to be we took our time getting up!

Fast forward a couple of hours and we were somewhere! Somewhere in Northern County Carlow, South East Ireland. 

Traipsing across a wet, muddy, green field, alone, as an icy and gusty wind whipped at our exposed flesh we, like archeologists, sought out a pre-historic stone monument. 

Brownshill Dolmen

Side view of the Dolmen

Our sleep-in forgotten with the joy of climbing under the trees which with the latest storm had fallen over the path, squishing through the mud and the constant fear of being hit by a car racing down the narrow footpath-less country roads we side saddled. Several kilometers into our adventure we eventually found the unmistakable Brownshill Dolmen monument. 

The Dolmen, is a pre-historic capstone which it is believed to have been made by ancient Irish farmers for religious reasons. Used for over four and half thousand years as possibly a human sacrificial location, the monument is meant to be the gateway to a deep underground burial chamber, which is yet to be excavated. Having recently read the Scottish based novel 'Outlanders' how exciting would it be if we fell into a time portal? 

There we were, alone and with the wind burning our cheeks red and numbing our noses while climbing over the deserted field looking for our entry into a different century. Aye, the elements weren't right to talk with our Neolithic ancestors today so mildly disappointed that our attempt at time travel failed we admired the 100 ton rocks and then set of towards the township of Carlow. 

Looking for a time portal

Walking the country roads

Five kilometers down the road, the little town of Carlow (capital of County Carlow) pre-dates written Irish history. It played a major role in Ireland, serving as Ireland's capital back in the 14th century. As we walked the flat road we stopped to take photos at the beautiful manors and houses which were neatly lined up along the road.

Carlow County Manor

Walking Tullow Street

English type houses along the road

Carlow Castle

Coming into the little town the streets were full with people scattering about finishing their last minute Christmas shopping. We walked on through the little center.

Past streets with unusual names, like Potato Market, towards the large Carlow Castle. Located next to the long windy River Barrow that cuts through the town, the Castle was believed to have been built to guard the river. 

Although no evidence exists, it's assumed that the large stone castle was built around 1201-1213 by Englishman, William Marshal the elder. When we arrived we were surprised to see that nothing really remained bar a west facing wall. In 1814 the castle was widely destroyed by explosives in an over eager attempt to create more space for a lunatic asylum. In fact, by the middle of the 14th century there were a recorded 150 castles in Carlow- all of which have since been destroyed.

Behind the west wall

Windows in the tower

Graiguecullen Bridge over the River Burrow

Swans in the Town Park

So we had a short walk around the remaining wall and then over to the Graiguecullen Bridge which dates back to 1569 and crosses the River Burrow.

It was quite chilly for 2pm and the wind raced over the water finding the littles gaps in our gloves.

After walking across the bridge and down the riverside path we stopped for a small lunch along the river and watched the huge white swans lazing about as if they didn't feel the sub zero temperatures. We did however.

A Christmas tree at the mall

Liberty Tree sculpture

So to warm up we made our way through the city park to the little Carlow mall, on the way stopping quickly at the infamous Liberty Tree sculpture which was designed to commemorate the 1798 Irish rebellion where sadly over 600 soldiers unsuccessfully attacked the English town. 

Christmas lights in the town

After looking around the closing mall we grabbed a coffee and went out again looking at the Christmas lights out on the street. Carlow has the quaint small town feel we've come to find across Ireland. The shops have well decorated front facades with large glass windows all orderly lined up in parallel with the road.

It was a beautiful time to be out, the streets quiet and clear, everyone already tucked up inside their warm houses getting ready for Christmas. Carlow was a small town and it was nice to explore the ancient settlement.

Tot siens,

John and Kara

County Kilkenny, Ireland

Kens Priory, County Kilkenny

The rain came down from the heavens forming droplets that glistened in our hair, the wind pushed against our eyelashes causing our eyes to water. We had just run across a muddy and boggy sheep prairie to explore the Kells Priory ruins and the sky had opened, the clouds low and rolling over the green hills.

Earlier in the morning we had started an adventure exploring the farmlands of County Kilkenny. 

North eastern view of the Kilkenny prairies 

We started our trail at the border of County Kilkenny in Graiguenamanagh, the old village of ancient monks. Settled around the River Barrow, the little village was once a thriving port and its river the main highway during the mid seventeen hundreds. 

Now, with a population almost identical to that first recorded in 1821, with barely over 1500 citizens the little village hums along. We stopped in at the Duiske Abbey, founded by William Marshall, earl of Pembroke in  the year 1204 making it pretty old, one of Ireland oldest functioning churches.

Houses in Graiguenamanagh

It's also, considering its age, the largest Cistercian Monastery of it's kind. 

The abbey was oddly dark and deserted but the front door had been left unlocked so when we went in sheltering ourselves from the sub zero degree wind it was pleasantly quiet and warm. 

Inside the renovated and remodelled church still had a majority of it's original structure and foundations, remnants of its past. 

Inside Duiske Abbey

Road side view of Duiske Abbey

We had a quick look around, enough to warm ourselves up again before venturing down towards the flooded River Barrow. Really just as far as the crow flies the river moved quickly and swiftly along its frozen banks.

A clear morning in Graiguenamanagh 

Graiguenamanagh bridge

Merchant houses along the river

Colourful merchant houses lay along the tidal river edge with the old stone Graiguenamanagh bridge built in 1764 at the centre point, but golly it was cold and the wind cut through us like silver blades. 

After a coffee stop we raced back to the car, the wind catching our hair and whispering through the alleys, passing over fragments of a time when war, religion and communities flourished over centuries ago.

Rural roads, County Kilkenny

An Irish traffic jam

Next up on our tiki tour was Thomastown, historically known as Grennan. We drove into the small medieval and walled town that is settled along the River Nore, looking out for a carpark. 

Parking on the outskirts of town we walked in towards the little centre admiring the little cobbled lanes, the rock cottages and Christmas lights! 

Ducks sitting out the stormy weather, River Nore

Our plan was to visit the ruins of the Jerpoint Abbey. 

Also a ruined cistercian abbey, it was founded in the second half of the 12th century (1180 to be precise) by Donogh O'Donoghoe Mac Gilla Patraic the King of Osraige. It flourished until the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Henry VIII. As we walked through the town we weren't prepared for the cold and giving up on our walk, returned to the car with the intention to drive closer, much closer. 

Jerpoint Abbey, Thomastown

The weeping solider

Inner court-yard

Peaking through the gaps

Looking up the embattlement tower

Inner Jerpoint Abbey cloister

When we arrived, it was closed. But we weren't defeated and rather just went about exploring the perimeter, peaking in through the old stone window holes. The abbey is notable for its stone carvings which are somewhat preserved, time clearly has taken its toll but we were able to see these from the outside. We decided it would definitely be worth coming back and exploring further.

Medieval village wall tower, Thomastown

Kells Priory, County Kilkeeny

After Thomastown we had just enough daylight to visit Kells and the infamous Kells Priory located along Kings River. From afar the Priory ruins look like the remains of a fortress; alone, abandoned and lost. 

Large enough to have been a medieval town in its own right it's surrounded by moss covered stone walls, almost six meters in height but now in a state of disarray the walls are falling and crumbling down. 

St Kierans Church

Entrance into the Priory

But that made it all the more exciting. Like children we raced across the soft grass waving at the sheep that we passed keen to explore our castle. Above us large black crows circled in flocks, pushing their wings against the wind. Nothing but sheep and birds in a place where centuries ago hundreds of people lived. With nobody else silly enough to brave the wild winter weather we had the place to ourselves. It was wet, the grass brushed up against our pants and the prairie was muddy. We found the small entrance which opened up into a large grassy enclosure.

Moss covered walls

Flooded pastures

One of the seven towers

Rain having left its mark

The priory, we later read, was founded in 1193 by William FitzRobert (an English Norman and brother in law to Leader of the Norman forces in Ireland: Strongbow) and was an impressive size in its time. So much so that it was ideal for conquering and was ransacked by both English and Scottish forces during its first 150years. The priory was then expanded and built to protect and defend its inhabitants with the additions of seven massive towers which were joined together by the fortified outer defence walls. Inside the walls the monks could maintain better control of their farm animals, gardens and, most likely, their brewery! Archaeologists have reported that there would have also been an infirmary and a mill.

Kells Priory outer wall

Sheep resting in mud

Inner Abbey

Ruins of Kells Priory

Inside the Cathedral

Kells Priory ruins

As we walked through the large grassy area we could see by the foundations of the remaining walls how big the priory must have once been. That being- huge! Within a second wall are the remains of the priory church and inner sanctum. This is where we scampered, climbed and explored. We listened carefully to the silent stones hoping to hear their old stories but only the rain wet our ears.

Indoor swimming pool! Nice!

Kells Priory ruins

The sun began to set as we drove back to Kilkenny township. We sat on our hands to warm them up and quietly reflected on what life must have once been like.

Tot siens,

John and Kara