Today we visited Kilkenny and rural East Ireland. The first stop was at the Kilkenny Castle and surronding historical town. Upon arrival, I was very excited to see that there were entrepreneurial street pop ups. There were tents selling jewlery, food, and art. I contributed to one of these entrepreneurs by purchasing a hand-made juice from a smoothie stand. In addition, I sat down at a local cafe and indulged in local paninis’ and salads. The service was great and the atmosphere was very layed back and polite.

We then visited a town called Glendalough. Here there were hiking trails and historical landmarks. On the ride to our destination I observed very little housing and if any large residential “escapes from society”. The views were beautiful and upon arrival I was shocked by the number of visitors. I learned the values of these visitors are very different than the communities in urban Dublin. At this location, people set off to camp, picnic, and or connect with nature.

Our last visit was to an established sheep farm. This was my favorite stop of the day. The wool industry and farming capabilities were very prominent not only on the farm but on its surrounding rural communities. Richie, the owner of this farm, was very welcoming to tourists. Our tour guide informed us that Richie entertains tourists 360 out of the 365 days a year. That’s ALOT! Richie’s family heritage was long running in the sheep industry and this showed through his exponential knowledge and expertise. Overall I enjoyed the nature of rural Ireland and learning about the differing communities.