Roads, Yarns and Other Stories
Our plan has been to balance relaxation (reading, walking, writing, yoga and eating) ....with adventures...(walking, touring, exploring) We decided it would be grand to see a number of stone circles as each is so different, to walk on a number of islands, to drive the Beara Penninsula and the Kerry Way, to visit a garden or two, to find some locally made wool, and perhaps to eat a bit more fish
and taste a few more beers, and indeed to try to pronounce a few more town names...
We are enjoying Ballydehob, Skibbereen, Clonakility, and Rosscarberry, Drimoleague & Timoleagues, Dunmanway & Ballylickey! Tuosist..try that one.
And these are the names in English, seemingly shortened from the Irish names. And truly we are not making any attempt to learn Irish...
We have learned that 'Beag' means little, so if this is an indication...we just are not feeling up to managing the contradictions.
We've done a fine job exploring though, that we have.
Living here on the Mizen head, the lesser known penninusla of Ireland, we are experiencing a way of life that suits us very well. It is not for those seeking night life, though music can be found at times ("Hya, yeh it's here on the odd Satrday, and the one across the way on the next,and at times of a Sunday afternoon " though they don't say "it'd be good to check with us first" And indeed it turns out that while they were planning to have music, it didn't work out, or the times were off, and our walk into town or our drive at dusk along winding seaside cliff roads to get there not of any interest to a soul. "Ah never mind, and have a Guinness will ye")
But we love it. We've driven and walked all the heads, the sheep's head with it's lighthouse and windy shores; the Mizen head which is the most South Western tip of Ireland, which is also the furthest Western point of Europe. The Beara, which has Dursey Island at it's tip accessible only by cable car. We've driven between wild rugged mountain passes with slopes that look like aging skin, the moss undulating in folds down the sides. Others with boulders which have plummeted down the steep slopes, perching one upon another in tumbled frightening fashion.
In exploring these trails and paths and side roads we have learned that an Irish kilometer is very much longer than any other kilometer we've ever driven. It seems minutes upon minutes, and still minutes more pass as we navigate each stretch of road, with the endless twists and hairpin turns, the sheep and cows in the way and the tractors and cyclists and walkers to manage. Never mind that Google thinks it understands Irish time let alone Irish roads. Even with Tim's impeccable sense of direction (which he is now admitting can be turned topsy turvy in this land) we are often just not quite where we thought we were.
The journey may indeed be the destination, as we find our way here.
Wool, at least sock wool, it turns out, is also a challenge to locate. Though Aran sweaters are perfect of course for knitting from Irish Wool, thick with lanolin and warm against the elements. But for socks...I receive looks that tell me I should take my woolen dreadlocked heid elsewhere indeed! You see Irish sheep are just too...well, too....woolly! They have these rough thick coats that protect them from the elements, but aren't conducive to anything soft or fine. The Irish cottage industry of knitting is working to blend Irish wool, with other materials, such as bamboo and silk, but mostly they are importing the fleece from Australia, then carding, spinning & dyeing it here...or in some cases they bring in the yarn as yarn, and then just dye it here. It's a long story, but just know that there are brown sheep and white sheep and sheep of mixed coats and origins, and that some have really tight curls that result in one type of yarn while others have smooth coats that result in another. Determined, was I, to find Irish sock wool, and so ignoring the looks of confusion from the artisan at the market, and the woman at the art store, and the knitting store clerk (Why should I listen to them after all!) I pursued my search. And indeed, had I given up I would not have had some amazing adventures, met some equally amazing women along the way and have the yarn and the "yarns" to prove it.
Anna & Eve of "Eve&Apple Designs" in her kitchen, in her little house on a tiny hill on a back road, near a tiny town!
Anna & Marilyn of Sheep's Head yarn cooperative.
Marilyn's Alpaca...a friendly visit
A restful moment after our Sheep's Head Wool Adventure. Anna pauses for a moment of knitting, and our neighbours here decide to help us capture the moments...
In other adventures...the paths we are following have led us through the most quaint, colourful and remote of villages,
...to remarkable stone circles (3000 year old ) or ancient ruins, where we have had quiet moments shared only with livestock and perhaps faeries & spirits...
Magic and stories are here in these ancient ruins it seems to us.
[The most manicured of stone circles, in Kenmare town]
[The stone circle a walk away from our cottage, though we didn't find it on the first try]
[I think perhaps one of our favourite stone circles, near the town of Ardgroom]
Drombeg stone circle, surrounded by other stone structures..., known as the Druid's alter. The most visited magalithic site in Ireland, though we didn't know this. A very quiet country road to get there, and just a few others like us meandering among the stones.
Soon we are off to Dingle Town and a promise of music, and more adventures beyond...
and taste a few more beers, and indeed to try to pronounce a few more town names...
We are enjoying Ballydehob, Skibbereen, Clonakility, and Rosscarberry, Drimoleague & Timoleagues, Dunmanway & Ballylickey! Tuosist..try that one.
And these are the names in English, seemingly shortened from the Irish names. And truly we are not making any attempt to learn Irish...
We have learned that 'Beag' means little, so if this is an indication...we just are not feeling up to managing the contradictions.
We've done a fine job exploring though, that we have.
Living here on the Mizen head, the lesser known penninusla of Ireland, we are experiencing a way of life that suits us very well. It is not for those seeking night life, though music can be found at times ("Hya, yeh it's here on the odd Satrday, and the one across the way on the next,and at times of a Sunday afternoon " though they don't say "it'd be good to check with us first" And indeed it turns out that while they were planning to have music, it didn't work out, or the times were off, and our walk into town or our drive at dusk along winding seaside cliff roads to get there not of any interest to a soul. "Ah never mind, and have a Guinness will ye")
But we love it. We've driven and walked all the heads, the sheep's head with it's lighthouse and windy shores; the Mizen head which is the most South Western tip of Ireland, which is also the furthest Western point of Europe. The Beara, which has Dursey Island at it's tip accessible only by cable car. We've driven between wild rugged mountain passes with slopes that look like aging skin, the moss undulating in folds down the sides. Others with boulders which have plummeted down the steep slopes, perching one upon another in tumbled frightening fashion.
In exploring these trails and paths and side roads we have learned that an Irish kilometer is very much longer than any other kilometer we've ever driven. It seems minutes upon minutes, and still minutes more pass as we navigate each stretch of road, with the endless twists and hairpin turns, the sheep and cows in the way and the tractors and cyclists and walkers to manage. Never mind that Google thinks it understands Irish time let alone Irish roads. Even with Tim's impeccable sense of direction (which he is now admitting can be turned topsy turvy in this land) we are often just not quite where we thought we were.
The journey may indeed be the destination, as we find our way here.
Wool, at least sock wool, it turns out, is also a challenge to locate. Though Aran sweaters are perfect of course for knitting from Irish Wool, thick with lanolin and warm against the elements. But for socks...I receive looks that tell me I should take my woolen dreadlocked heid elsewhere indeed! You see Irish sheep are just too...well, too....woolly! They have these rough thick coats that protect them from the elements, but aren't conducive to anything soft or fine. The Irish cottage industry of knitting is working to blend Irish wool, with other materials, such as bamboo and silk, but mostly they are importing the fleece from Australia, then carding, spinning & dyeing it here...or in some cases they bring in the yarn as yarn, and then just dye it here. It's a long story, but just know that there are brown sheep and white sheep and sheep of mixed coats and origins, and that some have really tight curls that result in one type of yarn while others have smooth coats that result in another. Determined, was I, to find Irish sock wool, and so ignoring the looks of confusion from the artisan at the market, and the woman at the art store, and the knitting store clerk (Why should I listen to them after all!) I pursued my search. And indeed, had I given up I would not have had some amazing adventures, met some equally amazing women along the way and have the yarn and the "yarns" to prove it.
Anna & Eve of "Eve&Apple Designs" in her kitchen, in her little house on a tiny hill on a back road, near a tiny town!
Anna & Marilyn of Sheep's Head yarn cooperative.
Marilyn's Alpaca...a friendly visit
A restful moment after our Sheep's Head Wool Adventure. Anna pauses for a moment of knitting, and our neighbours here decide to help us capture the moments...
In other adventures...the paths we are following have led us through the most quaint, colourful and remote of villages,
...to remarkable stone circles (3000 year old ) or ancient ruins, where we have had quiet moments shared only with livestock and perhaps faeries & spirits...
Magic and stories are here in these ancient ruins it seems to us.
[The most manicured of stone circles, in Kenmare town]
[The stone circle a walk away from our cottage, though we didn't find it on the first try]
[I think perhaps one of our favourite stone circles, near the town of Ardgroom]
Drombeg stone circle, surrounded by other stone structures..., known as the Druid's alter. The most visited magalithic site in Ireland, though we didn't know this. A very quiet country road to get there, and just a few others like us meandering among the stones.
Soon we are off to Dingle Town and a promise of music, and more adventures beyond...
Ye've surely found your happy place, have ye not then? Lovely photos...It's no wonder that the land has produced so many great poets, writers and musicians. And it's now wonder the people are known for their charm and the "gift o' the gab"! ;)
ReplyDeleteIt looks beautiful Anna. Be careful not to touch the stones or you might be drawn to the 1700's - Although, it sort of looks like you may already be there! Enjoy.
ReplyDelete