Our next stop was the Jameson Whiskey Distillery in Midleton. A large number of the people on our tour went and took a tour of the distillery; Jordan and I decided to wander through the town instead. (Although I still took pictures of the outside of the distillery!) The town was pretty much just one major street, but it was filled with shops, pubs, and restaurants. We wound up at a tiny little cafe for an amazing lunch and then it was back to the bus.
Our third stop was at the Rock of Cashel. This fort on a giant rock is more commonly known as St. Patrick's Rock. It is located in the heart of the famous county of Tipperary and was supposedly the site of the conversion of Aenghus the King of Munster by St. Patrick in the 5th century AD. Unfortunately it was undergoing refurbishment when we visited, so the scaffolding sort of got in the way of getting a really good picture of the whole fort.
Finally we arrived in Kilkenny! Now let me just take a moment to tell you about our hotel. It was so confusing and crazy and cool! There were so many hallways, staircases, and dark little nooks that it was extremely hard to find your way around. Our whole tour ended up giving names to each section of the hotel; we lived in Narnia, while others lived in The Shire, Mordor, Oz, Neverland, and then Hogwarts was through the other set of doors on the elevator that did not open. The hotel also had a bar that looked as though it had been built around the ruins of a cathedral and a dining room that looked like it belonged in the enchanted forest. It was interesting to say the least!
After exploring the hotel it was time to head out and see the city. Most of the group paid for the walking tour of the city, but we went off exploring on our own, which we find more enjoyable. We discovered tons of shops, a few hidden churches, and a beautiful castle.
Later that night we all gathered to go to a local pub called Biddie Early's for some karaoke fun. Of course the guy running the karaoke did it a little differently. Instead of you going up voluntarily and picking a song to sing, he picked random people in the crowd and then chose the song for you! It was entertaining to watch and a great way to end the day!
