August 29 – Powerscourt Gardens, Glendalough and Kilkenny

Powerscourt Gardens – Japanese Garden

We took the hotel’s shuttle bus to the airport to get our Hertz car. Hertz put us in its van and drove us to the rental lot which was within walking distance of our hotel. This was the beginning of a crazy day.

Our rental car has a steering wheel on the right side and we have to drive on the left side of the road. Getting used to cars approaching us on the right is frightening. You have to reboot your driving skills. We only had one minor incident, though. Hertz will have to reattach one of its wheel covers.

Our GPS lead us directly to Powerscourt Gardens. This is a huge estate with a large manor house and several acres of gardens with different themes. We did a clock-wise walking tour so that we could see everything. The most colorful plants and flowers had for the most part faded but there were still some spectacular areas. My favorites were the Japanese Garden, the Pet’s Cemetery and the various fountains.

When were were done touring, we had a decent lunch in the cafeteria. When we got back to the car, we discovered that our GPS was not working. Our backups were our Hertz map, a AAA map of Ireland and my cycling GPS. Using all three resources, we managed to go in the wrong direction for a few miles to our next stop. We pulled into a parking area to find out where we were and Ann spied a sign pointing to Glendalough. From there on, we found our way.

Glendalough is in a valley with a lake on either side. It also has a Monastic Site with (what will become familiar to us) a round tower. The Monastic Site also has a church and other small buildings in rubble. In addition, there is a cemetery with markers that are real old and some recent.We wanted to come here to see the beauty of the area and to stretch our legs on a short walk. We walked on the Green Trail to the upper lake. Being in the woods and next to a lake was very relaxing and stress-free.

Back at the car, I worked on the GPS so that it set up a route to our hotel in Kilkenny. When we were leaving the parking lot, some men were hollering at us to stop. I thought that we were going the wrong way on a one-way road. I was wrong. A man ran up and handled us a wheel cover that fell from our car. It’s a good thing that Hertz insisted on us buying insurance.

Trying to follow the GPS instructions, we had to make a U-turn after the first mile. Jack, our GPS’ name, was very good to us for several miles on very scenic secondary roads which we enjoyed a lot except when we met cars coming from the other direction. Eventually Jack gave us some bad advice on a traffic circle and routed us onto an “M” road. Because we fed Jack with an old map, he knew nothing about this road. We took the nearest exit which was several miles up the road and drove until Jack knew where we were. This lasted for a few short miles when I missed a turn. Jack was lost and so were we. Ann came to the rescue again a saw a sign pointing to Kilkenny.

We got to Butler Court about an hour later than we planned. Our room is reasonable large, clean and bright. It is located very close to the center of town. We parked our car in a multi-story garage which is free for our hotel.

For dinner, we walked a block to the Hibernian Bar which is a pub with very good food. We both had a pint of Kilkenny stout. I’m not going to bore you with the details of our meals as I have in the past unless you tell me to.

Bed time was at 10:00.