I was up at 4 am this morning, which isn’t so bad since we got to bed early enough. I should be well adjusted by tomorrow. Hopefully. We had quite a few things in our itinerary today so we had to leave Dublin a bit early. It’s our first long drive. Matt did much better today at centering himself in the lane. Thank God. Last night I apologized to him for being annoying and thanked him for loving me in spite of my Virgo-ness, which always gives him a little giggle. We drove through some Irish countryside and saw fields of sheep and cows. There’s something so wholesome about the scenery. Fall has just begun and the leaves are starting to turn giving some warmth to the scene.

Our first stop for the day was Kilkenny. Before we can accomplish anything we stop at Cafe La Coco for some much needed “take away” lattes. I ordered mine iced and instantly regretted it but still managed to finish it during our short walk to Kilkenny Castle.



The outside of the castle hasn’t changed since my last visit. I was hoping we could tag along with a tour group and learn a thing or two but there weren’t many visitors today. The castle was originally built in the 12th century but has been fortified, and restored a number of times; it first became open to the public in 1976. It originally belonged to the Butler family and had been passed down many generations until it was “sold” to a restoration company in 1969 for 50 pounds! Inside, we learned a lot about the Butler family and their ties to English Royalty. We also got a picture with the famous fireplace featuring the Butler coat of arms.

Before leaving Kilkenny, we stopped at Kafe Katz for some lunch. It was our third attempt at a restaurant after the first two places said we were too early for lunch, which doesn’t start until noon. Kafe Katz was just what we needed: a charming and cozy cafe with yummy food and friendly service. Next stop, Waterford.

We made it to Waterford ahead of schedule and headed to our hotel; luckily our room was ready for us and even came with a “Happy Honeymoon” card and box of Cadbury chocolates. It also has a beautiful view of the marina.

We dropped our bags off and journeyed out. Though we were still jet lagged and craving a nap, we pushed through so we could check off all our touristy stops before they closed. We continued our Viking theme from yesterday with stops at the Medieval Museum, and Reginald’s Tower. The interesting thing about Waterford is that it’s one of the first cities where the Vikings took over the city and also made it home. Waterford is said to be Ireland’s oldest city and has had many “take-overs” in its history due to its highly desired location between waterways.

Reginald’s tower is thought to be Europe’s oldest mortared stone tower, originally built in the 12th century. It has also had diverse inhabitants and uses in its history. We learned that the reason the stairwell is so narrow and uneven was intentional to make raiders trip. Even with all the signs to “Mind your head,” we had some bumps here and there going up and down all the flights. In all the places we’ve seen so far, they’ve all mentioned the Black Death in the 14th century and it’s significant impact on the population. In Waterford, the Black Death eradicated a third of the population. Another recurring point that comes up is how living conditions (cramped quarters and poor hygiene) contributed to the spread of that pandemic.

Another touristy stop we couldn’t miss was the Waterford Crystal store. I could have definitely done some damage in there but thankfully I had my chaperone with me. We left empty handed with thoughts of shiny crystal lingering in our minds. I’m still thinking about squeezing out another visit in the morning.

Our final tourist stop was Bishops Palace, which functioned as the residence of the Anglican bishops of Waterford from 1743 to 1919. It houses treasures from Georgian and Victorian Waterford, as well as some 20th century exhibits.

The weather has been pretty good to us so far. It started to sprinkle in the late afternoon but not enough to mess up my hair. Phew! I’m trying to see how long I can pull off straight hair before I give up and let it curl. The humidity has been kind to it so here’s hoping the clouds don’t release their wrath anytime soon. Matt’s hair has been doing good too.

We closed out our adventures today with dinner at La Fontana authentic Italian restaurant. Our dinner was delicious and complimented with a gorgeous view of the water. I taught Matt how to say “very good” in Italian so he could say it to the server when asked about the food. Molto Bene. Molto Bene. Molto Molto Molto Bene! We rehearse it to perfection. The server returns and Matt’s face is blank. Molto Bene, I mouth to him.
“Mucho Bene!” he yells. “Molto Bene,” I corrected, “you had it perfect few minutes ago!” The server laughs at us as Matt confesses he panicked. “You don’t even speak Spanish,” I whined. He’s much better at Arabic.

We closed out the day at about 11,000 steps. I’m still thinking about the Waterford Crystal store and what can fit in my bag without breaking. I’ll just have to sleep on it.