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Wexford to Dublin, Ireland (2,255km)

Jul 28, 2012

We woke to a clear cool sunny morning and headed off for Waterford. We soon wished we had put on our long johns as it was very cool with sometimes strong winds and grey skies and rain in nearly every direction we looked but we fortunately managed to be heading in different directions than the grey cloud until we got to Waterford, the ‘Oldest city in Ireland’ (or so it said on one of the signs as we headed into town). I was impressed with how clean and tidy the town looked as we made our way to what turned out to be the now derelict Waterford Crystal factory (very sad to see) and then the new factory and shop in the town where we had a coffee and checked out the showroom. I had decided if I saw something I loved I would get it shipped home but nothing took my fancy. We came out in time for our first shower of the day and donned the wet weather gear which remained on for the rest of the day.



Parked on the forecourt at the Waterford Complex.

Then we headed for Kilkenny but as we headed for ‘the picturesque Medieval village’ (another sign) we were about to be caught up by the heavy rain cloud we had just ridden through so having seen a number of Medieval villages in a number of countries we decided to push on to Dunamaise where we sought out the ‘Rock of Dunamaise’ which was the sight of a castle / battlement since the 8th century and fought over by the Irish and the Vikings and eventually the Normans and over time (a lot of time) it was handed from one family to another and fell into disrepair (hugely so). We climbed up amongst the ruins and enjoyed the views of the surrounding countryside and figured the inhabitants must have been some sort of mountain goat just to have lived on this great ‘steep’ mound in the middle of the countryside.



The Rock of Dunamaise

The countryside we have travelled through today has been very reminiscent of the areas around the Dandenong’s, the Yarra Valley and some areas of Gippsland..…I guess they all have a similar climate…on the Australian side without most of the snow of course.



A view of the countryside from the Rock of Dunamaise

Bits and Bobs:

One thing we’ve discovered that England Wales and Ireland all have in common is that you don’t have to be far out of a town or village (sometimes not even) to smell the scent of intensive farming activities…..and I’m not talking about the fragrance of new mown hay!

On a more pleasant note…apparently all the convertible cars in England and Wales (haven’t seen any yet in Ireland) come out for the summer. We have been staggered at the number of them. I guess in Australia the summer is much hotter and people are sitting in air-conditioned comfort instead of baking in the sun….not that there’s been too much baking yet this year I suspect.

Last nights’ Accommodation:

Hotel Talbot, Wexford, Ireland


A large and partly refurbished hotel. The public spaces are lovely as was the food and the staff were very friendly. A nice welcome to Ireland. Our room had yet to be refurbished. We had been moved because there was to be a band in the bar for the night we were told. Would have been interested to see what the original room looked like.



Hotel Talbot, Wexford


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