Two of the frequently touted highlight drives of Ireland and particularly southwestern Ireland are the Dingle Peninsula and the Ring of Kerry. These are driving routes that some information says can take up to two full days, due to heavy traffic. It was good news/bad news for us. We drove it in a matter of hours since there was extremely little traffic. The bad news was that it was overcast and drizzling rain. All the tourist photos that we saw for this area had blue sky and blue ocean waters. That was not the case for us.

These scenic areas are known for their rugged coastlines, green hills, charming small towns, natural beauty, and cultural heritage. What I will remember the most are the narrow, winding, up, down, and sideways curvy roads. I felt extremely fortunate that there was so little traffic. My non-driving memories are of interesting contrasts of greens and browns, the cliffs and the sea, the sheep, the rocks and rock walls, small patchwork agricultural fields, the neat white houses, islands just off the coast, and again, the wild and crazy winding roads.

Despite the minimal traffic, many other vehicles were coming at me in the middle of the road, and I had to quickly pull off, sometimes into the brush. Some of the driving was tense and tiring. I think Vicky liked this area much better as there was no navigating here, just following the road.

The last photo here is taken from our hotel room in Sneem, a small town on the Ring of Kerry.