Mike demonstrates the hurley
Gonna kill THIS one!
At last we had the chance for a full Irish breakfast, which was included with our room. Eggs, bacon, mushrooms, sausage, toast, tomatoes, and beans, of course, were all available in a nice buffet, as well as fruit and pastries. We didn’t want to face the blood sausage pudding in the morning, but we each partook of many of the choices. That’s enough to get one easily through to dinner.
We hit the streets of Kilkenny and wandered up the Medieval Mile, a quaint winding street that runs from Kilkenny Castle to St. Canice’s Cathedral. It is lined with shops and restaurants and has several intriguing alleys leading off the Main Street. As we neared the cathedral, Tami noticed people standing on top of a tall stone tower that seemed to be next to the cathedral. Tami loves to climb towers! So we headed to the tower and sure enough, it was right next to the cathedral. While the cathedral dates to the 13th century, the tower was built by monks in the 9th century. How could we resist?
The Medieval Mile
Young hurlers
School girls
Church window
Unearthed during restoration
The tower is 30 meters high, but very narrow, and we had to wait a bit for our turn. Access to the top is via a series of wooden ladders that become steeper as you go up. There’s not much room for getting around people going the other direction. The final four steps are on the original stone spiral steps, and at that point the tower is so narrow that the steps are tiny and the rise is quite high. There is no graceful way to take those last few steps, but we hauled our newly fattened butts through the opening and marveled at the view from the minuscule top of the tower. A grand panorama of the town, castle, churches, and countryside was laid out before us and was well worth the climb.
Cathedral and tower
Mike is coming up
View from the top back towards the castle
Next, it was time to hurl! Julie had discovered that we could take a hurling lesson in the afternoon, so off we went to learn about and practice this sport that has prehistoric roots and dates back 4000 years. The Irish are passionate about it and the young fellow who taught us described it as a combination of field hockey, handball, and rugby. It’s a bit of a free for all since you can advance the ball with your hurley (stick), foot, or a proper hand pass. The pitch is huge at 150 meters long, and each team has 15 players. The object is to put the sliotar (ball) between the posts of the opponent’s goal, with more points awarded if it passes below the crossbar.
It’s fair game to whack at the opponent if they have the ball and the only player protection is a light helmet. We got to spend the hour lesson learning to whack that sliotar as far as we could, try and pass to a teammate, and see who could traverse that huge field with the fewest passes, with a free beer at stake. Mike was the winner! Four strokes! Well done, Mike. We had a grand time and were quite tired afterwards. There WILL be sore muscles tomorrow.
Tami showing Mike how it is really done
Lisa also had a mean swing
Couldn’t drag Tami off the pitch
The hurling experience included an Irish meal back at the pub and an actual game of hurling shown on the big screen. What a great game. The action is non stop, fast, and furious. We just need a little bit more practice, I’m sure. Wonder if there is a hurling club back in Seattle?
We were very happy to see this next to the pitch
Great sign!
But of course the adults smoke while they train