County Cork - Part 2, A portrait of Kinsale

Kinsale is a pretty little Irish town in the south of County Cork. It had two defensive forts to protect the bay - Charles Fort and James Fort. The town is currently famous for fishing and golfing. I didn't do either activity; however, I did see people fishing off the side of the bridge and I walked around the Old Head which is where there is a stunning world-class golf course. 

Entrance to the very posh golf course. We weren't allowed in to walk around, so we settled for a walk around the bluffs instead.

The area around the Old Head of Kinsale is a gorgeous example of the Irish countryside, with old ruins peppering the landscape. My cousin Eibhlis and I walked around the bluffs before heading down to Garrettstown Beach where she used to spend her childhood summers. I got to enjoy one of my favourite pastimes - skipping stones in the waves.

 My cousin having a rest on the bluffs.

 

Bluff-side selfie. I was careful to mind the cliff! If you look closely at my right eye, you can see the black eye I sustained from my fall in Soho last Saturday.

After walking around in the countryside & the beach, we drove back into the town for lunch at the famous (to Ireland) seafood restaurant "Fishy Fishy."  The restaurant is owned and run by a tv celebrity chef called Martin Shanahan. Honestly, it was the most amazing seafood meal I've ever eaten. Baked Hake (a whitefish) with creamed spinach risotto and a milk pico de gallo "salsa." A side salad, good Irish brown bread, and a crisp glass of white wine completed the meal. I looked over at my cousin and admitted that I was having a food-gasm. So delicious! The restaurant has fun quotes written on chalk outside, this was my favourite:

After lunch, we enjoyed meandering around the quaint windy and narrow streets of the town. Kinsale is my favourite because of its colours, art galleries, and craft markets. It was nice to feast with my eyes...

Views of Kinsale's streets.

My neck's been troubling me for the past few days, so I had a quick Balinese massage to help. Definitely doing my stretches tonight after an Epsom salt bath. I am being good with listening to my body and knowing when I need to slow down. Even if it means not taking in all the sites I'd like to experience (e.g. the last port of call of the Titanic before it met its icy demise).

I treated myself to one skein of yarn from the Vivi Trading Company. I'm a major yarn affectionado and knitter, and I promised myself that I'd only buy yarn on this trip if it was a brand I couldn't source in Canada, and that I had a project in my Ravelry queue to use it up. Here's what I bought:

 

Mmmmm, yarrrrrn! I'm going to knit a spiral lace shawl for myself when I return from my travels. Good thing yarn packs light!

All in all, a nice relaxing day in Kinsale.