Ireland photos - Kenmare and Limerick
After Killarney, I took a bus down to Kenmare, a harbor town on the same peninsula at the intersection of two ancient roads - the Kerry Way and the Beara Way. I had wanted to hike on these down here, but unfortunately the first several miles of both of them coming out of Kenmare are paved, almost highway-like roads rather than hiking trails - curvy, with no sidewalks, and with cars barrelling by at around 80 km/hr (unfortunately, this wasn't made clear in my guide book). So I gave up and focused on the river and sea instead.
The harbor was sweet, and very quiet.
Maybe the swan incident had made me a little over-sensitive to birds, but these three crows seemed to be following me around town.
I felt safe inside this Neolithic stone circle, though, which is apparently the largest in SW Ireland.
This is a typical street in town.
The morning of the day I headed up to Limerick for my conference, I went on a cruise to see harbor seals. I love boat tours, not just because I love being on boats (this is where the island baby in me comes out - put me on water and I'm happy) but also because you get to sit on your ass for hours but still feel like you're actually doing something. Which, after days of hiking, is pretty great.
This is what getting a parking ticket in Ireland looks like, 
which, combined with this sign, makes me happy that I decided to not rent a car.
I saw all kinds of entertaining things en route to Limerick, 
and a few in Limerick as well. Sadly, this store was closed by the time I arrived, so I couldn't get any pork pudding to bring with me to the university for mid-session conference snacking.
The student housing on campus where I stayed, with suites composed of five small rooms and a kitchen/lounge area, was incredibly well-designed - I was really impressed. The buildings were surrounded by purposeful wetlands including ponds for ducks to swim in and all kinds of natural vegetation, with the parking lot well out of sight and views of the Shannon River and a Limerick cathedral instead. It's so great when institutions allow planners to really do things right.
One morning of the conference I managed to get it together and take an early-morning walk along the river path - this is all on the university campus, believe it or not. 
This looks like a pigeon, but why so huge and plump?
All the rest after that was (unphotographable) indoor conference time, with brief forays into town for (expensive) pubs and restaurants. Conferences may be stimulating - in this case, almost over-stimulating, what with 700 attendees, 15 (!) simultaneous sessions, and bombardment of theory and data - but they are certainly not photogenic.
The harbor was sweet, and very quiet.
Maybe the swan incident had made me a little over-sensitive to birds, but these three crows seemed to be following me around town.
I felt safe inside this Neolithic stone circle, though, which is apparently the largest in SW Ireland. 
This is a typical street in town.
The morning of the day I headed up to Limerick for my conference, I went on a cruise to see harbor seals. I love boat tours, not just because I love being on boats (this is where the island baby in me comes out - put me on water and I'm happy) but also because you get to sit on your ass for hours but still feel like you're actually doing something. Which, after days of hiking, is pretty great.
This is what getting a parking ticket in Ireland looks like, 
which, combined with this sign, makes me happy that I decided to not rent a car.
I saw all kinds of entertaining things en route to Limerick, 
and a few in Limerick as well. Sadly, this store was closed by the time I arrived, so I couldn't get any pork pudding to bring with me to the university for mid-session conference snacking.
The student housing on campus where I stayed, with suites composed of five small rooms and a kitchen/lounge area, was incredibly well-designed - I was really impressed. The buildings were surrounded by purposeful wetlands including ponds for ducks to swim in and all kinds of natural vegetation, with the parking lot well out of sight and views of the Shannon River and a Limerick cathedral instead. It's so great when institutions allow planners to really do things right.
One morning of the conference I managed to get it together and take an early-morning walk along the river path - this is all on the university campus, believe it or not. 
This looks like a pigeon, but why so huge and plump?
All the rest after that was (unphotographable) indoor conference time, with brief forays into town for (expensive) pubs and restaurants. Conferences may be stimulating - in this case, almost over-stimulating, what with 700 attendees, 15 (!) simultaneous sessions, and bombardment of theory and data - but they are certainly not photogenic.
posted by Pangea at 4:15 AM
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