Killarney, Day 2

On our way out the door this morning, Christopher found this puddle that closely resembled the shape of Ireland and took it as a good sign for the rest of our day! After a lovely breakfast at our hotel, we headed down the road and into Killarney National Park to take a tour of Muckross House and the surrounding grounds. It was beautiful and the boys did a great job listening (and not touching anything) on the hour long tour of this Victorian-era house that once hosted Queen Victoria as a distinguished guest...

The wind was so crazy when we walked in front of the house! You literally had to strain against the wind to keep upright. The boys found this highly entertaining...

When we walked in the wooded areas, however, it was nearly calm which was equally as crazy, considering how strong the gusts were... After a nice lunch at a cafe on the grounds of Muckross house, we visited Ross Castle, a fourteenth century castle that was the last Irish holdout against the forces of Oliver Cromwell. It wasn't open for tours but the grounds were really cool...

After our touring, we were all business and visited the location of the All Ireland's Dance Competition. We picked up Christopher's number (113) and checked out the venue. They also had a practice area set up for the dancers where Chris ran through some of his steps. He is a mixture of nervous and excited for tomorrow. This is definitely the biggest competition he's ever participated in but to think that this time last year, he hadn't even competed in a feis, it is really amazing to think that we are here! Unfortunately, we are unable to take pictures at the venue tomorrow but I will update everyone when we are finished with our day... Speaking of being finished with our day, our hotel has a lovely sitting room with fireplaces where we have been relaxing at the end of our days here so far. The boys enjoy a juice or soda and Mommy and Daddy enjoy some Irish adult beverages while we all relax by the fire...