Kilkenny

Taking advantage of the long weekend, we took ourselves down to a nearby county - Kilkenny. Known to many as a beer or a Southpark character but many more as a great medievel capital of Ireland. Kilkenny or 'Cill Chainnigh' in Irish means the Church of Cainneach.

To our surprise the Rhythm and Roots festival was on over the long weekend & lots of bands from Germany, US, UK are all over here to add their bit to this buzzing town. We spent much of our night time pub-hopping between free gigs & downing a few pints of the local brew - where we could... I would've thought every pub would have Kilkenny on tap but it wasn't the case!

We also did a walking tour and took us around the town in 40~50 mins to most of the main sights. The tour itself wasn't worth the 6euros but its a brilliant way to get your bearings right quick. Kilkenny is a relatively compact town, you can walk to all the sights (across town) in 15~25mins - obviously they don't make it easy and place lots of pubs in the middle to slow you down... damn obstacles! we just can't get around them! :-)

The Kilkenny castle is a must. Its compulsory to visit in a Guided Tour (which costs 5EURO) and be sure to book early! We had to 1hr+ in advance. Not only is the castle fun to explore in, there is a huge grounds to relax & go for a easy stroll in. There are also plenty of churches to visit - St. Marys Cathedral, St. Canice's Cathedral / Church, Black Abbey are the main ones. For a good view of Kilkenny, climb up the round tower at St. Canice's Cathedral. It'll give you a good perspective on the area!




We stayed at Banvil's B&B. Our host was friendly and the location was relavely central. Recommended!