It may not be all that sunny in Dingle but it doesn't really rain either.
We started the day by visiting Dingle Oceanworld Aquarium which happened to be two doors from our hotel. Today was the grand opening of the new penguin exhibit, but there was also a lot more to see including local biotope tanks, reefs, a wildly impressive shark tank, and a touch pool where we delayed a long while playing with very cute and friendly sting rays :)
The majority of the day was spent driving the Slea Head loop which was absolutely gorgeous and offered probably the best landscapes we've seen. We made a few stops along the loop, including ancient settlement ruins, various "pull overs" to take in the views, and a walk down to a secluded beach where we watched waves crash and northern gannets dive for schooling fish. From here we could get a good view of the not-too-distant Blasket islands where, weather permitting, we hope to see up close tomorrow on an Eco Marine tour boat.
We also made a quick stop at a local potter's shop and picked up a glazed vase to bring home as a souvenir of such a beautiful day. Out on Dingle peninsula, Irish is the common language and in fact most signs are not even bilingual; they are simply in Irish, and when the shopkeepers spoke to one another and the locals in their native tongue we really felt as though we were in a different world. The people out here are also very friendly, offering us wonderful advice for the rest of our trip.
The sun was starting to set by the time we got back from the drive, and we spent the last hour of daylight taking some photos around town and eyeing nightly specials, before ending up back where we ended last night but this time for a light dinner. Music was going to start in a half hour but we are pretty exhausted, so we're settling in to an early night.
As I mentioned, we've booked a trip to the Blasket islands tomorrow and it departs fairly early, so we're anxious to get a good sleep and have our Irish breakfast (100% protein!) and hope we luck in to some wildlife!
FYI everywhere you go serves Irish Breakfast as the norm, which is bacon, sausage, eggs and blood pudding/sausage/whatever-you-call-it. Not some of those things, ALL of those things. Luckily the place we're staying has some variety, and today we had pancakes with honey and some local berry spread which was a nice change, although a full irish breakfast basically eliminates the need for lunch.
EDIT oops almost forgot... half way through the trip woohoo! :) Also checked the trip distance on the car today and we're 1100km and counting~
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