A day trip to Kilkenny!

Kilkenny, don’t know if it was just my fondness for Kilkenny beer, but this was a place that I’ve wanted to visit for a while and after my initial research about the city, where I read that it’s often called the most beautiful city in Ireland,  I knew that there was enough reason for me to explore what it had to offer. 

So, one early August morning I decided to make this happen and made my way to the main bus station in Dublin (Busaras), where I hoped to get on an early morning bus. As soon as I stepped inside the terminal, I started to think that it might not happen as there were very long lines awaiting all the buses. I managed to get myself a return ticket for Kilkenny and joined the line. After a 40 minute wait, a bus arrived and I observed it to be absolutely packed to the max. Another bus followed and also packed. With 20-25 of us still waiting for a bus, and thinking that I would have to wait another 2 hours for the next one, a third bus arrived just in time to take us to our destination.

I had selected a beautiful day for my travel, with rising temperatures and the sun rising in the sky and reaching 25-28 degrees Celsius (unusually hot for Ireland). After a 2 hour bus ride (which I spent by mostly sleeping) we arrived at our destination where I was faced with two options. I could get off the bus at the bus station or I could ride it all the way into the city centre. On this occasion, I decided to get off at the station and walked into the city centre.

The charm of Kilkenny revealed itself even on the walk into the centre on small narrow winding streets, which was such a contrast to Dublin which sometimes feels like a big city. These calm and small streets was just what I needed and it offered a much needed escape to a cozy and stress-free town.

Crossing the Nore River on John’s Bridge I saw the Kilkenny Castle overlooking the river. Being built in the 1190’s, it’s one of the most famous castles in Ireland. After crossing the bridge I saw that if I continued to walk straight as everybody else I would end up in the centre. But as I was that there was a small road that led beside the river to the backside of the castle, I decided to take it instead. Also the fact that nobody was walking that road made it even more interesting.

It must have taken me a good 15-20 minutes to walk this way and I eventually started to wonder if the road really led up to the castle. I mean the castle was just there…..but there was a big wall keeping me from getting to it and no doors anyway. Finally I spotted a door and went through, here was what felt like a big forest that I was walking through and I found a big green field, walked straight through it and  eventually, I saw as the castle gradually emerged over the hill, a magnificent sight.

I walked around the castle’s surroundings, both the back and the front with its rose garden, however never made it inside the castle due to the large amount of people waiting to get inside (apparently I had picked a bank holiday to go to Kilkenny) and second, there were no photos allowed inside the castle so I just decided against it. 

So, after seeing the outside and its surroundings, I proceeded up High Street towards the city center, passing by Thorsel (City Hall) with its distinctive clock tower.

I was starting to get hungry at this point and started looking for a pub where I could grab a quick meal. Generally all pubs in Ireland provide good meals and as Kilkenny offer an array of choices (approximately 90 pubs for it’s 20.000 inhabitants) it would be a shame not to try at least one or two of them. From the High Street I took the alley called “Butter Slip” (the name being given because of the butter stalls that once belonged there) down to St. Kieran’s Street. Here I stumbled upon “Kytelers Inn” which I had previously read about. So I headed inside the pub and of course ordered a pint of Kilkenny and what do I hear, they are out of Kilkenny. Out of Kilkenny in Kilkenny, how can this happen. Ah well, what can you do but try the second beer this city is famous for, a Smithwick’s, an Irish red ale-style beer founded in this town in1710, which was very tasty but not quite what I was looking for.

So after finishing my beer, I continued walking and found another pub, “The Pumphouse.” Here, I finally got a pint of Kilkenny and asked the bartender what he would recommend for lunch and he suggested the Irish Stew (of course). The stew was delicious and even came with some really nice dark bread on the side which I used to dip in the stew.

Satisfied with my meal (and Kilkenny beeer), I continued on towards to St. Canice’s Cathedral, a historic structure built between 1202-1285. By the side of the cathedral is a 30 meter high round tower which allows visitors and after paying a small fee for the entrance, I started to make my way to the top. Now, I don’t consider myself to be a big person but it was a really tight climb up to the top. And it was a squeeze through when meeting people going down. It was worth all the hassle thought as the top offered great panoramic views over the city.

Returning to the city centre, I spent the rest of the day exploring the shops and trying to get a feel for the city. After purchasing some essentials (postcards etc), I made my way back to the bus station and boarded the next bus home to Dublin, which I spent sitting next to a woman from the USA, sharing our travel experiences.

Kilkenny lived up to its reputation as a beautiful, small, and cozy city and I can see myself going back and maybe even spend a day or two there to experience the nightlife as well.