Ramble
Quest - "O Stranger Pause When Passing By" (Kilkenny).
Two dreadful nights in large noisy dorms in Glasgow and Dublin, sandwiched around another, although more minor, border hassle crossing back into Ireland, leave me ready to flee the cities for an out-of-the-way hostel. I decide on the one in Foulksrath Castle, but have only sketchy directions and the bus driver doesn't know where it is. Looking out the window I spot an intersection that should lead me there and ask the bus driver to let me off. Amazingly, he asks where my bag is and refuses to let me off when I tell him it's underneath. I'm stunned, as there are only three people on the bus and it would take me all of five seconds to fetch my bag. I'm also extremely polite while dealing with him. And I'm even more stunned now, after riding dozens of Irish buses where they stop endlessly for the flimsiest of reasons -- one driver waited for someone to go to an ATM machine to get money for the fare! It's just very unusual, and actually, I'm not in the least bit upset about it. I've come to enjoy these little surprises in traveling.
So, I get off at the next stop, which turns out to be Kilkenny -- not a bad place to get unexpectedly set down. It has a very attractive older section. There's plenty to see here, even though I find that the castle, which should be open this time of year, is closed -- a situation I discover is not at all unusual in Ireland. Also, despite the fact that this is a fairly large town and certainly a tourist spot, I can't rent a bicycle anywhere.
I wanted the bike to get out to one of the abbey ruins, as there is no public transportation. Instead, I hitch out to Kells Priory, which is extremely scenic and very quiet, and hike over to a nearby round tower and cemetery. Back in town the churches are all quite nice: St Mary's, the Black Abbey, and most particularly, St. Canices, with its high Romanesque arches and beautiful wooden ceiling. The castle grounds are open and a great spot for strolling -- large fields surrounded by woods, and great views over the river.
A fellow traveler relates an interesting hard-luck story he'd heard from a local. This guy was fixing his car when the battery exploded in his face, knocking him back into the road where he was run over by a car! He lost an eye and was laid up in hospital for many months. Not long after returning home, and still recovering as an invalid, burglers broke into his house, tied him to a chair and held a knife to his throat to force him to reveal any valuables, which they then made off with! He's hoping for much better luck next year.
The Kilkenny Tourist Hostel has a pleasant common area with a cozy fire. It also has a very curious sign over the mantel: "O Stranger pause when passing by; As you are now so once was I; As I am now so you shall be; so be prepared and follow me." I've seen similar verse many times on tombstones in old cemeteries, but this is the first time I've seen them in a hostel common room! Still, I guess the words can apply equally well to a traveler as to a frequenter of graveyards.