Friday night we decided on something "different" from dinner. Just around the corner from the Bianconi we had found a Spanish tapas restaurant, so we headed there for dinner, feeling that it was time to have some small plates! The Sol y Sombra is in a desanctified parish church, not large, but still very impressive with its Gothic architecture. We had one of two tables at the high altar. Looking down on the congregation of diners, we decided that four wines by the glass, chosen from different regions of Spain, would be a celebration.
They were a jumilla, from south of Valencia, a castilla leon from the Duoro region, a albariño from Galicia, and a sauvignon blanc from the southeast. The castilla leon and the sauvignon blanc were the two best. We enjoyed the jumilla, which was more like a house red, and the albariño was very good, but not of the caliber of the sauvignon blanc.
We had five tapas. The best was undoubtedly the monkfish wrapped in Spanish bacon, grilled and served in a light sauce. The others, a small plate of albondigas, meatballs of beef and pork, a platter of grilled vegetables, including asparagus, scallions, eggplant, zucchini and peppers, a casserole type of dish of eggplant, zucchini, serrano ham, shrimp and mancheco cheese melted together, and a dish of patatas bravas. All were as good as those we had in Barcelona a number of years ago. Though the variety was not so wide as in Barcelona, the presentation was excellent. A note of the other diners--virtually all of them had an invidividual bowl of patatas bravas. The Irish and their potatoes!
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Today, Saturday, we headed off to the Dingle Peninsula, just to the north of us. It's similar to the Inveragh Peninsula where we have been, but in many ways different. To begin with not all signs are in English since it is a major part of the An Ghaeltacht, the area of Ireland where Gaelic is the predominant first language.
Our stop was the point north of Brandon where the land drops precipitously into the sea. The cliffs are quite magnificent and the sun shone while we were there, so the views were phenomenal. Of course, ten minutes later it was drizzling and five minutes after that pouring! From there we
crossed the peninsula to the town of Dingle, over the Connor Pass. The road is single lane up the mountain- side with few viewpoints to the top. Nevertheless, while the drive is harrowing, the views are magnificent, and I picked up a couple of Irish stones for my collection. We bought our yoghurt and bananas for lunch, this time at a price like home: We shopped in a Lidl store, the Irish version of Aldi's. Very cheap. Adequate. Their pear yoghurt is lovely.
The cliffs west of Dingle, along the Slea Head Drive, are also magnificent, with many islands visible in the distance. Getting down to the beaches is no easy task, taken in first gear for engine breaking going down and for enough power for a strong grade in the road coming back up. The waves though bang into the cliffs with bubbling foam. Very grand. At the top, where the road runs, the fields are checkerboard with rock walls, like New England, and back up into the hills where they are covered with brown scrub, burned to grow green, as the spring begins, to feed the sheep.
And then we headed to Dingle for coffee at An Cupán Tae, where the owner does not speak Gaelic despite the name, but serves lovely Spanish style coffee just the same, of which she was duly proud. The young barista comes from Bulgaria.
Dingle still has a fishing fleet, with some boats tied up at the pier, and masses of nets available. Fish is regularly offered for sale by the side of the road, as were fresh carrots and cabbages. A bit early for most other vegetables.
There is a large population of Eastern Europeans here: our hotel waiter, and I think some of the staff, is from Lithuania, another waiter in Kilkenny was Slovakian. And they are in no hurry to go back East, already acclimatized to Ireland's weather. We ran into Lithuanian, Polish, German and South African tourists today. No Americans or Canadians.
Tonight a meal at the Bianconi and perhaps music at a local pub, the Kingdom.
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Today, Saturday, we headed off to the Dingle Peninsula, just to the north of us. It's similar to the Inveragh Peninsula where we have been, but in many ways different. To begin with not all signs are in English since it is a major part of the An Ghaeltacht, the area of Ireland where Gaelic is the predominant first language. 
Our stop was the point north of Brandon where the land drops precipitously into the sea. The cliffs are quite magnificent and the sun shone while we were there, so the views were phenomenal. Of course, ten minutes later it was drizzling and five minutes after that pouring! From there we 
crossed the peninsula to the town of Dingle, over the Connor Pass. The road is single lane up the mountain- side with few viewpoints to the top. Nevertheless, while the drive is harrowing, the views are magnificent, and I picked up a couple of Irish stones for my collection. We bought our yoghurt and bananas for lunch, this time at a price like home: We shopped in a Lidl store, the Irish version of Aldi's. Very cheap. Adequate. Their pear yoghurt is lovely.
Dingle still has a fishing fleet, with some boats tied up at the pier, and masses of nets available. Fish is regularly offered for sale by the side of the road, as were fresh carrots and cabbages. A bit early for most other vegetables.
There is a large population of Eastern Europeans here: our hotel waiter, and I think some of the staff, is from Lithuania, another waiter in Kilkenny was Slovakian. And they are in no hurry to go back East, already acclimatized to Ireland's weather. We ran into Lithuanian, Polish, German and South African tourists today. No Americans or Canadians.
Tonight a meal at the Bianconi and perhaps music at a local pub, the Kingdom.
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