Our day started with a journey from Tralee to Killarney and to the Cathedral of the Diocese of Kerry, St Mary's Cathedral.
This church building is simply stunning. There's no other word for it. The walls are constructed in such a way as to remind this observer of the building of older buildings found in Ireland - something that seems appropriate to the area in a way.
The 'renovation' of the interior apparently met with some opposition in the past, but I have to say that I found it a masterful and indeed beautiful adaptation of a church built 100+ years ago to bring it into conformity with the revised post-conciliar liturgy.
After Mass was celebrated, we moved on to a local coffee shop recommended by our driver, Conor, which is where the statue of an eagle was found and photographed.
Our visit to Muckross House was a visit to a house that was completed in 1843, although the family who had it built ultimately lost because they 'agreed' to host Queen Victoria in 1861, with the connected expense of having to renovate the house in preparation for the visit. The family were ultimately bankrupted by the end of the centure, never fully recovering from the expense, nor gaining the social capital they hoped to gain.
The house and estate were purchased by Lord Ardiluan, a member of the Guinness family (yes, that Guinness family) who used the house and grounds as a location for hunting, shooting, and fishing.
In 1911, the house and estate was purchased by a wealthy American industrialist as a wedding present for his daughter and her husband. When the daughter died unexpectedly in 1929, her husband and the parents gifted the house and estate to the Irish State, with it becoming the very first National Park.
Leaving Muckross House, we embarked on a trip round the Ring of Kerry - a journey that was highlighted for me by a visit to the Daniel O'Donnell Memorial Church, in the grounds of which is the grave of Monsigher Hugh O'Flaherty, whose story I have been fascinated within since I first saw the movie "The Scarlet and the Black".
