day 6: rest day off the edge of Ireland

location: the Great Blasket Islands
distance: 8.1 miles
entertainment: 3 mile boat trip, an unexpected proposal and a wonderful Irish couple to help capture it
sights: views of the Blasket Islands,

Slea Head, and the end of the Dingle Peninsula -- off the end of Ireland
lodging: Dun Chaoin Hostel (two nights!? what a luxury!)
dining: Blasket Island Centre for a late lunch and a fabulous restaurant and gallery the name of which I cannot find.

route: we slept in a bit late and headed down to the Blasket interpretive center to learn a bit about the island, what life was like living on the island, the consciousness-raising efforts of some of its final inhabitants, and the diaspora of former residents. from there we walked down to the ferry launch and crossed the three miles of open water to land below the abandoned village. from there, we climbed up the hill and behind the village for spectacular views, some photos taken by a friendly older Irishman ... and an unanticipated marriage proposal. the Irish gent did a fantastic job taking photos, and Andy had the foresight to start the GoPro recording just before popping the question, so we have great record of what happened.

after the big event, we sat down on a tuft of grass (vainly attempting to avoid the sheep droppings) a rested. Andy returned to a normal shade and his heart slowed down while I couldn't stop smiling. before climbing up the hill, I'd had a mind to find the departure point of the next free informational tour after we got back down to the village, but that was completely blown out of the water. instead, we just wandered around, through the tumbled-down houses and old tracks, between fields and around (surprisingly) skittish sheep. even though the islands were evacuated in the 1950s, a herd of sheep remain and obviously hadn't been sheered in quite some time.

as we headed back to the Blasket center from the ferry landing, the guy who'd sold us our tickets out to the island caught us up. he was out walking his friend's grand-daughter's toy-sized dog before heading to Limerick to pick up a pair of tickets to a Springsteen concert in Dublin the following weekend. we hadn't spoken more than a few words to him before heading out on the boat, but walked and chatted with him for a good fifteen, twenty minutes afterwards. as Andy said, he definitely looked like the kind of guy who'd been to more than a dozen performances of the Boss and the E Street Band.

lunch was good, made calls to my parents with the good news, and headed back to the hostel to rest for a bit before climbing over the hill for dinner.

evening: after returning from our adventure and once growing a bit hungry after our late lunch, we determined to try climbing over the hill in search of the restaurant the hostel's proprietor mentioned -- supposedly about a 20 minutes walk along the Dingle Way. it turned out to be closer to thirty, but it was certainly worth it. the food was good and there was a huge family group with a tiny baby nearby (and somewhat overwhelming the wait staff and kitchen, as it transpired). once the dining room cleared out a bit a young guy began performing perhaps the most traditional music we heard in a restaurant setting. an excellent way to end another spectacular day.