Europe Trip: Day 9

Our visit to Ireland was a perfect trip with nearly perfect weather. The daytime temperature was a pleasant 75 degrees with almost zero humidity. However, our last full day in Ireland (Day Nine) we experienced the weather that Ireland is known for...rainy and cold. We began the day by departing Dublin on our coach to Kildare, Ireland to visit the Irish National Stud, home to the Japanese Gardens, Saint Fiachra's Garden, and The Horse Museum (http://www.irish-national-stud.ie/). Founded in the early 1900s, Colonel William Hall-Walker purchased a farm at Tully, Kildare and started to breed thoroughbred horses. In 1915 he gave the Stud as a gift to the British National Stud Company until in 1943 it was handed over to the Irish Government. In 1945 The Irish National Stud Company was formed to promote the interests of the Irish Bloodstock Industry, which it continues to do today. We left Kildare around noon and headed to Kilkenny where the team enjoyed a tremendous meal at Langton's Pub. After lunch we had roughly three hours to tour Kilkenny. Most of the team was exhausted and didn't want to deal with the poor weather conditions and chose to stay warm inside the city pubs. DJ Comer, Kyle Cotrell, and I decided to visit the Kilkenny Castle (http://www.kilkennycastle.ie/en/). Admission was probably the cheapest expenditure of the trip at only 2 euros. Kilkenny Castle stands dramatically on a strategic height that commands a crossing on the crossing on the River Nore and dominates the High Town of Kilkenny City. The castle became the principal Irish residence of the powerful Butler family in the early 1300s and remained in the family ownership for over 600 years until 1967 when Arthur, 6th Marquess of Ormonde presented it to the people of Kilkenny in return for a token payment of 50 euros. Over eight centuries of existence, many additions and alterations have been made to the fabric of the building, making Kilkenny Castle today a complex structure of various architectural styles. After we left the castle we walked around the city and went into a couple of shops. The city was unexpectedly big and full of shops. Our coach departed at 5 o'clock to the University Center of Dublin to play the Irish National Team. Lacking youth and experience, Team Ireland got off to a rough start as Team Loyola jumped to an early 14-0 lead thanks to strong performances from Brian Smalley, Mickey Haight, and John Schiavone. Loyola kept the momentum into the second half and ended strong with a commanding win. The referees lost track of the score after we went up by 26 goals. However, Team Ireland wasn't ashamed by their performance and we all had a good time at the social following the game. Although the day was dark and gloomy, the coaching staff saw some light through the strong showing of the rising seniors, juniors, and freshmen. We ended the day with a nice gathering at the local pub in Dublin and enjoyed our last night out together in Europe.