Your friends have told you about many of the sights they enjoyed in Ireland:  Dublin's pubs and Abbey Theater; Penny Bridge over the Liffy River and , of course, kissin' the Blarney Stone!!  And you wondered, as they extolled the beauty and history of the fantastic Ring of Kerry, what's the Ring of Kerry's and what kind of ring?

To begin, the Ring of Kerry is a 110 mile loop on the Ivenagh Peninsula in south-western Ireland.  Here you will encounter the raw beauty that is real Ireland.  Rolling hills and forested valleys, colorful villages and towns; traces of ancient monasteries and stone circles, such as the Seven Sisters, erected by pagans during the Bronze Age.  Starting in Killorglin, and proceeding on a counter-clockwise route, you will enjoy the Ireland of your dreams; verdant, charming and sparsely settled (except you will see lots of other tourists!). Note that I said counter-clockwise the road is narrow and tour buses are many, so you can avoid traffic problems by starting early and stopping at any and all sights that may intrigue you.  Yes, you can do this by tour bus, but you'll miss the leisure of stopping at an out of the way town, having a pint at a small pub, or just dreamily looking out over the ocean and mulling over the year of history, the Troubles and the Great Famine.

Take your time. Yes, you can drive the entire Ring in a day, but so much nicer to stop for the night at a charming B & B,  relax over a fine dinner, perhaps enjoy an Irish Night with set-dancing, or just chat with the locals. After a hearty breakfast you can be on your way. You'll have a chance to drive Coomanaspig Pass, the highest point accessible by car; from which you can see the Skellings and other small islands.  There's a sixth century hermitage once inhabited by monks. Or you may wish to pay homage to Daniel O Connell, the Emancipator, at Derrynane House, his home, now restored.

And oh, the names!  MacGillycuddy Reeks, Staigrefort, Rossbeigh, Bog Village and Black Valley, Killarney.  Rossmaine and Cahersiveen and Cahsrdaniel what names, how lilting!! 

How about a stop in Kenmare to see and perhaps buy, some Kenmare Lace, started as a cottage industry during the "Little Famine Years" by the Poor Clare nuns, and still being hand-made by the local women.  Take a jaunting car ride, and think back to the great classic movie with John Wayne and Barry Fitzgerald, "The Quiet Man" .  Look closely at the road side, especially if there's a rainbow:  that brief movement in the bush?  Leprechauns!!

I must admit, my favorite tour was a drive on the Dingle Peninsula's further north and the westernmost area on the European continent. Only ten miles wide and forty miles long, from Tralee to Slea Head The locals will tell you that they're so far west that the next parish is Boston!!!  But you may have a bit of trouble understanding the people in the villages; they often speak An Gaeltacht, a Gaelic-English mixture. But they are friendly and they'll be glad to regale you with stories of their family, their history and a lot of lore' youve heard of  a load Malarkey, haven't you?

Drive through the Connor Pass to Dingle, the most westerly town in Europe, and then Tralee.  You will be rewarded with beautiful drive, green and rugged and not too touristy.  The fishermen still sail out, not for your camera, but for their family's living.  Only about 1500 people live in Dingle Town but it is calculated that there are 500,000 sheep in the hills.

Along the way to your delightful hotel at the world's edge, you will find Bronze Age settlements, monasteries from the Middle Ages, scenes straight out of the movie "Ryan's Daughter" and even some of the "beehive huts" where hermit monks once lived.  The scent of peat, as you linger with your coffee after a wonderful dinner, and you'll know you're near the ocean, as the sea breeze wafts into your bed room and you snuggle into your feather duvet dream, relax, know that you are truly in Ireland.