No, no, no! I can do it!

So yesterday, I drove down to Kilkenny, a town in the southeast of Ireland.  Here's what the guidebook has to say about Kilkenny:

"Forget Galway, ignore Cork and don't even bother with Dublin.  Kilkenny can stake its claim as Ireland's best city because it combines a stunning medieval historical centre of winding streets and notable buildings with a rich heritage of arts and culture - best expressed in the myriad of festivals it hosts - and a throbbing nightlife that draws them in from far afield." (Lonely Planet Ireland)

You might think that's why I took the 3.5 hour drive down to Kilkenny...for the throbbing nightlife...but that's not exactly true.  I had a job interview there at a local hotel for a front desk position.  Long story short, I was offered the position but declined it for numerous reasons which aren't really interesting enough to write about.  It's ok though, because the city does live up to it's reputation (although I can't really attest to the nightlight situation) so it was worth the trip. 

The drive down there was great!  Deciding to trust Google Maps to tell me the best way to go turned out to be a good decision.   I've had mixed results with this as sometimes it fails to realize that even though that's the shortest route, it's really no more than a glorified bike path where the sheep own the road.  :)  But the route was, for the most part, just fine and I had it mostly to myself on the way there because I left early.  And then, like a mirage rising in front of me, I saw a sign for the M6!  And even more incredible were the words "Dual Carriageway" and a speed limit of 120 km/hr!  Oh yeah, baby, I was turning on the cruise control...even if it was only for 32 km and then I left the motorway again.  Sigh, it was good while it lasted.

At some point on the trip there, I realized that I had forgotten my dress shoes at home. And I don't care who you are...no one can pull off dress pants with hikers.  It was too late to go back so I resolved to find some shoes in Kilkenny.  After about half an hour of random driving around the city (I wished several times that I had an iPhone), I came across a Dunnes, kind of our equivalent to Zeller's with food and clothing and house stuff, so I was saved!  Before and after the interview, I had some time to explore the beautiful city of Kilkenny, filled with medieval churches and abbeys and its very own castle!  While at the castle, I was attempting to use my camera timer to capture a photo of me with the castle and fountain in the background.  This involved placing the camera on a bench and running madly to the fountain in time for the picture to be taken.  After one attempt, I was interrupted by an Irish couple and the man asked if he could take the photo for me.  Nice!  We set it up and he took the photo with his wife giving "friendly" comments on how he should proceed.  After the first photo, he gave the camera back to me to check it out and his wife, with the best intentions, approached as if to take the camera and help him out.  "No, no, no!  I can do it!" was his response as he shooed her away.  It made me think of a few couples I know and that made me smile.  And I smiled to myself again at the proud look he shot his wife when I assured him that the first attempt was great.