Kilkenny!
Day one is officially done! I’m not counting yesterday as day one, as I was SUPREMELY tired and wired at the same time, and didn’t get a whole lot of time to enjoy things. Sleep and not getting lost were more big priorities. Today, I was more alert(ish), and mostly ready to venture out on my own.
The weather here was AMAZING: sunny, not too hot, not too cold, and a little bit breezy. Kilkenny, where I spent last night and tonight (I move on to Sligo tomorrow) has treated me extremely well, from the people to the scenery, and everything in between.
The river running through Kilkenny
My primary goal today was to see Cartoon Saloon, the animation studio behind ‘The Secret of Kells’ and ‘Song of the Sea’. Unfortunately it appeared that it wasn’t really open to people walking in (and I was too scared to inquire otherwise), so although I saw where they housed everything, I didn’t see a whole lot. However, all was definitely not lost! I found a lovely cafe just around the corner, and had myself a scone with butter and jam, and a latte. Yuuuuuum
Latte, scone, sketchbook: happiness
After some nourishment, I continued my wandering. Where Canada, at least Alberta, seems very neat and structured in terms of roads and buildings, Ireland has thus far been a delightful mash of chaos and organization. You really have to pay attention to where you’re going, otherwise you’ll miss full roads and shops.
I eventually found myself in a small shopping centre, and promptly found my first book store. I mean, naturally. Books would be the one thing I have no trouble finding. It was a small, delightful, character store, at least compared to a Coles or Indigo back home. They didn’t have what I was looking for, but they did have a retelling of ‘The Little Mermaid’ with a GORGEOUS cover, so I bought it. Hopefully it’s good!
After checking out a few other places, I decided to check out the museum that was displaying some work from Cartoon Saloon’s latest film, ‘The Breadwinner’, and found yet another bookshop, bigger than the other one. And this one had the books I was looking for!
There is no greater joy than these two books
I won’t lie, getting these two were pretty much my goal for Ireland. I mean, there are other things, but these films have inspired me so much, and are so incredible, that getting these art books was high on my list of things to acquire. I’ve gone through them both now, and wow. Just wow. If you haven’t seen these films, YOU NEED TO. There are no words to describe them properly.
Books acquired, it was now back to finding the gallery in the castle. And find it I did. I love going to film art exhibits, there are so many amazing sources of inspiration and process, you can’t help but want to create after. It wasn’t very large, but it contained concept art, story and colour boards, and several interactive parts. It was wonderful.
And with all that done, I went a-wandering on the castle grounds. We don’t have many of these in Canada (which is to say those we do aren’t really castles, and they’re mostly in the east), and it’s always so mad to see them in person. So majestic. So worn. So... present. They weather and discolour, but they remain, and it’s so great to have these old relics still around. In the future, I wonder how many of our skyscrapers and large buildings will remain and inspire us.
Kilkenny Castle
I went back to my AirBnB shortly after. Although it wasn’t the longest, most adventurous day, it was so much fun and so inspiring. Tomorrow I get back on the bus and head to Sligo to spend a few days with one of my closest friends. It’s sure to be awesome :D
Until later, folks, stay wild!