Dingle, once upon a time, was a small fishing village and while they do still bring in seafare their main industry these days is tourism. I’m not quite sure how to feel about that. We heard similar stories around the country about tourism taking center stage. I don’t believe it was tourists who made the lives of small fishing operations untenable nor was it tourists who drove the demand for wool down, but tourism does fill in the gaps for both fisherman and those who raise livestock. Still, something feels off about it all. 🤷♂️
Seen here are some shots from the town, some food we ate, and a walk we took up the coast through some fields of cows who could not have been less bothered by our presence. I was thankful for that because the only escape route would have been into a very cold sea.
Oh, before we dive into the photos, one last gift from John. In the first image, you’ll see the safety vests left for us in the room. The walk into town was along a narrow road with no shoulder. Many locals would walk their dogs or into town along these and also sported high-visibility vests. Perhaps it was a legal shield, but I liked to think of Pax providing those as yet another detail left un-missed. In one of the photos from the walk along the water you can see Pax Guest House from a distance.
The last couple photos were from a restaurant called Out of the Blue. They only serve fish (and a few other seafood dishes, but it’s mostly fish) and whatever they catch that day dictates their menu. In fact, as you can see in the photo of our 3rd party member, they don’t even have menus. They bring the daily chalkboard right to your table and plunk it down in an empty seat. It’s a lot of pressure to order that way. Sarah did very well.
Aside from the town itself and John’s place, the Slea Head Drive is what tourists do in Dingle which is where we go next.
