Kinvara, County Galway

Rolling green slopes of wet grass lead up to the tiny castle. Is there such thing as a tiny castle?

Appears so.

As castles go, this one seems on the small end. But somehow, its tiny size makes it all the more beautiful, haunting. Stones lay around its base. Perhaps one day it rained stones and hailed rocks in place of the incessant drizzle that makes the grass ever so green. Compared to monstrous castles throughout this wide world, its two towers look like cut-stone milk cartons, standing alone by the ocean. A stream rushes beneath the towers.

The light rains and mists from the light grey clouds make this, as the locals call it, a “soft day.” Dark and rainy it may be, but far from a bad day. This is a fine, soft day.

Cobbled stone road, narrow and unchanged for centuries, leads southward, toward Tralee. But long before that, it meanders through tiny villages, and by the wild Atlantic.

The stone walls on either side act like a chute, spilling you into the harbor town of Kinvara in County Galway.

A guesthouse on your left.

Dressmaker’s shop next to it.

A veterinary surgeon’s office next to that.

You walk across the road to the light red building on the corner. The sign above you says Keogh’s of Kinvara (food served all day).

The air is dry and warm, inviting. With a shake, you unbutton your rain-jacket and lean your umbrella against the wall near the entry. The two people seated at the counter turn and look, but turn back to their tea.

“Morning. Y’allright?” asks the man behind the counter.

And with a smile, you sit and wait for your tea. To your right, a tiny-but-mighty wood-stove shakes with heated excitement as the owner stuff another log inside.

The drizzle hits the window, but you don’t mind. A bowl of soup and a piece of brown bread show up shortly after your tea.

Cold and rainy outside, but warm and hearty inside.

A fine soft day, indeed.

anthony forrest