The next morning we explored the Cahir castle. While walking around the castle walls, covered in the morning fog, we witnessed an almost surreal scene. The frosty silence of the February morning was suddenly split by a sound of chainsaw. We then saw two burly men cutting down a palm tree in the backyard of a house. Frankly, the palm did seem a little out of place in the Irish winter landscape dominated by a medieval castle. Nevertheless, the whole episode was unexpected and I thought that it deserved a haiku:
Cold Irish morning.
Man sees a palm tree:
A screech of chainsaw.
Unlike most other Irish castles, which either lay in ruins or had been converted to luxury residences in 17 – 19 centuries and thus lost their original defensive character, the Cahir castle has been carefully restored to its original state. It offers great photo opportunities. The best time to photograph it is early in the morning, before large groups of tourists arrive.
Another attraction of Cahir is the so-called Swiss Cottage that is located just outside the town. It was built by one of the members of the Butler family, who also used to be the owners of the Cahir castle. Apparently, building a new cottage in the continental style of architecture was more fashionable and practical than restoring the old ruined castle. Unfortunately, the cottage was closed on the day we were there, but we managed to grab a few shots from behind the fence. Luckily, the facade was nicely lit by the bright winter sun.
Please follow the link to see our photographs of Cahir.
Keywords: Cahir.