FOCUS

Historic Kinsale
"Despite it's small size Kinsale
is historically significant to Irish
culture"
A Tale of Two Forts
Kinsale would mean a lot of things to different people in Ireland depending on the county they
come from. For the seasoned traveller from Dublin it would be the start of the famed 'Wild
Atlantic Way' a beautiful coastal route adjacent to the atlantic, passing through seven of
Ireland's counties.
We were strongly advised by our colleagues to try the seafood, an obvious choice for a coastal
town. Kinsale is celebrated as the Gourmet capital of Ireland with a variety of dishes that suit
every palate.
We took bus no.226 from Cork to Kinsale and it took us an hour to get there. The minute we
reached the harbour(that is the only bus stop in the town centre) we were in for a pleasant
surprise. Kinsale is a cultural potpourri of Norman, Spanish and English influence. Now add some
battles and slow cook for 400 years and you have one beautiful destination with stories to last
for a life time.
The majestic Charles and James fort guard the narrow entrance to Kinsale from the sea with
significant battles that have taken place between the Irish rebels and the British forces for
control of the area.
The forts are abound with ghost sightings, the most famous story belonging to the 'White lady'
of Charles fort searching for her love who was killed accidentally by her own father. We were the
only visitors on the entire fort in december but were unfortunate to not have seen the
apparition of the 'White Lady'.
9 FOCUS, Q4/2014