KINSALE

The Desperate escape from Dunmanway

Without the internet at Sally's place, I needed to go to town and find WIFI somewhere.  Sally knew I was thinking about leaving so took me into Bantry on market day (Friday) where there was a cafe' called Organico that had WIFI.  I went online just long enough to see if there was a bus out of Dunmanway the following day.  There was one at 9:45 and one at 11:45.  I told Sally I needed a ride into town the next day to get on either busses.  Much to my dismay, because I could not bear another day at her house, she decided on the latter time.  All I wanted was to get out of Dunmanway.  I didn't care where the bus went.  It was going to Cork, a quite large city where I would just get a hotel for a night next door to the bus station and rethink this whole "work for room and board" thing.
I was sad to leave poor, ailing Sally with all her animals but I knew I had no choice.  So I spent a night in Cork which was a lovely city on a river, set up much like Dublin.  In fact it reminded me a lot of Dublin.  I checked in to one of the last rooms available in a hotel nearest to the bus station.  After I got online to start corresponding with job prospects, I started running a bath.  In a very short time on the computer I was about to go and check the water in the bathroom when I looked over to see that I had flooded half the hotel room with an overflowing bath.  And it was all very, very hot water.  I didn't call anyone for fear they may not have another room I could move to so I just used any and all towels to mop it up and wring them out.  I couldn't even wear my sneakers because the water would have seeped into them and given me wet feet.  So I went barefoot on a very soggy rug.
I decided to got to Kinsale.  It was a tourist town on the Southern coast and not too far from Cork.  I had heard from several people how lovely it was.  B&B's there were so much less costly than hotel rooms.  I couldn't find any availability in the town of Kinsale itself but found one room for 3 nights a short walking distance from town.  I checked in on Sunday and did some rechecking on email responses to my need to get to a new Workaway host or WWOOFer host a.s.a.p. 

While waiting for responses I walked the town of Kinsale.  It was a small enough town and an easy walk to check out all the little shops and cafe's.  The weather wasn't the greatest so was glad to don my warm raincoat each morning.  There was a small harbor with a few boats out a ways; not too near the town road because when the tide was out, the harbor itself was left quite bare with some seaweed and a few seagulls picking through whatever they could find.  So it was a very shallow harbor until you went out a ways where boats could comfortably be set.
There was a place famous for fish and chips at the harbor called Dino's where at a certain time of day had a line out the door with people waiting to get fish to go.  I opted to find a place with something with goat's cheese in it since I saw a few more 'healthy' places to eat offering it.
It was very relaxing to walk through the town, in and about all the shops with very few visitors.  People's individual gardens were starting to come into bloom which would take off as soon as the weather changed and more sun would make the flowers bloom very soon.
I was anxious to get back to the computer which I brought with me to town.  Most cafe's have free WIFI.  I got a couple a new responses but nothing that felt too promising.
 Lorna from the Phoenix immediately said I could come back to and stay as long as I wanted.  But I knew she was getting 2 new Workaway girls the same day I had left. I didn't want to take advantage of her kindness so kept looking for B&B's and organic farms in the Kinsale area.  Most wanted a babysitter in exchange for room and board.  That would have been ok but no one needed someone immediately.  I needed to start somewhere that week.  I emailed Susie from the French bakery/tea room who had said she wanted me to come for the month of June.  But I was already booked to work for Antoinette in Athy in June.  I told Susie my dilemma.  She immediately responded and said although she doesn't get busy until June I was welcome to come to France right away.  She said she wanted to learn something about baking.  She would give me my own studio apartment and could eat vegetarian meals with her each day.  So I was thrilled to get on the computer to plan my next journey............TO FRANCE!!!