Market Day In Kinsale

We've been having a little trouble "uploading" our photos to this blogspot, so please bear with the occasional jumble of photos and text from time to time.

The "farmer's market" in Kinsale is more of a "vendor's" market.

There was the usual fruits, vegetables, and plants, but also there were artisan cheeses, bakeries, sausages, and specialty stores selling there wares.

Besides what appeared to be individuals bringing their home baking to the market, there were a number of bakeries as well.

Typical "autumn" plants were being sold as well---still plenty of time for flowers through the early part of November according to the seller. We noticed cyclamen, heather, pansies, hardy mums, and small shrubbery.

Not only was there individually-prepared, take-away meals, but many vendors were selling meals right there at the market and many customers were enjoying breakfast or lunch. Below is a tasty-looking, nearly three-foot pan of cooked potatoes being sold along with bratwurst. (We were tempted to compare the brats to "Sheboygan's finest," but were already full.)   

One vendor was busy cooking on three crepe griddles. We can attest to the tastiness of crepes fresh off the griddle filled with your choice of sweet and savory fillings---spiced apple, mixed berries, ham & cheese, sausage, cinnamon sugar, and so on.

After we took our bakery back to the apartment, we took a long walk "up the steps and hills" of Kinsale.

We had lovely views back down on the rooftops and harbour of Kinsale.

There has been a feel of autumn in the air, plus a few leaves on the ground and ivy turning color, like you see on the house below.

At the very top of the town's hill is a 200-year old convent that also served as a parochial school over those years. It has been in total disrepair in recent years and is now being completely gutted and will be turned into apartments. It looked like it would be easier to just demolish the entire property, but there are probably requirements to keep the original look of the property in this historic town.

We were not too surprised to see new housing developments "on the other side of the hill" from the historic town. This is still a popular, growing part of Ireland, in spite of the economic and employment difficulties Ireland is experiencing.

A "touch of the old" was still apparent along the outer "Compass Hill Road." Both sides of the roadway were full of "Stinging Nettles"---a favorite soup or salad that Dad always spoke highly of, even though we would only see a little of it along Monches Road back home.

When you look "over the hill" a little farther you see the Bandon River that flows down into Kinsale Harbour, plus there was another housing development also "hidden" from the old, historic town on the other side of the hill.

We wound our way back down the narrow streets to the pier area after getting more lovely views of Kinsale and seeing some very nice homes (and pricey ones, no doubt).

We went to check on "the catch of the day" at the pier, but there was only a boat load of lobster pots being brought in by the two fishermen now that the season is over.

We worked up a good appetite with our walk and enjoyed another meal at "Jim Edwards." There's Sue's beefsteak with barbecue gravy, chips, "veg," and potatoes.

And here's my huge chicken breast with a mushroom gravy, chips, "veg," and potatoes.

Coincidentally, we were reading a book review of "The End of Food" by the author Paul Roberts. A section of the review follows that explains why we are raving about the food here in Ireland and how pessimistic we are about much of our over-processed food in the US.

"Every cook knows that chicken breast is no longer what it once was---it's now remarkably flabby and yielding... poultry experts have a term for this: P.S.E., or 'pale, soft, exudative' meat. Today's birds... are bred to be top-heavy, in order to satisfy consumers' desire for 'healthy' white meat at affordable prices. In these Sumo-breasted monsters, a vast volume of lactic acid is released upon death, damaging the proteins---hence the crumbly meat. Poultry firms deal with P.S.E. after the fact, pumping the flaccid breast with salts and phosphates to keep it artificially juicier."

Bon Appettit!