Are you all ready to hear about one of the strangest celebrations I’ve ever been to?

Well, buckle up, because today we got to experience the celebration of Wren’s Day in the west coastal town of Dingle.

Let’s start with a quick overview of Dingle. It’s a cute little harbor town in the Dingle peninsula, and is the jumping off point for a gorgeous drive around the peninsula.

Wren’s day is how parts of Ireland celebrate St Stephen’s day; it’s a hybrid between a pagan holiday that involved hunting wrens because a legend dictates that a wren once sold out the Irish army.

You want more details?

Too bad. I don’t have them. I honestly don’t really understand the history of this celebration, and no website has given information that makes sense.

Today, Wren’s Day is celebrated by Wren groups (groups of people who decorate themselves and wear costumes in dedicated colors based on their group) who meet at a local pub that hosts them, then march around town with drums and pipes.

They make costumes out of wheat and straw, and because it’s so confusing to me, I’m out sourcing more info on this to Wikipedia. Follow the link below for a more coherent explanation.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wren_Day

All of my ramblings aside, Wren’s Day was very unique and incredibly fun.

Also, the town of Dingle is adorable.

My mom was tired and decided to have a rest day at the cottage in Killarney, and my sister’s family was running late so Jimmy, my aunt, and I ventured out on our own.

We parked near the marina where we saw the Fungie the dolphin statue, which stands in tribute to Dingle’s unofficial mascot.

As soon as we parked we could hear the flutes and drums, and saw people massing around one if the many parades.

Once the first group marched by, we saw a group amassing outside a pub and decided to stand and wait, thinking they’d be beginning their march soon.

We waited on a street corner for something to happen for almost an hour.

Eventually another group came by, and one of the marchers got me involved.

Finally, they all emerged from the pub and began the music.

At that point, my sister and her family showed up just in time to not stand on a corner in the cold.

We watched the Wren’s match away, then headed into the pub they came out of for lunch.

I got a cottage pie and it was delicious. Dingle also has a local distillery and brewery, with an IPA that even I enjoyed (I’m not a big beer lover).

After lunch we decided to explore the town a bit.

After a walk, my sister and her family went in search of a park, and the rest of us decided to hit the road and head back to hang out with mom.

We did catch one more Wren group

And I got a pic of a boat in the harbor

The drive back was so beautiful, with picturesque rolling green hills, so I jumped out in the rain and grabbed a couple of pics.

By the time we got back to Killarney a huge rain storm had rolled in, so got a fire going and decided to stay cozy in the cottage.

We played Go Fish with my niece and watched The Grinch (which my niece is living right so this was not the first viewing on this trip).

Jimmy and I went to bed early, since we’re planning to be up early to find a real Irish fry breakfast.

Also, we leave our cozy cottage in Killarney in the morning to head north in search of the rugged coast.

Good night