Holiday Home in County Kerry, Ireland
ABBEY VIEW, BALLINSKELLIGS

CILL RIALAIG

Here, high above the Atlantic surf, lie the ruins of Cill Rialaig village. Over the years, both famine and emigration have taken their toll. The last resident, Bridget O'Connell, finally left around 30 years ago.It is here where the renowned 'seanachai' (storyteller), Sean O'Connell, livedbetween the 1870s and his death in 1931. Sean could not read nor write and had no English. His stories would only have been known to the locals but for a student from Antrim, Sean O'Duilearga, who spent many weeks and months in the area in the 1920s, and went to great pains to write down many of the stories in long hand for the benefit of future generations. If you are looking up ancestors in this region, you might find one of them mentioned in Sean's stories.

Thanks to a local initiative that was acted on in the early 1990s, one or two of the ruined houses have now been restored, and are used to entice artists to the area.  Already, several have been in residence and produced some excellent work.  But it isn't just artists who are drawn to this part of the world. Numerous members of the film and literary world have visited, some several times. A particular fondness has been shown by the famous German film director, Werner Hertzog.

When the great Daniel O'Connell was a young boy, he hunted hares at Cill Rialaig and often visited the caves of otters at Bolus just up the road. His uncle and guardian, old Muiris,Hunting Cap, O'Connell told Daniel's mother "these occupations were not laudable pursuits for a nominal student of the law".

In the nearby village of Dungegan, there is an arts centre which offers a range of interesting and attractive items.