We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
T.S. Eliot
They say travelling broadens the mind
Hmm, I hope so
It cures my itchy feet and unsettles my heart
It challenges me to acknowledge difference
and creates an opportunity for introspection
It is a privilege and an opportunity
Newgrange is a neolithic monument in the Boyne Valley, County Meath and was constructed about 5,200 years ago
It is part of a number of monuments built along the River Boyne. The other two significant monuments are Knowth (the largest) and Dowth, but throughout the area there are 35 smaller mounds.
Newgrange is a large mound covering an area of over one acre. The base includes 97 kerbstones, some of which are decorated. The most ornate stone is the entrance stone
The 19m long inner passage leads to a cruciform chamber which is aligned with the rising sun on the winter solstice. The sun enters through a passage above the door, and lights the chamber for around 17 minutes
The site has been designated a world heritage site by UNESCO
Hook Lighthouse was built in the 13th century and is the oldest intact operational lighthouse in the world
The tower is four stories high with walls that are up to 4 meters thick
It was built with local limestone. The tower is 36 meters high, and has a mural stairwell of 115 steps
There are three floors which are vaulted chambers with original fireplaces
The fourth floor used to hold the fire beacon, but now is an electric lantern. It is not part of the tour since it is an operational lighthouse, but the bottom floor includes a replica
The lighthouse was built by William Marshall who established the port of New Ross on the Barrow River, about 30 km from the sea. In order for the port to be successful, they needed to ensure that the ships entering the dangerous waters around Hook could safely navigate into the harbour of Waterford
Marshall organised the monks of the nearby monastery of Rinn Dubhan to act as guardians of the lighthouse
Thomas Moore, born in Dublin on 28 May 1779 and died on 25 February 1852, was an Irish poet most famous for his Irish Melodies
While sitting under a tree near where the Avonmore and Avonbeg rivers merge to form the Avoca River, Moore wrote a poem after which the area is named: “The Meeting of the Waters”
The Meeting of the Waters
There is not in the wide world a valley so sweet As that vale in whose bosom the bright waters meet; Oh! the last rays of feeling and life must depart, Ere the bloom of that valley shall fade from my heart.
Yet it was not that nature had shed o’er the scene Her purest of crystal and brightest of green; ‘Twas not her soft magic of streamlet or hill, Oh! no, — it was something more exquisite still.
‘Twas that friends, the beloved of my bosom, were near, Who made every dear scene of enchantment more dear, And who felt how the best charms of nature improve, When we see them reflected from looks that we love.
Sweet vale of Avoca! how calm could I rest In thy bosom of shade, with the friends I love best, Where the storms that we feel in this cold world should cease, And our hearts, like thy waters, be mingled in peace.
The Avoca Miners Cross is visible from the valley where the two rivers meet
The Avoca Valley has a rich mining history with evidence of mining activity visible throughout the valley
Why not visit the Avoca Miners Cross to see the incredible view of the valley before wandering down to the Meetings of the Waters for a little walk and a meal
The Irish National Heritage Park is an open-air museum near Wexford which is part of Ireland’s Ancient East. It includes recreated sites ranging from the Mesolithic period up to the Norman Invasion
FIRST PEOPLE The reconstruction demonstrates a campsite from 9000 years ago and is based on remains found in various places
FIRST FARMERS Around 70 Neolithic houses are known from Ireland. The houses were built of timber and would range from 3 – 15 metres in length. The roofs were thatched and gabled and the houses were divided into two or three rooms
THE WORK OF GIANTS Archaeologists describe these monuments as megalithic tombs, but it is thought that this is only one of their functions. They could be territorial markers or used to track the movement of the sun and were places of worship. In Ireland, there are four types of megalithic tombs: passage tombs, court tombs, wedge tombs, and portal tombs
THE WITNESS TREE This 4000 year old Pinus Sylvestris, discovered in a bog in 1986, was donated to the park
THE BRONZE AGE BEGINS The Bronze Age lasted for 2000 years in Ireland and was a time in which warriors and combat was significant. New weaponry emerged as well as rich ornaments
HEAVEN AND EARTH A circle of this type was commonly built in the southwest of Ireland. It is formed of an uneven number of borders with two tall stones marking the entrance. Opposite the entrance, the lowest stone would be lying on its side. The circle is oriented on a northeast/southwest axis
A VOICE FROM THE PAST Ogham was said to have been invented by the god Ogmos. It’s based on the Latin alphabet. Each character represents a Latin letter as well as a different tree in Old Irish
FORT OR FARM? Inside the ringfort, there would be the main family house, an outhouse, animal pens and even beehives, a dunghill at the centre, and a variety of farm equipment. Some ringforts also had a souterrain which is an underground cellar
SAINTS AND SCHOLARS Christianity soon spread throughout Ireland. The monasteries were centres of learning, art, and political power
BREAD AND BEER In early Christian times, corn-drying kilns were used to dry corn slowly without burning, while the thatch would have kept everything dry. Wheat, rye, barley, and oats were grown in Ireland
THE MARCH OF PROGRESS The horizontal water mill was introduced to Ireland about 1400 years ago. Many mills were built along the sea, with the tide turning the querns. Wealthy farms and monasteries had their own mills, barns, and kilns, while smaller farmers would share
HOT STUFF A fulacht fiadh is a pit in the ground where water was boiled by dropping in hot stones. Most date from 4000 years ago, and they can be found all over Ireland
A PLACE APART – THE CRANNÓG An artificial island, a cranóg is made by layering soil, stones, bones, and brushwood in the shallows of a lake
VIKINGS! As seamen, traders, and statesmen, the vikings played a massive role in shaping the history of Ireland. Wexford is a vking city, with a viking name meaning harbour of the mud-flats
NORMAN CASTLES The first castles built by Normans in Ireland would have been made of timber and earth and painted white with lime. Later, they would be built with stone
ROUND TOWER The round towers are a feature of early Irish Christianity. They served as bell towers, treasuries, and a place of defence in case of attack. This Ferrycarrig Tower was erected in 1857 to honour the Wexford men killed in the Crimean War of 1854-1855
St Stephen’s Green is a popular park designed by William Sheppard
Opposite the park is the St Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre
The park was reopened to the public in 1877 when Parliament passed an Act initiated by Sir A.E. Guinnes who subsequently paid for the laying out of the Green in its current form. The city commissioned a statue of him, which faces the College of Surgeons
The Fusilier’s Arch at the Grafton Street corner commemorates the Royal Dublin Fusiliers who died in the Second Boer War
James Joyce is a well-known modernist writer who wrote numerous works including Ulysseys. His statue faces his former university at Newman House
Rabindranath Tagore was a Bengali polymath who was a poet, playwright, writer, composer, philosopher, painter, and social reformer
This fountain representing the Three Fates can be found near the Lesson street gate and was designed by Jospeh Wackerle in 1956. It was gifted by Germany to say thank you for assistance given to refugee children following World War II
This memorial to the Great Famine of 1845–1850 was designed by Edward Delaney
At the Merrion Row corner, there is a statue of Theobald Wolf Tone, the leader of the 1798 rebellion
Thomas M Kettle was an economist, journalist, barrister, war poet, writer, and Home Rule politician
Robert Emmet was an Irish Republican. After the suppression of the United Irish Uprising in 1978, he wanted to overthrow the British Crown and establish a nationally representative government
The Superintendent’s Lodge
St Stephen’s Green is a delightful park in the centre of Dublin
Glendalough is in the Wicklow National Park. There are many marked routes ranging from easy to difficult. You can park your car at the visitors centre, find out more about the area, and then wander around on the path you choose
The gateway marks the entrance to the old monastery of Glendalough which was founded by St. Kevin in the sixth century. This double gate way separated the monks from the outside world and was probably erected between 900 and 1200
Round towers were the bell towers of early Irish monasteries and summoned the monks to prayer. This tower is 100 feet with six floors and the door at 12 feet above the ground. The door was accessed by a movable ladder which was pulled inside to prevent enemies from entering the tower
The Priest’s House
The cathedral is not only the largest church in Glendalough, it is also one of the largest known early churches in Ireland
A little robin perches on the remaining wall of the cathedral
The Upper Lake is around 2 km away from the visitors centre
The Reefert church was built around the eleventh century and is the burial place of the O’Tooles, the local chieftain’s clan
Glendalough is well worth seeing, and definitely requires more than one visit to take in all there is to be seen.
a still point 