Westport and Croagh Patrick

Westport Town, County Mayo

There is a real swan in there with the swan boats.

Flower baskets everywhere.  They were so pretty.

CROAGH PATRICK
History

Known in Irish Celtic as Cruach Phádraig and colloquially as "the Reek," Mt. Croagh Patrick has been a sacred site since ancient times. Before the arrival of Christianity, the Celtic people regarded the mountain as the dwelling place of the deity Crom Dubh.

The mountain was the focus of the harvest festival of Lughnasa, traditionally held around August 1. The sacred mountain was especially important for women, who would sleep on the summit during Lughnasa to encourage fertility.

Neolithic art can still be seen on a rock outcropping known as "St. Patrick's Chair" along the path to the top, and a Celtic hill fort was recently uncovered at the base of the mountain.

According to Christian tradition, St. Patrick went up the sacred mountain at festival time in 441 AD. After fasting at the summit for 40 days, he banished all the snakes and demons from Ireland.

The site quickly became an important place of Christian pilgrimage. A stone oratory dating to between 430 and 890 AD was recently discovered on the summit.

Pilgrimage

Mt. Croagh Patrick is the most important Catholic pilgrimage destination in Ireland. Nearly one million visitors, most of them pilgrims, climb to the top every year. Almost 30,000 pilgrims make the trek on the last Sunday in July, known as "Reek Sunday."

For most Catholics who visit Mt. Croagh Patrick, especially on Reek Sunday, the pilgrimage to the top of the sacred mountain is an act of penance. Accordingly, some untake the journey barefoot or even on their knees. The summit has a small chapel where Mass is held each day.

The full pilgrimage route originates in the village of Murrisk, 8km outside Westport. The first main sight on the pilgrimage path is a statue of St. Patrick, erected in 1928 by a Westport pastor. Although it is not one of the official stations it has become a place of prayer and makes a good goal for those not able to climb all the way to the top.

Céide Fields

So just when you think you're getting the hang of Gaelic, they give you Céide Fields. I'm cool with "fields" but the "Céide". Kady-Kidy-Katy-Kity-WRONG! "Kay-Ja" Fields-who knew.

This was absolutely the most impressive place to me. The one place I just couldn't wrap my mind around. Céide Fields is an area where the remains of ancient (work on that word in your "growing up in the US" brain) stone field walls, houses and tombs are preserved beneath a blanket of peat over several square miles.

Have you worked on "ancient"? I grew up in Southern California. Our chain of Missions up the California Coast are the oldest buildings/ruins I've ever seen. Maybe a few hundred years old. And you East Coasters can add a few hundred years onto that.

The Céide Fields are the oldest known field systems in the world, over five and a half millennia old. That's before Christ. It's beyond what my mind can fathom.

Bunratty Castle and Folk Park

A little Gaelic for you.

Caisleán Bhun Raithe, meaning Castle at the Mouth of the Ratty

We stopped at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park on our way North to County Mayo. The present castle dates back to 1425. There are four towers to climb up to, a banquet hall, many furnished rooms and even a dungeon. The Folk Park is a reproduction of a 19th Century Village. Very cool! There were different types of buildings, cottages, farm equipment and lots of animals.

Are you supposed to ride the cannon?

A little girl and a little door.

Do you see "first born" written all over this?

The countryside from one of the towers.

Flying the pride.

You can just make out the flag where we were on top of the tower.

One of the reproduction cottages.

Sweet pony. The girl is sweet most of the time.

There was a "Viking Faire" going on while we were there. This was the coolest display of birds. He must have had 30 or 40 birds of pray. Even a California Condor.

Barn Owl hiding in his box.

Random photos

Old water pump across the street from the first cottage we stayed in. Kyle was determined to make it work.

Local cemetery across the street from the water pump. We walked here on our first evening. These were some of the first head stones we saw. Look closely, "Condon" is my Mom's maiden name.

Some of this cemetery was very old.

Ballinure was the village we were in. A gorgeous area of County Tipperary.

This is the hearth stone. We think its a piece of a castle.

Kilkenny Castle

KILKENNY CASTLE stands dramatically on a strategic height that commands a crossing on the River Nore and dominates the 'High Town' of Kilkenny City. Over the eight centuries of its existence, many additions and alterations have been made to the fabric of the building, making Kilkenny Castle today a complex structure of various architectural styles.
The original Anglo-Norman stone castle was built for William Marshal, 4th Earl of Pembroke (c.1146-1219) during the first decade of the thirteenth century. Kilkenny Castle later became the principal Irish residence of the powerful Butler family for almost 600 years. The Butler ownership began when James (c.1360-1405), 3rd Earl of Ormond, purchased the castle in c.1391, and lasted until 1967 when Arthur, 6th Marquess of Ormonde (1893-1971), presented it to the people of Kilkenny in return for a token payment of £50.

Kieran liked the playground on the castle grounds best.

Honey, the lawn needs mowing. This lawn went beyond the horizon.

Open Farm

We went to an "Open Farm" where you can feed the animals on a real working farm.

This baby sheep has six horns. Mom had four and Dad had the normal two.

Hungry Babies.

Now they're full and happy.

Darcy's donkey?

Marl Bog-Dundrum Village, Tipperary

The area is a wildlife and wildfowl reserve. Mammals include fallow deer, fox, badger, red squirrel, Irish stoat, otter and mink. There is a great diversity of bird life.
As the name suggests the main soil type is marl and gley over a gravel base.
This was so beautiful and quiet.


This swan followed us around the lake.

Cahir Castle

Cahir Castle-This imposing 13th -15th century structure was skilfully designed to be a state of the art defensive castle. Every foot of the rocky island was utilised to such good effect as the to make difficult in places to determine which part of the castle is the main part and which is the living rock from which is seems to grow. Located in the centre of Cahir town, Cahir castle is one of Ireland's largest and best-preserved castles.

The River Suir on one side.

And an honest to goodness moat on the other.

The Swiss Cottage-
Built around 1810 at Kilcommon near the town of Cahir in County Tipperary (Ireland), the Swiss cottage is a fine example of cottage ornée, or ornamental cottage. It was originally part of the estate of Lord and Lady Cahir, and used for entertaining guests.

Inside was beautiful but photos were not allowed. It was only refurbished in 1985. Horses were living in the downstairs before this. It opened to the public in 1989.

The beautiful patchwork quilts of Ireland.

River Suir again.