Ross Errily Friary
Our first stop was at Ross Errily Friary, a 14th Century Franciscan friary which we were told is the most extensive and best preserved of all the Franciscan friaries in Ireland. For all we know, of course, this could be one of only two Franciscan friaries in Ireland. Or maybe it’s the only one (note to file: Google Franciscan abbeys in Ireland). But it is an imposing structure out in an open field, with enough rooms to house a small village of monks. It is located about a mile northwest of Headford, not too far from where the first transatlantic flight, from Newfoundland, landed on June 15, 1919. Can you name the two British pilots who were in the plane? You didn’t think Lindberg was the first, did you?
A short time later, we passed by the Glebe stone circle and Ballymagibbon Cairn, which date from the neolithic period. Cairns, as you know, were stone structures built on top of a number of graves; and this one is truly ancient. The stone circle still holds the same type of mysteries as Stonehenge, but is said to be much older. By the way, choosing a bus tour means that you have no choice about photographs or stopping points, so you will have to imagine the scene.
At the village of Cong we stopped for a spot of tea and a visit to the place that John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara made famous while filming scenes from the movie The Quiet Man. To capitalize on a movie made in 1952 takes some real effort 60 years after the event, but every establishment in town has joined in the promotion. There's The Quiet Man Hotel, The Quiet Man Gift Shop, the Quiet Man Bar--even The Quiet Man Museum. And you can walk across the very same bridge as John Wayne did, so many years ago. We avoided all of those to explore the Cong Abbey. Rebuilt in the 13th Century, it is a fine example of early Irish architecture. While browsing through the cemetery, I discovered, based on a reading of the tombstones, that no male could be buried there unless his name was Michael, Thomas, or Patrick.
13th Century Cong Abbey
Speaking of Patrick, among the many interesting historical vignettes provided by our guide was the reminder that Patrick was kidnapped in Scotland when he was a boy and sold into slavery in Ireland, which, like the rest of the world north of France, was a pagan and druid area He escaped after five years and was taken to France on a ship around the year 401, where he studied and entered the priesthood. He returned to convert the people to Christianity, using the three leaf clover to help explain the concept of the Trinity. He did such a good job of it that the church decreed him a saint, and his clover became the national symbol, the shamrock. And now you know: the patron saint of Ireland was not Irish, but a Scotsman.
We drove alongside Lough Nafooey, the largest lake in Ireland at 44,000 acres and 35 miles long, and then went over to view the only fjord in the country. We saw the fields of carefully cut peat drying out, to be used for heating in the local homes. And we saw grim reminders of the potato famine. First was a famine wall. Our guide reminded us that the British were occupying Ireland at the time of the famine, and the implication was clearly that it might not have happened without their presence. The Irish people had had all their land stolen and given to British landlords; the people then had to rent their land from the landlords and pay them rent in potatoes or other crops. With the potato blight destroying all the potatoes, the rent was paid in corn, leaving nothing for the people to eat. The British government then provided menial jobs for them to survive, among which was the construction of walls that went to nowhere and served no useful purpose.
Famine wall in Connemara
We visited a small graveyard where the peasants were buried after starving to death, several persons to a hole. There are no headstones--only a rock marking the fact that there is a grave. The landlords decided they were not making enough money off the peasants, so they instituted a tax on windows. When the tax man came around to collect, he found the windows had been sealed up and no tax was due. Take a close look at this abandoned ruin and you can see three windows that have been sealed with rock:
Eliminating windows during the potato famine
We passed by the Twelve Bens Mountains, beautiful valleys, waterfalls, and other historic sites. But the most fascinating of the day was the Kylemore Abbey. When Mitchell and Margaret Henry came to Cannemara for their honeymoon, they fell in love with the area. Several years later, Mitchell returned and bought 13,000 acres of land to build a castle and gardens, which he completed in 1871. With 33 bedrooms and 70 rooms altogether, it must have been the talk of Ireland--not to mention the 300,000 native and non-native trees he had planted on the property. But the love of his life contracted a disease while visiting Egypt and died in 1874.
Kylemore Abbey
Mitchell never remarried. He built a miniature neo-gothic cathedral on the property as a monument to Margaret, who is buried in a mausoleum nearby. King Edward II visited here in 1902, and was rumored to be interested in a purchase; but he was later quoted as saying, "Kylemore is too expensive for a king." Mitchell sold the property in 1903 to the Duke and Dutchess of Manchester, but the Duke's gambling addiction caused him to lose it to the bank, which sold it to the Irish Benedictine Nuns from Belgium, who still occupy the castle as an abbey. Portions of the interior have been restored to their original glory. It was a visit we won't soon forget.
Tomorrow we leave for Burren, the cliffs of Moher, and Dublin. But we promised to try to get you photos of some of the Galway hookers. I believe we told you there was even a Galway Hooker beer, which is brewed and served only locally.
Although we were unable to capture any hookers on camera, we just discovered that part of their story was inadvertently omitted the other day, so here it will be reprinted with the missing paragraph:
One thing you immediately notice here is the number of hookers. County Galway has more hookers, in fact, than the rest of Ireland combined. You see them everywhere along the rivers and coast, and nearly all the Galway hookers are black. There are even four classes of Galway hookers, which local sailors can distinguish easily. You are probably not interested in the distinctions, but you would surely be fascinated by the hookers. They are beautiful, in their own way. In fact, tourists come here from all over Ireland just to experience one. We will try to take some photos of them over the next couple of days.
The hookers are easily identified by their black bottoms and usually reddish-brown sails. They are black because of the pitch used to coat the outside to keep the water out. The four classes are based on their size, rigging, and outfitting for fishing. These sailboats were originally built for use in the shallow Galway Bay waters, and were often swamped in higher seas. But they have made a comeback here. Those of you who are familiar with Boston hookers, or paddy boats, may be interested in the fact that they were originally built by Irish immigrants who remembered the design from their homes in Galway.
Our sincere apologies to those who did not get the rest of the story the first time through. We will try to handle things better in the future. By the way, you might have noticed the blue sky in some of the photos. We only had a few showers and one brief hailstorm during today's tour. Later, Freddie at our B&B told us that a couple of years ago it rained for 9 straight months here; he said the waterfalls were fantastic. It's time to move on to the Burren, cliffs of Moher ("mow her), and Dublin.
Charlie and Tricia
© 2012
Mini-cathedral at Kylemore
Tomorrow we leave for Burren, the cliffs of Moher, and Dublin. But we promised to try to get you photos of some of the Galway hookers. I believe we told you there was even a Galway Hooker beer, which is brewed and served only locally.
At a pub in Galway
Although we were unable to capture any hookers on camera, we just discovered that part of their story was inadvertently omitted the other day, so here it will be reprinted with the missing paragraph:
One thing you immediately notice here is the number of hookers. County Galway has more hookers, in fact, than the rest of Ireland combined. You see them everywhere along the rivers and coast, and nearly all the Galway hookers are black. There are even four classes of Galway hookers, which local sailors can distinguish easily. You are probably not interested in the distinctions, but you would surely be fascinated by the hookers. They are beautiful, in their own way. In fact, tourists come here from all over Ireland just to experience one. We will try to take some photos of them over the next couple of days.
The hookers are easily identified by their black bottoms and usually reddish-brown sails. They are black because of the pitch used to coat the outside to keep the water out. The four classes are based on their size, rigging, and outfitting for fishing. These sailboats were originally built for use in the shallow Galway Bay waters, and were often swamped in higher seas. But they have made a comeback here. Those of you who are familiar with Boston hookers, or paddy boats, may be interested in the fact that they were originally built by Irish immigrants who remembered the design from their homes in Galway.
Our sincere apologies to those who did not get the rest of the story the first time through. We will try to handle things better in the future. By the way, you might have noticed the blue sky in some of the photos. We only had a few showers and one brief hailstorm during today's tour. Later, Freddie at our B&B told us that a couple of years ago it rained for 9 straight months here; he said the waterfalls were fantastic. It's time to move on to the Burren, cliffs of Moher ("mow her), and Dublin.
Charlie and Tricia
© 2012
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