EireLandings ~ Part Three

Stone Ruin in the Landscape

       Pulling away from the Irish National Stud farm, we continued our journey across The Curragh and through some iconic country scenes.  All of Ireland is dotted with ruins large and small of cottages and castles, cathedrals and abbeys.  There are also some modern sculptural elements that surprise and delight with new twists on ancient themes.  One of my personal favorites - which wasn't even on this particular day, is the reference to the Viking settlements of the early centuries of Ireland's emergence.  Photo credit for the Viking sculpture goes to Favorite Youngest Daughter as I pilched it from her Facebook page. My copy had a street sign right in the middle! Not always easy to get good pix from a moving bus, especially in the rain.

Roadside Viking

        So it was a typical Irish day as we toodled along in the bus with mist, broken clouds, a pinch of sun and then torrential rain.  Our next immediate destination was lunch in the town of
Cashel but we had time for a photo stop near the Rock of Cashel in County Tipperary. 
       The Rock was the seat of power of the Kings of Munster and St. Patrick is believed to have preached in this place.  It was here that Plantagenet King Henry II first accepted allegiance from the Chiefs of the Celtic Clans in the 12th century. The Kings later ceded Cashel to the Church were it was a flourishing religious center until the siege by the dastardly Cromwell forces in 1647 which saw 3,000 occupants massacred. The Rock is an impressive site up on its hill and well worthy of a wish to visit another time to take the hour and a half tour.  As we stopped to look up at this amazing Cathedral-Fortress, the sun broke through brightly.

The Rock of Cashel, St. Patrick may have preached here



The Aunts at Tea in Cashel

       From our photo opp, we made our way into the lovely little town of Cashel, where it began to pour rain again just as we stopped for lunch.  The pub was overcrowded - another bus arrived shortly before us.  A little tea room was packed as well.  There seemed to be no chance for the 5 of us to get something to eat but we did manage to find some empty space in the upper reaches of the tea room.  After settling the aunts into seats, I ordered us soup, brown bread and tea.  It was a charming place and both aunts were enthralled. 

       On the road again after lunch, we sang our way through Tipperary (not such a long way after all), and stopped briefly in Limerick for views of King John's Castle and the stone upon which the Treaty of 1691 was signed - you all know what that was about, right?  No?  Try Wikipedia...
                                                                                                                                                                                     

Treaty of Limerick signed on this stone

The city of Limerick was actually settled by the Danes in the 10th century and destroyed by the armies of Brian Boru. Oliver Cromwell also had his way with the town and there is a cannon ball embedded in one of the castle towers as a reminder of

his less-than-welcome visit.

King John's Castle, Limerick

       Off again in the bus after lunch to our final destination of the day, the town of Ennis.  But the day itself was far from over.  Part 4 will soon reveal the evening's festivities! 

       The Vikings first landed in Ireland in 795 and founded walled cities such as Dublin, Waterford, and Limerick.  Some reports suggest that the red hair often associated with the Irish, actually came with the Vikings.  I mentioned  this to Favorite Youngest Daughter - we have several red-haired members of the family including me - and so, I said, that in addition to our Irish heritage, we may have Viking blood.  Her response, "that explains a lot".