Galway

Galway is a stop off for two days atleast, we are staying in historic salthill district. The Corribh River flows into Galway bay near the Claddagh district, Claddagh means pebble or gravel and is built on a wash of stones from the river. Galway is great for shopping and just walking which we will do some bit of. We met with a friend Michael Vignolles, a Bodhran maker this morning and will meet him tomorrow for some music playing in one of the local pubs.

Clonmacnoise

St Kiarans monestary on the banks of the Shannon, date back from 540's AD. This is one of the best preserved abbey compounds in the Republic. Well worth a visit, The round tower is one of the oldest dating from the early 12th century. And there are many churches the smaller the older. St cieran is buried in teh 8 x 10 ft chapel shown above. In the 19th century it became fahionable to be buried here so the grounds are full of graves.

Glen of Atherlow

In South Tipperary is the Glen of Atherlow, we stayed here for the night. This is a view from the forest over looking the glen with the slieve broom mountains in the background.

Bru Boru Cultural Center

At the base of the Rock of Cashel is the CCE Bru Boru Cultural center. This is run by CCE Comhaltas Ceoltori Eireann (Irish Musicians Association) We caught up with an acquaintance Una O' Murchu who is the director, and her husband Senator Leabhras O Murchu, who was in the area campaigning for the up coming elections. He was just back from a visit with teh Prime minister, Bertie Ahearn, and we got a private tour of the facility as it was closed. at the time. We will be meeting them again later in Ennis Co. Clare for the Fleadh Nua music festival. The latter picture is of the town of Cashel in Co Tipperary

Rock of Cashel, St Patricks Rock

Too much to say about Cashel for this post, Brian Boru used this site as a center of government. Later in the 11th century, it was given over to the church and an abbey was built on the norman battlements. This was confiscated by the British during the reformation, and the protestants have a varied history as well. Now it is an Heritage site and being restored, still interesting and worth a visit.

Kilkenny Castle

We finished the day touring Kilkenny Castle, home of the Butlers, No Cameras so we will look up more info online.

St Brigid Abbey. Kildare

On this site is St Brigid's Abbey, This is a 12th century church built on the same sight as her community, the original would have been made of wood beams and rotted by now. Outside is a Round Tower built to protect from Viking raids and a square pit thought to be Brigid's fire. Her original burial spot before being dug up and moved in the 13th century supposedly to Armagh, but later to Portugal and beyond. As she was important to sailors. The nuns kept a fire going for some 800 years after her death on this pit location.