My maternal grandfather was born in Ireland. Years ago, my Mom had been here and she took a picture of the ancestral home being used as a farm building. The area was clearly not a tourist destination. But, on a whim, I asked a few cousins if they had any info about Grandpa. After poking around on line, and with info and encouragement from my dear cousin Regina, we trundled off to Saint Mary’s Church Newmarket Co Cork, established in…
When the sun shines, as it did all day today, the grass in Ireland is not so much emerald green as florescent DayGlo green. You won’t get the full effect from this picture unless you sit in a darkened room with your monitor turned up to maximum brightness and contrast. This is the garden of the College of the Church of St Mary in Youghal. There’s been a garden here since medieval times. The college became a mansion and is…
My first impression of Ireland is that they are good at ruins. The little seaside village of Ardmore where we are staying has got a ruined Cathedral… … several ruined watchtowers… … a shipwreck… … a ruined hermitage… … a ruined shed oratory, heavily restored in the 18th century… …and two ruined wells… Yep, that’s Paula taking a nose dive into St. Declan’s Well, to see if the water really does cure scurvy. Of course, it’s not going to have…