St Columba's - Drumcliffe © Travel Signposts..

“Under Bare Benbulben’s Head In Drumcliffe Churchyard Yeats Is Laid….” and although Drumcliffe is best known around the world as the final resting place of William B. Yeats, the site on which St. Columba’s Church stands has been a place of Christian worship for over 1500 years.

St. Columcille founded a monastry in Drumcliffe in 574 and at that time, it was one of his principal religious houses, together with Derry, Durrow and Kells.  Christians have been worshipping here since that time.

Remnants of the Monastery

Today, the only visible remnants of the monastic site are the High Cross, the Round Tower and the plain Cross shaft.

The Drumcliffe High Cross is one of the finest examples of high crosses remaining in Ireland. The carvings on the cross represent biblical scenes including Adam and Eve, Daniel in the lions’ den, the crucifixion, etc. Originally painted in bright colours they were used as a visual aid for religious teachings.  Picture the pilgrims gathered around the cross and the images being illustrated to them.

The Round Tower is believed to be the only one of its kind in Co. Sligo. Like other Round towers, such as the one in Glendalough in Co. Wicklow, it would have served as a bell tower as well as a shelter against plundering Vikings and local chieftains. To get to the high doorway, a ladder is required, making it more difficult for the invaders to attack.

Local Drumcliffe Legend

Local legend has it that the tower will fall down when the wisest man in the world passes under it!  If you visit  Drumcliffe today, you will see that there is only a stump of the tower left, so one wise man must have passed under it at some point in history!

The present St. Columba’s Church was built in 1809, but there seems to be a dearth of information about it.

William B. Yeats' Grave, Drumcliffe..

Driving south from Donegal to Sligo, we make a stop at Drumcliffe, a town best known as the final the resting place of William B. Yeats.  Yeats’ grave is in the churchyard of St. Columba’s Church where his great grandfather, John Yeats, was Rector in the early nineteenth century. 

Although Yeats was born and educated in Dublin he always considered Sligo to be his home.  It was Yeats wish that he be buried under Ben Bulben.

Yeats Died in France

William Yeats died in France on 28th January 1939 and due to the War his body could not be returned to Ireland.  He was buried in Rocquebrune near Monaco. It was not until 1948 that his body was returned to Ireland and interred at Drumcliffe.

A year before his death, Yeats’ composed these words which hint at where and how he is to be buried.

Under bare Benbulben’s head
In Drumcliffe churchyard Yeats is laid
An ancestor was rector there
Long years ago, a church stands near,

By the road an ancient cross.
No marble, no conventional phrase;
On limestone quarried near the spot
By his command these words are cut;
Cast a cold eye
On life, On death.
Horseman pass by!

Yeats’ Wishes

Visitors to Drumcliffe will see a very plain grave for this great Irish Nobel Prize winning author, poet and dramatist.  According to Yeats’ wishes, the headstone is a simple limestone slab, on which are cut the words:

Cast a cold eye
On Life, On death.
Horseman pass by!

Yeats’ wife George is buried here as well.  In St Columba’s Church is a memorial to Yeats’ great grandfather.

There is also a gift shop here where visitors can enjoy a nice cup of tea and some light snacks.

Bunratty Folk Park

Set within the grounds of Bunratty Castle is Bunratty Folk Park, one of the most visited sightseeing attractions of Ireland’s west country. The meticulously reconstructed buildings in this Folk Park give visitors a glimpse into rural life in Ireland in the past.

Folk Park Buildings

The village houses and shops that make up Bunratty Folk Park have been chosen from many different areas of Ireland and they form a collection of typical 19th century rural Irish buildings and architecture. The buildings range from the large landlord’s house to the smallest peasant’s cottage.

There’s also a school, a pub, grocery, hardware shop, post office, a smithy, watermills and a fine collection of old farm implements. Through these buildings visitors get to see a collection of Victorian village buildings in Ireland’s past.

A Walking Tour of the Folk Park

With your entrance fee to the Folk Park, you are provided a leaflet with which you can do a self-guided walk to learn about the buildings and its inhabitants. Some of the buildings belonged to famous people. An example is Hazelbrook House which was originally built in 1898. This was the home of the Hughes Brothers who produced HB ice cream, a household name in Ireland. At Hazelbrook House, visitors can learn about the evolution of ice cream making in Ireland and also the history of the Hughes Brothers family and their HB brand.

Another highlight building of the Folk Park is the Ardcroney Church. This original Church of Ireland building was moved stone by stone from Ardcroney in Co. Tipperary and rebuilt in Folk Park.

Meet the Locals at the Folk Park

Bunratty Folk Park

A Great Learning Environment for Children

Bunratty Folk Park is particularly popular with families and schools and it’s easy to see why. There are lots to see and explore here and it’s a great learning environment for children. Had we more time at this place we would have loved to have chatted with the other people in the village and perhaps have a drink at Mac’s, a working pub at the top of the village street.

Located right between the City of Limerick and Shannon Airport, Bunratty Folk Park is also a stop for all tours of the Irish West or Southwest.

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Take a tour of Bunratty Folk Park with Travelsignposts Photos HERE.

Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet

At Bunratty Castle in County Clare we have an opportunity to experience a medieval banquet. Ah, but weren’t they all carnivores during that time and should non-meat eaters like us attend a medieval banquet?  Our tour director convinces us that an evening at Bunratty Castle is an event not to be missed and that some fine food will be arranged for us.

Welcome to Bunratty Castle

As we make our way to the castle gate, a lone piper welcomes guests with bagpipe music.  We cross the drawbridge to the castle entrance and are greeted by the Castle staff, resplendent in medieval costume. The Earl’s butler greets us with “Welcome milord” and “welcome milady” – yes, this evening we are the guests of the Earl of Thomond, a man with a reputation for lavish entertainment and fine hospitality.

Medieval Banquet

The evening begins with a mead reception in the Great Hall of Bunratty Castle and as we drink our mead, we are entertained with some medieval and traditional Irish music.

Next we proceed to the large Banquet Hall filled with rows of tables and benches. Our entrée is a spiced parsnip soup which is poured out of a jug.  But, before each course is served to the guests, the butler first tastes it to ensure that it is not poisonous and then the Earl of Thomond has to taste the food first to ensure that he is satisfied with it. The Earl of Thomond tonight happens to be a member from our group.

By this time, some are wondering when the cutlery is arriving.  We’re reminded that there is no cutlery because this is a medieval banquet.

Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet

So, we slurp the tasty soup straight from the bowl and there is nice damper to go with it. For starters, platters of spare ribs done with honey and mustard sauce are placed on the tables and again you tear into the spare ribs with your hands. The main course is breasts of chicken with apple and mead sauce served with potatoes and seasonal vegetables. This is followed by dessert which is a fruit of the forest mousse on a biscuit base.

We have the vegetarian option which is a slice of melon for entrée, followed by a vegetarian tart.

Wine is included with the meal, but there aren’t many takers as both the red and white are pretty undrinkable.  Tony asks to buy a beer, but they didn’t have any.

While the meal is taking place, the Castle staff provide musical entertainment. It seems that to work in the castle you have to multi-task as some of them help in serving the food and then join in providing the entertainment as well.

Touristy But Popular

Although the Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet is an event staged for tourists, it is nevertheless very popular and gets booked out.  The vegetarian meal is rather light on for the €59 charged and the wine certainly needs improvement, but food aside, the medieval banquet is an opportunity to experience Bunratty Castle in the evening, enjoy some Irish folk music and get a hint of what life might have been like when the Earls of Thomond were in residence, although a very sanitized version of it.

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See our Medieval Banquet photos HERE.

Giant's Causeway © Travel Signposts..

The Causeway Coast and its mystical Glens region is steeped in folklore, myths and magic. One of the favourite legends is that of Finn McCool, one of Ireland’s greatest folk heroes.

As the Legend of Finn McCool goes – Finn was a giant of a man who protected Ireland against all invaders. The Prince of Ireland had a Scottish rival, a giant by the name of Benandonner.

One day Finn McCool decided that he would challenge his rival in battle so he decided to build a causeway to Scotland. When the work was completed,  the Giant Causeway stretched from North Antrim to Staffa.

Benandonner, the Scottish giant, accepted Finn McCool’s invitation to walk across the causeway and fight for supremacy. As  Benandonner appeared over the horizon, Finn McCool realised to his horror that he had taken on a rival much larger than himself. He panicked and raced home to his wife, Oonagh and asked her what he should do. The quick thinking Oonagh got a vast cradle made, disguised Finn as a baby and got him to curl up in the enormous cradle.

As Benandonner approached, he saw this huge ‘child’ and took fright. “My God”, he said “if the babies are this size, what would the rest of them be like!” Benandonner thundered back to Scotland, tearing up the causeway along the way.

Like all legends, there are many variations to the Finn McCool legend, but I like this one best because it shows that behind every giant, there is a smart thinking woman!  To this day this Irish legend still makes me smile whenever I think about it.

Giant's Causeway © Travel Signposts..

The Giant’s Causeway, Northern Ireland’s only UNESCO World Heritage Site, is located on the north Antrim Coast, an area of outstanding natural beauty.  Thousands of visitors come to this part of the north Irish coast just to see these intriguing rock formations which are the result of volcanic eruptions.

Over 60 million years ago the Antrim Coast was subject to intense volcanic activities.  Millions of tonnes of molten rock were thrown up and over the course of time, the rapid cooling process and variations in the cooling rate caused the formation of columns, mainly into hexagonal and some octagonal shapes. But what’s bizarre about these basalt formations is the symmetry of the columns.

Some aerial photos that I had seen of the Giant’s Causeway gave the impression of dramatic and steep cliff-like structures plunging from a great height down into the sea.  So, before we arrived here, I imagined that we would be standing on top of the cliff and looking down at these unusual stepped columns.

But my impressions were totally wrong – a road leads to the rock formations and when you reach it you can actually step along the basalt columns.  For the more sure-footed, there are some high sections that you can climb up to for a magical aerial view of the Giant’s Causeway and surrounding landscape.

Did A Giant Build the Causeway?

When this amazing natural phenomenon was discovered in 1693 it caused quite a sensation at that time. There were a lot of argument and speculation as to whether the Causeway had been created by men with picks and chisels, by nature, or by the efforts of a giant. It was not until 1771 that a Frenchman (Demarest) announced that the Causeway was the result of volcanic action.  However, some might still choose to believe that it was really the Irish giant Finn McCool who built it.

Getting to the Giant’s Causeway

Giant's Causeway © Travel Signposts

From the Visitor Centre you can take a leisurely one kilometre walk down to the Causeway and enjoy the views along the way.  The road is undulating so it may take about twenty minutes for some – less for the fast walkers.  Alternatively, you can take the Causeway Coaster which is a mini-bus shuttle service that leaves every few minutes.  The bus is accessible for people with disabilities and the trip costs £1 each way. We strolled down, spent time on the rocks and then caught the mini-bus back up to save time.

The Giant’s Causeway Visitor Centre houses the Tourist Information office, bureau de change, accommodation booking service, an Interpretive Audio-visual presentation and a souvenir shop.  The Giant’s Causeway is a designated National Nature Reserve and The National Trust are the guardians of the Causeway.  The National Trust also services the Trust Shop and the Tea Rooms.

The Giant’s Causeway is about 2 miles away from Bushmills. The closest road is the B146 Causeway–Dunseverick Road. To get here by bus, there is the Causeway Rambler bus (Ulsterbus service 376) that runs from Bushmills and Carrick-a-Rede, though it only operates in summer.

Address:

Giant’s Causeway Visitor Centre
44 Causeway Road
Bushmills
Co Antrim
BT57 8SU

Map of North Antrim Coast:

The Quiet Man - Cong

We knew nothing about Cong but soon find out that this is the village of “The Quiet Man”, a 1952 romantic comedy-drama starring Maureen O’Hara and John Wayne.

Our morning stop at the village of Cong is for a quick cup of coffee and a stretch, but anyone visiting Cong will soon be put in touch with the village’s connection with The Quiet Man.

Although the movie was released nearly sixty years ago, Cong still thrives on the fame of the movie which is notable for its lush photography of the Irish countryside.  Many of the scenes from the movie were shot in and around Cong.

One of Cong’s main attractions is the Quiet Man Museum. We don’t have time to visit it.  For Quiet Man fans, the entry fee is Euro 6.00.

The gift shop at the museum has postcards and other memorabilia from the movie.  From the postcards Tony recognized some of the buildings that were the backdrop for the movie so he took off to take some shots.  Pat Cohan’s Bar is a replica of the original pub that was featured in the film.  It was built in 2008 and the pub hosts daily re-runs of the film on DVD.  (Photos will be put on-line when we return home.)

Around the corner from the museum are the ruins of the abbey and just across from the abbey is the tourist office.

The Molly Bloom cafe was recommended as the place to have a cuppa, but the Hungry Monk looks funkier.

Cong or Cunga in Gaelic means “narrow strip of land” and from the air, the village can be seen on an isthmus between Lough Corrib and Lough Mask.

There is a heritage trail that you can do, starting from the abbey. The tourist shop in front of the abbey has brochures that describe the trail.

* Posted on the road.  Photographs will be put on-line in November.

Kissing the Blarney Stone..

Like most visitors on Irish tours, we were brought to Blarney Castle to kiss the legendary Blarney Stone. It is believed that anyone who kisses the Blarney Stone will be blessed with the ‘gift of the gab’ and it seems that over 400,000 visitors a year come to seek this gift.

It may be just a folk legend or a load of blarney, but millions of visitors have already come to Blarney Castle to kiss this stone of eloquence. Famous visitors to the Blarney Stone have included Winston Churchill who kissed the Stone in 1912 – he is said to be the greatest orator of the twentieth century! Billy Connolly was another famous visitor and we all know that Billy is blessed! Mick Jagger too has kissed the Stone.

The Stone Kissing Ritual

Kissing the Blarney Stone is no simple feat. To reach the stone one has to climb some 127 steps to the top of the castle keep. The stone is set in the wall below the castle battlement and to kiss it you have to arch over backwards on the edge of the parapet. As you ease yourself over the edge by holding on to the wrought iron rails, an attendant is there to help anchor you down (for a fee).

It’s a long drop to the ground and although there are bars to prevent stone kissers from falling through, it can be quite scary for people suffering from acrophobia or those who aren’t fit enough to arch over backwards. A number of ladies had second thoughts and pulled out of the ritual, while others came well prepared with pieces of Gladwrap, concerned about picking up more than the gift of the gab.

As you busy yourself to kiss the stone, you may not notice a photographer taking snaps of you in action. By the time you get back to the ground level, you’ll see your pictures are ready for sale.

Aerial view of Blarney Castle ruins

Even if you choose not to kiss the stone, you’ll be able to see some of the castle ruins from the top and enjoy a nice view of the castle surrounds. Although we were there early, there was already a huge queue of visitors all waiting their turn to kiss the stone.

Well, I’ve got my certificate to prove that I’ve kissed the stone, but I haven’t noticed any improvement in eloquence! Oh well, it might just be a tourist gimmick, but you can’t go to Blarney Castle and not follow this long-standing tradition… at least once!

Another Legend

It is believed that the word ‘blarney’ was introduced into the English language by Queen Elizabeth I. It apparently came about on an occasion when she requested an oath of loyalty to retain occupancy of land from Cormac McCarthy, the Lord of Blarney.  His response was subtle, but without giving in. Queen Elizabeth was believed to have said that McCarthy was giving her “a lot of blarney”.

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Sneem Village Green

It was a cold and rainy day when we arrived in Sneem, but in this village you don’t need sunshine to cheer you up. The bright and cheery colours of the buildings in Sneem more than makes up for the grey skies.

Sneem is situated on the estuary of the Ardsheelaun River. This picturesque village has a beautifully kept village green surrounded by brightly painted houses and shops. This village relies on tourism for its income and there are plenty of quaint little cafes, tea houses and gift shops aimed at the tourist trade.

The whole village appears to be engaged in the effort to make this place pleasing and welcoming for tourists and its efforts have won Sneem several National Tidy Town Awards.

There are no important buildings or monuments to see in Sneem – its one bronze statue is that of Steve ‘Crusher’ Casey, a local who was a fearsome world heavyweight wrestling champion.

Sneem’s attraction lies in its relaxed atmosphere and its close proximity to some fine mountain and river scenery around the Ring of Kerry. Some of its famous visitors over the years have included Charles de Gaulle, George Bernhard Shaw, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Charlie Chaplin, to name a few.

Sneem's colourful buildings

Sneem was our lunch stop and those in the tour who signed up for lunch went to the Bank House for their meal which I gathered was sandwiches and home made scones.  But for us, it was time to check out the colourful buildings and take more snaps of this charming village.

Sneem village is certainly a nice base from which to explore the region, but if you are touring the Ring of Kerry in July, beware of the Sneem Family Festival which is a five-day event of fun and madness.  No doubt accommodation will be difficult at this time and the peace and serenity of the village will be displaced by laughter and hilarity.  One of the main events of this Festival is a National Wife Carrying Championship!

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W.Cork Chamber Music Festival

Cork is a very busy county in the month of June.  There’s a raft of festivals and events covering all types of interests and below is just a few of the main ones:

Cork City Marathon (June 7)

Now in its 4th year, the Cork City Marathon hits the road on June 7th.  This 26.2 mile road race is for individuals and teams of up to 5 runners or walkers.  Runners, joggers and walkers will get magnificent support throughout the course, with a spectacular finish on St. Patrick’s Street in the city centre.

Cork Midsummer Festival (June 12 – 27)

There’s nothing like a good festival to get people into the summer mood.  The Irish don’t do anything in half measures when it comes to festivals.  The 2010 Cork Midsummer Festival will carry on for not 5 or 10 days, but all of 16!   Yes, the organisers are promising 16 days and nights jam-packed with music and entertainment featuring local, national and international artists.  There’ll be mayhem and certainly something to appeal to everyone.  Check out the Festival website for more details.

Shandon Street Festival and Food Fair (June 19)

A day of free family fun and entertainment to suit all ages. This free event features face painting, puppet and magic shows and live music from groups like the Butter Exchange Bank, the Lace Band and the Ceili Allstars, just to name a few. You can sample foods ranging from crepes to chocolates to sausages. Street decorations are made by local youth groups and schools, making it a colourful day for all to enjoy.

Irish Performing Arts Festival (June 22 – 24)

This two-day festival is for people with intellectual disabilities.  This Performing Arts Festival will present the finest performers in songs, dances, instrumental performances and drama.

West Cork Chamber Music Festival (June 25-July 3)

Held in Bantry town, the world’s finest soloists and ensembles will play concerts from morning to late night in Bantry House, St Brendan’s Church and St Finbarr’s Church.

Taste of Cork (June 2010)

This was supposed to be held in June 2010, but it looks like it’s not happening.