Kilmalkedar Church is a 12^th century Hiberno-Romanesque ruin not far from Gallarus Oratory on the R556. The now roofless church was founded by St. Maolcethair in the 7^th century but is also associated with St. Brendan the Navigator. There are some fine carvings around the arches and on the surrounding stones. The Alphabet Stone is inscribed with Ogham and Roman alphabets. An ancient sundial contains a hole and many carvings. Legend says the tall holed Ogham stone was used to seal a bargain. Today those renewing marriage vows touch fingers through the hole in the stone. Free admission. Always open.

This is the last Ireland Friday Freebie for 2011.

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Follow Michele on Twitter

FREE Ireland Travel Forum

Last Friday we strolled along the river and through Cong Woods. Since Cong Abbey is adjacent to the woods I thought another visit to Cong would compliment the area.

Cong Abbey is a serene ruin set beside the river in Cong village, Co. Mayo. Originally the site of a monastery founded by St. Feichin in the 7^th century, the present structure was built in the 1120s by Turlough Mor O’Connor, High King of Ireland.  Rory O’Connor, the last High King of Ireland was buried there in 1198. Part of the cloister, several doorways and some nice carvings remain. But the most interesting building is the Monk’s Fishing House on an isle in the river. Though roofless now, it must have been warm and cozy centuries ago, for it has a tiny fireplace and a hole in the floor to fish through. Open daily. Free admission.

 

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Follow Michele on Twitter

FREE Ireland Travel Forum

 

 

 

Cong Woods Co. Mayo. There has to be a reason John Ford chose the tiny village of Cong for his epic Irish fairy tale of a movie “The Quiet Man”. The scenery, ah the scenery! The little village is picturesque, the abbey charming and Ashford Castle is grand. But wander out in back of the abbey to Cong Woods. Cross over the river by way of the old stone bridge. Enter into the enchanted glade through a pointed archway benignly watched over by the carved head of a monk. Fallen leaves carpet the pathway. A green, mossy smell permeates the still air. Is it a Monet painting? No just the trees reflected in the still waters. Is that glimpse from the corner of your eye one of the little people? If they are to be found…perhaps here?

 

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Follow Michele on Twitter

FREE Ireland Travel Forum

Everyone has heard of the fabled Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland and the picturesque Antrim coast. Yet hidden just a few miles inland are The Dark Hedges an ancient avenue of beech trees that looks like something from the mists of Celtic twilight. Thick gnarled limbs form an arched Druid’s tunnel where shadow and light plays through entwined branches. They twist into fantastical, wind-tortured abstract shapes. Legend tells that a gray lady haunts the thin ribbon of road snaking beneath the ancient beech trees.

The Dark Hedges – also known as Bregagh Road – can be found in Stranocum near Armoy in County Antrim. They line the avenue leading to Gracehill House, which is now a golf club. I walked the enchanting avenue on a sunny, late afternoon in October. Brilliant rays of the setting sun spotlighted the knotted trees. The leaves were not changing yet and the twined branches formed a green tunnel that is one of the most delightful and mystical I have seen in Ireland. I passed beneath the undulating, woven archway in the cool, crisp autumn air. Few tourists frequent the small country lane. But those who take the time to seek it out will find the Dark Hedges to be a place of haunting beauty that is simply breathtaking. Thick old limbs embrace like lovers, forming a natural tunnel through verdant farmlands. The timeless aura is evocative of a Tolkienesque landscape.

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Follow Michele on Twitter

FREE Ireland Travel Forum

The Dark Hedges photos are available in my Irish Shop without the watermarks.

Phoning the Republic of Ireland from the USA is very simple. Follow the five easy steps below to connect your phone call to Ireland.

1. It’s About Time: What time is it in Ireland? You don’t want to call to make a room reservation at 3 am Irish time! Ireland is on Greenwich Mean Time. If you call from the east coast it is five hours later in Ireland. From the west coast it is eight hours later.

2. International Access Code: 011

3. Country Code: 353

4. Area Code: Delete the first zero but do use the rest of the area code.

5. Phone Number: Add the remainder of the phone number.

SAMPLE: 011-353-88-888-88

For lots more help with your trip go to Michele’s main website: http://www.irelandyes.com/

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Follow Michele on Twitter

FREE Ireland Travel Forum

Grey Abbey in the village of Greyabbey, Co. Down is a serene and quaint ruin of a Cistercian foundation established in the 12^th century by Affreca, daughter of the Norse King of Man and wife of John de Courcy. Thought to be the very first totally Gothic building in Ireland, it was built as a symbol of thanksgiving for Affreca’s surviving a storm at sea. Trees and pretty parkland surround the impressive ruins and cemetery. Admission free.

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Follow Michele on Twitter

FREE Ireland Travel Forum

Inistioge is a picturesque village nestled in the Nore River Valley in County Kilkenny. Surrounded by wooded hills, the quaint square is planted with lime trees and contains 18^th century buildings and houses. A multi-arched bridge crosses the river and there are walkways by the riverbank where you can feed the ducks or have a picnic.

Mount Sandford Walk begins in Inistioge and wends its way uphill to Woodstock estate. With outstanding panoramic views of the scenic valley and village, the walk is a little over a mile.

Woodstock Gardens and Arboretum occupies an elevated site overlooking Inistioge. Originally owned by the Tighe family, who lived there for over 150 years, the estate contains a huge collection of trees and plants from all over the world.  Unfortunately the 18^th century mansion was burned down in the troubles of 1922 and only the ruins remain. But the extensive grounds provide numerous walks including a yew walk, silver fir avenue and the longest monkey puzzle tree walk in Europe (over a mile). Ornamental stairways, beech woods and formal rose gardens with arbors highlight the charming estate. Although the gardens are open free to the public, there is a per car parking fee for the lot next to the gardens. If you walk in it is free.

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Follow Michele on Twitter

   

Poulnabrone Dolmen stands like a stark, abstract sculpture in the unique karst landscape of the Burren. The megalithic portal tomb would have originally been covered with earth like its bigger, grander cousin Newgrange in County Meath. Over 5,000 years old, the tomb consists of slabs of rock arranged within an oval cairn. Portal stones and orthostats hold up the slanted capstone with the entrance facing north. The original cracked capstone lays discarded nearby. It was replaced during an excavation in the 1980s. The interior is about four by eight feet.

Poll na mBrón, which means “hole of sorrows” in Irish contained the bones of twenty-two Neolithic people and a Bronze Age infant. Buried with them were a stone axe, beads, pottery shards, a bone pin, arrowheads and quartz crystals. Because of its location in the Burren and near the Cliffs of Moher, the monument is one of Ireland’s most recognizable icons. Located several miles south of Ballyvaughan off the R480, it is visible from he road and there are pull-off areas to park. Free admission year round.

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Follow Michele on Twitter

Kells, near Stonyford, which is also known as the Castles, is a wonderful surprise set in the verdant countryside of County Kilkenny. Extensive ruins of a medieval ecclesiastical city spread over a sloping green hill to the King’s River. Always an important site, Kells was chosen by St. Kieran of Seir, as a monastic site in the 5^th century. Soon after the Norman invasion Geoffrey FitzRobert de Monte Marisco erected a castle and officially declared Kells a town.

Part of the Kingdom of Ossory, Kells became a walled citadel. Turrets, ramparts and curtain walls enclose five acres of churches, monastic remains, domestic buildings, chapels and castles. Owned by many different men over the centuries, Kells was repeatedly conquered, burned, sacked and then rebuilt.  In 1316 Edward Bruce, the brother of Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland, captured it. Now, the impressive remains can be enjoyed in the peace and quiet of a pastoral setting. Bring a picnic lunch and spend a whole morning wandering through the past.

Depending on where you approach Kells from, to gain entrance you may have to follow the fence to a stile, climb over it and cross a pasture. You can also get into Kells by taking the road to Callan from Kilkenny. Turn left at the Kells sign and left again at the next sign. Park at the second mill and walk along the scenic river to the priory. Open all year. Free admission.

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Aghadoe, just outside Killarney in County Kerry provides an outstanding panoramic view of the Killarney area where you can wander through interesting ecclesiastical and secular ruins dating from the 7^th century. The base of a ruined round tower can be explored, along with part of a 12^th century church with a beautifully carved Irish-Romanesque doorway. An Ogham stone can be seen on the south wall and an old cemetery spreads throughout the ruins.

Ireland’s highest mountains, Macgillycuddy’s Reeks, fill the horizon with purple splendor and, spread out at their base, are the island-studded Lakes of Killarney. Encompassed in the sublime view are ancient woodlands, sheltered valleys and the spires of Killarney town. Free admission.

© 2011 Michele Erdvig

“Ireland Travel Expert”

Web: IrelandYes.com

Book: Ireland Dream Trip

Custom Itineraries

Michele’s Irish Shop: www.zazzle.com/irelandyes*

Follow Michele on Twitter