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Our next and final stop in Ireland was
Dublin.
The sites we visited in and around Dublin are
listed in pink at left.
Click on them for more information and
pictures. |
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Our first full day in Dublin
we actually didn't do anything in Dublin, we drove south of Dublin
through the Wicklow Mountains to
Glendalough. This was the
last day that we were transported around by Discover Sligo Tours.
We took a very scenic route to Glendalough, which included a short
stop at a beautiful overlook of Lough Tay. It was windy and
cold on top of this overlook but the sight was unbelievable, I
have never seen such gorgeous landscape colors. See the
picture below... |
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Glendalough is yet another
monastic site in Ireland. It is highly touristy, which is a
bit disappointing, but it's just such an incredible place, it's
understandable why people flock here. Glendalough was
established in the 6th century by St. Kevin. The site was
attacked by the Vikings many times, razed by the English in 1398
and stopped functioning as a monastery in 1539. June 3rd is
St. Kevin's Feast Day and many would trek to this site especially
on that day. Most of the ruins are from the 8th to 12th
centuries and include a round tower, the arch of the Gatehouse, a
cathedral, St. Kevin's Kitchen, a very old cemetery with many
Celtic cross markers and St. Mary's Church. By the time we
got to Glendalough we had seen quite a few monastic sites, but I
must say that the multitude of ruins here and the unbelievable
scenery surrounding it made it one of the best day trips we
had...and the weather cooperated!
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Ruins at Glendalough, from left:
St. Kevin's Kitchen, Round Tower, stone arch
to the original Gatehouse.
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The ruins are many, but the
scenery here is really spectacular. We walked around the
area pretty much all afternoon. There are trails through
the woods, up to the lakes and through the hills. Some are
easy and others are more advanced. There was so much to
see here at Glendalough, that even the whole afternoon was not
enough time to explore it all. A good idea would be to
pack a lunch and just go hiking all around and see as much as
you can. Examples of the surrounding scenery are below... |
Scenery at Glendalough, from left:
Wicklow Mountains -- Alicia, Kelin,
Deanna and Erik at Glendalough -- Lake and hills around Glendalough.
*** The information on
Glendalough on this page is found in/confirmed in Eyewitness
Travel Guides: Dublin 2003. Pages 132-133 and also from notes I
took during the visit ***
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