Ireland is old… like, really, really, really old. As Americans, I think it’s hard for us to fathom the ancient structures that are found in Ireland. I will never forget being in class with our professor and one of the American students exclaiming with awe that one of the local pubs was founded in 1811. Our professor laughed and said, “I’m Irish. 1811 was practically yesterday!” The professor had a point. In Ireland, the modern exists adjacent to the ancient. On an anthropological tour of the area that I lived, our guide pointed to an ancient neolithic tomb, two large...
The Celtic Cross is one of Ireland’s most recognisable symbols dating back to the Early Middle Ages. They were made famous by the high cross, featured in many churches and graveyards. The origins of the Celtic Cross is not very well known however, many people believe that the circle represents a halo, while others see the ring as Roman sun-god, Invictus. There are many famous Celtic Crosses and High Crosses in Ireland, especially across Ireland’s ancient east - let’s take a look at my top 3! Clonmacnoise Located in the Clonmacnoise monastery, this is Ireland’s most famous high cross dating...
Dia Duit arís! (hello again) I’m sure many of you know about the troubles that took place 40 years ago in Northern Ireland between the Catholics and Protestants that resulted in many lives lost and ruined. Seeing imagery and videos through the news inspired two Irish immigrants to take action and help out those children caught in the cross fire. In 1975 Project Children was born; an idea by Denis Mulcahy, along with his brother Pat. They had both grown up in County Cork, Ireland, and immigrated to New York, where they joined the New York Police Department. Denis is...
Kerry is known around the world as ‘The Kingdom’ and that is certainly an appropriate name! The county is simply stunning! Visitors to Kerry enjoy visiting cute seaside villages such as Dingle, famous for it’s fishing, great food and fantastic atmosphere - not to mention Dingle Peninsula that projects out into the Atlantic and offers visitors truly stunning views! Visitors to Dingle can also go out on the bay and visit Dingle’s most famous resident - Fungie! Fungie the dolphin has been charming tourists for years and is always a great sight to see! The area is a really lovely...
