I have been wanting to blog about sites on my last trip to Ireland ever since I got back! So sorry it’s taken months for me to get to this (other obligations) but I’m happy to start sharing! Glendalough is a popular tourist destination, and it’s not far from Dublin, but this was my first visit. As I’ve explained before, in our previous two trips we spent a lot of time in Northern Ireland so we didn’t get everywhere we wanted to go. That was intentional. So we’d have to come back!
Glendalough in the beautiful Wicklow Mountains was on my wish list. We were blessed to be able to visit on a gloriously sunny day.
(All photos in this post are mine or Sandy Beck’s, used by permission. All rights reserved ©2023. May not be used or copied without permission.)
Founded by St. Kevin in the 6th century, Glendalough was a major site of monastic learning and culture. The site has been visited by pilgrims and tourists for thousands of years, meaning preChristian. It’s no wonder why. It’s a place of natural beauty. I did not get to visit the lakes but hope to another time.
We walked around the monastic ruins, the gravesites, the impressive round tower. The building ruins date to the 10th-12th centuries. I wish we could have seen the market cross but it was inside the visitors centre, which was not open when were there. I couldn’t find an image I could use on my blog but if you want a look at that amazingly carved cross, go here. It’s called the market cross because it originally stood at the arch entrance (pictured below) where the market occurred. In this time period there were no cities so monasteries were not only the sites of learning but also centers of commerce.
The three photos above show St. Kevin’s Kitchen. It’s a small church with a round tower embedded. The shape of the tower resembled a kitchen chimney, thus the name. It dates to the 12th century.
These ancient sites are what interest me the most about Ireland. So old, so long revered. So many tens of thousands of people walked here, prayed here, poured out their hearts. Many were inspired just by being here.
I have so much more to say about pilgrimage, but I’ll save that for another time. Have you been to Glendalough? If so, please share your experience in the comments. If you haven’t, and you had an opportunity to visit Ireland, would this be on your list?
As we were leaving our driver Anthony stopped for us to get this photo opp.
