I never tire of talking about Celtic crosses or the High Crosses of Ireland. I plan to go back and see more of them. Here are some things you might not have thought of: 1. Most of the high crosses (maybe all) still existing today were erected by Christians. It’s been said the symbol of the cross…
Author: Cindy Thomson
The Wee Irish Church
This is a response to Diane’s question in our readers’ group. She was asking about the oldest building and I actually do have idea for a post about that, but this is also about old structures. The Church in Ancient Times In ancient times the normal size of a church was 10 x 15. To…
Ireland in Manhattan
Would you have guessed this picture was taken in the United States and not Ireland? And even more surprising is that this patch of Ireland is actually in Lower Manhattan on the banks of the Hudson River. It’s the Irish Hunger Memorial, designed by artist Brian Tolle to recognize the Great Hunger in the mid 19th…
Memories of a Book from Childhood
Has this ever happened to you? You remember liking a story you read when you were young but you don’t remember the title, author, or very many details. Still, you’d love to find it again. It apparently has happened for many people because there are web forums where you can describe what you remember about…
Nova Scotia: New Scotland
Highlands National Park in Cape Breton reminds people of the Highlands in Scotland and obviously all of Nova Scotia reminded the European settlers of Scotland, thus the name which means New Scotland. There was an amazing mix of English, Scottish Gaelic, and French being spoken, especially French. The locals slipped between English and French in…
Happy Yeats Day
W.B. Yeats was born on this day. What’s your favorite Yeats poem? Here is mine. I especially like the first half. It gets a little pessimistic in the second half, but that’s Yeats, and well, sometimes that’s life too. But what I like is the image it forms so perfectly in my head. The carefree…
The Feast of St. Columba
His Other Names I prefer the Irish Columcille, which means Dove of the Church. He was originally named Crimthann, which in Irish means Fox. However, once he was fostered in the church he gained this new name. It’s said he had a temper, so perhaps this name was in jest. It came to fit him…
Stop Four on the Ancient Brigid Tour: Rock of Cashel
If you’ve been following these posts, please know that these posts are in no particular order and do not reflect the actual schedule of the #ancientbrigidtour2023 , just sites we will be visiting sometime on the trip. The ancient seat of the Kings of Munster, the Rock of Cashel sits high on a hill overlooking…
Happy St. Brendan’s Day!
When we were in Ireland my husband and I made a trip to Clonfert, the site where St. Brendan set up his monastery. It’s not so easy to get to, but I’m so glad we figured it out. This site turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip for me. The church,…
Counting Down to Ireland!
There is still room! Sign up to join us. This is going to be epic! Tues. May 10 I’ll be going live on Facebook to talk about the places we’re going and take questions.
