Not so much as a walk for you today, as (for those of you who have been before) a trip down memory lane- and for those of you who haven’t, this is where you live when you come here. Our gardens were looking lovely this afternoon, and John really wanted to play on the swings, so we ran around and took some photos of our own backyard. As the sun began to set, we took a few photos from the apartment balconies, and wish you were here for it. Happy Friday from the Atlantic, everyone, have a lovely and safe weekend x
It’s April 23, the date believed to be Shakespeare’s birthday, and I am a big fan of William, or Liam as he’d be called if he was Irish. In honor of the birthday, we are going to take a little history walk this evening, around Asseroe Abbey in Ballyshannon. Asseroe is an anglicization of Eas Aodh Rua – the waterfall of Red Hugh. Aodh Rua (Red Hugh) was one of the O’Donnell chieftains, and the O’Donnell clan held power in the territory of Tir Chonaill or Tyrconnell [South Donegal] up until the early 17 Century, when sadly, Aodh Rua II (Red Hugh II ) and his allies were defeated by British Crown Forces under Elizabeth I. The last of the Gaelic chieftains, including Aodh Rua II were forced to leave Donegal for sanctuary in Europe.They would not return. However, the war between the Irish Chieftains and Elizabeth was in full throttle in 1599 when Shakespeare wrote the play ‘Henry V’ and it is one of the very few plays when Shakespeare references events outside the world of the play- and it is these wars in Ireland to which he refers. In 1599 Shakespeare imagines that Queen Elizabeth’s war General, the Earl of Essex will return to England ‘[B]ringing rebellion broached on his sword ‘ However, the Earl was returned home in disgrace after being outmaneuvered by the Northern Chieftans, and these lines referring to his glorious return were dropped from the play. Henry V is superbly subversive, and has its very own hot-headed Irishman- I’ll be talking a bit more about this in the next poetry blog- but therein lies the connection between this evening’s walk around the old Abbey lands that were once part of the proud kingdom of the O’Donnells. Enjoy!
Hello. One of the most common features of the Irish landscape, especially on the Atlantic side, is the derelict or ruined cottage. I’m always fascinated by the stories behind these abandoned homesteads- many of them testament to evictions, forced and voluntary emigration, and occasionally, a poignant return of a descendant, faded photo or map in hand. These ruins also remind us how heavily populated the countryside once was – you can come upon deserted villages in all sorts of unexpected and remote places. There is something both reassuring, and terrifying, about nature reclaiming what was once somebody’s home – a kind of ‘Ozymandias’ moment, Irish style. Here’s a few from the walks. Enjoy!
A change of clothes required today, my friends- I’m taking y’all for a swim – and not just any old swim, but a sunset swim on Bundoran’s beautiful Tullan Strand. The entire beach was bathed in astounding colours, and I could not resist the lure of a quick dip (in the wetsuit, folks, I’m not that brave in April!). The sunset sent the breaking waves on fire, and although I was incredibly nervous about taking the iphone into the ocean- well, I did it for you, just so you could share it with me. Happily, my assistant photographer was on the beach, and he took over – hence a few more shots of me than you usually see… sorry about that 🙂 This incredible weather seems set to last for the week, so stay tuned to see where we end up tomorrow! Enjoy, stay safe x
Grab your boots, my friends, we’re doing a bit of a climb today, – as you travel the road through the Glens of Leitrim, you won’t help noticing a crazy stack of promontory known locally as ‘Eagle’s Rock’. And that’s where we are going today. The scenery, the views… just breathtaking! Enjoy- I certainly did!
I hope you are all enjoying your weekend, stay safe x Sorry folks- we are going nowhere near the South Pacific; we are very much anchored here in the Atlantic Northwest – but I did get a very pleasant surprise while taking today’s walk through an old forest track nearby – a splendid ‘Narcissus Tahiti’, in all her finery, and all by herself! This little trail was interesting for the variety of new wilderness- the mad little flowers of the cherry larches, the excellently named candytufts, and lots of violets peeping out through the undergrowth. The day was a little overcast, but it did not subtract from the joy of vibrant greenery and the odd salutation from the patient four-legged friends on the route. Enjoy!
So it’s the thirtieth day of our virtual walks around our beautiful corner of Ireland’s Northwest. I am thoroughly enjoying my explorations around the variety of scenic spots well off the beaten track, but entirely worth seeing. I miss doing this with our groups, but your generous comments and emails have assured me that you are enjoying accompanying me from all around the USA, and that makes us very happy! I will keep it up as long as our shut-down lasts, with every confidence that there is always a little twisty road going somewhere that I can investigate!
Today, it’s a nice level stroll along Asseroe Lake. No blue skies today, but while a Mediterranean sky is always welcome, I love the atmosphere created by low cloud cover and those rays of sunshine that peek through occasionally and throw glitter over everything. Enjoy! |