There are over 3,000 Holy Wells scattered around Ireland. More than any other country in the world. Originally used for pagan sacrifice, St. Patrick is famous for having visited most of these well and blessing them as Christian sites. This is the Tobernalt Holy Well. St. Patrick used to hold baptisms here in this as he converted thousands of pagans to Christianity. He held mass here too. There have been many stories of the waters gushing from this well and of it's healing powers. It is a very sacred and respected place.
"First Glorious Mystery: Resurrection"
"Second Glorious Mystery: Ascension"
"Third Glorious Mystery: Descent of the Holy Spirit"
"Fourth Glorious Mystery: Assumption"
"Fifth Glorious Mystery: Coronation Of Our Lady"
This sign at the entrance of the well:
"Pilgrim, walk softly. This is holy ground"
The Belleek Pottery Factory. No wonder it's so expensive, everything is time-stakingly handmade. In Northern Ireland.
There is a guy who sits all day and creates these little flower buds in the palm of his hands. They will later become decoration for some pretty piece of pottery.
....and there he is hard at work. Wow, what tedious work.
The detail he creates is amazing. They train for years before they are allowed to actually create these for real.
The front of the Belleek Pottery factory
In Derry in Northern Ireland. The irony of this (in a couple of ways) just made me laugh.
"Baldies Barber"......and it's closed up.
Derry, Ireland is the town that saw the most violence at the hands of the IRA. Numerous bombings have left a good portion of this city in need of a rebuild. It's still a tense city. There is a 30 foot high fence that still divides the city between those who fly the British flag and those who fly the Irish flag. The Irish flag, btw, is orange, white and green. The Orange for the British, the Green for the Irish and the White stands for the peace between the two. Derry is a city that proves that that is still a sensitive and tense relationship. You do have to be careful what you say in what section of town.
Ahhhh, the town of Donegal. Morgan said she would live here. She took this because she just loved the stone work and the flowers on the building. Of course, it's a pub. The Olde Castle Pub.
This is Donegal Castle. Built in the 15th century by the O'donnell family. Still a very well known family in Ireland. They have a strong and royal lineage in the country.
This is a HUGE mural inside a church in Drumcliff. This is the church where Yeats funeral was held. He is buried in the churchs' graveyard. A much visited place. The mural says: "holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty. This do in remembrance of me" It is placed right above the altar where communion is held.
This is in the city of Knock. Here, in 1879, 15 townsfolk witnessed an apparition of the Virgin Mary, St. John & St. Joseph, a lamb on an altar in front of a huge cross that was surrounded by 6 angels--all in a glowing light. The apparition lasted over 2 hours. Investigations and inquiries with the 15 who saw the apparition went on for over 80 years and their stories never changed or wavered. Finally in 1979, Pope John II came to Knock and acknowleged the apparition as true and blessed the sight as holy ground. There are gorgeous statues inside the church of the exact apparition in the exact spot where it happened. It is believed the purpose of this apparition is to put before us the four positive and unchanging essentials for living a Christian life: (1) St. Joseph, the personification of humilty, with his head bowed and his hands joined facing the other figures representing humility or faith and trust in God,(2) Our Lady, looking towards heaven with her hands raised in a gesture of supplication representing prayer, (3) St John, described as making a point from the book in his left hand with his right hand raised with the index and middle finger extended representing Scripture and the law, (4) the lamb on the altar, obviously representing the lamb of God or the sacrifice of the Mass.
This scene of the crucifixion is outside the church next to the Basillica that was built for the Pope's visit.
The city streets in Galway. This is Irelands' fastest growing city. No matter how much any of these cities grow, they keep all the buildings in the same time period of it's surrounds. No 'modern' looking buildings are allowed. It's beautiful that they respect their heritage and history soooooo much. Look at the cobbled streets. Just gorgeous.
Until the next time.....
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