Clonmacnoise Monastry

 Off again at 8:30 this morning to Clonmacnoise Monastery. I would love to say that I bounded out of bed enthusiastically for this trip and skipped the entire mile and a half to the meeting location, but alas I am getting weary. Don't get me wrong the monastery was beautiful but the entire group was a bit sleepy on the bus ride there and back. We have a total of four field trips that are part of the course.

We had a tour guide who is a heritage professor at the other Galway University. He described the entire history of the region and the building of the monastery back in the 15th century. When we arrived at the site we received a tour from a second guide. Our first guide warned us that our new guide was a little irreverent and that we should put our religious beliefs on hold for the next hour (no problem here). The second guide told us about how scholars made up stories about what all of the symbols meant that were featured on the Celtic crosses (no one was actually there so who would contradict them). He also told us that the most notable accomplishment of the saint that founded the monastery was death. It is much easier to make up fantastic stories about a dead man and make him more like Christ. The competition was fierce for monastery settlers and as he put it nine men were hardly going to be the right make up to increase the population of the monastery no matter how hard they tried. So the dead Christ like saint did a lot to attack people to this up and coming holy place.

 This beautiful arch way is one of the surviving ruins. I so wish I knew more European history!

We have some serious work to do on our next cemetery crawl. This tombstone is in the modern section of the monastery cemetery. It is said that if you are buried at this monastery you are guaranteed entrance into heaven, or at least that's what they told their rich benefactors back in the day. "Give us some money and we'll reserve you a plot in the cemetery. Have fun pillaging others in the mean time, your spot in heaven is secured. Oh by the way, would you mind protecting us from the other attackers so your plot stays safe?"

 We visited our Ireland Wagon Wheel for the first time tonight. Burgers and fries, huge ice cream sundaes and it is just around the corner.

 Cristopher and I played Magic Cards while we waited. Next Monday Cristopher is off to Lego engineering camp.

And of course the obligatory cow photo from the monastery. The charolais is a beautiful French breed of cow (she is the cow at the front of the photo). I had a much better shot of her but she turned away just at the last minute and they do not lift their heads on command (I tried).