First adventure in Ireland.

So I had quite the day today! I got to see so many things, and it was truly amazing so you guys are in for a real treat! The places I went to today were the Ennistimon Great Famine Memorial, The Cliffs of Moher, Ballyvaughan, Poulnabrone Dolmen, and Kilnaboy. Hope you enjoy learning about my day and about the great things in Ireland :)

Ennistimon Great Famine Memorial

The person who organized the trip gave us some information of their own so I'll type what they said before I post pictures :)

"On the roadside between Lahinch and Ennistimon you will see a monument erected to commemorate the great famine of the mid 18th century in Ireland."

This is what it says: "This memorial was erected in August 1994 by Clare County Council and the ladies and gentlemen of the ancient order of Hibernians in America and Ireland to commemorate all those who died in the great hunger."

Gentlemen,

   There is a little boy named Michael Rice of Lahince aged about 4 years. He is an orphan, his father having died last year and his mother has expired on last Wednesday night, who is about being buried without a coffin!! Unless ye make some provision for such. The child in question is now at the workhouse gate expecting to be admitted. If not he will starved. 

                                                                            Robs S. Constable

 "During the Great Famine, desperation drove a million and a half people to flee Ireland. The poorest Immigrants got as far as Britain, while others managed to scrape together enough money for the passage of the United States, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand. Many died of disease contracted on the voyage, others when the coffin ships they had sailed on foundered in heavy seas. Still others died of fever shortly after landing on their port of destination.

We do not know how many people were forced to leave county Clare during the Famine. Because poverty was so Chronic there, and because it was remote. It seems fewer people emigrated from the county than from most other countries at this time.  But as in Ireland as a whole, the Famine helped establish a pattern of emigration which has lasted down to the present. Between 1851 and 1911 four million people left Ireland for overseas destinations. About 165,000 of those were from Clare and settled mainly in the United States and Australia.

Many of the Famine emigrants from Clare were illiterate and ill prepared for life in their new surroundings. A large proportion of them from North Clare did not even speak English., which made it all the more difficult for them to adapt to to their new lives. But for all that even the most severe difficulties which they were to encounter were as nothing compared with the horror they had left behind, nor the enduring sorrow they carried with them from Ireland."

"From the first failure of the potato crop in 1845 until the year 1852 Ireland was devastated by Famine and disease. During these over a million of the poor died of hunger and disease.: labourers, cottiers, small farmers and their families. The relief provided by the British government was not nearly enough to prevent starvation adn was given grudgingly. Landlords callously used the situation to evict hundreds of thousands of people from their holdings. As a result countless thousands dies in the countryside and towns,  on the public work schemes., in the fields, in their cabins, on the roadside, or in the fever racked wards of the workhouses. So many died that the graveyards could not hold the numbers of the dead. Countless thousands were buried in shallow graves on the very ground where they had died, their surviving relatives being to weak to carry them further. Others were left unburied for want of surviving family members. 

In County Clare, the Famine shook society in its roots. More evictions took place here than in any other country, and three of its four unions: Scariff, Kilrush, and Ennistymon become notorious for the horrific scenes witnessed there. By the time the Famine had ended in County Clare, up to eighty thousand souls had perished. Those who survived this holocaust could rarely speak of it to their children, and when they did, were never able to speak of it as other than An Drochshaol- The Bad Times."

  

"In the Ennistymon workhouse graveyards  lie the remains of over a thousand victims of the Great Famine, who died of hunger and disease in the Ennistymon Union workhouse. The exact number is unknown. Neither are the names known to use, for as paupers they were buried without ceremony or grave marker. In the terrible years of the Famine, the workhouse plot became a mass grave where the coffins of the recently dead were piled up on top of each other under a loose covering of soil. In such a short space of time that the graveyard filled to overflowing and a new burial place had to be opened. 

During the Famine, the Ennistymon Union Workhouse and its auxiliaries became a byword for the most extreme conditions of human suffering and misery. Families who sought refuge there from the horror stalking the countryside were separated, and fated often never to meet again alive. Crowded into filthy and unhygienic surroundings, where a poor and sometimes revolting diet hastened their deaths. Human beings in their hundreds , men, women and children, whose bodies where already fatally weakened from the lack of food, feel easy victim to disease: typhus, relapsing fever, dysentery. Those who survived the workhouse existed for years in conditions which were intolerable and where human anguish and despair reached depths that we cannot begin to imagine. 

In the area of north Clare served by the Ennistymon Union Workhouse, it is estimated that as many as 20,000 person perished of starvation and disease during the years from 1846 to 1852."

Things like this are always the hardest part of any trip. I hate learning about things like this, because it could have been prevented, but at the same time its good to learn about this history of ours and others. 

The Cliffs of Moher

"The majestic cliffs of Moher standing at over 700 ft will take your breath away. When there visit the 'Atlantic edge" Tour at the visitor centre and soak up the exhibit exploring the different elements of the mighty Cliffs of Moher: ocean, rock, nature, and man. The tour will give you the greatest insight into the famed cliffs."

This was definitely my favorite part of the entire day. The cliffs are absolutely gorgeous, and their incredibly long! I believe it said it was a 2 1/2 hour walk from one part of the cliff to another, but I can't remember which part. I don't think it meant from one end to another. I think that is even a longer walk. We were only there for an hour so I couldn't walk from one end to the other but I tried to get pictures from as many angles as I could. 

 This is from about the middle of the cliffs

This castle is called O'Brien's castle. And from what I understand O'Briend was this guy who had 3 wives, or mistresses or something like that, but was a womenizer of sorts, and wanted to show his manhood. So he convinced County Clare to build this on the cliffs. Im sure it had something to do with money, but I'm not entirely sure, didn't get much clarity on it. 

This is from the right end of the cliffs (not all the way to the right. There was still plenty of walking to do.

 My Roommate and I

This is more towards the left part of the cliffs. Again there was plenty of walking left to do. Just didn't have any more time. 

Ballyvaughan

"Ballybaughan was once a thriving port importing and exporting goods to north Clare from Connemara. As you look across Galway bay to Connemara you will see the Twelve Bens Mountains to the left with the Maam Mountains in the middle stretching back into Galway city on your right."

To be honest this part of the tour wasn't all that appealing to me, but I took pictures anyways, because it sounds like it has history. 

 We did get to see donkey's pretty close up, and I thought that was pretty cool because the only ones I've ever seen have been in petting zoo's

Poulnabrone Domen

"Poulnabrone meaning 'hole of the sorrows'."

"The Dolmen or portal tomb has been in situ since the new Stone Age in 3000BC. This table topped Neolithic tomb would have initially been constructed to honor an important person at the time. It's believed that the tomb would have been used ceremoniously well into the Celtic period. Around the dolmen you will find notice boards which explain many of the features found around the Burren. 

 A karst landscape: Poulnabrone portal tomb is situated in a karst limestone plateau, 150 meters above sea level.  The tomb was constructed from great slabs of limestone over 5,000 years ago. Archeologists have discovered the remains of over 30 people at this ancient site. Poulnabrone is a great place to see features of the Burren's karst landscape, such as clints and grikes; kamenitzas and dolines.

Clints and Grikes: the crevasses in the limestone pavement are called grikes which form between form between blocks of limestone called clints. Grikes are just one of the many types of karst feature that forms when rainwater dissolves limestone.

Kamenitzas: Small hollows (kamenitzas) form on limestone surfaces by rainwater dissolution. Rainwater is slightly acidic (ph 6) and it dissolves limestone. Solution channels called rillenkaren form where water flows off the sides of the limestone pavement.

Glacial erratic: Large rocks, such as the limestone near Poulnabrone portal tomb, were transported by ice sheets during the last ice age and depostied when the ice melted. Granited and sandstone erratics from Connermara and south Co. Galway are also found on the Burren.

Dolines: There are many large hollows and depressions in the limestone  landscape near Polnabrone portal tomb. These large hollows are called Dolines. Dolines from when a cave roof collapses into the underlying cave, or when limestone bedrock is dissolved away to create a large hollow.

Conservation: Limestone pavement is protected under the EU habitats directive. Please do not remove, rearrange, or damage this important natural feature :p (face isn't on the sign just felt like adding it. lol)

"Large tomb stones, known as megalithic tombs, were built throughout Western Europe during the neolithic age or New Stone Age, when the practice of farming was first becoming established. Over ninety megalithic tombs are known to survive in the Burren; the earliest of these are court tombs, and portal tombs built in the fourth millennium BC. The portal tomb here at Poulnabrone is one of two constructed in the Burren and is perhaps best-preserved example in the country."

"At the time this tomb was constructed the landscape would have looked quite different from that of today. Open pine forests with some elm and hazel were widespread and there were limited areas of open grassland. Much of today's barren landscape is the result of extensive soil loss in later prehistoric times. Many of the ancient field walls to be seen in the Burren may have been constructed by the tomb builders to enclose their farmlands and mark territorial boundaries. An example of a low grass- covered mound wall can be seen extending to the southwest from the edge of the Poulnabrone tomb.

These early farmers would most likely have lived in rectangular wooden houses and their subsistence economy relied largely on the cultivation of crops (wheat and barley) and on domesticated animals., particularly cattle. Hunting, fishing, and fowling also played an important role in their economy. In contrast with their own impermanent houses these people built substantial stone tombs to their dead. The investment of labour represented by these tombs, and their continued usage over a long period of time suggest that they served a powerful symbolic role in their communities and today they are enduring reminders of sacred places."

"Poulnabrone portal tomb, and its environs, is composed of carboniferous limestone, a sedimentary rock type formed over 320 million years ago on the flow of a warm, shallow sea. It is composed of the compacted remains of the animal and plant life of these ancient waters, visible today as fossils in the rock. Over time, massive glaciers scoured and sculpted these limestone bed to create the distinctive terraced hillsides, while dropping rounded boulders call erratics in their wake. Ancient earth movements fractured and folded the limestone, and solution by rainwater expanded the hairline fractures to form deep cracks called grikes, separated by blocks or clints. These are classic features of "karst" landscape."

"As with much of the Burren, cattle graze this site during the winter months, in an annual re-enactment of an ancient and fascinating farming tradition known locally as winterage. The calcium and mineral rich grassland pockets provide a healthy bite for animals, while the winter grazing regime minimizes disturbance to the rich flora. If grazing were to cease, the cite would gradually disappear under a covering of scrub."

"The Burren contains over 70% of Ireland's native plant species, many of which may be seen at this site. On pavement surfaces , plants such as wild thyme (thymus polytheistic), wood sage (teucruim scorodonia), and wall lettuce (mycelis muralis) are common, while in the grikes ferms such as wall-rue, rustyback and hart's tongue (asplenium species) are found, along with plants such as herb robert (geranium robertarium) and common violet (viola riviniana) Small pockets of pasture host many beautiful flowers- spring gentians (gentiana verna,) milkwork (polygala vulgaris),  lady's bedstraw (galium verum,) harebells (campanula rotundifolia), and bloody cranesbills (geranium sanguineum), as well as orchids such as the early purple (orchis mascula) and commonly spotted (dactylorhiza fuchsii). This rich flora, in turn, supports a wide range of fauna, including most of our native butterfly species."

"Poulnabrone is a classic example of a portal tomb with two tall portal stones flanking the entrance to a rectangular stone-lined chamber which is covered by a single large capstone. A low- oval shaped mound (cairn) of loose stone, which helped stabilise the chamber, surrounds the tomb. The cairn would originally have been no higher than it is today, suggesting that the dramatic tomb structure was designed to be the main visual focus."

"Archaeological excavations were carried out at Poulnabrone between 1986 and 1988 when the fractured esater portal stone needed to be replaced. ( the original portal stone can be seen lying on the limestone pavement just to the north of the tomb.)

The excavations revealed that at least 33 individuals were buried in the chamber - infants, children, and adults, both male and female. It is likely the bones, which were highly fragmented, were initially buried or allowed decompose elsewhere before being transferred to this tomb somewhere around 3000BC. Personal possessions buried with the dead included a polished stone axe, a decorated bone pendant, stone beads, quartz crystals, chert and flint weapons and implements and fragments of pottery (many of these artefacts are on display in the County Clare Museum in Ennis.)"

"Radiocarbon dating has shown that those buried in the chamber died in the period 4200-2900BC placing them firmly in the neolithic age or New Stone Age. Over a thousand years later (1767-1413 BC) during the Bronze Age, a newborn baby was buried in the portico, just outside the entrance to the chamber. This tomb was not just a burial place but must also have been a focus for related rituals and ceremonies. The transfer of bones from their original resting place suggests strong links with ancestors.

The tomb continued to dominate the landscape of later generations as evidenced by the Bronze Age burial. Today it provides us with the opportunity to imagine and contemplate the past."

Even despite all the information the boards give tourist, so many unanswered things interest me. If the bones were removed for ties with ancestors why didn't they bury them with their ancestors in the first place? Why did they wait a thousand years to bury a baby there? Makes me wonder if there's an entrance underneath the stones since they moved it a bit. (It was hard to see if there was a path leading down. It looks like there is but I can't be completely sure.) And if there is a path are the bones also removed or just the artifacts? And how could these people make something like this so long ago with the most basic of tools?

Kilnaboy

"Cill Inine Baoith, meaning 'church of Baoth's daughter.'

On the roadside can be seen the ruin of Kilnaboy church and its round tower. Tradition states that the ruin was created by the Cromwellian cannon. Blasted when Oliver Cromwell was conquering Ireland during the plantation of Ireland for the United Kingdom. The famous Fr Ted series of the 1990s was set in the area around Kilnaboy and its still possible to call to Craggy island Parochial house for tea." 

We didn't really stay here that long, and to be honest this piece of information confused me, because the church/graveyard doesn't really seem to be ruins, in face there were some pretty recent graves, but I took pictures of it anyways! 

The Burren

"The Burren is a karst landscape situated in the north west of Co. Clare and consists of approzimately 250km squared. A karst is a plateau of rugged, limestone countryside where there is little soil cover and little or no surface drainage. The Burren limestone is a sedimentary rock formed under the sea over 350 million years ago. Karst develops when limestone upland is chemically weathered by rainwater. An area of Karst landscape as large as the Burren is uncommon in North West Europe so many visitors come to see it. 

In the Burren a thin covering of glacial deposits was left at the end of the last Ice Age which turned into light and fertile soils. These soils have been eroded away as a result of deforestation and overgazing since the last Ice Age The limestone pavements which can be seen in areas across the Burren and which have been stripped of all vegetation show off the clinks and grykes (slabs and cracks). The Burren is an amazing landscape which has hundreds of natural caves which drain the land and has only a limited number of surface rivers. It is a protected landscape and a number of EU directives have been passed to promote its conservation. 

It is the remarkable climate of the Burren that is responsible for the amazing variety of flora and fauna that is found there. Many people have traveled to the Burren to study these over the years. The glaciers that came across the Burren are responsible for bringing the seeds and fertile deposits which have made the Burren such a diverse landscape Further the Burren has a distinctive micro-climate which helps promote their growth." 

So that's the last of the information I promise! I know there wasn't a lot of "me' in this but this was pretty much my day. Soaking in all these sites and information. So the stie we went to that were located in the Burren were Poulnabrone Dolmen and Ballyvaughan, but there are places where the Burren is well just the Burren, and its just limestone! 

So Ireland is full of different landscape, although all of them contain green! lol So this is what I saw all day from 9am-6am and I loved seeing it and learning about everything. I'm already planning on signing up for 3 more trips, so theres obviously a lot more to see! 

So continue to follow me on here, I probably won't be posting everyday only when something I feel is important or blog worthy, but I hope you enjoy my postings even if their long :) and i hope you appreicate this one since I worked on it for 4 hours! 

On a completely random side note, if I had been sleeping right now I'd be woken up by the loud people who have just come into my apartment... I don't know if they're drunk or just loud, but either way seems likes its a long way off before I can sleep....

Well bye for now!