I considered myself lucky to arrive in Ireland the best week in the year. Sunny and no rain. Dublin, being the
largest city in Ireland, always gives me the impression of tall buildings and busy city centre. I was wrong, the city centre
was instead full of historic dwellings. Relatively low-rise commercial buildings, combined with the local pubs, created
a nice and relaxing city centre.
One thing that I noticed immediately was that everyone wore green. Old and young, men and women , and boys and girls. Green is
beautiful here! No matter where you go in the city, you will see green flags, people wearing green, green parks, green signposts,
green postboxes.
Along River Liffey.
Monument commorating the sailors.
Grafton Street, one of the best shopping area in Dublin.
This band was playing awesome on Grafton St.
I loved these old historic building.
Georgian Doors are famous in Dublin!
No more red, it's Irish country here!
Street lamp along river liffey.
Lights are on ... 9:45pm
Glendalough
I then travelled to a National Park in Wicklow County, called Glendalough. It is a historic site
of pilgrim monastery. Glendalough is famed for its beautiful scenery and historic monuments,
but has also been a centre for pilgrims and visitors from the time of St. Kevin.
The monastry in its heyday would have included numerous dwellings, workshops, areas for
manuscript writing and copying. The buildings which survive probably date from between
the 8th and 12th centuries. The valley of Glendalough contains a series of carved
and plain stones and crosses, some of which have marked stations on the pilgrim's
route.
Round Tower at Gelendalough...
Even though it has been rebuilt, it is still 200 years ago. The original was built in 1200s, standing 120 feet tall.
Walking towards the Lower Lake at Glendalough, nothing but green.
It used to be a wall here a few hundred years ago.
This was a small monastery in 1400s.
Look carefully, what many arrows are pointing that way.
Poulanass Waterfall.
The Irish symbol ...
Ireland do have some tall trees ?
My first time to see this kind of animal gate. Human can pass through !
Sorry, this is not a river. It's the Upper Lake. Just heavy wind on that day.
Youth Hostel at Glendalough.
Making Spaghetti at the hostel.
Wala, .. here it is!.
Having Guiness at the only Glendalough Pub.
At 5:50am, I started my hike.
First through this river low-head dam along the river.
Through the dense forest...
Then uphill .....
Saw the Irish symbol ....Irish Shamrock
Continued on the treeless hilltop.
Saw one tree ....
... and many white-tail deers ...
Walking down back to the Lake ...through the treeless path ....
East end of the Upper Lake.
Rock pile indicated a dwelling foundation..
This is the Glendalough National Park Office. Hmmm...
On the way back, I saw some Mountain Goats.
I was not that welcomed. They were running away from me.
Back to the Monastery Ruins.
This was build in 1400s.
In fact, the monastery became a sacred graveyard in the 1600s.
This was a big church 700 years ago.
You wondered how they built it back then in the 1400s....
The gate of the Glendalough Monastery.
Map of Glendalough outside of the Visitor Centre.
Leaving the Glendalough country, ...lots of sheep farms ....
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