Prior to leaving home we had booked two one day coach tours out of Dublin. Today was the first of them to the Wicklow Mountains and Glendalough. A 9.15 start in an almost brand new Mercedes with driver Richie and 36 passengers from 16 countries (Australia, England, Ireland, USA, Canada, Chile, Spain, Finland, Japan, Germany, France, Netherlands, Switzerland, Israel, Nepal and us).

The Wicklow Mountains are the largest area of continuous high ground in Ireland and are now a National Park and a Special Area of Conservation and Protection under European Law. The’re not very high, the highest peak is only 926 metres. The mountains are all very rounded and although there are forests of introduced spruce from North America at low levels, and some forests of birch, beach, oak, holly and ash, the uplands are dominated by blanket bog, heather and grasslands. Today was overcast and so it all seemed quite bleak and the heather was brown although it becomes purple later in the summer and with red berries from other plants it becomes more attractive.

For a large part we followed 60km of the Wicklow Military Road, built at the beginning of the 1800s by the English army so they had access to root out rebellious insurgents hanging out in the mountains. Four barracks were located along the road and we stopped at the first, Glencree, for coffee and scones with jam and cream. The road is narrow, often single lane, twisting and undulating with many blind corners. The coach driver knew the size of his vehicle down to the inch as he squeezed past, cars, trucks, tractors and other buses.

There was a special photo stop at a rather picturesque stone bridge where apparently in the movie P.S. I Love You, Holly and Gerry kissed. Some couples wanted to recreate this ultimate romantic moment. If you were single and female then Richie would help out in the magic moment.

Then on to Glendalough and the ruins of a monastery founded in the 6th century by St Kevin. Kevin was a descendant of one of the ruling families in the area. The monastery is in a beautiful forested valley with two lakes. For six centuries the monastic settlement flourished as a centre for religious study and pilgrimage. In 1214 the dioceses of Glendalough and Dublin were combined and from then Glendalough declined in status as a centre of cultural and ecclasiastical study until it was destroyed by English foces in 1398 and left a ruin.  Today over a million people each year come to visit the jewel in the crown of the Wicklow Mountains.

We had a very nice walk up a parrallel valley and over a ridge to the upper lake and then along a boardwalk down to the lower lake. On the uplands it had been windy and cold but down in this valley it was warm and still. The monastery buildings are set in a large cemetery with many large and ornate head stones. We explored The Gateway – two fine  arches now totally unique in Ireland, the Cathedral – the largest structure, the Round Tower – 35 metres tall and used as a bell tower, food store and place of refuge, the Priest’s House – a small reconstructed stone building, St Kevin’s Church (“The Kitchen”) – it has a steep roof of overlapping stones supported inside by a stone barrel vault, and the remains of about four other churches. Overall a very special and serene place.

A late lunch at 3.15 in a traditional Irish pub in the tiny village of Avoca, famous in the past for its copper mines, hand-weaving mill and being mentioned by the Greek mathematician, astronomer and astrologer Ptolemy (AD 100 – 170) on his early map of Ireland.

Just as we left Glendalough a few drops of rain began to fall, and by the time we got back to Dublin about 6pm it had well and truely set in. Overall a very good day. A bit of exercise, some good company, and we learned a bit more about the people, history and landscape of Ireland.

The capital and largest city of Eire, the Republic of Ireland. Located on the eastern seaboard, separated from the United Kingdom by the Irish Sea. The name comes from the Irish word Dubhlinn, “dark pool” referring to a dark tidal pool where the River Poddle (now underground) meets the River Liffey.

Population is about 1.4 million in the urban city area and about 1.9 million in the greater metropolitan area.
Dublin has had human habitation from Prehistoric times but the first settlement is recognized as the Vikings in the  9^th and 10^th centuries.

The Normans invaded in 1169 and starting in 1204 built Dublin Castle (the seat of English rule for seven centuries). This remained the small walled town of a narrow strip of English settlement on the east coast until the Tudor invasion of Ireland in the 16^th century.

Dublin prospered up until the end of the 18^th century and for a while was the second largest city in the British Empire. When the governance of Ireland was moved from Dublin to London in 1800 and with Dublin not having a major role in the industrial revolution (no large source of coal) there was a period of decline.

In the early 20^th century there was a significant amount of physical damage during the Easter Rebellion of 1916, The Irish War of Independence and then the Irish Civil War. Following the partition of Ireland in 1922 it became the capital of the Irish Free State (1922-1937) and then the capital of Ireland (1937 – today).

Dublin is at the mouth of the River Liffey which divides the city in two. Traditionally the Northside is working class and the Southside is middle to upper class.

Dublin has a significant literary history and produced many literary figures including William Butler Yeats, George Bernard Shaw, Oscar Wilde, Jonathan Swift, Bram Stoker (Dracula), Samuel Beckett, James Joyce, etc. We have a week to explore this lively and historic city, four days before we head down south west to Kerry and then three days after we return.

This morning we woke to blue skies, some clouds and a strong cold wind. But no rain – so this can’t be Ireland then ! Yesterday coming in on the airport bus we noticed that there was a “Riverfest” at  the port end of the river, so today we walked along the river bank to check it out. Over the holiday weekend there had been Thundercats and sail boat racing, Jet Pack Man, water rescue demos, kayaking, stand up paddle boarding, and on land heaps of entertainment with carousels, wire walking, zip lines, a circus, a drive-in cinema, a food village, music and drink etc. All this was now gone but moored along the river walk were 10 magnificent tall ships and this is what we wanted to see. Wonderful examples of original and replica sailing ships: a Russian ‘man-of-war’, square rigged sailing vessels, an arctic trawler, a traditional Baltic Trader, a West country trading ketch, a three masted schooner.

There are many, many statues in Dublin and today we saw three of the most notable. The first was of the acclaimed Irish novelist and poet, James Joyce. He is leaning on a stick looking upward as if in thought. Earlier this year I tried to read his “Ulyssess” but had given up after about 10 pages – just too difficult. I did read “Dubliners” and “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” . This was the extent of my cultural preparation for Dublin (apart from drinking Guinness).

The second was on the river quay where the famine ships used to depart for New York. The Famine Statues, a memorial to the victims of the Great Famine of 1841-1849 in which 1 million died and 1 million more forced to emigrate due to the failure of the potato crop – the staple diet of many poor Irish. This statue was very moving, with gaunt almost stick like figures, and faces full of pain and suffering.

The third was the extremely realistic statue of Oscar Wilde, located in the corner of the park in Merrion Square, just across the road from the witty writer’s former home. Wilde is lounging on a rock with a smile on one side of his face and a frown on the other, representing the different sides to his character. The colours of black, grey, green, pink and fleshtones are achieved by a careful selection of polished granite and coloured semi-precious stones. The statue is flanked by two polished granite plinths engraved with quotes from Wilde’s work.

We also went to the excellent EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum which tells the story of the 10 million people of Ireland who have emigrated to other parts of the world. Why they left, where they went, and how they influenced and changed the places they went to. Apparently 70 million people today claim Irish ancestry. State-of-the-art technology creates a powerful and moving experience. There are 20 themed galleries, each like a tunnel of brick with a vaulted ceiling – very dramatic.

We felt really good this morning, lots of energy and get up and go. But by early afternoon were pretty zonked out. Suffering from jet lag a bit. So we had a quiet time at the hotel resting up.

After landing in two continents (Australia and Asia) and crossing a third (Europe) we are now on the island of Ireland.

Ireland, also known as Eire, The Republic of Ireland, The Emerald Isle, Land of Saints and Scholars, Erin’s Isle. For a few years before the Global Financial Crisis also referred to as The Celtic Tiger.

A population of about 4.8 million on a land area of 70,000 sq km. (This does not include Northern Ireland, a different country altogether). New Zealand has a similar population of 4.6 million but nearly four times the area at 268,000 sq km.

And it is raining.  Of Course. We had been warned. After checking into our hotel we were desperate to stay awake until at least 7pm so went out for an exploratory walk. It was very grey when we started and soon it was persisting down, so have retreated to our room. The hotel is one of a row of large Georgian houses built in the late 1700s in Parnell Square. We have a lovely large, redecorated room overlooking the street and the Garden of Remembrance opposite. This is the national site commemorating  the 1916 Easter Rising that led to the founding of the Irish Free State.

It was thirty hours exactly from take off at Wellington until landing in Dublin. Only three or fours hours of fitful sleep so we are a bit shattered. All flights on schedule and Emirates are an excellent airline so it was as good as a long haul flight in economy can be. Our bags were checked right through from Wellington to Dublin so had very easy and quick transfers at Melbourne and Dubai.

The streets around the hotel are full of women all in their running gear. Today was a bank holiday in Ireland and also the 35th running of the VNI Womens’ Mini Marathon. A 10km run through the streets of the city. 33,000 entrants!

Only took a few photos in the immediate vicinity of the hotel.

After walking the Camino Frances in 2016 we have really been bitten by the long distance walking bug.  We loved the Camino and northern Spain so much we intend to return in 2018, if our bodies are still in working order.

In the meantime, in 2017, we intend to do some walking in Ireland. In the southwest of Ireland we are going to walk three Way-marked Trails on the peninsulars that stick out into the Atlantic Ocean : The Dingle Way, The Kerry Way and The Beara Way.

So why go to Ireland? Well, Barbara toured there with her sister in 2014 and thought it was very beautiful. The forebears of the families of both Paul’s father and mother are from Ireland and he wanted to see the land where his genes have come from. And Ireland is a small country with a big reputation.

The Dingle Way is 195km, The Kerry Way 215km and The Beara Way 162km. So a total of over 570km. A bit less than the 800km of the Camino Frances but a good stretch of the legs anyway.

We will experience windswept beaches, wild Atlantic waves pounding against rugged cliffs, emerald meadows, soaring mist shrouded mountain peaks, glinting loughs, sandy beaches, woodlands and bogs, endless green fields crisscrossed with tumbledown stone walls, medieval ruins, ring forts, wedge tombs, stone circles and standing stones, charming villages with colourful shops and pubs, working fishing ports, and of course rain, mist and sea fog.

We will walk on quiet tarmac roads, board walks, holly lined boreens, bog roads, rocky mountain tracks and of course icky, sticky mud.