The Day we Went to the Boyne Valley

 Sleeping in our little student room was a pleasure. It was clean and bright. With a double bed instead of a student single, moved in for the purposes of summer accommodation, it was a bit squeezy and Wallsy did have to launch himself onto his side of the bed from one end, as it was pushed up against the wall, but nevertheless we were comfortable.  The communal kitchen across the corridor enabled me to make my early morning cup of tea when I woke at 6, so the day started well. 

Breakfast in the college dining hall however, was a little less exciting, the cooked offerings being largely cold and the ‘toast’ not resembling anything even vaguely toasted. We had to pay for this per food unit and it was enough to put me off the student life!  

We wandered down to the statue of Molly Malone well before the appointed time of 9am to meet our Hilltop Treks tour bus. Once we were all checked in and loaded, our tour guide commenced his spiel about the Boyne Valley and the Neolithic sites we were to visit today. I swear he talked without drawing breath for the 50 minutes it took us to drive from Dublin to Bru Na Boinne. It was too much for me and I quickly gave up the struggle to stay awake as the babble of words washed over me. 



We were taken to the remarkable UNESCO World Heritage sites of Knowth and Newgrange, both neolithic passage tombs believed to have been used for ceremony, funeral rites and burials. 

The Office of Public Works guides on both these tours were interesting and knowledgeable. We were able to walk around and on top of the biggest mound at Knowth. We could walk inside a restored passage and chamber in the tomb at Newgrange, where the effect of the sun in the chamber at winter solstice, was demonstrated. I did query whether or not the sun ever shone in December in order to create the desired effect in the inner sanctum, apparently, as I suspected, it is a bit hit and miss! 







Back at the visitor centre we lunched, shopped the gift shop and visited the exhibition of the neolithic relics of the area. 

Again regaling us with detailed descriptions of the history of the Battle of the Boyne as he drove, very slowly so he could fit in his whole speech before we arrived, Matt, took us to the ruins of Old Mellifont Abbey, a Cistercian Order monastery. 




Back on the road, we got the story of St Patrick who travelled through Ireland trying to convert the Irish people from paganism to Christianity, thereby ridding Ireland of its snakes (i.e. the pagans). We learnt that the celtic cross combines the Christian cross with the ring of the sun, in order to draw the sun worshipping pagans in. 

Final stop: Monasterboice. Here we learned the truth of the Irish potato famine and studied the detail on the two High Crosses - depicting biblical stories which the monks used to preach to the pagans. 

The trip back to Dublin was again filled with talk. Matt had promised us some reflective silence, but the woman sitting two rows back from him and level with us, took the silence and turned it into question time. Exhausting!  

After a rest and a couple of restorative cups of tea, Mark, Julie, Wallsy and I regrouped and made some decisions and bookings to fill our day tomorrow. We then went out to meet an old colleague of Stephen’s who now lives and works in Dublin, and enjoy a delicious meal in an Italian restaurant. 

A busy and varied day. 


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