A Pilgrimage to Ireland and Northern Ireland

Day 1 - Tuesday, April 30, 2019: We depart from the Charlotte Airport for Dublin, Ireland. M

Day 2 - Wednesday, May 1: We arrive in Dublin and meet our motor coach and guide. We begin our day with a visit to Trinity College to see the magnificent Old Library and the 1200-year-old Book of Kells, the beautifully illuminated version of the Gospels designed by monks in the 9^th century. Next, we visit Christ Church Cathedral, Ireland’s oldest cathedral.  We finish our day with a tour of the Pearse Lyons Distillery located in the restored St. James’ Church. We enjoy a tour of the distillery and learn of 800 years of history at St. James from local storytellers. We have dinner and overnight in Dublin.  D

Day 3 - Thursday, May 2: After breakfast, we depart for the ancient monastic site of Glendalough.  This early Christian monastic settlement was founded by St Kevin in the 6^thcentury. We meet Father Pat Murphy from the Tearmann Centre who will guide us through this holy site. We have prayer and Holy Eucharist before returning to Dublin for dinner and overnight. BD

Day 4 - Friday, May 3: We have breakfast at the hotel, and then we depart for Newgrange, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Newgrange is a Neolithic Ritual Centre and Passage Tomb, Ireland’s most significant prehistoric monument, and among the world’s earliest great pieces of architecture. Next, we visit the Hill of Slane, where St. Patrick lit a Paschal fire in 433 in defiance of the High King. We continue to Belfast, Northern Ireland where we have some free time to explore before dinner and overnight. BD

Day 5 - Saturday, May 4: We have breakfast at the hotel. Then we head to Navan Fort where we meet the Reverend Grace Clunie, an Anglican priest who is the director of The Centre for Celtic Spirituality in Armagh.  Armagh, known as the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland, is an ancient place with both pre-Christian Celtic and Celtic Christian history. The Centre for Celtic Spirituality is an interchurch ministry involving Presbyterians, Anglicans, Catholics, Methodists, and Quakers.  Reverend Clunie leads us on a guided tour of Fort Navan where we experience the living history of this Iron Age dwelling.  We return to Belfast for dinner and overnight. BLD

Day 6 - Sunday, May 5: After breakfast, we say goodbye to Northern Ireland and head south toward Galway. We have lunch along the way, and then we visit Clonmacnoise. This sixth-century monastic site, located on the banks of the River Shannon is home to three high crosses, a cathedral, seven churches, and two round towers. The strategic location of the monastery at a crossroads between the major east-west land route through the bogs of central Ireland and the River Shannon helped it become a major center of religion, learning, craftsmanship, and trade by the ninth-century.  We continue to Galway where we board an evening cruise with dinner and entertainment on the Corrib Princess.  We sail by castles and other historical sites along the majestic River Corrib and onto Lough Corrib, the largest lake in Ireland while enjoying Irish Dancers and an Irish coffee demonstration. We return to Galway for overnight. BD

Day 7 - Monday, May 6: We enjoy breakfast before we take our motor coach to the Rossaveal Aran Island Ferry.  We enjoy the views on our way to Inis Mór, the largest of the Aran Islands.  We meet Pádraigín Clancy, a graduate of Irish Folklore and History from the National University of Ireland, Dublin, who shares Irish folklore and extensive knowledge of the Aran Islands.  We have dinner and overnight at Kilmurvey House, an eighteenth-century stone house. BLD

Day 8 - Tuesday, May 7: After breakfast, we meet Cyril O’Flaherty, a native and expert of the Aran Islands.  He leads us on a tour of Dun Aengus, the Iron Age fort built as four concentric stone walls. The fort has been called the “most magnificent barbaric monument in Europe.”  We return to Kilmurvey House for lunch.  We have leisure time to explore the island before returning to Kilmurvey House for dinner and traditional music by Treasa Ní Mhiolláin, a locally famous and internationally known Sean-nós singer.  Overnight Kilmurvey House. BLD

Day 9 - Wednesday, May 8: We enjoy breakfast at Kilmurvery House before boarding the ferry back to Galway where we meet our motor coach.  We visit the Cliffs of Moher and marvel at the views of Ireland’s most spectacular natural wonder.  We visit St. Brigid’s Well, an ancient well housed in an open stone grotto rumored to have healing powers.  We travel to Dingle for overnight. BD

Day 10 - Thursday, May 9: We have a leisurely breakfast before touring the Dingle Peninsula.  We have the option of an 11-mile hike on The Saint’s Pathor shopping and exploring in the town of Dingle. We meet back at the hotel in the evening for dinner and our evening meeting.  We overnight in Dingle.BD

Day 11 - Friday, May 10: We depart Dingle this morning for County Tipperary and the Rock of Cashel, a giant circular mound rising 200 feet above the surrounding plain. Legend has it that the devil, flying over Ireland in a hurry, took a bite out of the Slieve Bloom Mountains to clear his path and spat it out here in the Golden Vale at Cashel. We see a spectacular group of medieval buildings in a stunning site that was the seat of the Kings of Munster in the fourth and fifth centuries. We continue to Dublin where we have our “Goodbye to Ireland” dinner and overnight. BD

Day 12 - Saturday, May 11, 2019: We have breakfast at the hotel and then depart for the Dublin Airport for our flight home. B and meals on aircraft