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Glendalough is one of Ireland”s remaining monastic settlements; it was founded in the sixth century by St. Kevin. Below: Muckross Gardens is a favor-
ite spot for hikers who are trekking through Killarney.

cemeteries, all declare a history of faith and a people of stamina
millennias old.
In Glendalough, a monastic settlement dating back to the
twelfth century, we walk through a series of ruins including a
church, cathedral and a round tower which rises from a founda-
tion of tombstones. The cathedral, one of the largest early Chris-
tian churches in Ireland, is open, with only its four walls erect.
Alongside one of the arched doorways, in Irish and English, we
read its history and significance. Pausing in the middle of spat-
tered and weathered gravestones, we hear only silence with the
exception of the wind as it whips through the snow-covered
Wicklow Mountains in the distance.
It’s a familiar pattern we will continue see. Four walls of
weathered stone tell centuries-old stories. At the Rock of Cashel
in County Tipperary, four walls of the thirteenth century North
Transept frame a visitor’s skyward view, while twelfth century
Cormac’s Chapel receives a life-saving preservation, rescuing
one of the last remnants of Romanesque architecture in the
country. Underneath layers of plaster, an unexpected gift from
time; workers discover an original painting of the suspended
Christ flanked by Mary and John.
Further north along the Dingle Peninsula, another un-
predictable sight. Gallarus Oratory, built 1,300 years ago and
resembling an upturned boat, stands stalwart as if waiting for
the monks to arrive. Held together by ingenuity and stone, not
a dab of mortar to be found, and as watertight as the day it was
erected. We move to the Kilmalkedar church nearby at the end

52 Wine Dine & Travel 2016