Yesterday was a bank holiday in Ireland. Study Abroad Ireland always uses the holiday to take an excursion. We all piled on the mini-bus (there are only 20 of us including faculty) at 10:30 and headed for Emo Court. Emo Court is a Palladian style manor house, built in the 1800’s and designed by the same architect of the Four Courts, the Custom House and other famous buildings in Dublin.
Ok, so the house was nice. Very nice. Palatial even. But who cares? It’s the green lawns, flowering gardens, green trees, flowering trees, and the lake, swans, and clear blue sky. Oh yeah, they have a fabulous tea room, too. Need I say more than red velvet cupcake with cream cheese frosting?
It was the perfect day to visit and we stayed three hours. I leaned up against an enormous Turkish pine tree and gazed up at the green canopy for a long, long time. I bet if my ophthalmologist had checked my eyes yesterday, the inside would have been green. There were only a few visitors when we arrived mid-day, but by the time we left at 2:30 there were hundreds of people there, most of them wearing as little as possible to soak up the sun. We saw many lobster red sets of shoulders and cheeks.
Our second stop was the Rock of Dunamase, Strongbow’s ruined castle atop a high and strategic hill. Barry led us up the hill to the 12th century castle where we all sat to listen to him tell us about its importance. I’d heard of Dunamase and Strongbow, but had no idea of the pivotal role they played in Irish history. Barry filled us in nicely, but what it all boils down to is that Strongbow and his castle represent the beginning of English involvement in Ireland. And beyond that, they did not come as invaders; they came at the invitation of an Irish provincial king who was feuding with the high king.
All very fascinating, right? Actually it was, but as at Emo the real treat was the green and flowering landscape that surrounded us.
The first picture below is the flowers surrounding Dunamase. The second is the view from the top of the hil. I think I'm going to get a glass of wine and try to count all the different shades of green!
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