Castles and Hills

Vinegar Hill

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During the Irish Rebellion of 1798, a major turning point was the battle that happened on Vinegar Hill in Enniscorthy. Around 20,000 Irish men armed only with pikes and spears awaited an English army of 20,000 armed with artillery. To make matters worse, women and children were part of the 20,000 Irish people who were up on the hill staying there for protection against the attacking army. As the British troops surrounded the hill and began attacking, the Irish rebels began to slowly retreat through a gap known now as “Needham’s Gap.” Many of the Irish people escaped but many more were slaughtered on the spot.Today the ruin of an old windmill is the only thing on top of the hill. It is a short walk to get to the top of the hill and once you’re up there the view is exceptional. As you look down over the town you can see big open fields, churches with their steeple poking out above all the houses, and a graveyard. The grass alongside the hill flows with the wind and the giant pile of boulders on the hill allows you to go higher to see even farther. I loved the reenactment our guide did trying to explain what happened on the hill but I didn’t really understand everything till I went back and read more about it. This beautiful hillside is a sad story in history.

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"Life springs from death; and from the graves of patriot men and women spring living nations”

-Patrick Pearse

 Johnstown Castle

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Johnstown Castle was originally built by the Esmonde family in the 1100s. Unfortunately for them, they were expelled in the mid 1600s and the Grogan family acquired Johnstown Castle by marriage in 1682. John Grogan and his son Knox Grogan developed the castle, grounds, lakes, and estate as it looks today.  It amazes me that something built so long ago is still here and looks beautiful. I would have loved to walk through the castle but unfortunately it is closed to the public, although you can pay a pretty penny if you wish to get married here. The castle is old and medieval looking but also has a romantic feel to it. I imagine the weddings here are breathtakingly beautiful. The castle alone is amazing but the lakes and grounds around it make it even more stunning. Back in the day it must have been lovely to stroll through the gardens around the castle that you call home.

 Romeo and Juliet's Tower

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On the grounds of the Johnstown Castle there is a tower structure. It looks out over the lake and to the locals it is referred to as Romeo and Juliet’s Tower at the lake. It is made out of stone like the castle and it makes for a great spot for pictures. I don’t know the purpose it had back in the day but the weathered stone, traditional archway and windows, and being on the water gives it a great romantic look. The architecture and design around the top makes it look like it belongs with the castle and the greenery now growing from it adds to the worn and weathered look. I’m sure the couples getting married at Johnstown Castle can take some pretty amazing pictures in and around the tower.

 

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Oh the sites we've seen...

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After not sleeping on the plane, the bus ride from Dublin to Waterford was a nice time for me to catch a quick nap. When I woke up we were just coming into town. As we crossed the river and rode past all the small river front shops I started to get excited. Waterford is a cute little town with a lot of history. Although I expected it to be smaller, I think it is a perfect sized town. Some of the houses and buildings are made of stone and some are so colorful it just brightens the town. Later that day as we took tours of the Medieval Museum and Reginald’s Tower, the lack of sleep hit me hard. I struggled to pay attention during the tours and even though I was in the beautiful town of Waterford, all I wanted to do was sleep. So my initial impression of Waterford seems like a haze as that day seemed to drag out entirely too long!

The Waterford Crystal tour was my favorite tour on Saturday June 22^nd.  All the crystal here is hand made. It starts out in the mould room where wood moulds and hand tools are used to shape the molten crystal. My favorite part of the tour was the blowing department where we got to see the men blowing glass. Glowing balls of molten crystal transformed into beautiful shapes right before your eyes. Waterford Crystal has high expectations for its crystal so it is inspected after each stage it goes through. If there is a flaw in any way it is tossed back into the furnace for re-melting. The hand marking part is to temporarily grid the crystal so the cutter can cut the pattern into it. The marker that is used to will be washed off during the cleaning process. The cutting department uses diamond tipped wheels to cut the crystal, but the cutter has to rely on his skill to judge the amount of pressure applied. All the workers have trained for a minimum of 8 years to master their craft. It can take a sculptor days, weeks, and months to complete a piece. The intricate details on all the crystal are amazing. Our tour guide, Ryan, did a great job explaining all the parts of the process. As we were walking through one of the rooms, Ryan mentioned to keep all book bags close against your body because one kid in a group of Spanish students accidently knocked off a finished piece of crystal.  I was especially careful after he said that because I did not want to break anything! I loved Waterford Crystal’s logo. It is a seahorse with its tail curving to form a perfectly shaped shamrock.

Our visit to Woodstock Gardens was both beautiful and interesting. My tour guide was Olivia and she was great. She told us all about the Woodstock House and the gardens around it. The house was built in 1745-47 for Sir William Fownes. It was built of stone with a brick lining inside and had three stories. Unfortunately it burned in 1922 and now is in unstable condition since it has been in a ruinous state for years now. The flowers and trees on the estate are beautiful. The ladies back in the day used to walk around looking at the flowers for their entertainment. The walkways around the estate are extra large since the ladies walked side by side and wore large dresses. Their playhouse is very grown over now but back then they used to dress up and pretend to churn butter as if they were poor. Everywhere a lady went though she was watched. When a gentleman wanted to court a lady they could walk around the gardens as long as they were supervised. They would also sit on a bench called the “Love Seat” and sneak notes to each other. I can only imagine how beautiful the whole place was when it thriving back in the day.

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Our last stop on Sunday was Hook Lighthouse located in Wexford. It is about 800 years old and is the oldest operational lighthouse in the world. The rocky shore around the coast is made of old red sandstone and limestone. The water pounds the rocks over and over again and during bad weather a large wave could pull you into the water if you are standing too close to the edge. Walter O’Leary, a nice Irish gentleman, has personally seen two people die there at two different times, so you have to be very careful when walking around the waters edge. .The wind is unbelievable along the coast, which is another reason to be careful when standing near the edge. There is whale watching, as Fin and Humpback whales are known to be spotted off shore. Some of us even spotted a couple seals lurking around the edge of the rocks. The water was a beautiful blue and clear and not that I felt it, but surely cold! The fields around the lighthouse are just as amazing as the barley blows in the wind it looks like the waves of the ocean on land. Beautiful scenery that cameras just don’t do justice!

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