Newgrange & Knowth (Brú na Bóinne)
The drive down from Ardglass to Knowth was went smoothly and without incident. Well, until two minutes (she exagerrates - it was probably nearer three) before our GPS said we were to arrive at our destination. The GPS said turn left but the brown road sign said keep going straight ahead. Barb had a minor meltdown when the GPS then said it was another 20 km to our destination. What! And in the meantime Jan & Nick called to say they had already arrived and had got our timed tickets. They were in the queue for the bus. Would we be there in time to join them? We arrived finally with one minute to spare so they could hand over the tickets! The problem had been that the both the GPS and Google Maps were directing us to the actual historical sites, but you can't access them except with a ticket and on their bus with a tour leader. The brown tourist sign was directing us correctly but not very convincingly.
It was a fair bit of queuing and walking today, as well as getting on and off multiple buses, but the tour leaders were very good with all their knowledgable information. We went first to Knowth which pre-dates even the Egyptian pyramids in its antiquity. Built over five thousand years ago as a passage tomb and covered with a mound of earth and stones (tumulus). There are many large stones around the perimeter somehow transported to site from about 40 km north of here. How did they do it? Who knows....but lots of theories. Some think by log raft down the coast then log rolled up the hill. It all seems like an awful lot of trouble to go to.
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| Ancient geometric art. Apparently archaeology speak for "we've no idea what it means, if anything". |
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| Inside Newgrange |
We then were bused to another site at Newgrange. This site is just as old and has been rebuilt on the outside, so looks kinda new, and not quite right with it's perpendicular walls....they didn't have cement to hold the stones together back then. It was described as an archeaologist's speculation as to what it might have looked like. OK. We did actually get to go inside, strictly no photos allowed. You hand to go down a very narrow passageway, bending down. Barb almost got trapped by her shoulders in one section. Apparently the window at the entrance is alligned so that light on the winter solstice lights up the cavern inside where all the cremated ramains are held in big stone carved basins. It's all very interesting.
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| Outside Newgrange |
Afterwards we met up with Jan and Nick who were on the earlier tour and went straight to our B&B at Bective Mill. Barb (and John) had lost the will to live by now and couldn't face more castles. But lo and behold! Just across the road from our digs was an old ruined abbey used in the filming of Braveheart. Who could resist? It even had lovely cloisters in very good repair, and nearby was a really cute old bridge. Barb is in heaven again.
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| Bective Mill - our bed for the night |
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| Barb was very taken by the stione arch bridges |
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| A ruin with cloisters. Yay! |
That night we went into Trim to Franciscos on the recommendation of our host. Yay! It was also right opposite Trim Castle ruins. Barb's day just got even better! We were lucky to get a table as it was very busy on a Saturday night. The food was great and the sticky toffee pudding definitely up there with the best.
We have an early start in the morning as we need to hand the hire car back at Dublin airport.
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