Travel

Slane Abbey Ruins

Looking up the hill at the ruins

The Hill of Slane towers 158 metres (521ft) above the surrounding landscape. On one side of the hill is a ring structure and mound, the other the remains of a monestary which was in use between 1100 – 1750’s. The cemetery remains in use today.

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In ancient mythology, the Fir Bolg king Sláine (Slane) was said to have been buried here. In Christian history the hill became established as the place where St. Patrick lit the first paschal fire in 443 AD in direct defiance of the High King Logaire who forbid any other fires while a festival fire was burning on the Hill of Tara.

St Patrick statue at Abbey ruins

According to legend, Logaire was so impressed by Patricks devotion that, he allowed St. Patrick to continue his missionary work in Ireland. It is somewhat more certain that Patrick appointed a bishop of Slane, Saint Erc on this location around 435 AD.

Hill of Slane Abbey Panorama

On a clear day, from Slane hill you can see the mounds of New Grange and Knowth, with the town of Drogheda and the Irish Sea beyond.

View out the window

To the North the view extends as far as Slieve Gullion (well into Northern Ireland), and to the South as far as the Sugarloaf Mountain in Wicklow.

Abbey and Castle ruins hill of slane

More photos from the full set are up on flickr.

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Victorian Leeds

The end of September I went on a short hop trip to Leeds, in the UK. It’s a part of England, and sits sort of in the middle of England. The weather couldn’t have been better – and the company of the Jovial Miss J and her family was brilliant. I’m in debited to them for sharing their home with me and showing me a little bit of their world. I had a great time going to Synagogue, enjoyed Schul immensely, and having the chance to participate in Yom Kippur from the Orthodox perspective was grand.

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After the holiday celebrations, J and I took some time out to head into Leeds proper and have some girly time shopping. One of the things that she kept telling me about were the beautiful Victorian buildings that the center of Leeds has. She wasn’t lying. There are a series of Arcades (Victorian indoor shopping malls used to protect shoppers from the elements) which are basically city streets connected by stained glass awnings over them. They are amazing and a feast for the eyes. The most famous of all of these is the Victoria Arcade.

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The Victoria Arcade itself has two “long streets” connected by a middle “street” and plaza area. The shops are mostly 2 stories with a promenade style balcony along the top windows.

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Nearby is the local Kirkgate Market building, which is carved yellow sandstone from the outside.

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Inside, it’s about 3 stories high, with steel and lots of small kiosks. Here, they used to sell all the market wares (meat, fish, fruit, veg, etc. ). Today, it’s a variety of shops selling everything from hair accessories, to underwear, to arts and crafts goodies, and live flowers. There’s also plenty of fruits, veg, and meats available too.

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Finally, there’s the lovely Corn Exchange. This was built in the 1860’s and today is a shopping mall. From the outside it looks perfectly round but in reality it’s an oval. The roof is an open plan structure and the inside has shops all the way around the outside of the oval.

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I like how the round arches on the doors and windows inside echo the shape of the building, and the detail on the stairs and railings.

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And the end cap? The tiny little medallian… that ties it all together like a sun out from which radiates the arches that make the roof.

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Autumn Leeds

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Late last month, I was blessed with the chance to head to the home of JL, for Jewish New Year. She comes from Leeds, and had promised that we would have super weather. I couldn’t wait to go, meet her lovely family (Her parents just had their 40th wedding Anniversary), relax and have a bit of time out.

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I can say that she certainly delivered on the promise of the weather. The first blush of autumn was certainly on the trees, but we were out in our shirt sleeves and sandals until 11pm – on the first of October. This rarely happens in Europe – let alone in UK or Ireland. In fact, it was so warm, I had to buy a sundress while I was there and came home with a touch of sun tan. All I can say is that it was perfect – and because it was such beautiful weather, we spent lots of time at the parks in and around Leeds.

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One of the parks that we went to was a lovely park that was made out of a defunct Amusement park, called Golden Acre (Mrs. L’s favorite place). The park has several themed gardens around a pond, including an Experimental garden, a flower garden (complete with the biggest flowers I’ve seen in ages), and a nice cafe in the middle of it all. There was also a charming old guy who apparently comes every day to feed some of the friendliest squirrels I’ve ever seen. This little lady was so friendly, she posed for pictures – and got a few peanuts in return.

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Other than spending a few says in Synagogue where the New Year was being celebrated with the blowing of the Shofar, eating Mrs.L’s fabulous cooking and chatting a lot with the delightful Mr. L, JL and I went out in Leeds and had some fun time doing a bit of shopping in the Leeds Arcades from the Victorian Era. More on that tomorrow, but for now, enjoy the sunset.

Sunset over Golden Acre Park

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