After Eucharist this morning we left Dublin and went to Clonmacnoise to see St. Ciaran's Monastery. Although it was slightly rainy at the site, the ruins were very powerful. We first watched a video and had a lecture about the history of the site. What struck me was how many times the monastery was attacked but the monks continued to rebuild it.
The monastery was in a well traveled location, close to a road and a river, which made it easier to have lots of people to convert to Christianity. The site had three high crosses which had been moved inside for protection and replicas placed in the original locations and two high towers.
The ruins provoked thoughts about what had occurred there so many years ago. We were inspired by how young St. Ciaran was when he accomplished so much; it reminds us that we can do the same in our own lives.
After we left the monastic city we continued to Galway where we had about two hours of free time to explore the city. To escape the rain, a few of us stayed in a pub while others ventured out into the downpour to shop in the city.
We caught a ferry to Inishmor from Rossaveal. The boat ride was fairly calmer than what was expected and no one was sea sick at all. We arrived at the Tigh Fitz Guesthouse for a nice dinner of curried chicken and then got settled into our rooms after some discussion.
-Janine
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