In December of 2014, the Irish traditional fiddle and guitar duo of Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill joined sarod player Matthew Noone on a tour of India to play several shows as well as meet and collaborate with a host of famous Indian traditional musicians.  Myles O’Reilly…

In days gone by, there was a popular Irish…

 Childhood memories if School . In Ireland school days commenced at the age five years . I was born in the January – so I was five and a half years old when I started school/ I followed my older sister Ronnie [Veronica] and brother Pat [Patrick or Watser- his nick name] who also attended St Patricks National School Bray Co Wicklow . Pat however had been transferred up to St Cronins School boy’s school before I started school. My mam ; aunts and uncles all attended St. Patricks R.C School…

Hello M.J Neary ; thank you for your comments on the 1916 Easter  Rising . I started to do the blogs about the Leaders; as it is coming up to their Centenary 2016 . 

I was amazed and quite frankly ashamed that there were so many of them that I knew absolutely  nothing about . It was certainly a challenge for me and quite a learning experience as well . Tears were flowing as i was typeing in the text. 

The Book - That's just how It Was - I have written it as a tribute to my…

In A.D. 451, the new Byzantine Emperor Marcian, an orthodox Christian, ordered a new Ecumenical council be convened to establish once and for all, the belief that Christ was and is both God and Man. Pope Leo 1 called for it to be held in Italy but Marcian insisted it be…

Europe, in the middle of the 5^th century A.D., was in darkness and fear was dominant. The Master (the druid) sensed fundamental change. The Roman legions were advancing rapidly and had already crossed the Rhine. A new religion was upon him and his people.

In the…

Sean Connolly was born in Sandymount, Dublin in 1883.  His family had been driven off their land during the Land League era.  Connolly and all his siblings were steeped in nationalism and all that Fenianism stood for.  When his father, a sailor, left his seafaring job, he…

These are the Peninsula Pens that have been made for the celebrations of the Titanic that my family had an involvement in.  It is so humbling to have a great-grandfather…

On day five of your adventure with Cupid's Crusade, we take a trip from Doolin, County Clare to the Aran Islands in the mouth of Galway Bay.  The Aran Islands are the birthplace of the sweater worn by so many the…

Today we leave for Co. Clare, about an hour’s drive to Lisdoonvarna,

You will visit the magnificent Cliffs of Moher; take a walk on these unspoiled cliffs there since the dawn of time.

 Stop by the visitor’s center and learn the history of these cliffs see photos of them long ago,

 A suburb gift store, a restaurant for lunch.

 We will take you to Doolin a small village on the coast 

And you will visit the Doolin Cave.

From the moment you descend over…

Today we take a trip to the Aran Islands, from Doolin,

Aran is the birthplace of the sweater worn by many the world over.

Knitted by the women on spinning wheels, designing a pattern especially for the family, if the man died at sea they would be able to tell who it was by the sweater.

Aran is also a place time has forgotten the locals move at their pace not the rest of the world, some lovely walking biking or the best treat is a ride around the Island in a horse and…

By John Bruton

The rebellion of Easter Week 1916 was one of the formative events in Irish history.

It led towards the independence we now enjoy, along with the enactment of Home Rule in 1914, the meeting of the First Dail in 1919, the…

Anne Bonny

DOMHNAIGH -- On March 8, 1700, or perhaps a year or two earlier,…

SPRING awake.

"The dawn is awakened by the chourus of nature,

the fragrance of spring is in the air,

It may be hidden in a single bud,in gardens of blossoming flowers,

springtime has come and gladly recieved the embrace of the sun

one shall soon see thier love,

nature resimes her beauty,

The human soul will express Eros.

Madness in spring is a wholesome thing!...."

When European settlement of North America started pushing inland from the coast, transportation problems repeatedly occurred. The biggest problem was the Appalachian Mountains, 400 miles from the coast.  This made it difficult to transport goods as well as…

The game of 'Rings' is a traditional Irish game, brought to the four corners of the world by the emigration of the Irish during the famine years.  The other traditional Irish games of Bowls, Skittles and Horseshoes are played during the summer, while…