Day 4 continued: Tintern Abbey
Well, if anyone is still interested, I will continue my account of our travels over seas.
After we were finished our exploits along the coast of Ireland, we took a trip out to Tintern Abbey. This is a beautiful building, currently undergoing restoration, of (I believe) 12th century origin. It also has some significance to my family, in that my great-great-grandmother worked there in the 1800s as a lady's companion. On my previous trip over to Ireland, Jen and I were able to go inside and look around, but this time it was closed. However, there are some beautiful walking trails in the area, a neat old cemetary, and a wonderfully overgrown tower.
Above is a picture of the abbey, and you can also see the scaffolding where restoration work is going on.
Next, here is a picture of the grounds, including a lovely old bridge.
Above is the remains of an old church (as near as I can tell), there are a number of tombs inside it, and an old graveyard surrounding it.
Here you can see some of the gravestones, and below is the interior of the church.
Next we come to one of the neatest parts of our afternoon, an overgrown tower hidden away in the woods surrounding the abbey. None of us, our hosts included, had seen it before, but it's really neat. For all you can tell, all the vines and foliage growing on this structure may be the only thing holding it together!
Here is the interior:
And a picture of my family, taken through a window in the tower.
Last, but not least, is a photo I took of a sign explaining about the walkways, and the origins of the abbey. This is primarily put up for Karl's sake, as I know he has an interest in monks and the like, although I'm sure some others will also find it of interest. (Note: You'll have to click on the picture and enlarge it to make it readable; sorry, this is the best I could do in the post.)
Next stop: Dublin!
After we were finished our exploits along the coast of Ireland, we took a trip out to Tintern Abbey. This is a beautiful building, currently undergoing restoration, of (I believe) 12th century origin. It also has some significance to my family, in that my great-great-grandmother worked there in the 1800s as a lady's companion. On my previous trip over to Ireland, Jen and I were able to go inside and look around, but this time it was closed. However, there are some beautiful walking trails in the area, a neat old cemetary, and a wonderfully overgrown tower.
Above is a picture of the abbey, and you can also see the scaffolding where restoration work is going on.
Next, here is a picture of the grounds, including a lovely old bridge.
Above is the remains of an old church (as near as I can tell), there are a number of tombs inside it, and an old graveyard surrounding it.
Here you can see some of the gravestones, and below is the interior of the church.
Next we come to one of the neatest parts of our afternoon, an overgrown tower hidden away in the woods surrounding the abbey. None of us, our hosts included, had seen it before, but it's really neat. For all you can tell, all the vines and foliage growing on this structure may be the only thing holding it together!
Here is the interior:
And a picture of my family, taken through a window in the tower.
Last, but not least, is a photo I took of a sign explaining about the walkways, and the origins of the abbey. This is primarily put up for Karl's sake, as I know he has an interest in monks and the like, although I'm sure some others will also find it of interest. (Note: You'll have to click on the picture and enlarge it to make it readable; sorry, this is the best I could do in the post.)
Next stop: Dublin!
posted by Matt at 8:06 p.m.
2 Comments:
That is so cool. I am jealous, jealous, jealous!!
You'll get your chance, Bronwyn.
Post a Comment
<< Home