Wordless Wednesday : Early Morning Reflections

Drake’s Pool, Crosshaven

We Stand and Watch the World Sail By.

My friend and I went for a Sunday stroll not too far from home, and on the way we passed an old ruin of a church, it’s called Templebreedy Church, or the Church of Bridget.   This church was built about 1779, and was used for about 150 years, and there had been a church on this site previously, for maybe another 100 years!

This was the view looking out one of the windows, sadly now without glass or window frame, and slowly returning to the earth.    In the foreground of the view is an old Celtic cross gravestone, probably at least 100 years old, and across the mouth of the harbour you can see Roches Point Lighthouse.   This lighthouse stands at the entrance to Cork Harbour, and a lighthouse was first established in this spot almost 200 years ago.

Just imagine, the people looking out this window would have seen many ships sailing to and from the Port of Cork and from Queenstown, later called Cobh.   Cobh was the last stop on the maiden voyage of the Titanic in 1912, before she set sail for New York, and was also the place where the survivors of the Lusitania were brought to in May 1915, when the ship was sunk by a German torpedo not far from here during the First World War.

Let’s hope there were happier times too for the watchers at the window, like the little boats below that were out for a sailing lesson in the shelter of the harbour this morning!

Learning to sail in the calm waters

 

 

Photo 101 : Day 7 – Landmark

Here are a few local landmarks, great when you want to give someone directions to a new place!   My first is The Drake Sail, on the road from Carrigaline to Crosshaven.   This is a monument to the British Explorer, Sir Francis Drake, who is reputed to have hidden from the Spanish Armada  in the river off Cork Harbour.   The area where he hid is called  Drakes Pool, about 2 or 3 kilometers from the landmark,  half way between the two villages.

The Sail (plus arty graffiti!)

Looking towards Drake’s Pool

A few kilometers away in the village of Douglas, is another well known landmark – The Fingerpost Roundabout.  This ‘fingerpost’ has been in place since the 80s,  near the site of the original Fingerpost,which was a wooden structure, and  which seems to have historical significance going back to the 18th century.

The Fingerpost

Travel Theme : Metal 2

For this week’s travel theme, I am staying close to home, with some metal signs.  The first is on one of the beaches near Crosshaven, in County Cork, where the residents do a great job in keeping the beaches clean.

The second photo is a very realistic picture of Hook Head Lighthouse, giving some of the history of the lighthouse.

Linked to Where’s My Backpack Travel Theme

The Giant’s Boulder

The boulder flung by the Giant

In the centre of Crosshaven is a boulder, and the inscription reads:   ‘This boulder, which according to local tradition, was flung by a giant from the hills of Currabinny, to land on the green in Crosshaven’       So….be careful in Ireland, in case the Giants are still around, and decide to fling another boulder from the far hills!

Black and White

The church in the mist

Admiring the view

Linked to Weekend Black and White

Out of the Mist

Bluebells and Wild Garlic

Yesterday was a misty day in Ireland, and I was on a morning hike in Crosshaven, in County Cork. As this village is on the coast, the mist was slow to rise, and you will see from the photos that this made the scenes very eerie at times.    We walked from the village through a wood where the predominant smell was that of the wild garlic which is blooming everywhere at this time. There were also a lot of bluebells in bloom, which were very pretty under the trees.  A word of warning though, watch your step in the mud, or you may end up like this!

 

Missed my step….covered in mud!

Templebreedy Church

No roof left on the old church

Church Bay, Crosshaven

Looking across at Roches Point

Old bathing huts/changing rooms on the beach

 

Springtime in Cork

Daffodils along the walkway

Buds of Spring

Daffodils and new buds are everywhere, and this is my favourite time of the year, with the promise of better weather, longer evenings, Easter, and summer holidays to look forward to.   These two photos were taken on Saturday on a walk by Drakes Pool,on the old railway line between Carrigaline and Crosshaven.

There are also some signs of possibly unwanted progress as you look across the river towards the industrial area of Ringaskiddy, where there are some huge pylons being erected – I suppose in months to come we won’t even notice these monsters, but right now they look a bit out of place in this serene setting.

Drakes Pool with pylons and very large cranes in the background.

Please Release Me, Let Me Go

Boats on the bank in Drakes Pool

I must go down to the seas again

To the lonely sea and the sky

And all I ask is a tall ship

And a star to steer her by

Taken from the poem Sea Fever by John Masefield

A Word a Week Photograph Challenge : Atmospheric

Following on from my post on the fallen trees in Currabinny Woods yesterday, I thought I should also show you some calmer photos for this week’s challenge.   Atmospheric photos of the seashore always bring holidays and sunny days to mind, and I hope you enjoy them.

Gazebo overlooking the harbour, Currabinny

On the seashore

Crosshaven, Co Cork

http://suellewellyn2011.wordpress.com/2014/02/20/a-word-a-week-photograph-challenge-atmospheric/