Back in Glassagh, and a visit from old friends.
The month of June was rather busy, as I was working in the quilt shop, filling in for Kathleen, who was away on her trip to America and Canada. We had quite an influx of tourists, mainly from England, the US and Holland, but also some from Africa. My husband was kept busy working on the brochure for the summer workshops. He and our friend, John Morris, also created a lovely website for Pauline's new venture, Irish Country Quilting. I also had the task of making up samples for the workshops I was scheduled to teach--a tough job, but somebody has to do it! I have been happily using up my stash, and stacking up more quilt tops that some day will need to be quilted.
At the end of June, we had a delightful visit from Nishi and Linda, friends from San Diego. Nishi and I used to play our fiddles together every weekend in San Diego for years, so it was a pleasure to play music with him once again.
We began the visit with a lovely drive to the Glebe House and Gallery (not open on Friday, but we did enjoy a look at the grounds); next we went to the site of the monastery founded by St. Colm Cille, b. 521 A.D., (also known in Scotland as St. Columba) to see the chapel (which dates from the 16th century) and the ancient graves. Colmcille was a fascinating and colorful figure in the early Christian church in Ireland, and there are many stories about him. His name means "Colum of the Churches" because of the many churches and monasteries he founded in his career. He later left Ireland as a voluntary exile after a war he instigated (fought over a book!), and became the main missionary to Scotland. His story can be seen here.
View of old cross and valley from graveyard, St. Colm Cille's Monastery
Altar in chapel, St. Colm Cille's Monastery
Linda, Nishi and Lisa in chapel
We made our last stop at Glenveagh to tour the castle and gardens, and had quiche and desserts in the tea room.
Linda with friendly local rhododendron.
Later that evening, we went to the Friday night session at Hudi Beag's. By sheer coincidence, there was a Canadian fiddler there whom Nishi had met at a music festival in Tokyo two years previously! We had a wonderful evening with lots of superb musicians and good music.
Nishi (blue shirt) enjoys a tune with the local musicians at Hudi Beag's
The next day was a bit rainy, and we ended up staying in most of the day, playing music. Linda and Nishi are both artists, so there were sketches and watercolors being spontaneously produced.
Nishi's watercolor of the view from our guest room.
We later went for a walk to the Bun an Inver harbor, which is nearby and very picturesque.
Lisa at Bun an Inbhir Harbor
The weather was better on Sunday, and we took a leisurely drive to Dunfanaghy. Our first stop was an old thatched cottage, maintained for local history and tourists, for more sketches and photos.
Linda, Nishi, and Lisa at a local thatched cottage.
Then on to the Corcreggan Mill, which is now a charming B & B with a hostel (a converted railroad car) sharing the same site. The stone buildings are fascinating (more sketches!), and we thoroughly enjoyed the antiques and furnishings of the common area in the hostel. (These included two pikes from the 1798 Rising, as well as and chains and manacles used on the prisoners afterwards, and an order from the English military commander ordering all people to turn in any and all weapons, and that no smith could operate without a license and approval from the government, on pain of immediate death - and that those who violated this would be hung at the door of their homes or shops.)
Corcreggan Mill
Nishi and Lisa, Corcreggan Mill
We continued on to Horn Head and drove around this glorious and rugged coast. The view is spectacular.
Nishi, Lisa, and Linda on Horn Head
We decided to try a local session. There was a very good fiddler and a gal who was terrific on the button accordion (it was her first time at this session, too). We enjoyed playing some tunes with them. We didn't stay very long, as the other participants and crowd, some of whom were more than a little "relaxed" (so to speak), seemed to prefer more modern-style music than we prefer, so we got back in the car and drove a little further north. On the way back through Dunfanaghy we stopped into Arnold's Hotel and had a toothsome dinner. This is a very popular place with the tourists, and they have an excellent chef.
We also took them by the Dunfanagy workhouse ( mentioned in an earlier chapter ). They were amazed at the giant soup pot.
Linda, Lisa, and Nishi "in the soup."
On Monday, we took our friends to meet our neighbor, Anne, and we had a long and interesting chat. We played some more music at home, and after dinner we went to Hudi Beag's for the Monday night session. The pub was jam-packed with 17 musicians. (Hudi's attracts excellent musicians from all over the world.) Nishi joined in on all the tunes that he knew, but with the noise level of the background chatting, it was sometimes hard to hear the musicians. The following day, we took Nishi and Linda to the bus that would take them to Galway, and the rest of their Irish adventures.
