Another shit picture from Ireland

Now seems as good a time as any to mention how frustrating Ireland can be for a photographer. Ruairi McDonnell, whom we met in Dublin through the good offices of the Little Museum, told us, "Don't worry about scenery. You'll see scenery. In a week, you'll be sick to death of scenery." And he was almost right about the last bit. There is, practically speaking, no such thing as a non-scenic road in Ireland. Beauty is everywhere you go, every way you turn. But most of the rural roads are narrow, winding, and have no shoulder at all—every corner is a blind corner, and it's not always possible to pull over for a picture. Add in the frequently changing weather conditions—in County Kerry it may rain upwards of two hundred days a year, with fifty-plus inches of liquid sunshine—and it was a foregone conclusion that we would fall short of the "ten million gorgeous pictures" requested by Ellie. We did the best we could.

So, with apologies to Jessa, who did most of the camera work on our trip, and with thanks to one of Ireland's three and a half million sheep...

Another shit picture from Ireland.

Caha Gap

The high wild country between Counties Cork and Kerry.

Monastic settlement at Glendalough

In the West there has always been the attempt to try to make the religious building, whether it's a Medieval or Renaissance church, an eternal object for the celebration of God. The material chosen, such as stone, brick, or concrete, is meant to eternally preserve what is inside.

—Tadao Ando 

 St. Kevin's Church (a.k.a. St. Kevin's Kitchen)

The Round Tower

The Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul

The Cemetery

Glendalough

Roughly an hour south of Dublin is Wicklow Mountains National Park, and at the heart of that is Glendalough (Gleann dá Loch, or Valley of the Two Lakes). Next time we'll bring a camera and a fly rod.