-2009-

I didn't know bilocating could be this hard.

I put up this site last Thursday (3/12/09) and except for the occasional tweaking of the layout to my heart's (dis)content, I have not done any new posting at all.

It's St. Patrick's Day tomorrow (March 17th)! Do you know why we celebrate this day? I'll be honest with you. I...DON'T...KNOW. I just know that this is Saint Patrick's (circa AD 385-461 according to sweet and reliable Wikipedia) annual feastday. St. Patrick is one of the patron saints of Ireland. The secular version of the holiday which both Christians and non-Christians celebrate includes wearing green (my blogsite's green, that counts!), eating Irish food (green foods?!), imbibing Irish drink like Irish stout or Whiskey and Irish cream.

Saint Paddy's is celebrated worldwide by those of Irish descent and increasingly by non-Irish people. My grandmother had never forgotten to recognize her Irish greatgrandfather. Does that make me "of Irish descent"? LOL. That little drop of Irish blood has very likely long since bled out of me when I scraped my knee in preschool. Nonetheless, I still hold a special spot in my heart for anything Irish, in memory of my grandmother, if not my great-ultra-ancient-great-great grandfather.

Ireland remains to be on the top 5 of my travel goals in life. In true "Wonder Wifey" (as I begin to refer to me in this site) fashion, I always prefer the historical facets over the modernized in a destination. Thus, I would love to explore Authentic Ireland in a medieval themed vacation and see castle upon castle of Irish history. That will include castle traditional music and banquet feasts, a viking tour of Dublin and an evening of storytelling to learn Ireland's great history reviving the ladies at court, fine feasts, jousting knights, early scientists, and a world where magic (magick!) was still very much alive -- I am passionate about that part too.

So, if you are seriously looking into visiting Ireland, don't stay in a hotel. Book in one of those Irish Castles or Manors or rent an Irish Cottage. And do a tour on Ancient Ireland (a package starts from $823 for 10 nights/ 11 days). Here are some itinerary suggestions:

-Medieval Castles & Fortresses
-2,000-year-old stone beehive huts
-Explore Medieval Towns & Villages
-5,000-year-old megalithic tombs
-Ancient Stone Circles
-6th Century Monastery perched on remote cliff

I have always wanted to explore Ireland's passage cairns, clamber through age-old fortresses, see exquisite art and carved stone heads rising from the earth, castles and ancient abbeys, and then experience a medieval banquet filled with sumptuous food and ribald music.

I can't afford a vacation to take a walk through time and feel the power of this land just yet, so I'm sharing this information straight from my bucketlist so you can do it for me if you can already (projection!!!).

There will always be a special spot for Ireland in my heart. Sometimes, I still think I was a druid princess in my past life. *wink*

Happy St. Paddy's!

Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig...

Éirinn go Brách!