Tag / Abbey

by shannonchance

Day-tripping to Glendalough

Glendalough 13

Glendalough boasts a beautiful natural landscape and a religious site constructed during medieval times.  It provides an ideal day trip from Dublin.

The Wikipedia site is full of interesting information about the place.  It starts by explaining:

Glendalough or Glendaloch (/ˌɡlɛndəˈlɒx/ glen-də-lokh; Irish: Gleann Dá Loch, meaning “glen of two lakes”) is a glacial valley in County Wicklow, Ireland. It is renowned for its Early Medieval monastic settlement founded in the 6th century by St Kevin, a hermit priest, and partly destroyed in 1398 by English troops.

by shannonchance

Norfolk’s Freemason Abbey

The view of two churches as we headed to Freemason Abbey (it's the one to the left, across the intersection).

The view of two churches as we headed to Freemason Abbey (it’s the one to the left, across the intersection).

One of favorite Sunday morning haunts is Freemason Abbey, which occupies an old church building in Norfolk’s historic Freemason District.  Dave and I headed there for brunch the day after I returned.  I was still on Irish time and we arrived just as the doors were opening.

Hope you can soak up a bit of the ambiance from the photos I snapped….

It was warm and cozy inside, despite the rain outside.

It was warm and cozy inside, despite the rain outside.

The Abbey is decorated beautifully for Christmas.

The Abbey is decorated beautifully for Christmas.

Dave headed in to grab a table.
Informational plaque at the Freemason Abbey.
Yum! They have a gluten-free menu.
Dave’s view of Shannon playing with panorama features on her iPhone.
by shannonchance

Burrishole “Abbey”

It turns out Burrishole Abbey was never actually an abbey.  Although some people know it by that name, the more proper term is Burrishoole Friary.

Glen brought us there in September, when I expressed interest in seeing ruins.  It’s located just outside of Newport, which is where he favorite B&B, Seapoint House, is located.  (Carol took such great care of us there!)

If you have family there, you can even check the Find a Grave website to locate their internment location.