Let's have a trip

10/05/2024

This late 15th-century stone structure consists of an enclosed circular keep. It was built by the Keating famil...

31/12/2023

11/10/2023

Glenshelane Wood straddles two river glens, one a long glen through which the Glenshelane River flows, the other follows a section of where the Monavugga and Glenfalla Rivers converge a short distance upstream. All are tributaries of the mighty Blackwater. There is an extensive network of gently graded forest roads and trails.
All walks run beside the rivers and are serviced by five timber footbridges and one underpass under Lyre Bridge.

Gleann Siothláin – the Glen of the Fairies, was owned by the Keane family of Cappoquin – Molly Keane, a well known novelist lived nearby in Bellville House.

The Glenshelane River is an important salmon nursery stream for the River Blackwater; salmon can be seen fighting their way upstream to their spawning area north of the car park.

LOCATION ► https://maps.app.goo.gl/pQgsMF7abGdJyikx9

20/08/2023

Cahir Castle & Cahir Park Forest Recreational Area.

Cahir Castle is one of Ireland’s largest and best-preserved castles. It stands proudly on a rocky island on the River Suir.
The castle was was built in the thirteenth century and served as the stronghold of the powerful Butler family. So effective was its design that it was believed to be impregnable, but it finally fell to the earl of Essex in 1599 when heavy artillery was used against it for the first time. During the Irish Confederate Wars it was besieged twice more.
At the time of building, Cahir Castle was at the cutting edge of defensive castle design and much of the original structure remains.

Cahir Park is a small site that is well worth exploring. There is access down to the banks of the River Suir and across to the OPW managed, Swiss Cottage. For the walkers, the Tipperary Heritage Way links the site to Cahir Castle and there are tow paths running wither side parallel to the River. There is a huge amount to see on these walks that are suitable for a wide range of ages and abilities. The mature mixed woodland is beautiful any time of the year and attact a wide range of flora and fauna, of which there is information on site.

23/07/2023

Wexford families. The Castle was built by the Esmonde family who settled in Co Wexford in 1169.During the Cromwellian period of 1640s the estate was confisca...

14/07/2023

The Peklo tourist cottage and restaurant or Bartoňova útulna is located in the cadastral territory of the Jestřebí village in the Peklo settlement at the confluence of the Olešenka and Metuje rivers near Nové Město nad Metují in the Náchod district of the Hradec Králové Region. The tourist cottage, built according to the design of Dušan Jurkovič on the site of a historic water mill, is registered as a cultural monument in the Central List of Immovable Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic.

LOCATION ► https://goo.gl/maps/fLQFHU6Fef9TcoEM8

13/07/2023

The New Town Hall is a listed building on Masaryk Square in Náchod. It was built at the beginning of the 20th century and belongs to the important monuments in the Neo-Renaissance style, the facade is decorated with paintings according to the designs of M. Alš, and the richly decorated interiors (ceremonial hall) have been partially preserved. The town hall was registered among cultural monuments in 1964, today it is the seat of the Municipal Office in Náchod.

LOCATION ► https://goo.gl/maps/VTzwS7oDUd98Fpqm6
INFO ► http://www.mestonachod.cz/en/

12/07/2023

The Church of St. Lawrence in Náchod is the Roman Catholic parish church of the Náchod parish-deaconry. Originally a Gothic building from the 14th century, it stands in the middle of Náchod's Masaryk Square and is protected as a cultural monument. It was explicitly mentioned as a parish church in 1355. It is one of the few churches in Bohemia around which a cemetery was never built it was and is near the original church of St. John the Baptist in the Old Town.

LOCATION ► https://goo.gl/maps/3LbNrKYdQi8a3FqW8

10/07/2023

Originally a Gothic castle, founded in the mid-13th century, it was rebuilt in the 16th and 17th centuries during the tenure of the Smiřický family into a Mannerist castle. Its present architectural form was gained during renovations and interior modifications in the 17th and 18th centuries, when it was held by the Italian noble family of Piccolomini. The Early Baroque Spanish Hall spreads over two floors, and there are unique collections of tapestries as well as Baroque flower still lifes. Besides the Smiřickýs of Smiřic and the Piccolominis, other important owners of Náchod included the Duke of Courland and Sagan and the German princely Schaumburg-Lippe family.

LOCATION ► https://goo.gl/maps/eoCBtnKaPenTMSkp8
INFO ► https://zamek-nachod.cz/en/about/history

08/07/2023

Kuks is a small village situated in East Bohemia. In 1684, Count Franz Anton von Sporck became the owner of all local estates, including Kuks. At that time, Kuks was known only for its springs, which were believed by local people to have medicinal properties. Sporck set a very ambitious goal – to change Kuks into a world-renowned spa. Thanks to his immense wealth, the construction could start immediately. The spa was really magnificent and famous, even more so than Carlsbad.

What is of importance to us, however, is what was built on the opposite side of the Elbe river. Count Sporck constructed a hospital for army veterans. The Spanish Order of Brothers Hospitallers was invited to take care of old and injured soldiers from 1743 to 1938. During the Second World War, the hospital was turned into a detention centre for misbehaving youngsters. From the end of the war to 1972, it served as a retirement house for the elderly.

Since 1946, the hospital building has been used as a museum of baroque art and Czech pharmacy. Currently owned by the state, the hospital was declared the National Monument of the Czech Republic in 1995.

In the last two years (2013-2015), the whole baroque hospital complex was being renovated. It was necessary to fix the roofs, facades and underground utilities and to perform a lot of other refurbishments. For example, the herbal garden behind the hospital was renovated, the original interiors were reconstructed, and modern rooms were designed for organizing culture and educational events. Indeed, the hospital is currently a historic monument, but it also serves as a modern regional educational centre. The building offers classrooms which can be used as an arts studio, for example, or perhaps a theatre hall.

The renovation of the whole complex cost more than 450 million Czech crowns, the bigger part of which was funded by the European Union.

LOCATION ►https://goo.gl/maps/VseEHHs8nf7ZXwnC7
INFO ►https://www.hospital-kuks.cz/en

20/06/2023

Beyond the Trees Avondale in Wicklow, featuring Ireland's 1st Treetop Walk & Viewing Tower...

12/06/2023

There was a monastery at Kilmacurragh, in this tranquil corner of County Wicklow, in the seventh century, and a religious foundation remained right up until ...

09/05/2023

TINTERN ABBEYTintern Abbey was reputedly founded in c.1200 when the powerful Norman magnate William Marshal set out on his first visit to Ireland after his i...

19/04/2023

Around Clonmel...

10/03/2023

The 16th century tower house at Lisronagh is built on the site of an earlier one. The early castle was destroyed by Edmund Fitz Piers Butler of Dunboyne. The Ormond Deeds record a Grant by Richard Howet to Piers, Earl of Ossory, of the castle of Lisronagh.(June 25, 1530). Piers Butler had the title 8th Earl of Ormond restored to him in 1538. The Butler built castle and manor were in the possession of Ellyn Butler, late Countess Dowager of Ormond and the Earl of Ormond, in 1664. We know from an ordnance survey record, taken in 1840, the tower house was occupied at that time.

08/03/2023

Freestanding limestone Board of First Fruits style church, built in 1831-2, comprising three-bay nave with porch to north, and two-stage tower to west having chamfered corners. Dismantled 1923, now roofless. Pitched roof, structure and covering gone. Carved stone pinnacles and crenellations to tower and remains of stone finial to east end. Roughly dressed snecked masonry walls, with ashlar quoins, and with string course, eaves course and angled buttresses to tower. Pointed arch window openings with chamfered surrounds and carved stone hood-mouldings. Double lancet windows to tower with hood-mouldings, some openings having timber louvers. Entrance to tower comprising Tudor arch opening with carved detail to spandrels and carved stone label-moulding. Church set within graveyard with some table tombs and with legible gravestones dating to late 1830s. Rubble limestone and sandstone masonry piers with double-leaf cast-iron gates and boundary walls. Medieval ruined tower house to south.
A prominently-sited church adjacent to the ruins of a medieval castle, both of which stand at the centre of the remains of an extensive deserted medieval village and which act as a significant historical landmark in the region. The present church was built on the site of the medieval church in a simple Board of First Fruits style. The building substantially retains its original appearance including an elegant tower with skilfully-carved pinnacles, hood mouldings and some internal shuttering.

06/03/2023

Lisronagh, Co.Tipperary, Ireland

05/02/2023

The Colligan River plays a major role in this wood which sits on either side of the river valley as it flows through on it’s way to meet the sea at Dungarvan Bay. Colligan is a beautiful mixed woodland with a number of lovely viewing points of the surrounding area including Dungarvan Harbour and Helvick Head in the distance.

02/02/2023

GRANGE LOOP WALKThis easy 6km loop follows minor road, forestry tracks and woodland trails which gently ascend to a height from which some fine views open up...

24/01/2023

FOUNTAIN OF ST. GEORGE AND THE DRAGON
This Renaissance fountain in the courtyard of the Primatial Palace depicts the struggle of St George and the dragon. His life is part of the ‘Golden Legend’, which was extremely widespread in early Christian Europe.
According to this legend, George was an officer in the Roman army who came upon a town terrorised by a dragon. In desperation, the people chose victims for the dragon by tossing a coin. George intervened when the king’s daughter had lost the toss, and proceeded to kill the dragon with a spear. Whether George existed or not, he became a symbol of the battle against evil, and a symbol of the conquest of Christianity over heathens.

23/01/2023

The history of the Old Town Hall dates back to the beginnings of the mediaeval town in the 13th century.
It was then that the original Romanesque house of Mayor Jakub became the property of the city. Over the course of time Unger’s House and Pawer’s House were annexed to it.
The most complete element in the neo-Gothic reconstruction is the chapel of St Ladislav, with its unique wall paintings from the 15th century. In 1581 a renaissance arcade was added. The building normally houses the Bratislava City Museum, the oldest in the city (1868). When open, the museum features an exhibition of the feudal justice system, as well as the remarkable interior of the town hall building and original furnishings from the municipal court. In summer, cultural programmes are held in the beautiful renaissance courtyard and concerts are held in the tower.

22/01/2023

The central point in old town Bratislava, the Main Square, has been the hub of the town for centuries. It is surrounded by landmarks, including Kutscherfeldov Palace, Pawera House, Ungerov Dom, and the Maximillian Fountain. Additionally, tons of restaurants, cafes, and bars in the area keep it bustling.
Over the years, the square has changed names several times. During World War II, it was named to honor Hilter. From 1948 to 1989, it was named for the day Bratislava was liberated by the Red Army--4 April Square.
The square is home to the Old Town Hall building and several other landmark buildings. Old Town Hall was built in 1599 and is the oldest in the country. Today, it houses a museum all about the town's history.

21/01/2023

The story of the statue, however, is no story at all! This was precisely the author, Viktor Hulik's intention - to initiate heated discussions about what this little fellow is doing here and why. As a result, every Bratislavan will tell you their own version of the story, of course, they will always have a friend who can verify it. Some of the stories you may hear are that Čumil is here simply to sneak up the girls' skirts, that he's a legendary cleaner of Bratislava's underground, or a symbol of a typical slovak worker, waiting relaxed for his shift to end.

20/01/2023

The Historical Building of the Slovak National Theater stands on the site of the former city theater. Commissioned by the Count Juraj Csáky, it stood here as early as in 1776. The current building was built to the design by the architects Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer, opened in 1886. The building in eclectic style is one of many theater buildings designed by the eminent team of the Vienna-based architects, which dot a number of European cities, including Sofia (Bulgarian), Budapest (Hungary, Karlovy Vary and Brno (Czech Republic), Zürich (Switzerland) or Berlin in Germany (Theater unter den Linden).

19/01/2023

Bratislava castle is featured in the first written reference to the city, which appears in the Annals of Salzburg of 907, in association with a battle between Bavarians and Hungarians. The castle hill was populated as early as the late Stone Age; its first known inhabitants were the Celts, who founded a fortified settlement here called ‘Oppidum’.
For four centuries, the border of the Roman Empire, the ‘Limes Romanus’, ran through the area. During the Great Moravian Empire, Slavs built a fortress that became a significant centre for the time. In the 10th century, Bratislava became an integral part of the growing Hungarian state; a stone palace and the church of St Saviour and its chapter were built on the castle hill in the 11th century. In the 15th century, in the reign of Sigismund of Luxembourg, a castle was built in Gothic style as an anti-Hussite fortress. During this period, a new entrance to the castle was built on the eastern side – Sigismund’s Gate – while 7-metre-thick fortifications were constructed on the western side, and a castle well dug in 1437.
In the 16th century, King Ferdinand ordered the rebuilding of the castle in the Renaissance style, while in the 17th century, when the castle became the seat of hereditary provincial chief, Pálffy, it was rebuilt in the baroque style. In the reign of Maria Theresa, the castle was arranged according to the needs of her son-in-law Albert, governor of Saxony and Tessen, who was a fervent art collector and who installed his works in the castle. This collection was later moved to Vienna to become the present-day Albertina Gallery. Since independence, the castle has served as a representative venue for the Slovak Parliament and houses collections of the Slovak National Museum.

18/01/2023

Spread across 1,434 ft (437m) of land on the Kamzík hill in Bratislava, the Televízna veža na Kamzíku (Kamzík TV Tower) is a transmission tower that measures exactly 196 meters. Designed by five architects and constructed in 1975, this impressive structure overlooks the city and the observation deck provides great views of the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Austria. Its panorama restaurant Altitude allows visitors to enjoy scrumptious Mediterranean cuisine as they experience the 360-degreee view from the comfort of their seats.

17/01/2023

Most SNP (short for Most Slovenského národného povstania, which is in turn translated to “Bridge of the Slovak National Uprising”) is meant to honor a tumultuous time in Slovakian history, but is better known for the saucer-shaped restaurant atop its single, asymmetrical pylon.
Completed in 1972, this cable-supported bridge is the longest single-pylon suspension bridge in the world, and has likely undergone more name changes than any other bridge as well. Originally christened, the “Most SNP” in honor of a 1944 resistance movement against N**i forces, the bridge was soon known almost universally as the “UFO bridge” due to the circular restaurant, which was originally destined to be an observation platform, that was built atop its single set of pylons. Recognizing the overall dismissal of the bridge’s original name, the city changed the name to “Novy Most,” or “New Bridge” in order to incorporate popular sentiment. Unsurprisingly, many citizens were not pleased with this change and voted to change the name of the bridge back to, “Most SNP” in 2012.