Druids

June 7, 2019

Today was such an adventure and I learned more about the ancient history of Ireland than I ever thought I would. Michael, Lexi, and I were taken to the Navan Fort for a tour of their “living history” exhibit and it was amazing! Sitting in a replica Celtic dwelling the two actors explained so much about the way of life at that time, from what they wore to how they cooked to the yearly pre-christian rituals they participated in. The surprising lesson I will most definitely retain from them will be the multitude of uses for simple plants. As we walked around the garden the Druid showing us around kept pointing out plants and flowers and naming the medicines they are now replaced by. We joked that we really don’t need pharmacists, we just need a nice garden.

Following our step back in time we were taken up a series of steps to the top of one of the oldest archaeological sites in Northern Ireland. Deep below a giant hill are the remains of a spiritual site dating back to 95 A.D., that is older than the pyramids and Stonehenge! This site was said to be the pagan spiritual center of the whole of Northern Ireland because there are stones from the site that were not local to the surrounding area. From the top of this hill we had a glorious view of the Mourne mountains and Slemish, which is were St.Patrick was said to have tended sheep.

The whole tour of the grounds just gave me a better appreciation of the rich archaeological history Ireland holds beneath the earth.