Little Caroline Travels The Big World: Paddy Wagon Tour: Part Glendalough

So, the first stop on the Paddy Wagon Tour was to Glendalough (pronounced Glen-da-lock).

Glendalough is located in county Wicklow, in the heart of the Wicklow Mountains. It is about an hour and a half drive from Dublin. Because it is so close to Dublin, it is a popular day trip from Dublin. It is worth the trip out!

I believe the main attraction of Glendalough is the scenery. It is a glacial valley, so it is surrounded by mountains and the views are so beautiful!

The other main attraction of the town is the Medieval monastery. The monastery was establish by St. Kevin in the 6th century. St. Kevin devoted his life to God and established a monastery at Glendalough. His fame spread throughout Ireland and many people came to Glendalough to join his monastery. At the height of the monastery there were workshops; areas for manuscript writing; guest houses, an infirmary, farm buildings; and dwellings for monks and regular people.

But in 1398, English troops destroyed the monastery. The buildings that are left date back to the 10th and 12th centuries.

Our bus dropped us off at a beginning of a hiking path. The path took us through the woods, along a river. The views offered by this trail were awesome! It was so nice to get out and walk around. It reminded me of walking through the forest of the UCSC campus.

The path brought us right to the old monastery. I was able to walk around the old buildings and the graveyard. It was so amazing to walk around and think that people thousands of years ago lived here.

At the end of the path, there was a visitor center and a place to get coffee. Glendalough is not a big town, but it was worth the trip to walk around in nature and see an old monastery site.