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Wow Wednesday

         On Wednesday, the group headed to County Meath to explore Newgrange and Tara. After a brief class about the Neolithic Age (New Stone Age), we boarded the bus to travel to Newgrange. Newgrange is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is older than the pyramids in Egypt and Stonehenge. It contains over 60% of Europe’s Neolithic art and took three generations of people to build it. The stones that support it weigh up to 10 tons and would have been carried from the nearby River Boyne, a couple of kilometers away. The passage inside is very small and requires ducking down to arrive in the main tomb. Once inside, the tomb is 6 meters tall and contains a lot of ancient art. Every winter solstice, the sun shines directly through the doorway and into the center of the tomb. There is a lottery system with a waiting list of multiple years to be able to experience this in person.

View of Newgrange from bus

Entrance to Newgrange

View from Newgrange

Following our tour, we had lunch on the Newgrange Farm. There were Cajun chicken sandwiches and apples from the Belvedere cafeteria and other delicious options in the cafe on the farm. The group then explored the farm and met the animals. There were chickens, ducks, turkeys, cows, horses, dogs, cats, pigs, and even goats. Many of us also got the chance to feed the goats and milk an artificial cow.


- Hunter Hettinger


         After lunch, the tour bus departed from Newgrange Farm to Tara Hills, “The Hills of Irish Royalty.” Our guide showed us monument of St. Patrick, he told us that St. Patrick looked so distinguished in the sculpture because the original one depicted him as a Roman slave, which offended the Irish people. After that, we found a passage burial site from the Neolithic times. It’s name is the mound of the hostages, and it contained prehistoric cremations, a 18th century prince, and the remains of Roman soldiers, the last of which proved that the Irish successfully repelled Roman invasion attempts. Also on Tara Hill lies a rock, that if it speaks to you when you touch it, you are Irish royalty (safe to say that no one on our trip would get any inheritance money).

View from Tara Hill

Entrance to a tomb in Tara Hill



         After we all finished exploring the hill, we descended to Maguire’s book store and coffee shop for some lite shopping and refreshments. The ice cream in particular was a popular choice, topped with a Cadbury Flake bar. After our small break, everyone boarded the bus to return back to Belvedere and our pleasant day the historically rich County Meath.


- Gregory Hamel 












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