From Tara to Takeoff: One Last Irish Adventure

We said good-bye to Temple House today. What an amazing week we had. After I get home and get some rest, I’ll be sharing more.

By the way, you might not have realized that the only rain we had ALL WEEK was a bit of drizzle during our first day in Dublin. But I guess Ireland wanted to be sure we experience the real Irish weather. This morning is bleak and drizzly with dark clouds forming above. Oh well. We had a good run!

Today we took off at 9:00 back towards Dublin. We took a short coffee break and then it was off to lunch at the Hill of Tara.

I had already decided I wouldn’t be climbing the hill to see the monuments. 1) rain 2) stupidly not wearing my new waterproof Vessis (Of course I don’t wear them the day it rains!)

Anyway we had a great lunch, checked out the gift shop, and a cozy old book shop. Then…

The sun came out!! No more rain!!

So I ended up walking through the fields with my black leather Camper Girl flats careful to avoid, as my mom would say, the muck and mire.

Here’s some info on what we saw.

The Hill of Tara in County Meath isn’t just a grassy rise—it’s where Ireland’s High Kings were crowned, and where myth and history still overlap.

A Celtic cross marks the site’s enduring sacredness, layered over centuries of belief and tradition.

The Lia Fáil, or Stone of Destiny, was said to cry out when touched by the rightful king. Standing before it, you can almost hear echoes of those ancient ceremonies.

The Mound of the Hostages—a 4,000-year-old passage tomb—holds carvings that connect Tara to Ireland’s deep Neolithic past. Step inside, and you step back millennia.

The Rath na Ríogh, or Fort of the Kings, is the great ceremonial enclosure. From here, rulers would have looked out across half of Ireland—a fitting backdrop for power.

Tara isn’t flashy or polished. But standing on its windswept summit, you feel why this place mattered: a landscape where kingship, ritual, and legend all converged.

I made my way back to bus even though I couldn’t really see where I was going! The wind was whipping and my eyes were watering, fogging up my glasses!

Just before we pulled away, Lynn asked how many of us were heading to the airport area for the night. Everyone was! So it was decided that instead of driving into Dublin proper, the driver would bring us to the airport and we could all go to our next destination from there. It was a win-win for everyone. We didn’t have to pay a taxi for a 30 minute ride to the hotel (which is next to the airport) and the driver didn’t have to deal with the craziness of Dublin. If you’re not aware, there is a big NFL game being played there tomorrow, and the city is crazy busy! So we were happy to avoid it.

We head home tomorrow, early afternoon. It’s been a great trip but I’ll be happy to be home. And of course… back to writing about Catherine!