Dallas to Shannon - It's a long way!

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We left our home in Lancaster, TX on Saturday morning, 3rd June, and arrived Shannon Airport Sunday morning, 4th June. Even taking the time difference into consideration, our journey was still long - about 12 hours actual flying time. We arrived tired and hungry, so our first goal after collecting our rental car was to find something to eat. We drove in to Limerick City, thinking there would be plenty of choices, but found the town closed up - apparently the Catholics in Ireland take their Sabbath more seriously than their counterparts in America! Even McDonald's and Burger King were closed!

So..... onward Christian soldiers, to our first destination.

Glenstal Abbey

Glenstal Abbey Website

This was the perfect place to rest after our long journey. Glenstal is a Benedictine monastery located just about an hour's drive from Shannon, 12 miles east of Limerick City. The 500 acre grounds are beautifully landscaped - some by nature, some as a working farm, and all as a marvelous reflection of the bounty and wonder of God's creation.

When we arrived, the 40 or so monks in residence and several visitors were at morning Mass, so we walked around the grounds and found a quiet place to sit by a koi pond while we waited. In due time, Father Ambrose, the Guestmaster for the Abbey, greeted us and showed us to our room. Glenstal facilities include a new Guest House with all the modern conveniences. (Read more about the Guest House on the Glenstal website.) Tim and I were happy to have our first cup of tea with some delicious brown bread and real butter. Then we had plenty of time to relax, unpack, nap, then shower before evening Vespers. Tim and I are Presbyterian, so the service would have been foreign to us anyway, but add in the fact that Vespers are chanted in Latin at Glenstal, and you can imagine that this was a mysterious liturgy for us. But for me, the mystery and the beauty of the music seemed an entirely appropriate reflection of God.

After Vespers, we took our evening meal with the monks and with others staying in the Guest House, including two nuns who looked not just like Sisters, but actually like they could be identical twin sisters. Since the meals are taken in silence at Glenstal, we didn’t have the opportunity to ask about their relationship, or about anything else, for that matter. Before Tim and I left home, some who know me best asked how in the world I would be able to sit through an entire meal in silence, as I am not known for my reticence in speaking. (Many would say that’s the understatement of the year.) But I actually enjoyed the quiet of both the meal and of the whole place in general; I found it very calming and restorative, especially after our air travel, which is anything but calming these days.

The Abbott of Glenstal is a most gracious host, and after our evening meal, he took us on a tour of the estate. Lucky for me, he is very knowledgeable about the native flora, and was very happy to answer my numerous questions. Not so lucky for me, I couldn’t get film loaded into my camera, so I don’t have any photos from Glenstal. Just wonderful memories. There is a nice photo of the Norman castle at Glenstal on the website of the Glenstal Abbey School, but that's only a small part of the beauty of the place.

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Photos

The Family Taff
This photo has nothing to do with our actual travel but shows why we're always glad to come home again.