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Jerpoint Abbey – Thomastown, County Kilkenny, Leinster Province, Ireland – Favourite Monasteries
Founded in the 12th century, Jerpoint Abbey is one of the best examples of a medieval Cistercian Abbey in Ireland. The architectural styles within the church, constructed in the late twelfth century, reflect the transition from Romanesque to Gothic architecture. The tower and cloister date to the fifteenth century. Jerpoint Abbey is famous for its detailed stone sculptures found throughout the monastery. Dating from the thirteenth to the sixteenth centuries…
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Kinalehin Friary Ruins- National Monument, County Galway, Connacht Province, Ireland – Favourite Monasteries
Kinalehin Friary, Ireland’s only Carthusian monastery was founded between 1249 and 1256 by John de Colgan of the Order of St. Bruno. The Carthusians had a very contemplative way of life, the daily activities were mainly praying and spiritual reading. The main supporter of this religious Order was Richard Óg de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster and 3rd Baron of Connaught, also called the Red Earl, but when Richard, tired…
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Saint John’s Monastery – Chora, Patmos, Greece – Favourite Monasteries
The monastery of Saint John the Theologian is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and known for its Cave of the Apocalypse, where Saint John was said to have dictated the Book of Revelation to his disciple. The monastery is also known for its beautiful polygonal structure, complete with crenellations and towers. Beautiful Monastery set on The Isle of Patmos, Greece Different people, cultures, traditions and landscapes, the destination is transcendent.…
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Arkadi Monastery – Rethymno, Crete – Favourite Monasteries
Arkadi is the most historic monastery of Crete and has become the most sacred symbol of the struggle of the Cretans for liberation. The tragic Battle of 1866 opened the way for the liberation of the island in 1898. UNESCO has designated Arkadi as a historic site. The Monastery picture above is arguably the best-known monastery on Crete due to the Holocaust of 1866. However, its location and striking architecture…
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Amboseli or Hell’s Gate National Park – Kenya
Hell’s Gate National Park is named after a narrow break in the cliffs. Once believed to be a tributary of a prehistoric lake that fed early humans in the Rift Valley. It received the name “Hell’s Gate” by explorers Fisher and Thomson in 1883 for the intense geothermal activity within its boundaries, the outlet of a prehistoric freshwater lake, which once stretched all the way to Nakuru. Hell’s Gate National…
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Ruwenzori or Rwenzori Range or Ptolemy’s “Mountains of the Moon” Uganda – Ruwenzori Mountain National Park – Favorite Parks
Rwenzori range in central Africa, on the border between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo between Lakes Edward and Albert sometimes called Ptolemy’s “Mountains of the Moon,” the highest peak, Mount Stanley is 5109 meters or 16,763 ft. The name “Mountains of the Moon” came from European explorers associating the Ruwenzori with the legendary Mountains of the Moon, claimed by the Greek scholar Ptolemy to be the source…
Favourite Haunts
Favorite Haunts blogsite offers a look at traditional travel, and exploration sites and perhaps new ones.
