Lisa Daly, Peg Prendeville with grandchildren Noah, Ayda and Riain at Le Mont Saint Michel in France
By Peg Prendeville
I have returned from a two week holiday on the west coast of France, near Saint-Jean-de-Monts. Travelling with my daughter and her husband and children it was my 1st experience of a camping holiday – in a mobile home, not a tent – and I enjoyed it very much. The weather was most agreeable, being around 20 or 21 degrees most days. We had rain on one day which changed the colour of everything including the humours of all but it was only one day. The children loved the amenities which included playground, pool, sandpit and nearby beach but we adults took little trips to nearby towns and tourist attractions also so everybody was happy. The ferry crossing on the Oscar Wilde was pleasant on the departure journey but not too nice on the return journey. A storm was blowing and the sea was very choppy. Not something I would look forward to again. The highlight of the holiday for me was our visit to Le Mont Saint Michel in Normandy on the last day before we came home. UNESCO classed the Mont Saint Michel as a world heritage attraction in 1979 and this Mecca of tourism welcomes more than three million visitors a year. Curiously most of the tourists are Japanese as was the case on the day we visited.
This remarkable mediaeval walled city, crowned by its great gothic abbey dedicated to Archangel Michael, is built on a small granite outcrop standing all by itself in the flats of the estuary of the river Couesnon, in an area now known as Mont Saint Michel bay. Le Mont Saint Michel is not just a church on a rock; it is a whole mediaeval city, one of the few places in France to have preserved intact its mediaeval walls and defences. It is a most interesting place full of history, just two hours from Cherbourg.
While I was gone the County Fleadh Ceóil was held in Glin and from what I hear was an outstanding success. Well done to all the organisers. There is a rumour that it might be held again next year but we wait and see.
I also missed the Mission in Ballyhahill Church but heard positive comments about it.
Congratulations to Aileen Gallagher who celebrated her 30th birthday in Knockdown last Saturday night. Aren’t we lucky to have the Knockdown Arms for all these celebrations. Aileen was born the year it was built as it is 30 years since it opened in 1985. Well done to Ta and Ita for the idea and the courage to build it up from scratch. Long may it continue to be a success.
Well done also to Jack O’Grady, who, at 91 years of age, has planted his garden of vegetables and tends to it daily. It is lovely to see it.
Shauna Long and Sarah Prendeville, together with college friends, are spending the summer working in Myrtle Beach South Carolina, USA. We wish them a happy, safe summer.