Alexander Ireland Pilgrimage 10 days

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Created: 26.02.2016

Thursday, September 22 - Day 1 - DEPART USA - We depart Charleston and Pittsburgh to connect with our overnight flight to the Emerald Isle. We enjoy in-flight movies, dinner and breakfast aloft. Friday, September 23 - Day 2 ??? DUBLIN ??? This morning, we arrive in Dublin where we are met by our Unitours driver/guide who will remain with us for the duration of our pilgrimage.  We begin by celebrating a private Mass at Our Lady Queen of Heaven, followed by a real Irish breakfast. This afternoon we tour Dublin, including a visit to Trinity College, to view the Book of Kells. We stop at St. Patrick???s Cathedral, which stands adjacent to the famous well, where Saint Patrick baptized the converts on his visit to Dublin. Time permitting; we briefly stop by the Whitefriar Carmelite Church to view the relic of St Valentine. We continue to our hotel for dinner and overnight.  Saturday, September 24 - Day 3 ??? BELFAST ??? Today after breakfast we travel to Belfast. We enjoy a panoramic tour ending at the famous St. Malachy church where we celebrate Mass. We continue to the Titanic museum- a salute to Belfast???s maritime heritage.  After exploring the shipyard where the ill-fated ship was built, we will uncover the true legend of the Titanic.  After some free time for lunch we depart for the Giants Causeway- one of the most spectacular natural spots in the world and a UNESCO world heritage site.  Dinner and overnight Armagh- the City on Seven Hills with two Cathedrals.  Sunday, September 25 - Day 4 ??? ARMAGH ??? We awaken in Armagh, the spiritual capital of Ireland for 1500 years, famous for its two St Patricks??? cathedrals, Anglican and Catholic.  We will celebrate Mass with the locals at the imposing St. Patrick???s Roman Catholic Cathedral.   The interior is almost Byzantine; every piece of wall and ceiling are covered in colored mosaics. After, we will enjoy a walking tour of the Anglican St. Patrick???s Cathedral. We continue to County Down and pass by Saul Church, Ireland???s first Church.  We enjoy a photo stop at the beautiful and tranquil ruins of Inch Abbey, where the Cistercian Order used to lead a strict communal life of worship, study and communal labor.  Nowadays, Inch Abbey is one of the filming locations of Game of Thrones.  We also enjoy a quick photo stop at Down Cathedral, a former Benedictine Monastery, where according to tradition; the remains of St Patrick, St Brigid and St Columba are buried in a common graveyard outside the Cathedral. Return to hotel for dinner and overnight.  Monday, September 26  - Day 5 ??? KNOCK/GALWAY/ BANQUET ??? This morning we visit the famous Knock Shrine, an internationally recognized Marian shrine and important pilgrimage center. Knock Shrine is renowned as a site of visions, apparitions and miraculous cures.  In August 1879, fifteen people witnessed the apparition of the Blessed Mother, St Joseph and St John the Evangelist at the south gable of the Knock parish church.  St Pope John Paul II visited Knock in 1979, during the centenary of the apparition.  We celebrate Mass here. We continue to Galway, a city in Ireland???s west coast. We have a brief panoramic tour of its delightful narrow streets, old stone and wooden shop fronts, Spanish Arch, the 19th century Eyre Square, the Latin Quarter and Lynch???s Castle.  Beside the castle is the Collegiate Church of St. Nicholas, Galway???s finest medieval building and where Christopher Columbus is said to have prayed before setting sail for the Americas. Enjoy some free time to explore the city. Tonight we will partake in a real Medieval Banquet! Overnight in Limerick.  Tuesday, September 27  - Day 6 ??? CLIFFS OF MOHER/ LIMERICK ??? Today we visit the Burren region and start our day at Rathbaun Farm for a tour and morning coffee. We continue to the Cliffs of Moher celebrating Mass en route at St. John the Baptist church. The Cliffs of Moher, situated in the Atlantic ocean, boasts one of the most amazing views in Ireland.  On a clear day, the Aran Islands are visible in Galway Bay as well as the valleys and hills of Connemara. We visit O??? Brien Tower, north of the Cliff???s highest point, then the Atlantic Edge, its exciting new interpretive centre. We pass the Burren National Park, a unique place with limestone pavements, myriads of wild flora, megalithic tombs and Celtic crosses as well as a ruined Cistercian Abbey dating back to the 12th century. We enjoy a stop at Bunratty Folk Park and visit the magnificent Holy Well of St. Brigid where testimonies to lost loved ones fills your spirit with hope.  We return to Limerick for dinner and overnight.  Wednesday, September 28 - Day 7 ??? BLARNEY/THURLES ??? Today we are off to County Cork. Our first stop is Blarney Castle, where we have the option of kissing the Barney Stone and acquiring the gift of eloquence!  We will visit Blarney Castle and take our time touring the grounds. Afterwards, we continue to Thurles and check into our hotel to freshen up, then depart for a private Mass at Holycross Abbey. Tonight we dine at Chez Hans! Overnight in Thurles.  Thursday, September 29 - Day 8 ??? WATERFORD ??? We start our day with a visit to the Waterford Viking Triangle, a part of the cultural and heritage area in Waterford City. It is so called because of the 1000-year-old Viking walls which once surrounded it. We enjoy some free time for enjoying the House of Waterford Crystal and the surrounding area.  The Rock of Cashel is our next destination. Known more formally as St. Patrick???s Rock, it is hailed as the site of the conversion of Aenghus, the King of Munster; by St. Patrick is the 5th century. We celebrate a private Mass in the Cathedral of Assumption. Dinner and overnight Thurles.  Friday, September 30 - St. Jerome - Day 9 ??? KILDARE/ DUBLIN ??? Today we depart for Kildare. We celebrate Mass upon arrival and visit the spiritual center Solas Bhride. We encounter the legends of St. Brigid and their relevance to current day. We proceed to Walk in the Footsteps of St. Brigid around Kildare, before boarding our motor coach and heading toward r Dublin. We stop at St Kevin???s parish at the Glendalough Monastic site.  It was here that St. Kevin, son of royalty and one of Ireland???s most popular Saints founded a monastery in the 6th century which later became a famous center of learning throughout Europe. St Kevin???s has attracted pilgrims and those with vocations to religious life.  We continue to Dublin where we enjoy dinner with entertainment at Merry Ploughboy???s Pub or similar. Overnight in Dublin.   Saturday, October 1 - Day 10 ??? RETURN USA ??? Today we enjoy our last hearty Irish breakfast and then head for the airport for our flight home. We will carry the stories of the Saints and the beauty of the Emerald Isle in our hearts forever- and, of course we will have the gift of eloquence!