Cong is King

Oodles of light, what a beautiful sight
Both of God's eyes are shining tonight
Rays and beams of incredible dreams
And I am a quiet man

- a Quiet Man by John Prine

Quite unexpectedly and not part of an "official" itinerary, we stumbled upon the magical town of Cong in County Mayo.  It provided us with an incredible stroll through the ruins of the Royal Abbey, a visit to St. Mary of the Rosary Catholic Church, and a walk around the pathways behind the Abbey Ruins.  We would have loved to explored the miles of trails off the ruins, but alas, other destinations of the day beckoned.

Cong Abbey is also know as the Royal Abbey of Cong, and is a historic site in this County Mayo town of Cong in Ireland's province of Connacht.  The ruins of this former Augustinian Abbey mostly date back to the 13th century and have been described as featuring some of finest examples of medieval ecclesiastical architecture in Ireland.

We couldn't resist posing by the cloisters.  And because this is a family blog, we'll avoid the inappropriate puns.

My love

Can't explain how wondrous it is to come upon ruins such as these in the middle of a rural community, with little to no warning,  To see them still standing after all these centuries is inspirational, and something to behold.

At one point in time, the Abbey was home to about 3,000 occupants

It is also the location where Rory O’Connor, Ireland’s last High King, died.

We stopped also at the Monk's Fishing House, below, where, appropriately enough, there were some casters on this glorious summer day.

The Monk's Fishing House on the River Cong was built sometime between the 15th and 16th centuries and, as the name suggests, was used by the monks of Cong Abbey for fishing.

This small house is built right on the river, on a platform of stones. There is a trapdoor in the floor leading to the flowing river beneath, where the monks would use a net to catch the fish. Not only were the monks sheltered from the everchanging weather, but the remains of a fireplace shows that the monks were also kept warm while they fished. It is thought that there was a line strung from the fishing house to a bell in the kitchen of the abbey. With a tug on the line, the cooks would know there would be fish for supper.

A fun fact, already known by many of you, but Cong was the setting for much of the 1952 movie the Quiet Man, a 1952 American rom-com drama directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara.  This fact was news to me, but quickly reinforced by the amount of Quiet Man memorabilia round the town center, including a museum, cafe, and this statue depicting an iconic scene in the movie. The statue depicts the characters of Mary Kate Danaher and John Thornton from the film, which netted Ford the Academy Award for Best Director.

I think we were channeling our own John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, swept up in the romance of the village and the unforgettable ruins,

Wanted to reenact the movies iconic scene, but Jackie was worried she wouldn't be able to pick me up

Thanks for a fabulous detour, Cong!  Not the 8th Wonder of the World, as Carl Denham would have hawked, but pretty damn impressive, nonetheless!