Our Irish Roots
The Falls, West Cork
Mary was born in Skibbereen, a small village in Cork, near the most southern coast of Ireland. The beautiful countryside and peaceful nature of Ireland makes it a natural location to create a relaxing and renewing retreat.
During her childhood Mary would walk down the small one lane road from her house, hopping back and forth over the grass growing up the middle of the street, until the soft rumbling of The Falls could be heard. Crossing a small stone bridge with clear water rushing cheerfully down the stream, she would come to a small gap between the stone of the bridge and the briar bushes which line edges of the street. Slipping through the small gap and winding her way between trees and sliding down a leaf covered slope, she would find herself suddenly overlooking The Falls. One of the most peaceful spots around her house, the trees and bushes hid this natural marvel from outside eyes. Mary would bring her schoolbooks and study for hours listening to the soft rush of the water over the rocks and watching the stream as it frothed over The Falls. Throughout her childhood and early adulthood, The Falls would become Mary’s peaceful retreat. Her special hideaway from the hustle and bustle of growing up on a working, family run dairy farm. The soothing flow of the water and the gentle fluttering of the leaves in the wind would sooth away her exam jitters and focus her mind on her goals and aspirations.
Years later, on a trip back from the States where she was living her dream of being a nurse, Mary found herself back at her peaceful retreat. Early on the day before their flight home, Mary’s boyfriend knelt on the soft leaves above The Falls and beneath the trees which had offered her shade and quiet as a child, he asked her to marry him.
During my childhood I would push open the silver gate of my grandmother’s house and race my brother and sister down the same small one lane road. I would skip and hop over the green grass and small flowers which grew in the middle of the street. I would find the small gap between the stone of the bridge and the strange briars which, in my mind, only grew in this magical place known as Ireland. Squeezing through, I would slide my way down the leaf covered slope until I reached the source of the soft rumbling you could hear from the road. The Falls became the one place I would always want to visit. That small gap between the bridge and the briars was like a portal to another world. Anything was possible after stepping off the road and my sister and I would play for hours, imagining we were adventurers or heroes in a fantasy story.
The magic and beauty of Ireland is well known by everyone who visits its shores. Places and memories like The Falls are the reasons we have chosen Cork as the location for Harmonies of the Emerald Isle. Everywhere you turn, even down a seemingly normal country road there is beauty and magic in a country like Ireland. Sharing these places, the ones that only someone born and raised in Ireland would know, is a goal of the retreat. It is more than just a vacation in one of the most beautiful countries in the world. Harmonies of the Emarald Isle is an experience of an ancient land, led by those who grew up there and who know its hidden mysteries and gems.
Happy Adventures