I first visited Ireland in 1993 and one of the most moving experiences was visiting the Boyne Valley, and in particular, Newgrange. This morning on the Solstice, a shaft of light would have crawled it’s way up the main passage to illuminate a burial chamber at the back of the mound. This will continue to happen for thousands of years.

Lisa was lucky enough to have been in the passage tomb before it became such a popular tourist spot, and the Solstice an event mainly for dignitaries and those willing to be put on a waiting list.

Update: The 2006 Winter Solstice Draw took place on the 29th of September, there were 27,485 applications. Application forms are now available at the Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre for the 2007 Winter Solstice Draw.

Interestingly, Sligo, as I may have mentioned before, has the largest concentration of megalithic monuments in the whole of Ireland. That is quite an accomplishment, considering the wealth of megalithic history per square inch.

The site we created as an on-line exhibition is still up, and pretty good for the web of 1996. (It’s actually one of the few sites still optimised for my dial-up viewing experience!)

I was listening to an interesting radio program discussing the transition to Christian religions and how celebrations were purposefully aligned with existing pagan celebrations. Happy Solstice.