The Paps of Anu

In this blog post I'm going to tell you about a very special sacred place.
It is described by many pagans as the most sacred place in Ireland. And I am very lucky to live very close to it - The Paps of Anu and The City. It is situated in the eastern part of Co. Kerry, about 15 minutes drive from where I live.

Dhá Chioch Anann or The Paps of Anu, as seen from The City

They are two mountains of equal size resembling the breasts of a woman, with cairns at their peaks. These pre-historic structures, still unexcavated, probably contain miniature passage graves or burial cists, and give the perfect finish as nipples in the top of the breasts.
They were believed to be the breasts of the goddess Anu, or Danu, the mother goddess of Ireland, and the Tuatha de Dannan. This reinforced the belief that earth is the body of the goddess, and Nature is therefore, sacred.
Down by the Paps of Anu is Cathair Crobh Dearg, The City of Shrone, known locally as simply "The City". It is said to have been the first place to be populated in Ireland. It is strongly associated with May Day (Beltaine), and cerimonies are still held in The City today in the first of May. Unfortunately, as for every pagan traditions, it has been taken by christianity, and is now a place of worship for christians. Pagan celebrations are still held in the city, as far as I know.

The holy well and the Paps in the background

There isn't much of the city left today, but remainings of the thick stone wall, a holy well and a cross-inscribed stone altar can still be seen. Dan Cronin, who wrote "In The Shadow of the Paps", a grand book about the city and the paps I still yet have to read, said once:

When you stand in the middle of the Cathair you get great feeling of satisfaction that you’re standing here on one of the most ancient places on earth where religious ceremonies of one kind or another have been enacted for the past six or seven thousand years, without a break…Tell me another place you’ll find that. You’ll find them, all right…but they’re long since broken, the sequence is broken. But not at Cromlech Cathair Crobh Dearg…There is no place in Western Europe more ancient, functioning the same length of time, as Cromlech Cathair Crobh Dearg.

Cross-inscribed stones

I have dedicated this past Winter exploring Sared Ireland. It is a good time of the year to do so, as there are very few edibles to forage for, and outdoors activities are limited. Plus it is the dark time of the year, the time when we honour our ancestors, so it felt just right to visit all these ancient sites. Most of them were stone circles, and I shall gather them in another post, I just thought the Paps deserved a post of its own :)

I hoped you liked it! 

Blessings,

Sara Terrwyn Valentim

Spring Equinox

Happy Spring Equinox/ Ostara to all my friends and readers!

This is the time of perfect balance between night and day, a great time to recconect with ourselves and find the balance within us. It is also a time of joy, the days are lenghtening and the nights are shortening. All of Nature is stirring now, Spring flowers are perfuming the air, the buds are just starting to burst on the trees, and the birds are singing songs of victory over winter. Ah, Spring! It's such a lovely time of the year.

Beautiful daffodils colour the streets, front yards and hedges everywhere

Cowslip just coming into bloom

The ever so graceful periwinkles, in the edge of a forest

And the simple, but always beautiful, primroses. Although they are a common sight everywhere in Ireland, I read that it is rare in the SW. Nevertheless, I found two beautiful bunches so far :) the flowers are edible, and make a perfect last minute adition in salads. During their season, the more you pick, the more it flowers. I'll be back in a few days for another portion.

Wild garlic and Nettles (above) made a delicious soup (below)

And young shoots of water mint are just starting to grow in the forest.

That's it for today. Wish you all a lovely Spring Equinox, and exciting new begginings <3

Love,

~ Sara Terrwyn Valentim ~

Walking the Old Path

Greetings brothers and sisters!

I've decided to start writing a blog, something I've been meaning to do for a long time.
I intend to use it as a tool to share things with ye all. To share knowledge, to share inspiration, and to share my travels and adventures in this beautiful island.
Many of you might know me already either personally or from social networks, but for those who don't, or do but still don't have a clue about who I am:
My name is Sara Valentim Oliveira, I use mainly Sara Valentim, or Sara Terrwyn Valentim. Valentim is my mother's maiden name, and I prefer the sound and uniqueness of it. Terrwyn is a name I "adopted" from Gaelic (welsh), prior to coming to Ireland, it means brave and my own name "Valentim" is kind of similar (if not related) to the portuguese word for brave (valente). I liked the name, and again the sonority, and the way it is written.
I am 22 Springs, will be 23 this Spring, and I always followed an artistic path, from drawing and painting, throught crafts (I owned an jewelry Etsy shop with handmade jewelry called Miriel), to photography and video.

The last picture taken of me,
admiring the beauty of the mountains and lake
in Killarney, co. Kerry

I am originally from Portugal but I moved into Ireland in Spring 2013. I came here seeking a dream, inspiration a better and natural living, close to Nature's heart. I live in the beautiful county Kerry, surrounded by forests and mountains, where I go and explore every time I have a chance.
I also love my home country, from which I mainly miss the good food and wine, the good weather, the traditional crafts, and the wild beautiful north, where my roots are.
But Ireland has fascinated me since I was a kid. It began with the traditional irish music and dance when I was a young teen, something in me awakened with it, as if I knew it from another life. Then my passion expanded to the celtic culture, traditions and paganism. Coming from a very busy and overpopulated city, I fell in love with the wild untamed paradise that is Ireland.

Walking the old path means to go back to more simple times. A time when we were in balance with Nature, when we used to understand it, nurtutre it, feel its rythms, celebrate its Seasons, worship the rivers, the trees. When we used to see the power of medicinal plants and use them to cure our ailments, when we respected the powers and spirits of the land and listened to them.

We are fortunate to live in such a time, in the age of information, when we can have access to any information just from a click. We no longer have to live in ignorance, unless we choose to. We are living in a time of change, and people are beggining to realize what we've been doing to the planet in the past century. It is time to go back, to understand what we need and what we don't. And to understand that the great mother Nature is capable of giving us all of what we need.

This blog will narrate my journey through the old path, and into a more natural sustainable living. It will mainly cover the following topics: foraging and using our native edibles for food or medicine (something I am just still starting to learn, and I'll be recording my findings here); permaculture and gardening; seasonal celebrations; my hikes and trips; impressions of Nature; spirituality; art, and anything I find useful to share with ye. :) Unfortunately, I've never considered me self a good writer (perhaps this blog could even help a bit), so it will probably consist of mainly photos I take and some brief informations if I'm not feeling very inspired to write. But as I said, I hope this can even help me to express myself better.

Thank you to all of ye who read it until the end, I hope you stick around, it will certainly give me more motivation to write as well :) please let me know what you think and give some feedback in the comments. I will love to hear from you.

Blessings,

Sara Terrwyn Valentim