Hill of Tara and other things

I'm just going to write another quick one, to fill in some of the gaps between my first week of classes and my trip to the West.

I started my internship last Monday and it has been GREAT so far! For those of you who don't know, I'm working at an investment management firm called Kinsale Capital Management. The company is really small (3 partners and 4 interns right now), and we all work in the same room together, so I'm getting a lot of contact with the people in charge and therefore learning a lot. We are partnered with UBS, a huge Swiss bank, so we have a very large client base and good connection in the industry. My supervisor is really set on actually giving the interns meaningful work and helping us learn. I have access to some pretty incredible research about financial markets and so I am absorbing a ton of information. It's been really interesting and I'm excited to be spending my summer here.

I continued with classes this week, learning about Charles Stewart Parnell, the uncrowned King of Ireland who fought for independence in the late 19th century, and on Friday we took a class filed trip (it's like I'm in 3rd grade again!) to the Hill of Tara. The Hill of Tara has incredible significance in Irish history, as it was the seat of the ancient kings of Ireland. Situated in County Meath, it contains a variety of historically significant monuments including the Fort of the Kings which surround Lia Fáil (stone of destiny) where the high Kings were crowned. It is believed by many historians that before the Norman invasion in 1169, it was the spiritual and ritual capital of Ireland. There is some debate as to it's actual significance, with many historians arguing that it was more a ritual site than the true seat of the Kings, but it's place in Celtic spiritual history cannot be denied. For this reason, Daniel O'Connell, also known as the Liberator, held one of his monster meetings (peaceful political protest there) in 1843 while fighting for the repeal of the Act of Union. It was also the site of a battle in which the rebellion of 1798 was defeated. There are various other monument there, including a monument to St. Patrick, Mound of the Hostages (an ancient passage tomb, c 2500 BC), and an early Christian Church. Clearly, this place houses a lot of history.

Although the Hill of Tara was very interesting to see, unfortunately we had awful weather which sort of detracted from the experience. Our guide told us that on a clear day, you can see 1/3 or Ireland from the Hill, but it was foggy and rainy for us. Regardless, it was quite beautiful.

Hill of Tara

Monument to St. Patrick

Typical picture of sheep in Ireland

Lia Fáil

Sadly foggy