Mount Jerome Cemetery

For today’s adventure we’re off to walk along the Dublin grand canal for a bit then turn left down Harold’s cross road to the Mount Jerome cemetery. Looking around the city via satellite photos the other day I noticed a massive different coloured section that looked a large like a trailer park when I zoomed in.  After researching deeper it turns out what I was looking as is a cemetery. Talking to Coone, in Dublin they don’t put you 6 feet under and plant grass. They stick you in a camber, or near the surface then cover your plot in stone slabs or gravel causing the colour.

I wanted to see this massive cemetery in person so I sent Michelle a picture of the satellite images and said “let’s walk here“.  Her answer was a simple ok. Fast forward to now, and we’re almost there. I’m sitting here in a kids play area in Harold’s cross park watching Michelle and the kids play on a wooden pony. Harold’s cross park is a narrow longish triangular park in between the north and a south lanes of Harold’s cross motor way. Our air shipment stuff came last night, now we have 2 kid carrier backpacks.  Khaleesi is on my back and Roxi is on Michelle’s back.

One of our travel issues has been disparity of speed. There’s about 2-3′ of leg difference between Khaleesi and Michelle and I, and loads of differences between the rest of the kids. It’s been a challenge for all of us walk the same speed. Khaleesi tries her best keep up, but she ends up wearing out in the effort than we’re left carrying her.  With a second back pack now Michelle and I can both carry a kid and we should end up as a tighter pack going the same speed on our adventures.

As we started our walk along the grand canal we saw a gentleman fishing in the canal . There is no fish ladder, and most of the locks are a good 10′ high, so I’m not sure how fish would end up in the canal, but oh well, maybe he’s practicing casting. After walking along the water way and looking, surprisingly, we did see some fish; nothing huge, but fish. Now that we’ve seen fish Maddex wants to get a fishing pole and try to catch some the next time we are here.  We’ll have to look for a nice telescoping pole to take with us and look into the laws. Along one of the longer sections of the canal we started to notice number markers at regular intervals. I’ve added working out what they are to the list.

Harolds Cross Park

A short walk down Harolds Cross road and we came to Y in the road with a park in the median. Of course the kids think “park there must be a play ground” – It’s not a large park; I don’t have much confidence in finding one. Khaleesi on my back is now the tallest of the Millfam, she noticed a slide first. Then Maddex saw it and started to run ahead to explore. Kids had fun, mom and dad were able to set our packs down for a bit and rest, most of the park was in the shade, it was a nice break.

Mount Jerome Cemetery

Directly across from the park exit was the entrance to Mount Jerome cemetery, and what an entrance. There was a gentleman in suit and top hat directing people entering the park, at end of the entrance road was a mass of people who appeared to be departing a funeral service and off to our right between some grave stones was a gentleman in full kilt and get up playing funeral music on the bag pipes – wow.

We quietly and slowly walked among the gravels and monuments reading names and dates and taking in the size and history of it. Some of the head stones are so old the words have worn away, others are brand new this month. At one point we walked into a depressed area with doors in the stone walls marked as family vaults. further in we walked into another depressed area with marker stones for cremated remains.

Eventually we came across a newer grave with some toys on the gravel that hit both Michelle and I with some tears. It was a grave site with only a single year on it, because it was a for baby who did not make it their first birthday.

With most things of scale it’s difficult to describe in pictures and words the sheer size. here’s it;s hard to describe the number of head stones, or the feelings they inspire. We walked around for about an hour before making it back to the entrance. At the entrance men in suits and top hats were working to disperse the crowd as another funeral was about to start. The herst was driving down the entrance road followed more cars as we approached. We made out of the way looking for another way out. We did not find one the direction we dodges, instead we waited for the cars to leave and be replaced with new ones, then made our way out the entrance.

From the Cemetery we walked south and west toward the LUAS. We made a quick stop for some drinks and fruit then carried on home. Both Khaleesi and Roxi passed out in the packs for most of the mile and a half walk back. After making it back home we topped off the night with a trip to Dunnes for milk and eggs, then the kids and I walked to work to drop off some work things that came in the air shipment.

More Pictures from the adventure

Massive stone monument