Day 16 - Michael Cusack Heritage Centre

 

Michael Cusack Heritage Centre

The weather was looking more promising today, so it was time for another little excursion. I had a conversation with Marie and Patrick last night, and they both suggested a visit to the Michael Cusack Heritage Centre in Carron, in the Burren

Map from Lahinch to Michael Cusack Heritage Centre

It was only a short little journey and the weather mostly behaved itself - overcast but not raining!

So, why would I visit this centre...??

To understand why the people from County Clare value this place, you have to understand the sports ethic of the Irish people. They are all deeply invested in many sports, but particularly in Gaelic football and also hurling, both of which come under the banner of the GAA (Gaelic Athletics Association). They are just as fanatical about their sports as we are about our footy and cricket. As I explained the other day about the flags they fly, they support their teams proudly and passionately, just as much as the crazy football followers are doing in Australia atm  (and those here in Ireland!!)

County Clare won the all Ireland final in Hurling  last year and the whole county was delirious! 

So there's a whole background to the GAA which involves the British rule, the Protestants and the Catholics, and the Irish Famine and all sorts of other influences which I won't go into here.

If you would like to learn more about the background, follow this link

https://michaelcusack.ie/the-legacy-of-michael-cusack/

I started my tour with the help of Agnes, my personal tour guide! There were not many people visiting on a Tuesday morning!!! She was lovely and explained where things were, then later added to Michael's story.

It started in the display room with many poster boards which were quite informative....

Basically they tell the story of how he grew up in the Burren in the family home.

Family home

His father was a shepherd who had the big bonus of not having to pay rent to the landlord, but was given his house at no cost - but then didn't receive a wage. But he was give an small plot of land where he could grow some crops or tend some animals.

Michael grew up as an intelligent student and eventually became a teacher - a profession where he was very successful.

But apart from teaching, his passion was for sports of all kinds. He was concerned because organised sport was run by an elitist group who discouraged sport on Sundays - the only day off for the working class. So, together with some others, he formed the GAA which became very successful. 

He later had a falling out with the committee and was ousted, but his legacy still lives on.

Obviously there's a whole lot more to the story, but feel free to google him or just use the link above.

In his house they had some audio visual displays etc...

Inside his house

Typical school room scene of the time

Post Office scene

Then outside they had a grove of ash trees representing the 4 provinces in Ireland. Clare is part of Munster.

Ash grove of trees

Munster

There was also a special tree for County Clare

County Clare Tree

The next thing of interest was the statue of the Puca...

The Puca statue

AI describes the Puca as follows..

An Púca is a mischievous, shape-shifting spirit from Irish folklore, often appearing as a dark, wild horse to trick people into a wild ride, but also known to take other animal or hybrid forms. This solitary, and mysterious being is associated with the autumn harvest and Samhain (Halloween), a time when the veil between worlds thins. While some tales depict the Púca as a trickster, others describe it as a benevolent helper who might offer protection or good fortune

Along side this was a fairy trail with various places to stop and read about different aspects of the fairies..

Here's just a couple of pics to illustrate this trail

Dummy tree

Dummy tree

Tooth Fairy

Tooth Fairy

So that was my interesting and informative morning, spent at the Michael Cusack Heritage Centre.

I stopped at the beach on the way home. The sea is a lot calmer than yesterday - as is the wind! But it still could raise a pretty good swell..

The Atlantic Ocean today

The Atlantic Ocean today

There's  something beautiful about that ocean... it changes daily and it always worth a pic or two! 

At least today I wasn't blown away and I could hold the camera steady!

What beautiful way to finish off my day out!