Iona

Kevin here.  One of side trips that we were most looking forward to during our time in Scotland was to the island Of Iona.

According to legend, the monk Columba landed on Iona in 563, bringing Christianity with him from Ireland, and forming a monastery.  It's also possible that the Book of Kells was at least partially written here.  Iona has long been thought to be a remote, mysterious, and spiritual place.  Because of that, many of the greatest Kings of Scotland, upon their deaths, had their bodies transported out to Iona for burial.

Today, Iona Abbey -- built in 1203! -- stands in roughly the same place as the Columba's monastery.  It's a beautiful place and we couldn't wait to see it.  But getting there requires some work.

Our day began by taking a ferry from the port town of Oban on the western coast of Scotland to the Isle of Mull in the Inner Hebrides.  To give us more freedom, we decided to take our rental car.  Car ferry!  A first for us!

Our CalMac ferry arrives to pick us (and our car) up.

Getting us and our car on board was much easier than expected.  And so we were ready to go!

On the ferry.  Adventure awaits on distant Scottish Islands!

While the kids kept themselves entertained with iPod Touch games and taking pictures with cameras....

Deeply engaged in... uh... Scottish folklore, I'm sure.

... Kelly and I were taking in the scenery during the 45-minute ferry trip.  The highlight was the ancient Castle Duart, built in the 1600's, and the ancestral home of the Maclean clan.  It was rather spooky site, frankly.  It cuts an imposing figure in the deep mist of western Scotland.

Ancient Duart Castle, ominously guarding the Isle of Mull.

When you arrive, you find yourself on the eastern side of the Isle of Mull.  But Iona is on the western side.  So... time for me to drive again on the left side of the road!  I was expecting a leisurely drive (not a whole lot of people venture into the western Scottish Islands in March -- for good reason).  Instead... I get 1 1/2 hours on a one-lane road.  It was quite an adventure.  But I'll leave that for another blog post.

After the long drive, we arrived at the far western end of the Isle of Mull at a small -- very small -- seaside village called Fionnphort (pronounced finn-a-fort), population 70.  Fionnphort is so small that apparently its primary source of income is charging people to use the toilet.

Really?  A turnstile?

From Fionnphort, you have to take another ferry -- a short one, about 10 minutes, for foot passengers only -- to the small Island of Iona.

Kevin and the kids disembark from the foot ferry at Iona.

The Abbey is a short 10 minute walk from where the ferry lands on Iona.  On the way, we stop at the ruins of an old Augustinian Nunnery built in the 13th century.  The kids got to run around a bit after being cooped up in the car and on the ferry.  Anna in particular seemed to enjoy exploring the ruins.

Anna amid the stone walls of the nunnery.

Anna finds the bones of a nun a flower.

A few minutes past the nunnery, you finally come to Iona Abbey.  It was a gorgeous day on Iona which allowed for some wonderful images.  It was crisp, cold, and windy.  But the sky was blue and white, a sharp contrast to the dark grey mist that shrouded us on our journey to the place.  I don't think you could have asked for a more perfect day on Iona in March.  Click on the images below to enlarge:

The Abbey, approaching by the foot from the road.

The Abbey with the Isle of Mull in the distance.

Out in front of the Abbey we were treated by some of my favorite christian imagery: ancient celtic crosses.  The first one is a replica of St. John's cross.  The original (from the 8th century!) is in the Abbey's museum and consists of several large fragments.  The story goes that the original creators of St. John's cross were too ambitious and built the horizontal pieces of the cross too large.  So the left and right side of the cross fell off.  To repair the cross, they added the circular pieces as support.  The rest is history as the design began to be copied throughout the region.

A replica of St. John's Cross.

Not too far away is St. Martin's cross.  This is the original from the 9th century!  We were stunned to see how well preserved it is!  It's a beautiful piece and moving to see.

The original St. Martin's cross from the 9th century.

Frankly, the kids were acting pretty goofy at this point.  So, Kelly and I took turns exploring the Abbey -- which still houses an active congregation -- individually on our own.  We took the kids in a bit later.  On our excursion into the Abbey, we first encountered a beautiful courtyard, composed of elaborate stone arches.  Also in the Abbey are dozens of ancient grave markers.

The courtyard of the Abbey.

Moving into the Abbey itself, we encountered more beautiful stone and one of the most beautiful wooden ceilings we've ever seen.

Inside the Abbey.  An active congregation worships here.

We are also amazed by this hand-carved stone pulpit.  A stunningly intricate piece, covered in early christian iconography.

The pulpit in Iona Abbey.

Amazing place.  On the path from the Abbey back towards the ferry, you encounter a fascinating addendum to it all -- a cemetery  Below is a picture of Reilig Odhrain.  This is the "graveyard of kings."  The abbey cemetery contains the graves of many early Scottish kings -- and a few Norwegian and Irish kings as well -- including the real Macbeth (Mac Bethad mac Findlaich).  It's a fascinating place to wander for a bit, although almost all of the ancient gravesite inscriptions are worn away and no longer identifiable.

Reilig Odhrain, the graveyard of kings.

It was a great day and a great trip.  I would like to say that we had a deeply spiritual experience at Iona.  While it was, in fact, an amazing place to go, I must say that having 3 kids with you does not lend itself to intense spiritual reflection, prolonged or otherwise. :-)  Nevertheless, it was a moving experience, no matter how brief.  Iona is high on our list of places to return to someday.

Daniel & Justin as we await our ferry back to Oban.