Following on from the receipt of a surprise invitation: a first for our group; to attend an event outside the boundaries of the Learning Forum, ten Ramblers travelled to Belderrig Creative Community Events Centre, to listen to local Belderrig man, Tommy Maloney, sing and play Guitar, with musicians from other locations blending in on Uilleann Pipes, Accordion and Hammered Dulcimer.
Read MoreThursday night last, September 19th, flew by for the Ramblers in a haze of laughter and banter, blended together by the aroma of essential oils.
The Bowen Technique Workshop demonstration given by Mary Loftus, introduced us briefly to the seven essential oils: Lavender; Peppermint, Tee Tree, Eucalyptus, Lemon, Frankincnse and Rosemary, which are used to improve both mental and physical health.
Mary then demonstrated the Bowen Therapy on the many willing volunteers, both male and female...
Read MoreSaint Sister and Bono’s rendition of the documentary’s soundtrack “Women of the World”, created a relaxing ambience for the Moygownagh’s Ramblers contingent, who arrived at Ballina’s IMC Cinema on Monday night last, to view Mrs Robinson: A presentation which, in her own words, tells of Mary Robinson’s life achievements.
After viewing the documentary and reading several of Mrs Robinson’s interviews, given over many years: I have reached the conclusion that she always planned to succeed in whichever career path, be it law; politics, women’s rights or environmental issues she chose to follow. No one was going to stand in her way of reaching her ultimate objective.
Read MoreResulting from the Summer Vacation, taken by the members of Moygownagh's Rambling House Group, the Ramblers were free to roam around to cultural events that were of an interest to them personally.
Today: I found my little niche event; a visit to the Cultural and Civic Centre, Crossmolina to view the photographic exhibition, "Tom Wood - A 50 Year Retrospective" became my destination.
Read MoreFinally, after much anticipation and preparation, Monday July the 8th, arrived bright, dry, with sunshine, but is now slowly slipping beneath a western sky. Many thanks to the twelve ramblers who travelled along the road trip route, for turning everyone's day into an enjoyable event.
The Barony of Erris, set along the Wild Atlantic Way, is a stunningly beautiful area of North Mayo, with many historical sights, such as the Lighthouses, St. Deirbhile's Well, in Fallmore townland as well as the newly opened Solas visitors Centre in the North Mayo Gaeltacht Village of Aghleam…
Read MoreConcluding on from a lively debate, the Rambling House Group put forward the following list of interesting places to visit during the Summer. One place will be selected in the near future. 1. Solas and St. Deirbhile's Well, Aghleam. 2. National Museum of Country Life, Tourlough Park. 3. Foxford Wollen Mills. 4. Michael Davitt Museum, Strade. 5. Achill Island. Which one is it going to be?
Read MoreMoygownagh Ramblers lived up to their name on Thursday evening last, as they boarded Anthony Molloy's bus, in route to the Oweninny Visitors Centre, Bellacorrick, for some Bealtaine 2024 entertainment. The event was hosted in their beautiful building, courtesy of Mayo Arts Council and was facilitated by John Hoban. Opening the night's proceedings was a short movie,
"Rhythm of Light" exploring traditional skills, such as harvesting turf, fishing locally, weaving and manufacture at Foxford Wollen Mills, as well as a brief look at Ballyglass Lighthouse and it's importance to seafarers. Following on from this, came refreshments, song, dance, recitation and music. Thank you to Aine for suggesting the event, to Mary and Stephanie for sourcing transport and helping with our online bookings. An enjoyable night was had by all.
Rambling House Dates for June are Thursday 13th and Thursday 27th.
Author: Pauline Mahon
During the final decade of the twentieth century, although having an ideal teaching post, within walking distance of her home, Catherine Jennings decided to spread her wings to pursue a position in the United Arab Emiratus. Meaning for it to be a short stay, this move turned into the adventure of a lifetime, spanning some thirty years. Marrying her husband, who was employed in the oil industry throughout the Middle East, left the couple raising their young family in many countries, moving, sometimes at short notice, to places like Egypt, Vietnam, Ecuador, or France, to name but a few. As romantic and fascinating as hearing about Camel racing in Dubai, buying a chicken or eating duck tongues in Beijing, the remoteness of an Abu Dhabi Desert or visiting the Volcanic Archipelago in the Pacific Ocean, known as Ecuador's Galapagos Islands, sounded to the Ramblers Group, while listening to Catherine's rendition of her beautiful story, there's a thread of challenge and disappointment that runs through it. Survival and making new friends depended on learning complicated languages such as Arabic, Mandarin and French. Being robbed of personal belongings wasn't an expected or pleasant experience. Finding school placements and settling small children into new cultures had its challenges. Climate variations from air pollution, excessive humidity or high altitude, such as in Quito which stands 2850 metres above sea level, all had to be contended with. Catherine shared mementos of those special times with us, such as fresh water pearls, art and craft work, together with photographs of interesting events. Thanks to her generosity of time and attention to detail, we were transported to destinations most of us will only ever read or dream about.
Author: Pauline Mahon
Moygownagh Ramblers visited the IMC Cinema, Ballina, on Saturday night last, to support local actor, Liam Alex Heffron, in his character role of Finbarr (which is a mirror image of his life's work as a historian) in the film, Prospect House. Local Georgian Manor, Enniscoe House, situated in the townland of Prospect, was the film's primary shooting location. This satirical film won best new Irish feature film at Cork's international film festival 2023. Well done to cast and crew members from Moygownagh, Crossmolina and Lahardane on a stellar performance. Thank you, sincerely, to Stephanie and Billy for the car-pool. Your kind gesture was much appreciated.
Author: Pauline Mahon
Congratulations to the Moygownagh Rambling House stalwarts on reaching the first anniversary of the group's inseption. Thursday April 20th 2023 saw a fledgling party of three people meet at the back of St. Cormac's Church, to discuss ways in which to entice people out, to meet and connect with each other, in the aftermath of the stress and fear that evolved from the covid 19 pandemic. It was hoped that people would immerse themselves back into the company of friends and neighbours, bi-monthly, in a safe space, after living through the stringent restrictions, imposed on their former social liberties. Thank you to everyone who has embraced this ethos, by participating in song, music and banter, also to our colleagues who pampered us with their culinary treats. Your ongoing generosity is what has made our Ramblers Group a success story. Congrats on our Anniversary!
Author: Pauline Mahon
The Ramblers were informatively entertained on Thursday night by an insightful introduction to, and observations of, Irish army life in New York. It's origins stretch back to the Young Irelander's failed rebellion of 1848. Thank you to our guest speaker, local United Nations veteran peacekeeper, John Blehein, for sharing his enthusiasm about representing Ireland and Moygownagh, by marching in the recent 2024 New York St. Patrick's Day parade, he shared many photographs of the event. John also spoke briefly about his experiences of overseas missions to various UN peace keeping deployments he participated in, throughout the Middle East. Although Ireland's military are not activaly involved in open warfare, their considerable contributions to peacekeeping can be met with danger, through sniper fire, aggression, or the untimely explosion of landmines. It is a sobering thought, that not all army personnel make a safe return journey home to share their stories.
Author: Pauline Mahon
John Blehein (far left) at the 1916 Commemoration held in Carn NS on 22 January 2016
Blending in with our regular musicians and singers, Thursday night last, saw the repertoire of musical instruments expand, as we welcomed three new Ramblers, who entertained us with their songs, accordion, guitar and uilleann pipe music. Poetry and acting, combined with our usual supply of homemade tasty treats brought our session to a memorable conclusion. April Rambling House dates are Thursday 4th and Thursday 18th. Happy Easter to everyone.
Author: Pauline Mahon
Our Rambling House guest speaker expressed her interest in establishing a Knit-Night, operating on a regular basis from Moygownagh’s Learning Forum. If interested please contact Jamie on 0851891777 for further details. Pomes, Prose, Music, and Song, together with the surprise of having our group photograph taken, added to the Ramblers enjoyment. Thank you to P. J. Hughes, Crossmolina, for the photo opportunity and Moygownagh GAA for posting it on their Facebook page. Our night concluded with the much-anticipated home bakes and tea! Rambling House Dates for March are Thursday 7th and Thursday 21st.
Author: Pauline Mahon
