Places cristyshepherd Wants to Go

Just a few miles off the western coast of Ireland lies an isle steeped in Irish literary history.

The somber sculptures commemorating Irish Famine on the river Liffey in Dublin.

After being destroyed by IRA sympathizers, the ruins of this stately Irish manor have sat vacant for decades.

There might not be much left of these Irish ruins, but their linguistic legacy is still going strong.

The 19th-century pharmacy (now a used bookstore) was featured in James Joyce’s "Ulysses," and has changed very little to this day.

This singular Irish dolmen is more Frank Lloyd Wright than upright stonehenge.

A spectacular hidden beach in Ireland has the dark, disturbing nickname of "Murder Hole Beach."

A rocky Irish outcropping with a history of wealth, conflict, and ruin.

A nun spent 16 years painting the stunning Celtic mural that covers the interior of this WWI memorial.

An ancient neolithic tomb that only sees the sun twice a year.

The oldest public library in Ireland.

A sacred well steeped in Pagan roots on the West Coast of Ireland.

An unusual manor of stunning beauty, born out of a crippling disease.

The oldest inn in Kilkenny was established by the first convicted witch in Ireland.

Obelisks and stone pineapples in the Irish countryside.

A remarkably intact castle that once was the largest in Ireland.

Dublin's "Dead Zoo" serves as a window to Victorian museum design.

This ancient Irish religious site is covered in ancient carvings, many of which have barely aged.

An Iron Age fort on the edge of a seaside cliff offers a glimpse into an ancient, mystical world.

The oldest pub in Ireland may also be the oldest surviving bar in the entire world.

Local legend says the remains of Father Christmas lie within the medieval grounds.

One of the most popular megalithic sites in Ireland stands as a humbler version of Stonehenge.

The world of the ancient Celtic civilization explained through a bewitching 11 acre garden.

A tiny microvalley etched into the side of Knocknarea Mountain hides another world.