The Iona Abbey, founded by St. Columba, 
is noted for its peaceful location, beautiful granite buildings, 
unique cloister carvings and Celtic crosses.

THE ISLE OF IONA REVEALED


I couldn't decide which Oban Bay Lighthouse shot I preferred, 
so I included all of them.




Our total journey of three hours included two challenging bus rides along an extremely narrow two-lane highway with twists and turns and unexpected encounters with other oncoming buses so close we could reach out and touch them, followed by boarding two ferries. 

We enjoyed a wonderful bowl of soup and tea sandwiches for lunch at the Argyll Hotel before we left the safety of the indoors and were besieged by midges during our guided tour with a local resident and theology student. We learned about the critical role of Christianity over the centuries, the daily lives of the locals, and St. Columba of Ireland and his goal to spread Christianity to Iona during the sixth century. 

St. Columba also built a Celtic church, Iona Abbey, where the famous Book of Kells is believed to have been written. Unfortunately, the Vikings repeatedly raided and destroyed the church. After it was rebuilt, it was abandoned during the Scottish Reformation.

 
St. Columba Well 

 In the 6th century AD, people believed the well water was poisonous, with water splashed on the skin causing boils and ulcers. 
In AD 565 Saint Columba, chased away the evil spirits around the well and blessed the water coming from it for eternity, resulting in  
clean and pure water with curative powers.


"Descent of the Spirit" sculpture in cloisters of the Iona Abbey. 


Iona Abbey


Other ruins.



Shore near the ferry landing.




After all those hours spent traveling and swatting away midges, we decided dinner at the Oban Hotel was smarter, especially since we had to pack for our next adventure, Inverness. I was on a mussels binge and was content with that and a glass of wine.

The next morning, our journey began with an exciting siting of dolphins alongside our ferry in Oban Bay.

https://youtu.be/N4D6j5yUOGI






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