Drink Like A Captain! This is the slogan from Captain Morgan Rum – the vaunted label featuring the lusty captain himself with his foot on a barrel of his presumed favorite beverage. But who is the real Morgan behind the label?Continue Reading
First off, just what is the Otherworld?
For those who are not familiar, the Otherworld, as related in Welsh tales, is referred to as Annwn. It is described as a place connected to our world, and yet it is a very different realm.Continue Reading
Do you believe in fairies? Well some people do, some people do not and of course there is always where is the proof? There have been a few artifacts that have unusual origins but one particular one that stumped even the experts was what is now called the The FairyContinue Reading
In Wales the celebration of May Day derived from traditions that most people are familiar with as Beltane on the other side of the Irish Sea, but has roots in its own Celtic culture stretching back into olden times. In Wales this is the celebration of Calan Mai or sometimesContinue Reading
The famous Triskele. Part of a thesis I wrote was on Chakras but the thrust was that the idea was not from India originally. Instead, it may have actually been originally Celtic thought. Chakra is a Sanskrit word meaning wheel and comes from Vedic writings. There are thought to beContinue Reading
In Cornwall there is a church on the cliffs above the sea in Penwith. There is a story about the church and it goes like this. One Sunday morning at the beginning of the service a woman entered and she was noted as being unearthly beautiful. She had pale skinContinue Reading
In Powys in Wales situated near Brecon Beacons there is a lake that has associations with the Y Tylwyth Teg. These translates as The Fair Family, and are the fairies of Wales. One of the tales says that there exists an island invisible now to humankind in the middle ofContinue Reading
I just have tried my very first Welsh whiskey. Before I get the actual review of Penderyn Celt let me put a little background in. In the UK, the temperance movement gained strength and in 1823 a law was passed that more or less banned small scale stills. TheContinue Reading
Over in Cornwall is one of the best-preserved ancient villages in SW England. This is known as Carn Euny from the Cornish Karn Uni. It is located near the village of Sancreed. The earliest houses here appear to have been built around 500 to 400BCE as Iron Age round houses.Continue Reading
Back on the Isle of Man outside Castletown is a very interesting ancient monument called Balladoole. Sometime in 1945, a team consisting of a German refugee along with a team from the internment camp based on the island was put to work looking at an Iron Age hill fort inContinue Reading
Imbloc is coming up and is known also as Brigid’s day and has become conflated with the old goddess with a later person that has become known as St. Brigid’s Day. Now most know St. Brigid as being primarily associated with Ireland. However, she is also found in Wales. ThereContinue Reading
Will ‘o the Wisp by Arian Niwl Now Tom was a fine man oh so rare Handsome of features with ginger hair And a big heart that was friendly and fair Now each maiden from young to old From one’s so shy, to those so bold Raven hairedContinue Reading
The pwca, or in Ireland the púca, and other names across the Celtic world, are spirits that can be either beneficial or malevolent. Púca are noted for taking on the shape of animals – primarily a horse – and then taking the rider for the nasty ride of their life.Continue Reading
Have you ever gotten that tug of place? That is that draw to a certain place that seems to resonate within you and seems to call you back even if it has been years? That has happened to me lately, and the monument is not the more familiar Henge butContinue Reading
Fairy Hunts Tonight by Arian Niwl Oh, listen on the wind dear one Calling all the red eared Cŵn Annwn The Wild Hunt has now begun The moon is as thin as Arawn’s bow And wind it has a taste of snow And those who listen will hear his tallyContinue Reading
Goddess of Battle Fate By Arian Niwl Men struggle with curses and shouts Ground soaked with flowing life’s blood The battle rages without any doubts Warrior’s fall into the red soaked mud I watch with dark raven sharp eyes A spectacle and scene that is a play WearingContinue Reading
