So I'm in my last two days in Ireland. Yesterday I enjoyed one last Saturday market. I have really developed a relationship with the people at the market, and have enjoyed fueling a local economy. Every Saturday I go to the market downtown and buy my produce from the same stand, and then wander the market for the day. There are multiple craft shops, munchies, and creative foods. At the end of every market run I have to swing by my favorite doughnut stand, and pay my 70 cents for my cinnamon doughnut. This doughnut is unlike anything you have ever tasted before. I was talking to him on my last day he said on a busy weekend he can sell up to 1500 in one day! He is one a very sweet man who refers to me as "red" every weekend, and claims he is going to have to take out a second mortgage on his house now that I'm returning to the states.... hahaha. I must say, when I return to Ireland one day, I will make sure I'm in Galway on a Saturday.....
Today I hiked out with some of my good friends to an abandoned castle just outside of Galway. It was a 8 mile hike round trip! We headed out this morning, and adventured out to the castle. We enjoyed the afternoon exploring the abandoned castle and sitting on the river. The Menlo Castle is situated on the banks of the Corrib River, which runs all the way down to Galway Bay. In the pasture were two horses, who definitely enjoyed our company, as they came and stood next to us for the afternoon, enjoyed being petted, and even ventured into the castles themselves. It was a nice afternoon to spend with friends, reflect on memories from the trip, and see one last castle.
I plan on spending tomorrow packing and saying my goodbyes, and hope to make it back to the states on Tuesday evening... I'm just crossing my fingers the volcano doesn't cause any airport closures, as it has caused many temporary ones over the past week.
Pictures posted below :)
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Friday, May 7, 2010
Clonmacnoise
Well with only 3 days left in Ireland, I'm trying to get as much in as I can. For months I have wanted to go out to these church remains from the 5th century called Clonmacnoise. I could never figure out how to get there because they were incredibly rural and could never find a tour company that went there. The other day I was walking down the street and saw a sign for a Clonmacnoise tour from Galway Tour Company. I booked my ticket and when I got there today I realized I was one of two people going on this tour, the other way Chris because I talked him into it :)
We got talking with the bus driver and he told me this would be an interesting day because they had never actually done this tour, and didn't expect people to sign up that fast. So, I got to pioneer the first Clonmacnoise tour. Our tour guide was hilarious, and kept saying "bare with me" as he had just studied all the information this morning in preparation.
Well the day ended up being great! It was about an hour drive out to the ruins. Clonmacnoise used to be the "mecca" or Ireland. It's situated in the literal middle of the island, and people used to make pilgrimages here. It all began in the 5th century when Christianity began to become increasingly popular and a group of monks formed a monastery on the grounds. There are 8 other churches on the grounds including the nuns church. It's crazy to think most of these were 1600 years old!
There are over 600 gravestones surrounding the ruins, and they date back to the 5th century as well. Outside of the park was an old anglo norman castle from the 11th century. It was on top of a motte (a steep hill built in the 11th century as a form of defense) and had decayed so much the some of the edges were hanging off the hillside. It's one of the most incredibly pieces of castle remains I have seen here. See my pictures below because I can't begin to explain how cool it was!
Tomorrow is my last Saturday market :( and I may go out to Athenry on Sunday to explore one last city. This trip has gone so fast, I can't believe I will be home on Tuesday evening, and be at work by Thursday morning. It's going to be very bitter sweet coming home, but I'm definitely excited to see my friends and family. Can't wait to see everyone soon!
I've posted pictures below :)
We got talking with the bus driver and he told me this would be an interesting day because they had never actually done this tour, and didn't expect people to sign up that fast. So, I got to pioneer the first Clonmacnoise tour. Our tour guide was hilarious, and kept saying "bare with me" as he had just studied all the information this morning in preparation.
Well the day ended up being great! It was about an hour drive out to the ruins. Clonmacnoise used to be the "mecca" or Ireland. It's situated in the literal middle of the island, and people used to make pilgrimages here. It all began in the 5th century when Christianity began to become increasingly popular and a group of monks formed a monastery on the grounds. There are 8 other churches on the grounds including the nuns church. It's crazy to think most of these were 1600 years old!
There are over 600 gravestones surrounding the ruins, and they date back to the 5th century as well. Outside of the park was an old anglo norman castle from the 11th century. It was on top of a motte (a steep hill built in the 11th century as a form of defense) and had decayed so much the some of the edges were hanging off the hillside. It's one of the most incredibly pieces of castle remains I have seen here. See my pictures below because I can't begin to explain how cool it was!
Tomorrow is my last Saturday market :( and I may go out to Athenry on Sunday to explore one last city. This trip has gone so fast, I can't believe I will be home on Tuesday evening, and be at work by Thursday morning. It's going to be very bitter sweet coming home, but I'm definitely excited to see my friends and family. Can't wait to see everyone soon!
I've posted pictures below :)
Monday, May 3, 2010
Conquering Clifden
This past week, Chris has his good friend Corey and his girlfriend Krista come and visit. Due to my appendicitis I was not able to do the day adventures, but I was feeling pretty good by Saturday, so luckily I was able to join them for one day.
We took the bus up to Clifden in the morning. The drive is only an hour, and Clifden is located about 1 hour and 15 minutes NW of Galway. It's a quaint little coastal town, with a significant amount of history in it. We had lunch at a little cafe in town, and started walking around. We ended up of Sky Road, which had a cool old gothic church and graveyard. As we continued down the road, it become incredibly scenic so we decided to keep walking down towards the coastline. On our way, we noticed the crest of a castle tucked into the hillside, it was barely visible from the road. There was no house nearby and nothing that said "no trespassing" so we figured we would give it a shot. We hiked down through a few fields of sheep and found ourselves at the basin of an abandoned castle. When we got home I was able to research it, and found that it was built in the early 1700's, and was abandoned during the famine in 1840. Clifden was one of the hardest hit areas by the famine.
We were able to explore inside the castle, and it was really cool because it hasn't been restored, so there were remain of the staircase, and old walls, put many portions had crumbled. There was an incredible view from the castle of the inlet from the ocean that leads into the town of Clifden. Many parts of the castle were overgrown with vines. Adjacent to the castle was the old stone farm and remain of a few smaller houses, probably the servants quarters. It was such a cool adventure because everything was so untouched. After the castle we continued out to the coastline, the view was incredible. We walked back into town later that evening and took the bus back to Galway.
I took the next day pretty easy as I was exhausted, but I'm feeling pretty good since my surgery. I've been studying quite a bit for my psychology exam on Wednesday. After Wednesday I'm officially done with my courses in Galway. I can't believe it, but I fly home next Tuesday. It's going to be very bitter sweet. I'm excited to get home for summer, but am definitely going to miss this place. It is all starting to hit me as my good friends Lauren and Beth departed over the weekend.
I have posted pictures below of the castle!
We took the bus up to Clifden in the morning. The drive is only an hour, and Clifden is located about 1 hour and 15 minutes NW of Galway. It's a quaint little coastal town, with a significant amount of history in it. We had lunch at a little cafe in town, and started walking around. We ended up of Sky Road, which had a cool old gothic church and graveyard. As we continued down the road, it become incredibly scenic so we decided to keep walking down towards the coastline. On our way, we noticed the crest of a castle tucked into the hillside, it was barely visible from the road. There was no house nearby and nothing that said "no trespassing" so we figured we would give it a shot. We hiked down through a few fields of sheep and found ourselves at the basin of an abandoned castle. When we got home I was able to research it, and found that it was built in the early 1700's, and was abandoned during the famine in 1840. Clifden was one of the hardest hit areas by the famine.
We were able to explore inside the castle, and it was really cool because it hasn't been restored, so there were remain of the staircase, and old walls, put many portions had crumbled. There was an incredible view from the castle of the inlet from the ocean that leads into the town of Clifden. Many parts of the castle were overgrown with vines. Adjacent to the castle was the old stone farm and remain of a few smaller houses, probably the servants quarters. It was such a cool adventure because everything was so untouched. After the castle we continued out to the coastline, the view was incredible. We walked back into town later that evening and took the bus back to Galway.
I took the next day pretty easy as I was exhausted, but I'm feeling pretty good since my surgery. I've been studying quite a bit for my psychology exam on Wednesday. After Wednesday I'm officially done with my courses in Galway. I can't believe it, but I fly home next Tuesday. It's going to be very bitter sweet. I'm excited to get home for summer, but am definitely going to miss this place. It is all starting to hit me as my good friends Lauren and Beth departed over the weekend.
I have posted pictures below of the castle!
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