Galway & Aran Islands
Dad, Very Happy to be Moving Away from the Cliffs
Galway was quite a surprise after a number of days immersed in the traditional Irish culture, music, and language. We found ourselves in a distinctly modern city with those classic stone buildings. Flags flew over the main pedestrian areas and street performers abounded. Large crowds encircled musicians who entertained the masses with a flair unique to themselves. The energy pulsed around us as we walked through, obtaining a quick feel for this city's unique feel. We also found a stone which pointed to Seattle, the area from which most of our tour lived in.
Our time in Galway was brief as we were to spend most of our time in Innishmore, part of the Aran Islands. This is the home of the famous Aran sweaters (you will find the most variety of them in this area and it is is worth purchasing a sweater here if you want one...I have appreciated mine all winter-long as well as a wool scarf I purchased!). The island continues to boast inhabitants and houses that are hundreds of years old (including their original roofs, which have been maintained over the years). Our tour guide was very well informed of the island's history and had a glint of that classic Irish humor as he drove us to each of the island's notable locations. Abbey ruins, cemeteries, and the more famous Dun Aenghus fort, a 2,000 year-old Iron Age ring fort, perched on the edge of a very steep cliff (careful when near the edges as the wind is quite strong and the edge not secured!). We hiked up to the fort, enjoying the once-again unusually sunny day (and to think we all prepared for large amounts of rain and not sun!), which was a comfortable hike to this relatively well-preserved fort with coastal views that I imagine would be at the Cliffs of Moher on a sunny day. Most of us stopped for locally made ice cream at the ice cream shop found at the base of this hike, the perfect reward after exploring this location.
Tourist tip: if you do not wish to take up room in your suitcase, you can ship it back to your home in the USA (we certainly did in light of the 70+ degree weather). Mine arrived within 10 days of returning home, which I did not anticipate for several additional weeks.
A lovely older couple from Australia sat across from me and it was hard not to appreciate how much they are still in love after decades of marriage.
