Our Galway Getaway

I spent last weekend in Galway city to celebrate Lauren and Chad's final days in Ireland. So many thanks to them for "going the distance" to visit me! I am very glad they enjoyed their visit and that I was able to spend time with them. They were the catalyst for me to revisit Galway, something I had been meaning to do before I return to Canada. I had been there briefly in April with my parents, but hardly got a taste of the city.

We had three days in Galway to explore and relax. The city is an artistic and cultural hub, filled with buskers, homemade arts and crafts, and numerous tourist shops. It is a great launching point to see some of Irelands best natural attractions. Day-trips to the Aran Islands, Cliffs of Moher and Connemara National Park bring a thriving tourist crowd to town. Our trio considered going to the Aran Islands, but in the end just opted to stay in the city. There aren't really enough attractions in Galway itself to preoccupy you for three days, but luckily Chad was thoroughly addicted to his novel and Lauren and I were keen souvenir shoppers. That's not to say we didn't see the sights.

After learning from our Spain experience, Lauren and I joined a free walking tour on Friday afternoon (Chad was reading). In true Irish fashion, our guide was a red-haired girl named Laura wearing a green shirt. She showed us the historical sights of Galway's center and shared many tales of Irish oppression under foreign rule. For instance, during the time of Oliver Cromwell the Irish were not treated equally under British law. This inequality is represented on the side of Galway's courthouse by unbalanced scales of justice.

According to our tour guide, British policemen in England at the time only carried a wooden baton for protection. In Ireland, the British policemen carried a baton, sword, revolver and rifle. Well prepared I'd say! The remnants of British rule are visible in the strangest places, like on the post boxes. Apparently one Irish rebel came out at night and painted the once red boxes green. They have remained that way ever since, but this unfortunate box in Galway still bears the insignia of the Monarchy. "G R" stands for King George V.

My favourite stop along the tour was at the Galway Cathedral. Its grey stone makes it appear old from the outside, but in reality it was only built in the 1960s. It is located on the spot of an old prison, across the River Corrib from the Courthouse. The bridge connecting the two is aptly named the Bridge of Sighs because convicted felons were led across the bridge and would sigh at their last view of Galway. Nowadays the bridge still offers sigh-worthy views of fly-fisherman.

 The Cathedral is visible behind the trees above, while the blue tent below was set up for the annual Galway Arts Festival.

I found the mixture of ornate and simple decoration in the Cathedral's interior really lovely. The floor is an amazing expanse of Connemara green marble and the ceiling is carved from our own Canadian cedar wood! Many of the fancier art is constructed of glass mosaic, including a rather surprising profile of John F. Kennedy. Turns out JFK is rather important to the Irish because he was the first Irish Catholic president of the United States.

Our tour guide told us a couple entertaining stories about one of Galway's leading historical families, the Lynches. Have you ever heard of "lynching?" It means to hang someone, and the term was coined in Galway. Poor Mayor Lynch had to hang his own son after he had committed murder. We saw the spot where it happened. Another tale occurred around the corner, where a young lady living in Lynch Castle once received a pet monkey from her sailor beau. They were later married and had a child, however one evening a house fire broke out and the mother forgot her baby in the flames. All was thought lost until the charred monkey appeared carrying the unharmed baby in its arms. There is a statue of the heroic monkey, but alas construction on the Castle had it hidden from view.

On Saturday afternoon, Lauren, Chad and I met up with my classmate Adam for lunch and a tour. Ironically I had seafood paella for lunch, whereas I probably should have ordered it in Spain. Regardless, I was well-fed for our long walk along the seaside Promenade. Adam pointed out the best places to catch live music, get ice cream and order full Irish breakfasts. The walk along the water was nice despite a looming raincloud. We came across a charity swim where participants had swam the length of the bay, something I would not be able to do and especially not without a wetsuit. Adam and Chad also found me the message "ELK" scratched into the sand... I know its a sign, but I'm not sure for what... (for those who may not know, my parents own an elk farm). Can you see it in the picture below?

We started our Sunday by following Adam's suggestion to eat an Irish breakfast from the restaurant Riordan's. After a full year in the country it was my first time trying the famous meal, and I'll admit it was substantial. I got my share of protein from ham, sausages, an egg, beans and black pudding. Plus it was topped off with fried potatoes, half a tomato, orange juice and a mug of tea. It kept me going all day!

Our big event during the weekend was attending an Australian circus act called Knee Deep, put on by the Galway Arts Festival. The four person troupe was made up of three men and one very strong woman. At one point she had one man standing on her shoulders and the other two hanging off her. Overall the act was very impressive because of the sheer strength of all performers. They were leaping across the stage, hanging from ropes, balancing off each other and even walking on egg cartons. No matter what they did they were completely graceful. I think they must have super muscles where no regular person does, like in the neck, feet and wrists.

For a good laugh, I'll share one more amusing activity from the weekend. During our souvenir shopping, I had come across a felt deer at the Farmers' Market which I could not pass up as a gift for my mother. That evening when we were sitting in the pub I pulled it out of my purse along with my camera. I've named him Ed the "Photobombing" Elk.  The pictures are fairly self-explanatory...

 Chad was not willing to share his Smithwicks with Ed.

 Ed pops up everywhere!

 Hanging out with Oscar Wilde.

 Even in the phone booth where Ed seemed to be rubbing off on Chad.

And he saved the best for last! Sleep well Lauren...

 

This weekend produced more great times with great friends. Galway is a great city with lots of character and definitely worthy of a tourist stop. Lauren and Chad have since made it home safely, and I will shortly doing the same. I only have three more weeks left, one of which will be spent in Salzburg, Austria at a conference. That's right, I'm not quite done traveling yet :)

 

Regards,

Shannon