Wrapping Up Our Travels in Ireland
| August 4th, 2010 | 4 Comments » | Ireland, Travel
I always find it hard to write about what I’ve been up to when I visit Ireland. Mostly because I spend a lot of my time with family when I’m here. Also conveniently enough, Liz and I have both been sick for most of the two weeks that we’ve been here. Believe me, it’s far better to be sick while feeling like you’re at home versus being sick on the road. That’s for sure! As for being sick, it could possibly be due to the fact that we left Greece (95+F degrees) to come to a much cooler Dublin (60F degrees) overnight.
We spent our first week in staying out in Santry at my uncle’s home which is just a short bus ride from Dublin’s City Centre. It’s very convenient having the bus into town only be steps from your front door! We’ve made tons of trips in and out of the city at this point. Since Dublin is such a walkable city, we’ve walked and talked our way through and past many of the famous streets and sights in town.
We also took a Free Walking Tour of Dublin courtesy of Sandemans New Europe Walking Tours which we thought was absolutely fantastic.
My uncle took us for a short drive over to Howth, a fishing an yachting village which is just over 9 miles from Dublin City Centre. Dine at one of the many seafood restaurants here and you’ll surely be eating the freshest catch in town. If you’re into hiking, there’s some really nice cliff-side trails that weave in and out along the coastline. Be careful though, as many people fall from these cliffs due to curiosity each year.
From Dublin we traveled to Galway via GoBus, a low cost bus service that whisks you from the East coast to the West coast of Ireland in just under 3 hours for only 10 Euro (approx. $13.00 USD). The best part about GoBus is the fact that they have on-board WiFi for no additional cost. Free Wi-Fi on a bus is pure genius!
We arrived in Galway on the weekend before the Galway Races, a famous Irish horse-racing festival that lasts for one whole week making it the longest of all race meets to be held in Ireland or Britain. The city was packed of visitors from all over Europe who are here for one thing and one thing only. Horse racing!
Our first night was spent at my cousins home in Abbeyknockmoy which lies just under 30km outside of Galway city. The lush, green fields across the street from his house are not only home to horses, sheep and cattle but also to a 12th century monastery! The Abbey of Knockmoy was founded in 1190 by the King of Connacht and the ruins still stand in excellent condition after hundreds upon hundreds of years. Simply amazing.
Our next few days were spent roaming around Galway City. We took a mandatory stroll down the famous “Shop Street” and a few other main shopping avenues before heading to my favorite bay side hang out spot called “The Spanish Arch”; a place where locals, hippies, expats, travelers, and others all get together to enjoy the weather, chat, drink and most importantly find out what the “craic” is. The best time to hang down at the Spanish Arch is during the summer months and if you’re lucky enough you’ll be able dodge the ever flowing rain that Ireland gets each year.
If you’re looking for a great place to people watch then make your way over to Eyre Square, a public park smack dab in the middle of Galway’s City Centre. On a nice day, you’ll be sure to find all sorts of locals and tourists lying in the grass chatting with friends and sometimes even listening to the musicians who set up their equipment next to an empty park bench.
And that about wraps things up when it comes to our travels in Ireland. We’re excited to officially get back on the road next week. Next stop: PARIS!
For more photos from Ireland, check out the following photo albums: Dublin, Howth, and Galway
Dublin City Hall
