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Published: February 9th 2011
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ross errily abbey Hello again. I finally got a picture or two of myself, so I thought it was time for another update. Before I do that though, I'm having some computer problems, so if you need to get in contact with me please email me at 10148108@studentmail.ul.ie
So this past weekend was our first trip without the supervision of Arcadia (our program provider) Some of the girls wanted to go to Galway, so the rest of us decided to tag along. Galway is a city on the west side of Ireland (right against the ocean) and considered one of the more 'traditional' area's of Ireland. Our plan was to go to the Aran Islands which are the most Irish location in Ireland. The population there still speaks Irish (Gaelic) and some people still haven't learned English.
However, when we made it to Galway Friday night we soon realized that we wouldn't be making it to the Islands. It was absolutely pouring, and the winds were so strong that the boats couldn't leave port to make it anywhere, let alone the islands. So we had to come up with another idea. I had wanted to see Kylemore Abbey, and luckily the same
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ross errily abbey girls who wanted to go to Galway in the first place were going on a tour that took them there. So I tagged along, and yet again, so did the rest of the group.
After a nice night in a fairly empty hostel Friday, we got up bright and early Saturday for our day long tour. The tour started out at Ross Errily Abbey, which was conveniently located at the end of a dirt road barely wide enough for a car let alone a tour bus. After a quick tour around the ruins, we hopped back in the bus and headed into more rural Ireland. Our tour guide was great, and between the corny jokes we actually learned a few things.
As we headed north west, we headed into the mountains and valleys of the farm country. While it was absolutely beautiful I think we were all distracted by the fear of falling off little one way streets sitting on cliffs in the mountains.
After a few more short breaks at historical sites and a little traditional town, we made it to Kylemore Abbey. Right away you could understand why it's considered one of the most romantic
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me in Ross Errily. Ireland isn't made for people my size... places in Ireland. The Abbey used to be a castle, and was converted into the nunnery after WW2. Up until this year, it has also been a private girls school run by the nuns. As part of their ownership and in an attempt to make money, they have restored a few rooms in the Abbey that can be toured. On top of that, there are some great walled gardens (which were out of season) and a church built by the original owner for his wife. In the mountains the nuns also had a 12 white stone Jesus sculpture created and placed. In a few of my pictures you can see a white dot. That's him.
After spending hours at the Abbey we boarded the bus again, and headed towards home. We stopped a few more times for scenery pictures, and listened to the Dubliners (trad irish music) once the guide had told us all he knew about Ireland. We finally pulled into Galway around 6 that night.
After resting for a bit, we went into town and found a great hole in the wall burger joint where we got lamb burgers (very interesting) ((and very cheap)). That night
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little town wall we tried to find a trad music joint, but out of the whole city only one bar had it playing on a Saturday. We did, however, find the Quay along the way and came back and took pictures in the morning. Well after getting to the spot (Tuff's I believe) we found it was so packed that the bouncer wasn't letting anyone in. So we went into another bar, grabbed a pint and went home early.
Sunday was the only nice day of the weekend, but like everywhere in Ireland, all stores and restaurants were either closed or didn't open till the afternoon. This meant we got to wander for a few hours looking at closed buildings while waiting for the bus home.
Overall, it was a good weekend. From what we saw, I would love to go back when the weather is better because the city did seem amazing. Well that's all for now, check back soon and I'll be putting up an entry about my school. Still haven't gone around to take pictures of everything yet. Hope all is well back home, as I'm doing great here.
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Cathy Griggs
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Weekend Trip
Brandon, Loved the pictures from your trip to Galway - especially the Abby and the ones of you! The old church is pretty cool too. We have been snowed / iced in for over a week. Last Tuesday we had an official blizzard - 2" of ice and 13 1/2" of snow. Finally able to get out yesterday and have dinner somewhere other than home. Today...we got slammed with another 12-18" of snow and it is still coming down at the rate of 2" per hour. FUN. Guess we will be here for a few more days. Making soup and trying to catch up work a little! Have a great week and looking forward to your next blog. Love, Cath