Galway revisited

After five amazing days in Connemara, I am back in Galway, and thrilled to be
here!

Yesterday was a rainy day, but I went ahead with my plan to walk the Sky Road,
a 12km road from Clifden out along a little penninsula. The rain stopped mid-
morning, but it was misty and foggy all day. It made for very dramatic views
of the coast, and it was refreshing to be out in the elements. I had the
narrow, winding road to myself most of the time.

I walked past the ruins of Clifden Castle, and in the mist they were
stunning. It's not a very old castle (only about two hundred years I think),
but it is the most beautiful castle I've seen here. I also walked past the
ruins of dozens of stone cottages. It turns out that the Clifden area, and all
of western Ireland, was especially hard hit by the famine, and the population
of the area has never fully recovered. I suspect that many of these stone
cottages are all that is left of some of the families in the area.

When I got back to Clifden, after my walk, I went for a hot drink to a little
bakery, and got into a conversation with two elderly gentlemen who were
passing through the area. They were very fun to talk too, and hoped I wasn't
insulted when they told me I had an Irish face.

I've been asked by many locals if my family is from Ireland, and when I said
there is some Irish in my family, they always ask what my family name is.
When I say McCartney, they usually say yes, that's an Irish name, and the
consensus is that it is from the North. Last night in the pub, I started
chatting with a couple who are here on holiday from Northern Ireland, and they
laughed when I told them my surname--apparently there are quite a few
McCartney's in Derry, and they said it is definitely an Irish name!

I left Connemara in the mist this morning, but managed to stay awake for the
entire bus ride into Galway. It was very scenic, and everything looks so
different on a grey day. I saw one lake with a little island in the middle,
and the entire island was covered with the mossy ruins of a house. It was
very picturesque.

I'm off to get lunch now (it is just past noon here), and then I have to
finish checking into my hostel. At 3pm, there is a World Cup qualifying
football (soccer) match between Ireland and Cypress that will be fun to watch.

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