Ireland Day 7: Drive to Galway

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Our touring day in the Burren highlighted something that we noticed on our very first day in Ireland: the odd system of road signage. On our first day, we observed Laurie’s favorite sign: Walking on Water. The road signs, though, proved even more intriguing. Other than the fact that many intersections have no signage whatsoever and that many small country roads are not numbered, the signs that are present are wholly inconsistent. No two signs seem to agree on something as basic as the spelling of town names. The town we stayed in while in County Clare was variously spelled as Lahinch and Lehinch on road signs. Similarly, Ballyvaughan is also spelled Ballyvaghan and Carran is spelled Caran. Although Ireland uses the standard European road signage, most road signs also have an English and Gaelic explanation underneath just in case you don’t know what the sign means. The funny thing is that a given road sign will have different variations on a theme for an explanation. For instance, a yellow triangle with a snaky black arrow will carry any of the following English explanations below it:
a. Acute Turns Ahead
b. Sharp Curves Ahead
c. Dangerous Bends Ahead
In Ireland, many markings are also placed on the road. For instance, before any sharp curves the word ‘SLOW’ is usually painted on the road surface in big block letters. Variations on this include ‘SLOWER’ and ‘VERY SLOW,’ usually placed on the road 20-30 yards after the driver has already been exhorted to ‘SLOW.’ We have also seen some unusual signage such as road signs indicating ‘ELDERLY PEOPLE CROSSING.’ Another common, but rather odd sign posted on highways at the entrance of villages is: ‘TRAFFIC CALMING 400m.’ We didn’t find the traffic particularly excitable out there on the Irish road so we’re not too sure what the sign refers to…
In any case, on this our seventh day, we were headed up to Counties Galway and Mayo in the Northwest of Ireland, perhaps the most rugged part of the country. This rugged region, known as Connemara, is famous for its mountainous scenery, lakes, salmon and sheep. We are staying in Cong, a small town on the edge of Lough Corrib, one of Ireland’s largest lakes. Our bed for the night is at Ballywarren House, a lovely little B & B run by Diane and Dave Skelton, a British couple from Portsmouth. Cong is also the location of Ashford Castle, a premier luxury resort of manicured lawns and grand wood-paneled rooms. Since we spent most of the day getting to Cong, we decided to spend the few remaining hours of daylight strolling through the village and the grounds of Ashford Castle. Ashford castle is a sprawling family estate which has catered to the rich and famous as a hotel for the better part of a century. For those seeking a getaway in an idyllic Disneyesque…and extremely pricey setting, this is your place!

Where We Stayed: Ballywarren House
Where We Ate: JJ Gannons (yummy gastropub)

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Photos

Walk on Water Here
Laurie's Favorite Sign in Ireland. Perhaps this is the signt of modern miracles?????