Galway (day 2) - Trip Day 7

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Tuesday, March 20

Tammy here-
We spent the day visiting pubs and shopping around in Galway. With all the Irish knitted sweaters in every shop, it's funny how you never see anyone Irish wearing them. I dragged the gang to a shop I'd found on the Internet that says it was the originator of the Claddagh ring. Of course, there where about three other shops advertising themselves as the originals too, but I had read about this place on the Internet and everyone knows if it's on the Internet, it's true. We all got sized up and Ed and I got all romantic and purchased our rings together. All other shopping looks like stuff you'd find at a Target store display with Guinness or shamrocks or big green top hats. We did go into a few cool pubs. My favorite was the Quays (pronounced the Keys so you can imagine how hard this place was to find on the local's referral). It looked like an old church with multiple stories and enough room for a little larger band to play the 'trad' music so we had a fiddle, guitar, boudrain and accordion.

Steve here-
Before picking up our lovely Claddagh rings, we explore the city a bit. We head down to view Galway Harbor, walk through the Spanish Arch and search out the Kicking Stone. Kicking the stone is supposed to bring you luck, or some such thing, but we are unable to find it. So we kick the hell out of lots of other stones, just in case.

Ed does a brilliant job of driving us back to Limerick for our second Waterboys show, and on the way we listen to their new album, Book of Lightning, twice. Ed and Tammy go in early to watch the opening band Hybrasil, while Jackie and I opt for another beer in the lobby. The show is nearly identical to the first show in Cork, but it is much more enjoyable. We now have heard the entire album three times, so we are able to sing along to at least the choruses. We also chose to stand in the empty back row of the theater, knowing from the first show that the old folks in the audience wouldn’t stand to dance until the encore.

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Photos

Waterboys Limerick Show
Backtracked to Limerick