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Published: August 23rd 2008
Hey all!
Today we went on a day trip with Galway Tour Company. We were a little afraid because it was raining, but it ended up being alright. A bus picked us up around 10 AM and we drove to the county of Mayo, yes like the condiment, where we stopped at Ross Errily Friary, ruins of a friary that has been around since the 14th century. Great place to take photos and walk around, it almost felt like a little maze. Good fun. We drove past a stone circle and a fairy tree, where locals believe the fairies come out at night and play music and dance. Local legend tells that if you visit the tree at night, the fairies will freeze you in your spot until morning. They really believe that stuff here...Ireland is extremely superstitious, at least in these parts. After that, we headed into the city of Cong, where we stopped for about a half an hour by another abby ruin and beautiful forest/river area. I can understand why these people believe in fairies and magic and things...these places have been magical. The trees are covered with ferns and moss, and the bushes sprout leaves of bright orange and red. The rivers are so clear that you can see the smooth pebbles beneath the waters. It is a photographer's paradise, that's for sure.
Next we headed into the National Park of Connemara, the view of which was unfortunately very obstructed by rain and fog. However! Connemara has their own breed of pony, bred from a Spanish pony that came to Ireland along with the Spanish a very long time ago. When the bus driver reached a certain point on the road, he pulled over and honked his horn. After awhile, we came into sight of a beautiful Connemara pony! Gray and white and speckled and cute! The driver asked for a volunteer so I spoke up and he handed me a carrot to feed him! I have fed many many horses before but this one was super cute and I was stoked, haha.
We stopped for a couple hours at Kylemore Abby, which is a castle, church, and garden all rolled into one. Ian and I declined the 8 euro entrance fee and opted for soup and sandwiches at the restaurant nearby. We hung out and played cards (we had to buy the THIRD new deck of the trip) and took pictures. It didnt matter that we werent inside the abby, it was still very pretty.
If anyone has seen the movie Quiet Man with John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, it was filmed in many areas we went to today. I haven't seen it, but the driver never went for 20 minutes without mentioning it, so we will have to rent it when we get home.
We got back to the hostel tonight and decided to cook dinner. We made chicken burritos which were actually quite delicious. They took 2 hours to make, but it kept us busy and away from buying expensive drinks in the pubs!!
Tomorrow we are doing another day trip with the same company, this time to the Cliffs of Moher and the Burren. The rain is supposed to stop tonight, so fingers crossed it is clear for tomorrow!!
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Sheryl
non-member comment
Cool Ireland
I wanna go, I wanna go. Sounds beautiful. The Quiet Man movie is my favorite John Wayne movie. You should rent it. Can't wait to see you when you get back.