Many people do not automatically associate Ireland and island with one another where we come from. However, everyone on this side of the pond does. I think of islands as tropical, clear blue seas, and a colorful umbrella in my drinks but over here it is, lush green grass, daily live music, and a frosty Guinness. It even took me a while to put the two together when I had first arrived and everyone's greeting was 'Welcome to the Island'. This past weekend, I left my, now, familiar city to travel to the west coast of the island into Galway. As all of you know by now, I am loving my living arrangements, job, and friends I have made in Dublin but exploring Galway completely shocked me. If I had the chance, I would move there immediately following graduation and be completely content for the rest of my days! (Now I just need to find an Irishman to obtain that visa!)
In Galway, you get the best of both worlds. The City Centre has more shops, restaurants, and pubs side by side than I have ever seen in my life. On almost every side street off Shoppe Street (main street), there were gorgeous markets that sold everything from handmade jewelry to oysters (that I of course had to try, right there on the street). The Drexel boys, my travel buddies, were totally grossed out which was just an added perk to the fresh seafood in which I gorged in at every meal. The nightlife was roaring until the early hours of the morning but not far out of the populated streets were quiet, quaint residential areas.
On Friday morning, we explored one of the biggest attractions Galway has to offer. The Aran Islands are off the west coast and just a short ferry ride away. We quickly gathered that the best way to see the entire, much smaller island within our return ferry time was to rent bikes. Side note- I have been on a bike about three times in my life and drew blood each time but I was absolutely not going to tell the boys that! Also, it is safe to say that if my wrist was not heeled already, this pretty much forced it to work. I managed really well and impressed myself with no accidents! On our Tour de Aran, we encountered many animals in arms length that spend their days wandering the green grass. This island is the epitome of the green everyone expects to see all over Ireland. We stayed along the coastline and I even put my feet in the water and picked a couple seashells in true Jersey girl style. We biked about 4 miles up to one of the oldest standing man-made forts that served as protection during the British invasion. This fort was at the highest point of the mountains overlooking the rest of the island and the scene was breath-taking. The edge of the fort that meets the Atlantic Ocean were massive cliffs that we were standing on and for once in my life, I felt completely terrified of heights. It was the craziest, most dramatic drop down into the water and I have jumped off cliffs before many times (Ithaca's Gorges are about 60 feet) but this was a whole different level of height. I was one hundred percent the over protective mom to these braves boys who were putting their feet over the edge, gave me several heart attacks from a safe distance. As we safely made our way down, it was amazing to see just how many people visit this place on a daily basis. It was one Euro to climb to the top in order to fund the preservation of the extremely old structure and I have to say I would pay it everyday to revisit.
This trip to Galway made me more excited to travel to other major cities that make up the 'Motherland'.
Still waving with the blue cast!
