Road Trip

After three months spent in Galway, I finally got on the road again. Today I decided I had spent a sufficient enough time recovering from my journeys (bed rest was needed!), and began work on my final essays, and updating my blog.

First things first. I fulfilled my childhood dream of riding down a beach on the coast of Ireland. I believe this has its origins in many viewings of the Black Stallion growing up. You may ask, what has Ireland got to do with the Black Stallion? Well, nothing. I'm not sure where Ireland came from, but it certainly was implanted in my imagination at a very young age. Along with the dream of playing the Hadyn's Cello Concerto in C. I digress. Alex, Chelsea and I set out on one rainy Monday morning to travel to Cleggan, a tiny fishing village on the north west coast of the Connemara region. We arrived early, which was fine, since we were the only riders that day. Three burly looking horses stood tacked up in the outdoor arena, and I was ushered over to the smallest (typical) pony, named Boots.
After a warm-up in the arena (necessary, as they were all a bit frisky), we set out on the road to the bay. Boots seemed a mite afraid of the cars speeding by at 80km/hour on a one-lane road (I would be too), but after awhile, we agreed to be brave together. We galloped on the beach, went to an island at low tide, and trotted down the road, saying hello to the occasional farmer out tending his fields. It was wonderful. After the three-hour jaunt, we had a few hours before the bus came, so we made our way to the only place open: the pub. If any of you have seen Coronation Street or Emmerdale (thank you, Canadian television), it looked like I had walked right into the set. It was quiet at midday- with two locals playing a game of pool at one end, and a few people at the bar discussing the town gossip. We sat by the fire, nursed our sore muscles, and had a nice warm meal.

Tuesday morning (that is the 31st of March) I headed off to class, then to the bus station to meet my mother, who had arrived safely in Galway after a long night of traveling. After finishing classes for the semester on Wednesday (yay!) our journey officially began. I'll give you a brief outline of the trip: Thursday we traveled to the Aran Islands, off the coast of Galway, and biked around in beautiful weather. I acquired wool socks and a sweater that make me feel quite Irish.

The Aran Islands

Friday we picked up the rental car (after looking through the entire parking structure to find our little red car), and headed up to Connemara, hiked a bit, enjoyed the fact that we were still alive (each county greets you with a sign marking the death toll on county roads each year... e.g. there were 47 deaths on Co. Mayo roads alone last year), and pushed on to Bushmills in Northern Ireland.

Connemara National Park

Just before entering Northern Ireland, we stopped in the little town of Manorhamilton and I had the best meal of my life. We happened upon this quaint hotel restaurant that was entirely empty of customers (on a friday night of all things), which meant that we got to sit next to the fire. I enjoyed a brie and mushroom tart with a lovely salad topped with edible flowers (I've already forgotten their name, even though mother told me about five times). Any description will not do it justice. So, if you are ever in Ireland, go to Manorhamilton. And eat at the teal building. I didn't write down the name. Anyway, While the roads improved significantly upon hitting the Northern Ireland border, the sinage became much more confusing. They like to use things such as miles and yards instead of kilometers and meters just to make life more interesting. Our speedometer still read in kilometers per hour, so we just had to rely on our brains to hopefully be converting speeds correctly. Saturday we braved the wind and rain at Giant's Causeway (but had it all to ourselves!), popped into the gift shop at Bushmills Whiskey Distillery, and drove down to Dublin to visit the National Botanic Gardens.

Giant's Causeway

National Botanic Gardens, Dublin

After visiting the most beautiful old glasshouses, we walked around the grounds for a bit to get some fresh air. Down by the creek I stumbled upon people taking pictures of Squirrels. Yes. And not only one group of people. They seemed to be quite the attraction. Heavens knows why. That evening we made our way through the Wiklow Mountains, down to the village of Laragh.

Wicklow Mountains

The next morning we paid a visit to Glendalough, the site of St. Kenvin's monastic village, dating back to the 7th century. Apparently he had a woman friend named Caitlin, who he was forced to drown in the lake in order to stop her advances.

Glendalough

We made our way through the heartland that afternoon, stopping in Co. Kildare to see the horses, and at the Shannon River just above Limerick for a walk. Sunday evening we made it up to Doolin, in Co. Clare and enjoyed some traditional music in a tourist-packed pub. Monday morning we set out from Doolin to see the Cliffs of Moher (Ireland's entry for one of the 7 Wonders of the World-- or something of similar designation), and then back through the Burren and on to Galway.

Cliffs of Moher

The Burren

We stopped at the Burren Perfumery, where they have been making perfumes and soaps out of extracts from local flowers for 40 years. Due to the Burren's unique climate and soil, it is home to some of the most diverse flora. I'll have to go back when the wildflowers are blooming. That evening we met up with Emma Herzog, one of my oldest friends and fellow westsider, and her lovley roommate Austin who were visiting from Sevilla, Spain. After a wonderful dinner with the two of them, we headed back to the apartment where Mom packed her things, and she was off back to the states bright and early the next morning. Did I mention how much I liked the little red car? Driving was definitely part of the fun as well.

I spent Wednesday afternoon with Emma and Austin, who were the absolute best company one could ask for. After walking about town, we made dinner at my place, watched some friends episodes (they had been deprived of such things), and headed back into town to hear some music. Inevitably, we attracted some very interesting men, but Emma and Austin just decided to be Spanish. I just tried to keep a straight face through all of the encounters. I was sad to see them go :(.

Since then, well, I'm not exactly sure what I've been doing. Resting, I guess. Two papers and three exams to study for in the next week, and I'm looking forward to being busy. Everyone is gone since classes ended, and its very quiet around here. Perfect for being productive.

Cheers

Caitlin