Day 50: Inis Meáin

- Thursday, July 30, 2009

July 18, 2009

There are, perhaps, no words to describe the day I spent on Inis Meáin. Any attempt will sound like I'm just repeating clichés or making things up. Inis Meáin is a place of its own and it only appeals to certain people. However, I think I spent one perfect day on that island.

I woke up on Inis Mór on Saturday, packed my luggage, and headed down towards the port. I could't attach my small carry-on to my bicycle, so I walked, about 20 minutes, down to the port with a carry-on in one hand, and my bicycle in the other. It was an awkward arrangement.

But I eventually reached the port in good time and just walked around and took pictures of the port.


My only good shot of the port (which doesn't show much of it). This is taken from the dock, so the bicycle shop and Aran Islands tourist office are behind this vantage point.

The weather was not bad that morning, so the ferries would make a trip to Inis Meáin around lunchtime. There aren't a lot of ferries between the islands (they only run twice a day), so I lost some hours in the morning. But once the ferry came into the dock, I loaded my luggage and went to stand out on the deck.

The wake.

The distance from Inis Mór to Inis Meáin looks small, but it actually took about an hour to get there. The morning was still a bit foggy and when I looked back at Inis Mór, it was partially covered with clouds.

Inis Meáin is markedly different from the bustling, and much visited port of Killronan. Only two other people besides me disembarked at Inis Meáin and the rest would head to Inis Oírr or back to the mainland. There are no buildings at the port, and only one taxi was there to meet us.

I had booked a place at the B&B Ard Alainn and the owner, Sean, said that he would come pick me up at the port. However, he wasn't there and I was afraid that he might have forgotten. The taxi was heading up to Ard Alainn to drop off the other two people, so I hitched a ride with them.

Inis Meáin only has about 300 permanent residents and the rest of the island is mostly farmland. The land is split in half by two hills. One side faces the mainland and contains all the houses on the island. The other side faces the harsh weather of the Atlantic Ocean and is uninhabitable.

I booked a night at Ard Alainn because every other place on the island was booked. However, the B&B is perched on top of one of the hills and I had a beautiful view of the rest of the island.


The view of Inis Meáin from Ard Alainn.

Both Sean and his wife, Maura, own the B&B and they were both very kind and gracious hosts. Maura finished preparing our rooms and I eventually settled into my room. I had a nice, small room upstairs and I was able to see Inis Mór from my window.

I didn't have a very good map of the island, and there weren't very good directions to any of the "attractions". So after asking Maura about some of the pathways, I started out for a nice long walk around the island.

One of the few inhabitants of the island.

Paved roads such as this criscross the entire island and the best way to see the island is by walking. Inis Mór is also faintly visible in the distance.


The two pictures above show the stone walls that are common across Ireland. Somehow, they looked a lot better on Inis Meáin.

After walking around for a while, I came to a dead end. I had been looking for "Synge's Chair", which I will explain later. I saw the sign point in the direction I was going, but I never found it.

So I turned around and walked past Ard Alainn and looked for Dún Chonchúir, an oval stone fort that is situated at one of the highest points on the island. As I walked further, I spotted the fort and several people inside of it. The path takes a right turn from the main road. I walked around the fort, but once again, I didn't find a road that led up to it. I kept walking down the path and it led me farther away from the fort. It was a nice walk, but eventually, I just turned back again to the main road.


I did manage to take a picture from the road. It is impressive, even from a distance, and looks extremely well preserved.

This time, I went to go find the famous Knitwear Factory. The Aran Islands are known for their woolen sweaters. The originals were a cream color and had were knitted with specific patterns. It is said that the patterns were unique to a family and that if the body of a fisherman, who had died at sea, washed up on the shore, he would be identified by the pattern on his sweater.

I eventually did find the shop and it was full of very beautiful, but expensive sweaters. They had other items as well, and I eventually chose to buy a knitted cap. Once I finished my purchases, I headed back to Ard Alainn for a brief rest.

After arriving, I left my bags in my room and headed to the small lounge downstairs to just sit for a while and enjoy a nice, hot cup of tea. There was an old couple in there, also drinking tea and reading the newspapers. We started talking and meeting them on that island was the best part of my stay.

Their names are Mr. George and Mrs. Fiona Eogan. I was intending to keep their names private, but Mr. Eogan is very well known within the archaelogical community. Even if I had just described his background, it would have been very easy to discover their identities through the internet.

Mr. Eogan is a retired Professor Emeritus of Archaeology from University College Dublin and received his Ph.D. from Trinty College. He was the primary archaeologist that led the excavations at Knowth, a Neolithic burial tomb, very similar to Newgrange, and which is also located in the Brú na Bóinne complex in County Meath.

I will talk more about Knowth and Newgrange later, but it was amazing to meet them both on the island. They had been coming to Inis Meáin for years now, and they enjoyed it much more than the more commerical Inis Mór.

We sat in the lounge for a while, just talking, and eventually I told them about my inability to find the road to reach Dún Chonchúir. They described it to me, but I was still lost as to how to get there. Mrs. Eogan had yet to see it on this trip, so they both volunteered to walk with me and show me around the fort.

Apparently, there was no paved road to the top, and visitors have to hike over cow fields and stones to get to the entrance. When I had walked by earlier, I saw cows in the fields and I assumed that it was private property, and hence looked for another entrance. There is worn path to the fort, but there were stones that we had to climb over.


Two shots of the interior of the fort. What I loved about this fort, and perhaps about Inis Meáin in general, is how unassuming and undisturbed the place is. The cows still wander around and inside the oval fort. It wasn't at all like Dún Aonghasa, but granted, that it does sit on the edge of a cliff, and it would not be very convenient to have them walk off the edge.

Once we entered, I was told that Mr. Eogan was an archaeologist and he started explaining the historical significance of the fort. These stone forts predated the Celts and were the homes of the chieftans. He pointed out that these forts are not unique to Ireland, but can also be found in Mediterranean countries.

Dún Chonchúir is one of two forts on the island (the other is Dún Fearbhaí) and they are both located on the highest points on the island. It is possible, on a clear day, to see the Cliffs of Moher from the top of the fort.

After taking a round of the interior, we headed back to the main road. They were heading off to dinner at Óstán Inis Meáin, which is a pub, restaurant, and hotel in one. They kindly invited me along, and we began another long walk down to the restaurant, which is across the island and closer to the shore. On the way, we passed the only church, and I asked if it was possible to go inside. We were not in a hurry, so we went briefly inside. After seeing the grand, and almost intimidating architecture of St. Patrick's and Christ Church, it was nice to see something more simplistic. They had a guestbook and Mr. Eogan suggested that I write my name, alongside my birthplace in India, because it would be more interesting than just writing down the US.

We headed out towards the door and we saw that it was pouring rain. It had not been a promising day, and I was surprised that it hadn't rained earlier. But it lasted for about fifteen minutes, so claimed temporary sanctuary within the church entrance.

We eventually reached the restaurant and had to wait a little while for the kitchen to start preparing for dinner. In the meantime, we watched County Galway play County Mayo in Connacht Senior Hurling Final. Nobody expected Galway to win although everyone was still cheering for the team (many gaelic football players from the island join teams in Galway).

It was an exciting match (Galway won) and the dinner was delicious. After the conclusion of the match, we headed back up towards Ard Alainn and we set a slow place because climbing steep hills with a full stomach takes a while. After making to Ard Alainn, Mrs. Eogan volunteered to take me quickly to Synge's Chair.

John Millington Synge is famous Irish playwright, perhaps best known for his work "The Playboy of the Western World". W. B. Yeats recommended a visit to the Aran Islands and Synge came to love the island of Inis Meáin. He also thought Inis Mór was too commercial, even during his time. He lived in house on the island, which is now called Teach Synge and is a museum dedicated to his life.

Anyway, Synge's Chair or Cathaoir Synge, is a small little enclosure of rocks that sits on the edge of the island. One part of the wall is open and there is a beautiful view of Inis Mór and the Atlantic Ocean. During his summers on the island, Synge would come to his chair to sit and think.

Unfortunately, I don't have a good picture of it, and my pictures became extremely grainy as soon as I left the stone fort. We didn't stay very long because it was getting late, but it was a beautiful spot. We saw part of the sunset and Inis Mór sat glimmering admist the orange-colored water.

After getting back to Ard Alainn, I went upstairs, got ready for bed, and watched the sunset from my window.

Day 49: Largest of three, First of three

- Friday, July 24, 2009

July 17, 2009

My destination for my three-day solo trip was across country and ocean: the Aran Islands. The Aran Islands are a group of three islands - Inis Mór, Inis Meáin, and Inis Oírr. They are located in Galway Bay and can be reached by either ferry or plane.

My original goal was to see all three islands in three days. However, I realized that I was trying to see too much and limited myself to seeing the largest and most visited island, Inis Mór, and the middle and least visited island, Inis Meáin. I feel bad that I missed seeing Inis Oírr, but I am definitely making plans for a longer stay next time.

The Aran Islands are a popular tourist destination for the hordes that visit Galway City. They are well-known for the preservation of the Irish language and culture. The majority of people speak Gaelic on the island, although they will speak English to tourists. Electricity was only introduced in 1975 and time has seen the slow erosion of the traditional lifestyle. Many young people leave the islands to seek out work on the mainland, although they will visit during summer or winter vacations. They were also completely self-sufficient and made enough food through fishing and farming.

I wanted to visit the islands because many students from previous years said that it was definitely worth a trip. However, people suggested that at least a few day stay was necessary to see more than just the tourist locations. I went, and I went by myself, because I fancied some time alone. I would be able to set my own schedule, see what I want and when I want, and I wouldn't have to forgo anything because someone else wanted to see something different.

I left early on Friday to catch the train from Dublin to Galway City. When I arrived, I had a little over one hour to spare before catching a ferry to Inis Mór.

The ferry ride itself was interesting. The weather forecast wasn't great for the weekend and we were going up against the waves as they rolled into the mainland. The ferry did rock, almost violently, from side to side, but the journey was safe. I was amazed at how people were able to drink their coffees and teas without spilling anything. I surely would have made a mess everywhere.

Once we disembarked at the port, Cill Rónáin (Killronan), I was immediately accosted by at least four people trying to get me to rent a bike. It is a big island and it was suggested that the best way to see it was to rent a bike. I was carrying some luggage, so I promised to return and rent one later.

I caught a taxi to the hostel and dropped off my stuff. I walked back towards Killronan and picked up some food along the way. I rented a bike (which was old and squeaky) and headed out across the island.

Ireland's fences. Instead of building wooden fences (which would most definitely get ruined in the constant rain), the islanders used their most abundant resource to make the boundary of their land.

After biking on the main road for a while, I took a small detour to the lighthouse. It is on the highest point on the island and this is the path that leads up to it. It looks deceiving easy to climb, but it is much steeper than it looks. My bicycle only served to complicate matters.

A car park just before the lighthouse and a great place to take pictures from.

After climbing down from the lighthouse, I biked farther down the main road. I saw many tourists going both ways, either walking, biking, or taking a horse ride. Perhaps the most famous attraction on Inis Mór is Dún Aonghasa. This is the pathway that leads up to it. The small gap in the wall of rock at the top of the photo is the entrance to the area.

Dún Aonghasa is the name of the half-moon stone fort that sits on the edge of 100 metre cliffs that drop straight to the ocean. It is thought to date from the Iron Age and as been called "the most magnificent barbaric monument in Europe". Dún Aonghasa is used to refer to the fort, cliffs, and the surrounding area. There is a theory that suggests that the fort was built several hundred meters away from the cliffside, but constant erosion has eaten away at the edges of the island.

Another shot of the fort.

This is NOT my picture, but it is a photo I took from the internet to show an aerial view of the fort perched on the edge of the cliffs.

I'm still amazed at how these rocks stay in place. It looks as if high winds would knoch them over, but they are extremely sturdy .

The entrance to the interior of the fort.

The cliffs that drop straight to the sea. If you will, the island contains a mini Cliffs of Moher, but they were both intimidating. I refused to get near the edge, but this was taken in a safe haven. Since the edges curved, I had no need to get close to the edge to take a good picture. Unlike the Cliffs of Moher, there is no protective fence and visitors are free to wander about.

A mother and her two small boys standing on the edge to look out to the Atlantic Ocean.

The clouds cast magnificient shadows on the ocean that day. It was raining as I climbed up the fort, but the sky cleared as the rain moved towards the mainland.

A picture of the cliffs as I walked back down from the fort. 


Kilmurvey (Cill Mhuirbhigh) beach, one of Europe's blue flag beaches. This was perhaps the best "white sand, blue water" beach I have seen in Ireland. I biked around to the other side and walked along the beach for a while.

After walking back from the beach, I hopped on my bicycle and headed in the direction of Killronan. I stopped along the way to take pictures of the sunset, but it took to long and pack and unpack my camera from my bag. I didn't need to head back down to the port, so after picking up a quick dinner of bread and fruit, I headed back to the hostel. At that point, all I wanted was to take nice, long shower.

Inis Mór is definitely a great place to visit and it is easily accessible by visitors who travel to Galway. Dún Aonghasa is understandbly the best attraction on the island, although there is much more to see off the beaten path. I didn't get to see everything, but I will go back to visit.

However, Inis Mór is unmistakably changed with the number of tourists coming to visit and I wasn't expecting to find any quiet time on the island. The island also didn't showcase any of the traditional Irish culture - everyone spoke English and most of the services provided were catered for tourists.

I was by no means unhappy with Inis Mór, but I had been looking forward more to seeing Inis Meáin. When people asked me about my stay on the islands, they  always had something to say about the differences between the islands. One of young men who helped me rent a bike said "Poor you" when I told him I was going to Inis Meáin. My taxi driver said that it had a completely different way of life than Inis Mór.

So I went bed tired, but excited, for my trip to Inis Meáin.

Day 44-48: By wind, water, and earth

-

July 13-16, 2009

Once again, I'm going to lump my four day work-week into one post because I have nothing interesting to note from it. I spent the evenings planning carefully for a 3 day weekend trip to one of the edges of Europe.

I was to make a solo trip, and therefore had to plan for all circumstances and events. I wanted to go alone and see what that was like. My friends here had plans to go to London or to finish their papers in order to spend more free time at the end of our stay. It was the first time I would plan any such trip and go by myself. Of course, I was apprehensive and excited, but I went to bed on Thursday night, hoping that I arranged my trip as best as I could.

Day 43: Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it

-

July 12, 2009

The day began late but we were taking a group trip to see a gaelic football match.

Like everywhere, sports fans take great pride in their teams and Ireland has its own fair share of fanatics. The two national sports, gaelic football and hurling, are played in every county of the country.

I had never heard of gaelic football or hurling, but our Irish history professor had shown us some brief clips of game play during class. Gaelic football is much like soccer, except that you can run with the ball. Of course, there are many rules to the game and you obviously can't run with the ball acroos the entire field. Scoring is simple to understand: the goal looks much like the field goal posts in American football. If the ball is thrown or kicked underneath the bar of the H-shaped goal, then it counts for 3 points. If it thrown or kicked above the bar, it counts as one point.

Anyone can pick up the game in five minutes and there are plenty of videos on YouTube to watch. However, I think the game is even more fun to watch then soccer. The players score many more points during gaelic football and it is played at a much quicker pace.

Hurling is even more intense and fast-paced. It is much like lacrosse, but instead of carrying a stick with a net at the end, the players carry a flat paddle. They run with the ball balanced on the end paddle and it's quite amazing to watch. It would take a tremendous amount of skill to run and balance the ball at the same time. They can also hit the ball to about 3/4 of the pitch. Again, there are certain rules and they score lots of points in hurling.

Both games are organized across the 32 counties of Ireland (which means that they are played across Ireland and Northern Ireland's borders). Each county has a representing team that plays to win the provincial title (winner of Leinster, Ulster, Connacht, or Munster) and the all-Ireland title. Every single player is also an "amateur". The GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) is in charge of both of these sports and they refuse to allow players to accept sponsorships. They receive no additional money for being on the team. They play merely for the glory of the game.

So, we got to see the Leinster provincial title between Dublin and Kildare at Croke Park. The stadium is huge and it was packed with over thousands of spectators. Of course, it was overrun with Dubliners, but there were some small patches of Kildare supporters, wearing their team colors (white) admist the sea of blue (for Dublin).

The stadium was packed, although there were a few empty seats near the top. We sat behind this goalpost, so we had a good view of the goalie. However, if you look closely, they have put up a black net to protect the supporters from the ball. So, unfortunately, I couldn't get any clear shots of the players. So our front-row tickets came with a price.

A kid waving the flag for Dublin.

Because we sat right behind the goalpost, I didn't get many good pictures of the game or players. I got better pictures of the crowd. Then again, I didn't want to miss the game by watching it through my camera lens, so I eventually put it away.

It started to rain too (big surprise) and everyone, in a singular motion, reached over the heads and pulled up their hood. It would have been amusing if I hadn't been sitting without an umbrella or hood. But I took off my jacket and shielded my head and camera.

Dublin won the game 2-15 (a total of 21 points) to Kildare's 0-18. (a total of 18 points). Dublin has won the Leinster final for the past several years, so they were the favorites to win again. Kildare put up a great fight and even spectators at home said that it was one of the best matches they had seen.

I didn't really pick a side before I went in. I didn't feel any obligation to support Dublin, and I was partially rooting for Kildare as the underdog,but I clapped when either side scored goals. So now that Dublin won the provincial final, I'm rooting for a win at the all-Ireland championship.

Once the game concluded, the crowd overwhelmed the Garda and poured over the fences and across the pitch. The fans ran towards the stand for the trophy presentation and some of the players gave some speeches. I had no idea who they were or what they said, but I was interested in seeing how people reacted. It was somewhat sad to see the drooping shoulders of the Kildare supporters as they walked out.

It was a lot of fun to watch and it was my first ticket to a live sports game. I definitely want to go to another match someday. It was easy to get caught up with the crowd - the collecting cheering and booing was fun to watch, and to participate in.

Once the match was over, I just followed the crowd until they reached O'Connell Street and then hopped on a bus to head home. I really wanted nothing more than a hot shower and some proper food.

(P.S. The title of this post comes from a GAA commercial sponsored by Vodafone. It is taken from Kipling's poem "If". This was one of the first commercials I remember seeing in Ireland and I thought it was cool. I have posted the video below. Make sure to see some hurling and gaelic football plays when at YouTube.)

Day 42: Another day, another beach

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July 11, 2009

It seemed that I just needed some time to walk around and do nothing. Our previous weekend trip to Galway was fun, exciting, and long. I didn't do much in the morning, but I headed out to another beach during the afternoon.

I hopped on the DART(the coastal railine) to Killiney Beach. The day had promised rain and parts of the hills surrounding the beach were covered with low clouds. The storm was visible on the horizon, but I decided to take my chances and spend an hour or so just walking around.


Looking south on Killiney Beach. This beach is renowned for great views of seaside mansions bought by famous people (i.e. U2 , Enya, etc.). However, it was cloudy that day and I wasn't realy interested in seeing their houses anyway. It was windy and the beach was extremely rocky. 

Looking to the north at the low clouds that shrouded the top of the hills.

Hole in the wall.
I took a lot of pictures of waves, just to see how I fared at capturing motion. 

This was one of my favorite photos of the day.

As you can tell, ths is my first and very amateurish attempt at photo manipulation. The rocks on Killiney Beach were mostly monotone, but every now and then, a vibrant color stood out admist the shades of grey. In reality, the orange rock is not really that orange. But when I uploaded my photos, I had an urge to manipulate it and make it stand out against a black and white background.

I took many pictures of the beach and many of them are not worth posting. I took the same shot in different ways, trying to capture something different such as lighting or motion. But I tried to select the best (or my favorite) of the lot to present here.

I didn't do much else but just walk around. There were (thankfully) no jellyfish on this beach, so I could stick my feet in the water for a little while. It wasn't a crowded beach by any means (because the rocks aren't as appealing as fine sand), but it was nice to see on such a day.

I timed my visit correctly because it started to pour just as I hopped back on the DART. It wasn't a very exciting day and I spent most of the time on the beach planning my three-day weekend trip.

Day 37-41: Back to square one

- Sunday, July 12, 2009

July 6-10, 2009

It was a week of work, planning, and research. I have a three day weekend coming up and I had to research and book hotels and transportation for my trip. Therefore, I didn't have any time to explore the city or the surrounding areas.

I did do some minor shopping on Thursday and had a very interesting night out with the girls that evening.

On Friday, I saw a group of protestors outside the Bank of Ireland, holding signs and walking back and forth. They were protesting the disintegration of order and democracy in Iran and the imprisonment of protestors in Iran. I didn't see them the next day and I'm not sure if their goal was to raise awareness.

Otherwise, it was a slow week and I definitely loooked forward to the weekend.

Day 36: I dream I hear a piper play...

-

July 5, 2009

We awoke bright and early (not really) to hop onto yet another coach bus tour. This time, we would see the Burren and the Cliffs of Moher, both of which are south of Galway City and within the county of Clare.

The Burren (Boireann, meaning "great rock" or "rocky place") is karst-landscape region. I had no clue what a karst landscape is, so I looked it up. According to Wikipedia, karst topography is a "landscape shaped by the dissolution of a layer or layers of soluble bedrock, usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite."

The Burren hosts many monuments and sites of ancient Ireland (which of course, we did not see, save for one). However, the Burren might best be remembered in a quote by Edmund Ludlow, the second-in-command of Parliamentary forces in Ireland during the Cromwellian era. He said the Burren "is a country where there is not water enough to drown a man, wood enough to hang one, nor earth enough to bury them."



Ludlow's comments are best demonstrated by the three pictures above. As you can see, most of the landscape is covered in rock, and there is hardly any soil to be had. The soil that is there is very rich in nutrients, and thus the Burren is home to some fantastic flora. We didn't really stop to get at any point for a good picture of the Burren landscape, but it is mainly composed of hills (like the one in the first picture) that cover about 250 square kilometers.

We stopped at the village of Doolin for an early lunch since our bus driver hoped to beat the crowds that rolled in with other coach bus tours.

There was a nice song written on the walls of the restaurant, and the lyrics are below:

I dream I hear a piper play,
Maybe it's a notion,
I dream I see white horses,
Dance upon that other ocean,
It's a long way,
From Clare to here.

We had a little spare time, so I went to a small jewelry shop just past the restaurant. As soon as I left it, it started to rain, and so I went back and sought shelter in the restaurant. The day never looked very promising and our driver was hoping to reach the Cliffs of Moher before the storm came rolling in.

At some point in their life, most people have already seen a picture of the Cliffs of Moher. Perhaps they don't recognize it by name, but they will surely recognize a picture of it. It was the number one tourist attraction in Ireland until the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin stole its place (this is only possible in Ireland).

My best picture of the Cliffs of Moher. The cliffs tower above the Atlantic Ocean, ranging from 394 feet to 704 feet, and extend 8 kilometers in length.

A view of the cliffs from the other side. The picture above was taken close to the O'Briens Tower (visible in the photo). I had to pay 3 Euro to take photos from the top, but there wasn't a great view from there. At least, nothing better than what was visible on the ground.

A picture of the countryside behind the cliffs, taken from O'Brien's Tower. Believe it or not, there were grazing cows, standing about 50 feet behind the edge visible here. Of course, there were fences to keep them safe, but it was rather amusing to see them walking about so calmly, unknowing that they lived so close to a sheer drop to the ocean.

As always, there isn't a single day in Ireland when there isn't a chance of rain. Unfortunately, just at the time when we were at the Cliffs, a nice storm rolled right in.  At that time, I didn't know what kind of picture I took because I was trying to shield myself and the camera from the rain. I did not manipulate the colors in this photo, but the fog and rain made the cliffs look black and white while the grass in front retains its color.

The rain was by far, one of the worst things to happen on that visit. I got completely drenched and the cliffs were completely shrouded behind the fog. Apparently, the good visibility we had earlier was a bit of luck - sometimes, the visitors can't even see their own hands in front of them due to the thick fog.

The visitors rained down on the visitor centre en masse and we had to wait inside until the rain let up a bit. I used that time to dry off (which wasn't very successful) only to proceed back out in the rain to take some more pictures.

Due to the dangerous nature of the cliffs, protective fences have been built to keep visitors safe and to prevent people from attempting to jump off. These fences have been built up to a certain point and at that point, there is a large board that says, "Please do not go past this point". Visitors literally have to jump a small, concrete fence to get past that point. If visitors choose to walk past, they are assuming all the risk in that adventure.

There is a little worn out path along the edge of cliffs and it was visible from where I was standing. However, I was amazed at the sheer bravery (and stupidity?) of people to attempt this after it had rained. The ground was slick and the mud made it treacherous. I saw an old couple trying to get past the board and the old man suddenly slipped and fell on the mud. Luckily, he fell just in front of the board, and even if he had managed to slide, the board would have caught him. However, his camera fell in the mud and his clothes were utterly ruined.

I don't think I would have the stomach to attempt it. I am scared of heights and just seeing people walk past the board made me queasy. It would be possible to attempt with good walking boots when the ground was dry and hard. I was a bit jealous of those who were up there, because I'm sure they had an amazing view of the cliffs. However, conditions can be treacherous. High winds can suddenly knock a person off balance and it is advised to never carry an umbrella, unless one wants to end up like Mary Poppins.

It was beautiful, intimidating, and I felt like staying there at least until the weather cleared up. It eventually did, but only as we left the car park. We only had an hour break at the Cliffs and a good ten minutes was wasted trying to hide from the torrential downpour.

So, after we left the Cliffs of Moher, we kept driving around the Burren and we stopped for about 10 minutes at the Poulnabrone (Poll na mBrón) Dolmen.


This is an ancient portal tomb dating back 4,500 years. An excavation of the site found the uncremated remains of 20 adults and six children, alongside other pieces of pottery, weaponry, and jewelry. This is perhaps one of the most famous and most photographed dolmen, due to its short distance from the road.

After leaving the dolmen, we drove until we reached Ailwee Caves, a limestone cave underneath one of the large hills of the Burren. It was nice to see, but since I've seen many limestone caves in America, it wasn't that exciting, especially after seeing the Cliffs of Moher.

After a brief tour of the caves, we drove back to Galway City. From there, we caught the bus back to Dublin, and it was the most wretched time of my stay in Ireland. I had a massive headache (most likely because I was still soaked from the rain) and the minute I got home, I took some aspirin and went to sleep.

Day 35: To Hell or Connacht

- Monday, July 6, 2009

July 4, 2009

Oliver Cromwell, ruler of Britain after the monarchy was temporarily overthrown, told the Catholics of Ireland to go "to hell or Connacht".

The island of Ireland is split into four provinces: Ulster, Munster, Leinster, and Connacht. Ulter is commonly associated with Northern Ireland, but the province of Ulster is actually divided between the two separate governments. Six counties belong to the United Kingdom, and the remaining three belong to the Republic. Leinster contains Dublin and most of the east coast. Munster contains the southwest of the country, including Kerry and Dingle. Connacht is the northwest part of Ireland and contains Galway, Sligo, and the majority of the Gaelic speaking population.

Cromwell forced Irish Catholics to Connacht because of its poor living conditions. The terrain is rocky and the soil is only suitable for grazing cattle. Much of the country's poorest lived in Connacht and it was hardest hit area during the Great Famine.

We were taken on a guided tour of Connemara, a peninsula in Connacht known for its natural beauty: the Twelve Bens (a mountain range), Killary Harbour (Ireland's only fjord), lakes, and bog lands.

We started the tour with a small stop at the Connemara Marble Visitor Centre. The region is famous for its marble mines. Green is by far the most popular colour, but the mines also produce black, opal, and rose coloured marble. Amethyst is also mined in Connemara, and combined, they are used to make jewelry and other souvenirs. The mines used to supply marble for big projects (the last big project was to construct the entire floor of the Galway Cathedral with Connemara marble), but they are being quickly depleted. Now, only small bits of marble are mined for use in small gifts. I bought a lovely bracelet of green marble and amethyst, alternating between the symbol of the Trinity.

A picture of the workshop behind the marble shop. The model for Christ was interesting, but the small bust of JFK makes this indistinguishably Irish.



Connemara. The low clouds barely brushed the tops of Twelve Bens. Our tour guide repeatedly said that the beauty of the ever-changing faces of the mountains never failed to surprise him.


Killary Harbor, Ireland's only fjord. Perhaps it is not as jaw-dropping as Milford Sound, but still quite beautiful. It's a shame that we only got a small glimpse of it. The little rows visible in the water (first picture) are actually mussel cultures.

We stopped at Kylemore Abbey for lunch. The abbey was original a mansion built by Mitchell Henry, a wealthy politician who was MP of Galway. Mitchell Henry married Margaret Vaughan and on their honeymoon, they travelled to Connemara. Margaret, upon seeing the land, said she wished she could live here. The mansion was built, and since then, it has passed through several hands until it was purchased by Benedictine nuns who escaped Belgium during World War I. Today, the abbey houses an international girls boarding school. The nuns decided to close the school in 2010 but they will continue to live there.

Kylemore Abbey.

A view of the valley in which Kylemore Abbey sits. The building is just to the right of this picture.



Both of the pictures above are looking outward across the lake from the abbey. Despite the slight showers we had received earlier on the tour, the day turned nice (for a while).

The Victorian Garden of Kylemore Abbey. This is a picture of the vegetable patch.

There was not much to see inside the abbey itself. There were some lovely walks through the gardens and the trees beside the house, but as always, we didn't have enough time to explore. So after a quick tour of the gardens, we hopped back on the bus to complete the tour.
We had two small photo stops after lunch, but many of the pictures are similar to the ones above. We reached Dublin in the later afternoon and had a little while to explore before an Independence Day celebration dinner at a local restaurant.

When searching for a place such as Dublin or Galway in Google Maps, the webpage will display little thumbnail pictures on the right-hand side. One of the pictures for Galway was a picture of the interior of Galway Cathedral. After seeing that picture, I decided that I had to go in for myself. I took a simliar picture to the one I saw, although I think that one had better lighting. Needless to say, it was a very beautiful cathedral, with its complete marble floor, high columns, and a lovely ornate organ.

I also managed to complete some shopping for souvenirs and gifts. After wandering around the in the rain for a bit, I walked to the restaurant with the rest of our group. I don't know if we stick out that much, but we were wished a happy 4th of July as we headed down the street. There was a 4th of July celebration in Galway and I even saw a group of cheerleaders dressed in red, white, and blue.  Dinner was interesting - I had legitimate, vegetarian Indian food. It was topped off with dessert - ice cream or cheesecake. They even put little sparklers in our dessert, so everyone ooh-ed and ahh-ed until they went out.

Overall impressions: Connemara is indeed beautiful, as pretty as any other part of the Irish countryside. Perhaps it is not "scenically beautiful" in the same way the Killarney and Wicklow are. Unlike the former, there are not many trees in Connemara and the earth is not only composed of green, but also of gray rocks peeking above the ground.

Connemara is a top tourist destination, but it somehow feels much quieter than other places I have been to. The land looks undisturbed, unassuming, and unchanging. I would have been fine just sitting somewhere and watching the shadow of the clouds move across the land. I felt that I couldn't do justice to the land with my camera, especially while sitting behind a dirty window.

I also couldn't help but feel a lingering sense of sadness. This is by no means a forgotten part of the country, but it did house the poor and dispossessed when they had no where else to go. And when the famine pushed them even farther out, across the ocean, to seek a better life, they must have been reluctant to leave. It was their homeland and they must have loved it, even though it failed to sustain them. I cannot imagine leaving such a beautiful place to arrive on the crowded shores of a place where people did not welcome them.

I will also say that I never want to sit on another bus again. I absolutely hate coach bus tours because 1) the long drive is somewhat uncomfortable 2) we sit for the majority of the day 3) we never stop for a decent amount of time at any place 4) it is the quick and easy way to "see" a place. I don't know how it's possible to say that I really saw Connemara. Yes, I saw the beautiful landscape, but I didn't spend any time there.

Perhaps the one good thing about coach tours is that they pick a good route. The next time I visit Ireland, I know what to see. The next time, I will hire a car or go backpacking.

(P.S. This was probably the hardest post to write. Every time I logged on to work on it, some part of it would get erased. I tell you, I had to rewrite parts of this at least 3 or 4 times.)

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