Last Tuesday was societies day at school, which is basically clubs. There was a large auditorium filled with about a 100 different societies ranging from academic to social. I took the initiative a joined a few--International Students Society, the Business Society, Young Greens, Traditional Music Society, and I was jumped into Labor Youth, which I will most likely not be attending. The Trad Society meets at the Crane Bar in town every Tuesday night and plays traditional Irish music. I'm definitely looking forward to that tomorrow :)
Wednesday was clubs day, which is just sports. I'm not very athletically inclined, but I did join the Kayak Club. I wanted to join the mountaineering club, but hiking boots were required, and I wasn't buying a pair for just one semester. I don't know if I'll actually go kayaking since it's so cold here, but if I do, I'm sure it will be fun.
This week wasn't too intense. I was sick for the majority of it, so I didn't go out with Michelle and Katie when they did on Thursday. However, we did plan a few new upcoming trips.
This upcoming weekend we are going to London/Scotland.
Oct 15-17: The Ring of Kerry and Dingle Penninsula
Oct 23-24: Cork & The Blarney Castle with Liz (hopefully)
Oct 29-31: Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam
Nov 5-7: Belfast with the International Student Society
We were planning on going to Dublin to see MGMT on Friday, but it was sold out. TEAR ='(
Instead, we hit up some pubs in Galway with our roommates, Chiara and Margherita Friday night. On Saturday we went to the Aran Islands, and on Sunday, Connemara.
So here begins the weekend:
Saturday: The Aran Islands
The Aran Islands are located about 10 miles off the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. There are 3 islands, and we went to the biggest one, Inis Mor. The population of the islands is 700 people, and they have schools, homes, grocery stores, and even a nursing home. Although they had these ammenities, it was still pretty desolate. During the famine, many Irish peasents came to the islands to eat seaweed as their main source of food, so the story of the islands is rather depressing.
We took a bus to Rosavil, and then a ferry to the islands. The ferry ride lasted nearly an hour, and was rather choppy. Once we got to the islands we took a mini bus tour around the island. Our driver's name was Thomas, and he lived on the island and spoke Gaelic. His accent was rather rough, and he was difficult to understand, but still very insightful. Our first stop ws Dun Aonghasa, which was a prehistoric stone fort, enclosed by three massive stone walls. We had to climb up the mountain to get to the fort, but it was well worth it as the view of the island cliffs were astonishing.
It's hard to tell, but that's Michelle, Katie and I sitting on one of the cliffs.
Dun Aonghasa was the main 'attraction' on the cliffs, but we also visited the seven churches, which are all ruins now.
The islands were very cold and windy, but we still had a good time experiencing their ways of life. I know I definitely could not live there!
Sunday: Cong, Connemara, Kylemore Abbey
Let me first start off by saying this was my favorite tour we have been on thus far. We started the day by stopping at Ross Errley (spelling?) Friary, an old Fransican Monastery. It was fabulous! It was along an old narrow road in the middle of farmland, and we could see and explore the many rooms, even though the monastery is in ruins.
Our next stop was the village of Cong, home to the set of The Quiet Man, starring John Wayne. I have never actually seen this movie, but apparently it's quite popular. Thousands of fans visit this little village annually. Here we also saw another Fransican monastery that was in ruins.
After Cong began our tour in Connemara, which is a national park of Ireland; it was so pretty! I would love to live here (minus the desolateness), and own some sheep who just frolick through the land and cross roads, causing automobile backups--it's fabulous. Maybe living here wouldn't practical, but I definitely wouldn't mind coming to visit more often. I won't bother posting up 100 pictures of mountains on here, but if you would like to see them, check out my facebook album which is full of mountain ranges! I think they're worth looking at--even in the fog and dampness they were beautiful.
In the beginning of the trip we witnessed a farmer rounding up his heard of sheep up on the mountains by border collies. The farmer wistles or gives a command which tells the dogs what they're supposed to do. The sheep are afraid of the dogs, so they run the opposite direction, which is the direction the the farmer would like the sheep to go. It was rather fascinating watching the sheep being gathered together from the top of the mountain and watching them trot all the way down to the farm. It doesn't sound fascinating, but when you watch it, it is.
We continued to drive through the endless mountain ranges, passing many gorgeous lakes and countryside. The land here is called bog land, which has the consistency of a wet mattress. If you aren't careful, you can actually drown in this stuff, like quicksand. It's also acidic and theres no oxygen in it, so if you drown, you'll be preserved like a mummy! We ended up walking in a little section, and the groud was legit bouncy, it was so strange.
Our next stop was Kylemore Abbey, which used to be a castle, but then changed hands in the 1920s. The Benedictine order of Nuns took over, and it has been owned by them since. It is also a boarding school for young girls in nun training. It was stunning!
We explored the inside of the abbey as well. On the grounds is a neo-gothic church, which is a replica from a church in England
There were also gardens on the grounds, which happens to be the largest stone walled Victorian gardens in Ireland. They, too were quite pretty :)
After leaving the grounds of Kylemore Abbey, we stopped to take many scenery shots of the mountains. We also saw the Quiet Man Bridge, which was part of the film. I really need to see it! The bridge is in the countryside and was quite quaint.
So the trip to Connemara was indeed beautiful, and if you really want to see some beautiful mountain ranges and sheep, be sure to check out my Facebook album :)
Not much is going on this week. I need to catch up on some reading for school. Tuesday we are going to the Crane Bar to listen to some Irish music with the Trad Society. Thursday is Author's Day (founder of Guiness) so we will of course celebrate. We are taking a bus Thursday night to Shannon and staying overnight because our flight to London leaves Friday morning at 6:30.
I'll update soon!
Christy
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