Cong, Connemara, and Cliffs

I had a fabulous week with my friend Whitney visiting from her study abroad in France. She arrived this past Saturday night, and, after a minor incident wherein Whitney couldn't contact us when she arrived in Galway, we managed to find her and take her to our place. We went out a bit that night to show her around town and so she could have her first taste of the infamous Supermac's taco fries. I think we got her hooked.

Sunday and Monday were pretty low key, mostly spent showing Whitney around our new hometown, stopping in at the weekend market, and discovering Mojito Mondays at the Skeff Bar, which included free nachos! I actually really liked the ambience of the bar with it's dark wood and cozy booths. I will definitely go back for future mojitos :)
On Tuesday morning, the four of us headed to the Galway coach station to catch one of two tours we were planning to do that week. The Galway Tour Company was having an incredible offer for visiting students that gave us both tours for the price of one (25 euros) and also gave us membership cards so we can go on the tours again for free in the future! Amazing. The first tour took us north of Galway into beautiful Connemara country. Our first stop was at the Ross Errily Friary, dating from the 1300s. It was burnt several times during times of religious unrest and rebuilt each time by the monks who lived there.
Passing by some ancient sites on the road from the friary, we made our way to the town of Cong. It's famous for being the filming location of the movie The Quiet Man, starring John Wayne (who, by the way, happened to get his clothes dry cleaned by the family whose home we are renting and there is a photo of them in their kitchen). I've never seen the movie, so the connection was a bit lost on me, but the town was very cute and the abbey was nestled in the most picturesque piece of land down by the river. At the risk of sounding cheesy, it felt pretty magical to walk among the trees with their branches stretching over the water.
From Cong, we wove our way through Joyce country, taking in the views of the lakes and countryside, heading past Killary Fjord, and stopping again at Kylemore Abbey. This is one of those places you see in almost any calendar or book of Ireland. The incredible structure is actually a castle, built by a very wealthy doctor for his wife and family. Sadly, she died, as did some of his children, and he sold it. It became an abbey and is a private school for girls that is taught by the nuns. This is its last year as such, however, because so few people attend now. Since we could catch a fantastic view from where we came in, we decided not to pay to actually go inside. Instead, we had a nice long lunch in the cafe, browsed the gift shop, and took a bazillion photos.
It was a lovely return drive back to Galway and a very successful and fun day!

Thursday, we returned to the coach station to take our second tour through the Burren and to the Cliffs of Moher. The bus took us south of the city, following the coast of Galway Bay, taking in some quintessential Irish towns along the way. We veered south and made our way into the Burren. We stopped at the Ballyalban Fairy Fort, a ring of raised earth with a moat around it where the fairies once built their homes. This was (at risk of sounding cheesy once again) absolutely, fantastically magical. A path ran around the rim of the ring and the four of us led the way, taking in the light through the trees and the sound of the woods. I wish we could have lingered here longer.
Although we were forced to leave the fairy's home, our next stop was almost as exciting. We went to the Poulnabrone Dolmen, smack in the middle of the Burren's limestone landscape and dating from Neolithic times around 5800 years ago. It's difficult to wrap my head around the idea that humans were living here so long ago, farming the land and building monuments to their dead. And it's even more remarkable that these structures have survived for us to see.
From there it as off to Kilfenora to see the cathedral and crosses, then to the Cliffs of Moher! This was to be my third visit to the cliffs, but I was still so excited. They are absolutely breathtaking. We were given nearly two hours to explore and walk the cliff edge. They've built a new pathway since I was last there and you're not able to go all the way to the edge any more. Stupid safety regulations. BUT, if you go to the end of the new pathway, over the fence and past the huge signs that say "Extreme Danger" and "Do Not Enter", you have free range to get as close to the edge as possible! Sweet!
The tour ended with us returning to the Burren, making a few stops to take in the views and in Kinvara to see Dunguaire Castle before heading back to Galway. Another amazing day! All in all, it was a very enjoyable week with Whitney visiting and I was sad to see her return to France on Saturday morning. I'll try to come visit you, Whit, I promise!