Galway... Guy

We woke up to an overcast day and hopped onto a tour bus that was arranged through the inn. Well the rain started and we though, “enough of the confusing Irish roads for today”. It was a good day to let the tour guide navigate the twisting mountain roads. We had quite a character for a driver.. cracking jokes, telling stories, and supplying us with historical facts for hours. We travelled to Cong, the town famous for the movie ‘The Quiet Man’, and stopped into a café for cappuccino and scones (yep, I was seriously eating scones for ten days straight). Not a very long stop but we were able to take a few pics of church ruins and some colorful buildings in town. Looks like it would be a great place to spend a considerable amount of time. Through a mountain pass, we slowed down next to a field with a white Connemara pony. The ruins of an abbey on a previous stop were great for pics and architecture, but something different was about to happen here. The bus slowed a bit more and the bus driver honked. He slow a bit more still and honked again. We were trying to figure out just what was going on. The pony came running from behind a building over to the bus. It was like we were racing. Talk about a great photo op! The bus pulled to the side and the driver opened the doors. The pony was there at the gate to meet the driver. He was a spirited little guy… and so was the horse. He divided an apple into pieces with his hands and passed them out to the riders. No wonder the horse was excited upon hearing the horn.

Up and down hills and valleys we travelled over rough and majestic terrain. We arrived at the famous Kylemore Abbey and it was a grand structure. It was set amongst the tall green trees and a lake filled with birds and swans.. Unfortunately I forgot an umbrella and the rain really came down. The walk from the amazing gardens to the castle and over to the neo-gothic chapel left us on the cold and wet side. It would have been nice to have had warmer weather and now we were beginning to understand why people were walking around with umbrellas and hoodies… note to self. After the arrival back in Galway, we jumped off the bus right down the street from the inn and walked very quietly through the cold rain. It seemed like this night was going to become somewhat of a wash… so to speak. A wind was blowing the cold rain off the ocean with good force. This was not walking around weather. We decided to drive down to the Salthill area which is right next to Claddagh (where the original Claddagh rings were made). Taking a guess, we found a gastropub called Oslo right by the sea. This minimal looking pub, with an outstanding beer selection, turned out to be a winner. The food was very good and the overhead music was Irish. After a few duck burgers and mash (yea, duck burgers) and a very fresh fish and chips we decided to have a pint. As I was sampling the local irish brews I struck up a conversation with the bartender and a fellow sitting by us. He actually turned out to work for Garda, Ireland’s police force. Music, sports, and Irish ways of doing things were some of the topics of conversation We found out that certain last names were associated with certain counties. He also told us that he worked security on our President’s last visit.. lot’s of talk and ale. The bartender even played one of my songs through the pub’s system. We ended up closing the pub down and making a couple friends. A great night and a great end to our Galway visit.