Day 2 - Galway
Day 2 - Galway
Yesterday when I arrived, all I wanted to do was go right to sleep! I had slept for only about 30 seconds to a minute before takeoff (I had the new DMB album plugged into my ears, the peaceful combination of violin and piano calmly lulling me to sleep) and then once again for about 10 minutes as we were descending in altitude down into Shannon. I was so emotional (tired and hungry) when I got off the plane that when I got onto the bus stop to find out that my Blackberry proof of an eTicket purchase wasn't good enough to earn me a spot on the bus, and I went back into the airport to find a printer only to find that there was no printer, I broke down in tears! I felt pretty pathetic, especially when the kind bus driver held up his bus at the stop to come in to the airport, find and fetch me, and allow me to ride the bus sans printed ticket. "I couldn't just leave you stranded here," he said as I followed him back to the bus, hiccupping my tears back and wiping them away, feeling 5 years old. After the beautiful ride through the suburban/rural tour between Shannon and Galway of neatly manicured properties and clean-cut (but not cookie-cutter) houses, twists and turns, thin little rock walls segregating one green lawn from the next, the bus driver kindly excused me from running the errand of going to an internet cafe and printing the eTicket for him. In fact, he offered the suggestion of going online and trying to get my money I paid back. Cheryl actually paid for it, and I don't think she'll do it because I was delivered safely and on-time, and so it was 12 Euro well-spent.
Our room as Kinlay House hostel wasn't going to be ready until 2:30 or 3:00 PM, and at my arrival time in Galway that wasn't for another 5 or 6 hours! We left our luggage in Andy and Kristina's room, I changed into a sweatshirt and jeans (it was a bit chilly in the morning!) and we headed out. I wanted to see so much, but my legs just wouldn't move fast enough. We stopped in an all-natural/orgranic cafe with vegan options and had tea and V Shepard's Pie! Then we wandered down and around Shop Street. It was Kristina and Andy's last day so we popped into a few souvenir shops so they could buy some last-minute gifts for family and boyfriends. I saw some stuff I knew I wanted for myself already, but told myself to wait until I'd been here at least 5 minutes before I start souvenir shopping!
There was one thing I knew I had to get at some point, though, that I had read about in my research of Ireland--a Claddagh ring: an Irish symbol of a heart being held by two hands, one on each side, with a crown above the heart, symbolizing love, loyalty and friendship (pardon if I reversed the order.) I love the meaning of this symbol. The one I bought for myself is not like the majority of the other Claddagh rings I saw in the Claddagh and jewelry shop. The Claddagh itself is in gold and its almond-shape enclosure and band is a thin bar of silver. Turned facing out on your right hand tells others that your heart is open (a nice way of saying "I have no boyfriend!") Turned facing inward on your right hand tells that your heart is spoken for. Turned facing out on the left hand means engagement; turned facing you on the left hand means you're married. After my purchase of a size 5 ring for my right hand, which I love because of its symbol, we walked around town a bit more, staying mostly on the main Shop Street, but also down by the water and on some side streets for a bit. I need to get a pair of shoes here...like, boots! Walking around, especially near the water, reminded me how SILLY I was to not pack heavier clothes for the cool evenings and mornings. Had I known it would be this cool, I would have been more prepared...Cheryl warned me of the cool weather in the mornings and evenings, but I assumed I could squeeze by with one pair of jeans, not 2 or 3 like I wish I'd brought! I wanted to believe it'd be a little warmer than Norway was at this time last year. I guess you can never be fully prepared for a trip unless you pack everything you own....and I guess that's how we all acquire our "Ocean City, NJ" and "San Francisco, CA" sweatshirts in our closet. We overpay for Hanes brand outerwear because we travel to these places thinking they'll be warmer than they actually are. Anyway...COOL! So I'll get some new clothes here.
We arrived back at the hostel (pronounced ho-STELL by Rory, the cute guy behind the desk) for a nap before our beds were ready. So, I crashed in Andy's....for 2 hours, and when I woke up I was still tired though I felt like I'd slept for a week! I had hoped everyone else was ready to eat when I awoke, and they were! So we headed back down towards the Spanish Arches area near the Claddagh ring/jewelry store and ate at a Middle-Eastern/Asian spot where Cheryl and I split Saag Aloo and Turka Daal. It was DELICIOUS! I had feared that this traditionally-meat-and-potatoes country wouldn't have much to offer its vegan visitors, but most of the menus I've read do clearly indicate in the menus when something is made with dairy; or have a vegetarian section. (I don't know about the high-end restaurants, because we're sticking to what I like to call "budget" places.) From there we went to the Craine Pub, where Andy and Cheryl drank pints of Guinness while Kristina and I drank our cider drinks (hers Apple', mine Pear.) SOOO GOOOD! The girls chose that spot because of the concert that would start at 9:30 and where they would meet their supposedly attractive male friend and his girlfriend, who the girls describe as "Swamp Creature." But, being sleep-deprived and now having both a nap and pint of cider in my body nearly had me unconcsious in my seat at the pub table, so Cheryl walked my sorry ass back to the hostel so I could sleep. I wanted to make it to the point where I could at least see this cute "Doc" and the girl who fit the description of Swamp Creature, but I just couldn't make it! On our walk back, Cheryl and I saw a street drumline group performing out on the main street in front of some shops, which had drawn a crowd so large right there in the street that you'd think it was Brangelina and their brood standing there at the storefront! We stopped to watch for a few minutes and I took some pics and video.....
Yesterday when I arrived, all I wanted to do was go right to sleep! I had slept for only about 30 seconds to a minute before takeoff (I had the new DMB album plugged into my ears, the peaceful combination of violin and piano calmly lulling me to sleep) and then once again for about 10 minutes as we were descending in altitude down into Shannon. I was so emotional (tired and hungry) when I got off the plane that when I got onto the bus stop to find out that my Blackberry proof of an eTicket purchase wasn't good enough to earn me a spot on the bus, and I went back into the airport to find a printer only to find that there was no printer, I broke down in tears! I felt pretty pathetic, especially when the kind bus driver held up his bus at the stop to come in to the airport, find and fetch me, and allow me to ride the bus sans printed ticket. "I couldn't just leave you stranded here," he said as I followed him back to the bus, hiccupping my tears back and wiping them away, feeling 5 years old. After the beautiful ride through the suburban/rural tour between Shannon and Galway of neatly manicured properties and clean-cut (but not cookie-cutter) houses, twists and turns, thin little rock walls segregating one green lawn from the next, the bus driver kindly excused me from running the errand of going to an internet cafe and printing the eTicket for him. In fact, he offered the suggestion of going online and trying to get my money I paid back. Cheryl actually paid for it, and I don't think she'll do it because I was delivered safely and on-time, and so it was 12 Euro well-spent.
Our room as Kinlay House hostel wasn't going to be ready until 2:30 or 3:00 PM, and at my arrival time in Galway that wasn't for another 5 or 6 hours! We left our luggage in Andy and Kristina's room, I changed into a sweatshirt and jeans (it was a bit chilly in the morning!) and we headed out. I wanted to see so much, but my legs just wouldn't move fast enough. We stopped in an all-natural/orgranic cafe with vegan options and had tea and V Shepard's Pie! Then we wandered down and around Shop Street. It was Kristina and Andy's last day so we popped into a few souvenir shops so they could buy some last-minute gifts for family and boyfriends. I saw some stuff I knew I wanted for myself already, but told myself to wait until I'd been here at least 5 minutes before I start souvenir shopping!
There was one thing I knew I had to get at some point, though, that I had read about in my research of Ireland--a Claddagh ring: an Irish symbol of a heart being held by two hands, one on each side, with a crown above the heart, symbolizing love, loyalty and friendship (pardon if I reversed the order.) I love the meaning of this symbol. The one I bought for myself is not like the majority of the other Claddagh rings I saw in the Claddagh and jewelry shop. The Claddagh itself is in gold and its almond-shape enclosure and band is a thin bar of silver. Turned facing out on your right hand tells others that your heart is open (a nice way of saying "I have no boyfriend!") Turned facing inward on your right hand tells that your heart is spoken for. Turned facing out on the left hand means engagement; turned facing you on the left hand means you're married. After my purchase of a size 5 ring for my right hand, which I love because of its symbol, we walked around town a bit more, staying mostly on the main Shop Street, but also down by the water and on some side streets for a bit. I need to get a pair of shoes here...like, boots! Walking around, especially near the water, reminded me how SILLY I was to not pack heavier clothes for the cool evenings and mornings. Had I known it would be this cool, I would have been more prepared...Cheryl warned me of the cool weather in the mornings and evenings, but I assumed I could squeeze by with one pair of jeans, not 2 or 3 like I wish I'd brought! I wanted to believe it'd be a little warmer than Norway was at this time last year. I guess you can never be fully prepared for a trip unless you pack everything you own....and I guess that's how we all acquire our "Ocean City, NJ" and "San Francisco, CA" sweatshirts in our closet. We overpay for Hanes brand outerwear because we travel to these places thinking they'll be warmer than they actually are. Anyway...COOL! So I'll get some new clothes here.
We arrived back at the hostel (pronounced ho-STELL by Rory, the cute guy behind the desk) for a nap before our beds were ready. So, I crashed in Andy's....for 2 hours, and when I woke up I was still tired though I felt like I'd slept for a week! I had hoped everyone else was ready to eat when I awoke, and they were! So we headed back down towards the Spanish Arches area near the Claddagh ring/jewelry store and ate at a Middle-Eastern/Asian spot where Cheryl and I split Saag Aloo and Turka Daal. It was DELICIOUS! I had feared that this traditionally-meat-and-potatoes country wouldn't have much to offer its vegan visitors, but most of the menus I've read do clearly indicate in the menus when something is made with dairy; or have a vegetarian section. (I don't know about the high-end restaurants, because we're sticking to what I like to call "budget" places.) From there we went to the Craine Pub, where Andy and Cheryl drank pints of Guinness while Kristina and I drank our cider drinks (hers Apple', mine Pear.) SOOO GOOOD! The girls chose that spot because of the concert that would start at 9:30 and where they would meet their supposedly attractive male friend and his girlfriend, who the girls describe as "Swamp Creature." But, being sleep-deprived and now having both a nap and pint of cider in my body nearly had me unconcsious in my seat at the pub table, so Cheryl walked my sorry ass back to the hostel so I could sleep. I wanted to make it to the point where I could at least see this cute "Doc" and the girl who fit the description of Swamp Creature, but I just couldn't make it! On our walk back, Cheryl and I saw a street drumline group performing out on the main street in front of some shops, which had drawn a crowd so large right there in the street that you'd think it was Brangelina and their brood standing there at the storefront! We stopped to watch for a few minutes and I took some pics and video.....
posted by J's Travel Blog | 21:59
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