Galway, Cliffs of Moher, Aran Islands & Couchsurfing!

After being so sick last week I was very skeptical about going away for the weekend as I had planned. Friday evening I decided that I was well enough to go & I was on a bus headed to Galway on Saturday. I was only gone for 3 days but it was a jam-packed weekend filled with new faces & beautiful places. To save you all hours of reading, I will keep this post mostly to photos! 

Lorraine's cousin, Alison, lives in Galway & offered me a place to stay for my night there. Little did I know that Alison would actually end up being the best kind of tour guide, driving me all over this lovely part of the country! She picked me up at the bus station & we were en route to The Cliffs of Moher. And yet another beautiful drive in Ireland. We actually pulled the car over a few times just to get out & take in the view.

I've said this before but I will say it again, the pictures that I post absolutely 100% do not do a justice as to how beautiful it is. I can't even explain how many times I've found myself speechless, just staring at what's in front of me. I immediately grab my camera to snap a photo & the end result is always disappointing. We made it to the Cliffs after a couple of hours & it was completely breathtaking. 

We stopped at a restaurant on our way home. Can you believe that I actually ordered pizza? Here I am in Ireland & I order pizza.. We decided to stay in on Saturday night for wine & a movie. We watched Michael Collins, a movie about how Ireland won their independence from England. Sounds kind of boring but it was an excellent movie. Oh & Liam Neesan was the star.. I won't get into Irish history but if you ever get a chance to learn about it you won't be sorry. Since I've been here I've learned a lot of history & it is amazing what the Irish people have endured over the years. 

Sunday morning we headed into the city center for some exploring & shopping. Maybe a little too much shopping.. Oops. To my defense, these are mostly souvenirs for my dearest readers =)

                                     

Galway is a lovely city. The people are great & the craic is even better! We stepped into a pub that was playing traditional music & I found this little guy just enjoying his sunday afternoon at the pub. 

I booked a night away at Inis Oirr, which is one of the 3 Aran Islands. Alison drove me to the port & I hopped on a ferry to the island. About 10 minutes into the ride one of the crew members started chatting with me. He then invited me to the upper deck to meet the captain. Yes, this is me driving the boat!

No worries, I had it completely under control.

Inis Oirr is said to be the most beautiful of the 3 islands. Only about 250 people live on the island & their first language is Irish (Gaelic). I found my hostel & discovered that I would be the only person staying there that night. It was only 8:00, the WiFi wasn't working & I had absolutely nothing to do so I walked over to the pub. I only expected to stay for a bit but I ended up sitting & chatting with the locals until after 1am. I walked into a pub alone on a Sunday night & left with many new friends! 

One of the lads works on the island on the weekend & goes to school at the University in Galway during the week. I found out late Sunday that I was going to miss my bus back to Castlebar (where I'm staying now) & would be stuck in Galway on Monday night. How terrible right? He lives with a couple friends right in Galway & offered me their couch for the night. So he drew me a map, we decided on a meeting place & I met up with him the following evening. Him, his two roommates & myself sat around the living room eating hamburgers & watching the Xfactor. They were all very nice, genuine people. We went back into town for some good fun. You'd think it would be quiet on a Monday night out. Think again. First we went to a place that was having a traditional Irish music "session." Irish music is so lovely. After that we went to a place that had a full jazz band playing. I'm talking like 15 people, tuba & all. After that we went to the "disco." I then experienced my 1st "chicken fillet roll." We made it back to the apartment & I fell asleep on the couch while they were showing me pictures of their own adventures & travels. The following morning I didn't want to wake them so I left a note thanking them for their hospitality & I was off to the bus, 25 minutes away in the lashing rain. I think it's safe to say I had an amazing weekend =)