Weekend in Galway and the Aran Islands

This past weekend everyone in the program took a school-sponsored trip the Galway and the Aran Island of Inis Oirr. We left for Galway in the morning and got there in a few hours by bus. We had a bit of a walking tour then had hours of free time to wander the city. It was an adorable city with many shops and restaurants:

We were there the weekend of an oyster festival so we saw events happening in the park:

The city of Claddagh was absorbed by the city of Galway a long time ago so there were a lot of Claddagh ring stores:

We went to the Spanish Arc, a famous structure made in the 1500s (if you look close you can see me standing under it on the right):

We then tried to make our way to the Nora Barnacle House but got lost. On the way we stopped in a music store and I bought some postcards at a souvenir shop. It was also nice because we got to see a lot of the city: 

Finally, we found the Barnacle house. It was a little underwhelming but still cool to see:

We then decided to continue wandering and came across the pier:

After a long day on our feet we took the bus about another hour to the ferry to Inis Oirr:

We arrived in the evening and had dinner at a local restaurant. We hung around after dinner and listened to a local band play some Irish music in the pub next door. After an hour or two we headed back to the hostel to get some sleep:

The next morning we met for a walking tour of the island led by one of the locals. While we were waiting for it to begin we played fetch with an island dog:

The walking tour lasted a few hours and we got to see a good deal of the island. It was tiring but well worth it:

After that we went on a horse and trap ride around the island, led by our four legged friend:

We saw a ship wreck while on the ride:

After lunch we had free time to walk around so Chris and I headed to a cemetery...

...that had a sunken church in the middle of it:

After we joined the others at a play ground where I met another new friend:

On our way back to the ferry we stopped by one last beach that could be accessed because it was low tide:

While waiting to take the ferry back our friend came back for one last game of fetch:

Overall an incredible weekend. I hope to go back sometime! 

Phoenix Park

Yesterday Chris and I went to Phoenix Park for the day. It was only a short bus ride and walk away. We started at The Wellington Testimonial:

It was very tall and had a lot of images on the sides:

We then made our way to the Dublin Zoo. Luckily we were able to get the student discount! It was not really that different from any other zoo I have been to but for some reason the animals were very active all day, with the exception of a tiger and a hippo. We also happened to be there during feeding time which was definitely a plus. 

Zoo pictures to come soon, my internet isn't cooperating at the moment. 

After the zoo we walked through the People's Garden next door. 

[pictures soon]

We were very tired so we didn't stay long. If the weather was better we would have done more but it was overcast and soggy.

Check out my digs

For all those who are curious about accommodations at Griffith:

The common area/kitchen

Reverse view of the common area

Apparently people don't appreciate showers in Ireland. Ours isn't separated from the rest of the bathroom except for the lovely pink curtain. Whenever we shower, water and suds go everywhere. Yuck.

It's Official!

I'm an immigrant! We went to the Immigration Office in Dublin today and became legal residents. After 5 hours of lines and waiting and paperwork we got I.D. cards:

All this for the low, low price of 150 euros. And a bonus: they got my birthday wrong. Let's home that doesn't get me deported! And then we had 3 hours of class and walked back to Griffith in the rain. Good times.

Howth

Yesterday Chris and I went to Howth, a fishing village on the Eastern coast of Ireland. Here is a map:

We took the train in the early afternoon and walked around for several hours. Here is a map of the city:

 We were lucky and had great weather. We started near that wide road in the upper left hand area of the Howth map. We walked east and walk down the pier (the part that curves to the left):

The pier

Across from the pier is the marina:

The marina

We then made our way even farther east to the paths that wind along the cliffs (along the right side of the map, the most eastern part of the city):

We accidentally went on a little detour through the suburbs but ended up going all the way out to the tip of the cliffs. It was a lot of work but we ate lunch on the cliffside! It was really beautiful.

Here is the view from where we ate lunch

On our way back we walked through the town. It was cute and had a lot of great shops and pubs. We also found some seals in one of the docks:

It started to drizzle and look overcast so we headed back in the early evening. We walked back to our dorm along the river and then got a good night's sleep. A very fun and exhausting day!