Our first stop after Dublin was Galway, Ireland. It was a wonderful Irish city with a vibrant atmosphere. We were in Galway for a few days and were able to explore a fair amount of the city. Although Galway was significantly smaller than Dublin, it was very popular with the group. The residents of the city were friendly. I would also like to point out that our group has taken far more of a liking to the Irish than the English. I absolutely loved Galway; in fact, I wish that we had stayed a few extra days to really get to know the city well. On our first afternoon exploration of the city, we stumbled upon a quaint little street market where friendly vendors were selling crepes and cheese and flowers and jewelry and everything else wonderful that you would imagine at a street market. Then, some of the other girls and I happened upon this fantastic band playing in the street for money, but they were playing many popular songs and they were REALLY good! Needless to say, we stayed around during their break time to chat with them, take a few pictures, and we all pitched in to buy a few of their CD's just because we are pretty certain that they will become the next big thing. So when you hear the band Keywest on the radio in a few months, just know that we heard them first in the streets of Galway. :)
What can I possibly say about Sligo? To be honest, we were only in Sligo, Ireland for about a day, and we didn’t get much of a feel for the city. Our hotel was actually several miles from Sligo. Although the accommodations were satisfactory, we were mildly concerned that the hotel was haunted. We have several pieces of evidence to confirm our suspicions, and I will let Julie fill you in on the details…Okay, this hotel was seriously SO creepy and I am so very glad that we only stayed for a night. In a nutshell, the hotel was literally out in the middle of nowhere, a good five miles away from any civilization, and I am still trying to figure out why there were actual guests staying there at the same time as us, because there was absolutely NOTHING to do. The rooms were decorated with lots and lots of red...in fact, some of the bedspreads were red and black striped, and the walls were painted red, so the whole place just made us think of The Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland...it was weird. Anyways, that night some really really creepy things happened. We were on the second floor, but for some reason the wind would whistle through the hallway doors and they would swing open at random times as you were walking down the hall. Also, one of the girls went into her room that night to find the shower running and the toilet unflushed....yet her roommate had not even been there. Mrs. Aeisi heard a baby fall out of bed and start crying during the night....yet there were no babies staying in the hotel. Jon saw a mysterious shape dart across his bedroom during the middle of the night....Needless to say, we were relieved to leave the next morning. Sligo is a very strange place.
Our time in Donegal County was particularly enjoyable, and it marked our last few days in the Republic. In terms of the landscape, the area was absolutely beautiful. In fact, the boys in the group decided to climb a mountain near our hotel, and the views from the summit were absolutely astounding. The trip up the mountain was a bit more complicated than we expected, and it involved walking through bogs and fields of Heather. I am sure that all of y’all at home will be happy to know that I completed the journey in loafers and argyle socks (just like they would have done in the 19th century)! Donegal was beautiful, and once again I wish we had had just another day to explore the mountains and surrounding villages...it was such a wonderful break from busy city life, and I had some pretty remarkable morning runs up the mountains during those few days!
During one of our days in Donegal, we went to Londonderry. Politically, it is a remarkable city. The divide between Protestants and Catholics in the town is incredibly stark. The Protestants, who are typically wealthier, quite literally reside in a walled city on the hill, while the Catholics live in a sprawling community beyond it. As we have come to find in our studies, the Protestants strongly identify with the British, while the Catholics maintain their Irish identity. Londonderry is in Northern Ireland and technically under British rule. We also spent some time with the older couple that helped organize our tour, and they are tremendous individuals! Their daughter was actually the Lord Mayor of Dublin! I also may be distantly related to them! (They are sending a family tree to my home in South Carolina.)
A few other random really cool places we stopped at during our bus travels last week....
1. THE NORTHERN-MOST TIP OF IRELAND! So awesome!!! It was a beautiful view of the ocean, and it was crazy to think that we were at the same latitude as Juneau, Alaska! Also, there were lots of stones on the hill where people had spelled out their names, so some of the boys spelled out the Furman diamond "F" to forever leave our Paladin mark at the very top of Ireland!!
2. THE GIANT'S CAUSEWAY- This huge mountain/rock formation along the Irish coast was allegedly built by an Irish giant who was trying to build a bridge to Scotland to fight a Scottish giant...I guess this is the kind of bedtime story that Irish kids hear about when they are growing up :)
Our time in Belfast comprised most of our stay in Northern Ireland. The city itself is fairly interesting, but the Protestant/Catholic divide was again on display. There was another wall in the city that divided the Protestant and Catholic sections of town. Belfast is famous for “The Troubles”, a period of violent unrest in Northern Ireland that lasted for most of the second part of the twentieth century. Things definitely seem to be better after the Good Friday Agreement (Thank you President Clinton), but the tension undoubtedly remains. On a bit of a happier note, I also got to see an old friend, Norma, in Belfast! This city wasn't my favorite, but I did enjoy exploring around on Saturday and I especially enjoyed our trip to the local market (I LOVE MARKETS!) where there were endless booths of local vendors giving free food samples and selling beautiful homemade crafts...it was pretty magical. We also took a 2-hour bus tour on Saturday with this crazy tour guide lady who kept trying to tell us that there was no real political struggle anymore and that everything was okay in Ireland, and once Brian asked a semi-intelligent question about the political tension in the city and she blatantly told him to "not think so hard." She loved to describe everything as "wee," so instead of real historical or political information she just pointed out all the "wee little coffee shops" where you can get "wee little cups of coffee". It was kind of ridiculous but also very entertaining.
Whew! Once again, we've rambled on too long. But be looking forward to more stories from our first few days back in England! Cheers!!!
Yours Truly,
Thomas and Julie
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