Trip to the Park of Wild Animals...

Roar roar, we are the wild animals of Franconia:

It was a lovely day yesterday in the zoo with my friends. Sadly, my holidays are almost over, I'll be flying back to Dublin tomorrow. 

Trip to Wicklow Gaol

Supposedly one of Ireland's Most Haunted Places: The former jail in Wicklow town. I took part in a night tour last weekend, it was very entertaining. I didn't meet any actual spirits though. 

The tour guides/ actors made the experience very life-like. As new inmates, we were introduced to life in Wicklow Gaol.

Trip to Galway: Galway City (6)

We chose Galway as the base for our trip to Western Ireland . From Galway, the ferry to the Aran Islands is only a 45 minute bus ride away and the beautiful scenery of Connemara is right on it's doorstep.

 

We stayed in a lovely B&B, The Prague House. It's very close to the city centre (at most 10 minute walk), it's quiet, clean, with a friendly hostess and a delicious breakfast (great choice from a breakfast menu, though we would always go for the full Irish breakfast). 

Yarnstorming in Galway:

Read more about my trip here or here or here or here and also here

Trip to Galway: Kylemore Abbey (5)

Kylemore Abbey is a beautiful building in Connemara. It was built in 1867, but not completed until 1871. Mitchell Henry, a wealthy surgeon from London, had it built as a gift to his wife who wanted nothing more than to live in Connemara. He and his wife went on their honeymoon to Connemara where he promised her the house. Years later, his father passed away and from the inheritance he bought the grounds and built Kylemore Castle, as well as the gardens which were very advanced for their time (i.e. they grew bananas in Connemara ). The gardens are restored and well worth a visit. There's also the gardener's house to visit.

 

Mitchell and his wife Margaret had 9 children together. Unfortunately, Margaret died when she was only 45 years old. She was laid to rest in a mausoleum that was built for her.

 

 Mitchell Henry was popular with the locals and represented them as an MP. In the end, he had to sell the house because it was very expensive to upkeep. He died in 1910 in a hotel room in London . At this point, Kylemore was run by nuns who granted his wish to be cremated and buried next to his wife in the mausoleum.

 

 

Read more about my trip to Galway here,. here, here or here

Trip to Galway: Connemara (4)

After the previous day's exhausting excursion to Inis Mor, we decided to take it easy on Sunday and go on a bus trip to Kylemore Abbey and Connemara. Tours are offered in abundance in Galway, there's a choice between lots of operating companies.

We went with the Galway Tour company, a bus full of people. The bus took us to Kylemore Abbey first, I will write about this beautiful building next.

Connemara:

 We also saw a wishing tree, where clothes of the sick are hung so they get magically better:

I didn't quite understand why this is so special, but the tour guide kept pointing it out. So this is Connemara turf:

 

This is a white horse that's friendly with the tour guide:

 

This is Ross Errily Friary:

 

Trip to Galway: The Aran Islands: Inis Mor (2)

Beautiful coastlines, the rough Irish countryside, a sandy beach, the Atlantic Ocean, stone walls, cows, horses and donkeys: Inis Mor (English: Inishmore, the largest of the Aran Islands):

There are a few ferries going to Inis Mor, we took the 10.30am ferry out and the 6.30pm ferry back. In winter the last ferry leaves earlier. Taking the ferry can be an adventure in itself, the Atlantic ocean is rough, there's water splashing on the deck, people get seasick, people see dolphins...

 

Having been on a few trips around Ireland, I had the experience that it usually rains, even in mid-August. I was pleasantly surprised that the sun was shining when we got to Inis Mor. This meant that we could hire bikes and make our own way around the island. There are plenty of bikes to rent, for 10 EUR you can choose a bike for the day.

Otherwise you can:

- Hire a horse-drawn coach

- Go on a mini-bus tour

- Walk around the island

 

If you're a "sporting ace" like me (I hadn't been on a bike for about 10 years), you'll be wrecked at the end of the day, but it's not so bad: The routes are mostly even, there's very little traffic (just the occasional minibus) and you can take lots of breaks. I did like the freedom of the bike, and it's much quicker than walking. Also, the bikes aren't locked, everyone just leaves their bike near them when they stop and hop on again later.

The main attraction was Dún Aengus, I will write about this little hill tomorrow.

Trip to Galway, Connemara and Inis Mor

Last weekend I went on a weekend trip to Galway and from there I visited Inis Mor (engl: Inishmore) and Connemara. Here are some impressions, more to come in the next few days:

Spectacular view from Dun Aonghasa over the cliffs on Inis Mor

A sandy beach on Inis Mor. On a sunny day! In Ireland! Who knew...

Evil looking cow

Kylemore Abbey in Connemara