We awoke early in the morning after our best night's sleep thanks to the massive and comfortable bed at the Skeffington Arms Hotel. For our penultimate day in Ireland, we wanted to explore Galway some more (hoping to erase the memory of our stressful introduction to the City) and begin our drive back towards Dublin. It was with this general plan in mind that we began our day with fervor and energy.
First of all, we quickly finished packing our suitcases and checked out of the hotel. We brought our bags to the car, which was still in the ramp five or so blocks away. However, in the morning light, it was thankfully not difficult to find at all.
Our first destination was Galway Bay. In all of our driving the prior night, we never got anywhere close to the bay and wanted to see it. We headed down a fairly busy road towards the Bay. The street was a straight shot before it ended at a "T" intersection forcing us to choose a direction without signage. However, this was not nearly as difficult as our previous encounters with similar situations, because the city centre (where we had stayed the night) was generally off towards the right (north for you lovers of the Cardinal directions). Our directional sense was uncanny as eventually the bay was before our eyes.
We spotted the numerous docks and headed in that direction. Kristy and I ended up at the point where the River Corrib flows into Galway Bay. As we continued along the Bay, we were excited to see dozens of swans collected in a group near the edge of the water in front of us. We scuttled towards them hoping that they would not fly away. Our fears, it seemed, we unfounded, because as we approached, the number of swans got larger and more excited. Kristy, ever the lover of birds, did not want to disappoint the hungry masses that were huddled before us. So, she took out the Trader Joe's "Banana Walks into a Bar" granola bar that she had packed for me and began tearing off pieces and throwing it to the swans. Well, as could have been expected, this caused quite a frenzy as the ring-leader of the swans called out for reinforcements that quickly gathered with much fanfare.
As Kristy fed the swans, a soft spot developed in her heart for the two grayish-brown swans that looked "malnourished." She directed the best pieces of granola their way to ensure their continued survival in spite of their brethren's continued "badgering" and "dislike." When that granola bar was no more, the swans did not seem to understand and soon became louder and more insistent. We had not more expendable granola, as we only had the "good" bars that Kristy had packed for herself.
After the swan experience, we walked along Galway Bay and looked out over the water. Our stroll continued along the River Corrib that led back into the city centre. The water in the River was flowing incredibly fast- but not fast enough to stop all of the swans from attempting to go up stream. As we walked, two daring swans valiantly tried to swim up stream, but made no discernible progress from the first time we had watched them, about 20-minutes prior.
We walked along the riverfront until we reached the pedestrian street, Quay Lane. This was the original location for the creation of the Claddagh ring. We bought some gifts at the Claddagh & Celtic Shop, but really just walked along the street and looked at all of the unique shops and restaurants.
As we explored a side street, we stumbled upon the "Oven Door" bakery. It was a really small and deliciously enticing establishment. We walked in and were astounded by the incredible amount of delicious, handmade baked goods. We knew we needed something that would travel well, so, we decided on a fresh loaf of banana bread that smelled divine. We did not eat it, but had it wrapped and we carried it with us the rest of the day. By this time, it was lunchtime and we began our search for a place to eat...
6.1.09
Day 8: Nearing the End
I had read about an excellent place for fish and chips on Trip Advisor.com called McDonagh's Seafood House and thought it might be nice for lunch if we didn't find anything else that struck our fancy. We saw it on the very end of Quay Street near the Claddagh Shop, but passed it to continue our sightseeing. When we finally decided to eat there (after walking in a huge circle and tremendous backtracking), we discovered that the door was locked. I peeked through the windows and shook the door fiercely, willing it to open. Just as we were about to walk away, after patiently waiting for fifteen minutes, a woman answered my prayers and opened up the front door. I inquired if she was opening and she answered in the affirmative. Hurray!
After all I had read, I did not expect to walk up and order our food as if we were in a McDonald's, but that was the set up they had for lunchtime. So we quickly scanned the menu and I decided to get the breaded salmon and chips. Poor Chad, the non-fish eater, he ordered some chicken concoction which was fine, but nothing special. Since tartar sauce was extra, I decided to forgo it. Our food came out quickly and piping hot, with the fish still smelling as if it had been plucked from the ocean that morning. It was delicious, but I did miss the tartar sauce, so decided to cough up the 75 euro cents for a small cup.
When we finished our meal, we decided to head toward the large Church that we had passed by several times the night before on our hunt to find the parking ramp. As soon as we walked in the doors, we heard a ringing "Amen" echo throughout the vast building. Mass appeared to be going on so we observed through the foray window and then chose to walk back to the car. On our way we stopped by Butler's Chocolates for some divine chocolate that was to be gifted. We were strong of will and did not purchase any for ourselves since we were stuffed to the gills from lunch (haha, I made a pun.)
Finally, we got back to the car, packed up our new purchases of banana bread and chocolate and headed out of town. We were going to head toward Trim to stay with one of my Saint Mary's friends that evening since she lives in an adorable cottage with her Irish boyfriend. However, she was unfortunately detained out of the country over the holidays and would not be able to get back to Ireland in time for our stay. So we really had no direction to head besides hoping to be within close distance of the Dublin Airport for our flight the next morning. With this goal in mind, we drove east toward Dublin.
After examining the map, we thought it would be fun to drive toward Tullamore, home of the famous Tullamore Dew whiskey. It would be mostly highway driving, but would also give us one last chance to experience some of the memorable Irish country roads. Upon reaching Tullamore, we discovered that once again we had missed a distillery tour as they were closing the gates of the Tullamore Dew distillery as we were driving past. We ultimately decided to move on after driving through the two main roads and failing to spot any hotels or bed and breakfasts.
Mullingar was eventually our choice for staying the night since it was only about an hour outside of Dublin and would make for easy driving in the morning. On our way to Mullingar, we spotted a castle on the side of the road and decided to make a quick stop. Much to our surprise and delight, we found that inside the castle was a lovely restaurant and since it was nearing supper time, we decided to stay for a bite to eat and a pint. We found a seat near a roaring open fireplace and ordered: for myself a pint of Guinness and some chips and for Chad a meal which consisted of mashed potatoes, chicken breast, a puffed pastry, and gravy. We sat contently and savored our food and the atmosphere.
Upon leaving the castle, the sun was setting low in the sky and we drove the last few miles into Mullingar. We easily found the city's main street and parked in a lot before inquiring about hotels. We had passed at least two: one where I wanted to stay because it was old and cute and another where Chad wanted to stay because they had a gated entrance and parking. We first tried my historic hotel, but it was much too expensive. We walked a little further down the street and stopped at an adorable store (think of a small and intimate Irish Kirklands or Taylor Creek) to look at the selection. We purchased an amazing bundle of Irish pine cones that had been scented with cinnamon and other spices to smell like Christmas.
Then we tried Chad's hotel with the parking and it was priced right. We got the car and parked, brought up our bags and got settled in the room before wandering out again. This time we went to the convenience store next door which was attached to a toy/school supply store. It was fun wandering around and looking at everything. When we made our final purchases around 6 PM they were locking the doors behind us. We then went back up to our hotel room and relaxed for the evening, gearing up for our last drive into the city and our flight home.
After all I had read, I did not expect to walk up and order our food as if we were in a McDonald's, but that was the set up they had for lunchtime. So we quickly scanned the menu and I decided to get the breaded salmon and chips. Poor Chad, the non-fish eater, he ordered some chicken concoction which was fine, but nothing special. Since tartar sauce was extra, I decided to forgo it. Our food came out quickly and piping hot, with the fish still smelling as if it had been plucked from the ocean that morning. It was delicious, but I did miss the tartar sauce, so decided to cough up the 75 euro cents for a small cup.
When we finished our meal, we decided to head toward the large Church that we had passed by several times the night before on our hunt to find the parking ramp. As soon as we walked in the doors, we heard a ringing "Amen" echo throughout the vast building. Mass appeared to be going on so we observed through the foray window and then chose to walk back to the car. On our way we stopped by Butler's Chocolates for some divine chocolate that was to be gifted. We were strong of will and did not purchase any for ourselves since we were stuffed to the gills from lunch (haha, I made a pun.)
Finally, we got back to the car, packed up our new purchases of banana bread and chocolate and headed out of town. We were going to head toward Trim to stay with one of my Saint Mary's friends that evening since she lives in an adorable cottage with her Irish boyfriend. However, she was unfortunately detained out of the country over the holidays and would not be able to get back to Ireland in time for our stay. So we really had no direction to head besides hoping to be within close distance of the Dublin Airport for our flight the next morning. With this goal in mind, we drove east toward Dublin.
After examining the map, we thought it would be fun to drive toward Tullamore, home of the famous Tullamore Dew whiskey. It would be mostly highway driving, but would also give us one last chance to experience some of the memorable Irish country roads. Upon reaching Tullamore, we discovered that once again we had missed a distillery tour as they were closing the gates of the Tullamore Dew distillery as we were driving past. We ultimately decided to move on after driving through the two main roads and failing to spot any hotels or bed and breakfasts.
Mullingar was eventually our choice for staying the night since it was only about an hour outside of Dublin and would make for easy driving in the morning. On our way to Mullingar, we spotted a castle on the side of the road and decided to make a quick stop. Much to our surprise and delight, we found that inside the castle was a lovely restaurant and since it was nearing supper time, we decided to stay for a bite to eat and a pint. We found a seat near a roaring open fireplace and ordered: for myself a pint of Guinness and some chips and for Chad a meal which consisted of mashed potatoes, chicken breast, a puffed pastry, and gravy. We sat contently and savored our food and the atmosphere.
Upon leaving the castle, the sun was setting low in the sky and we drove the last few miles into Mullingar. We easily found the city's main street and parked in a lot before inquiring about hotels. We had passed at least two: one where I wanted to stay because it was old and cute and another where Chad wanted to stay because they had a gated entrance and parking. We first tried my historic hotel, but it was much too expensive. We walked a little further down the street and stopped at an adorable store (think of a small and intimate Irish Kirklands or Taylor Creek) to look at the selection. We purchased an amazing bundle of Irish pine cones that had been scented with cinnamon and other spices to smell like Christmas.
Then we tried Chad's hotel with the parking and it was priced right. We got the car and parked, brought up our bags and got settled in the room before wandering out again. This time we went to the convenience store next door which was attached to a toy/school supply store. It was fun wandering around and looking at everything. When we made our final purchases around 6 PM they were locking the doors behind us. We then went back up to our hotel room and relaxed for the evening, gearing up for our last drive into the city and our flight home.
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