GALWAY (Gaillimh in Irish)

is opposite Dublin on the other side of the Emerald Isle. It sits at the end of a long finger of the North Atlantic Ocean that stretches inland 20 miles from the outlying Aran Islands. It is bounded by Galway Bay on the south, and by Lugh Corrib, a huge irish lake that stretches 20 miles northward. Galway Boats

More water.
Galway is honeycombed with a series of interconnecting waterways, large and small, with locks and canals.
It is not, however, a northern Venice... although city fathers apparently had that in mind in the mid-19th century.

The crowning glory of their construction was the Eglinton Canal, which connects the sea to the Corrib river, therefore Lake Corrib, therefore Connnemara and all of what is called Joyce's Country. But it never became a favored route, and therefore Galway is the peaceful town it is today.

Still more water.
Also running around and through Galway are the Slaughter House River, the Fisheries River, the Cathedral River (formerly the Gaol River) the Middle River, the Western River... you get the idea. There is a really huge Salmon Trab on the Corrib River in the center of town. Salmon Weir Bridge is also a part of central Galway. Fishermen, visit Galway.
Tidal Galway

Things to do in Galway
They include... seeing Salmon Weir Bridge. And Lynch's Castle, which is downtown and somewhat indistinguishable from other buildings around it.
The point is that there aren't that many touristy things to do in Galway. Hence its true charm. It is the Ireland that you think you might see in Dublin, but may not be able find there. If you want to get a feel for the Irish way of life aside from the more modern ways, visit Galway.

Central Galway, Ireland

More things to do in Galway
Actually there are a number of extremely cultural things you can do in Galway.
You can visit the former home of the former Nora Barnacle, who became the love and wife of James Joyce. You may also attend performances at the Taidbhdearc (pronounced Tive-yark) Theatre in Middle Street, which is said to be Ireland's premier Irish language theatre.

Irish actress Siobhan McKenna made her debut at this modest looking theater, as did Walter Macken's play, Mungo's Mansions, set in nearby Buttermilk Lane.

A note here about the use of 'Irish' and 'Gaelic' when talking about the native language of the Irish. When one talks about the Irish language while speaking English, one calls it 'the Irish language', or 'Irish'. Not 'Gaelic'. The only time you may properly use the word 'Gaelic' for the language is when you are speaking Irish, and the Irish language has a different word for it. That's clear now, isn't it....

Just about everyone in Ireland speaks English, but Galway is one of the places where the country's native tongue is also learned and spoken. These areas are called Gaeltacht regions, and Galway is prime among them. Monkstown, a town just a couple of DART train stops south of Dublin, is another place where the language is taught formally. If you want to hear a little of the Irish tongue right now, tune in to Radio Gaeltachta.

Aran Islands, Ireland Ireland on the Rocks
If you are really getting into things Irish, you must go down to Galway Bay Sea Tours in Mulrook and ask them if they will tailor-make you a tour to the Aran Islands (or go deep sea fishing with them up to 30 miles offshore). If you decide to go visiting, you may comfortably overnight in any number of accommodations on the little towns of the Aran Islands. Local shops like to promote Aran sweaters, which are fine examples of Irish craft. The terrain is... rocky... no other way to describe it. As in New England and Hawaii and many other places with such building blocks at hand, there are endless rock walls from the clearing of land. Some places are still pristine, which make poor farming but spectacular sighteeing.

If you do decide to go to Galway
Before you do anything else, click on the button above. Trust me on this one.
It goes to E-Vacations, where you can have them make your rail or air reservations between Dublin and Galway. Actually, you can let them arrange your travel and accommodations throughout Europe. But if you do just one thing with them, let it be transportation to Galway.

There are flights city-to-city from Dublin to Galway, but it's hard to see the countryside from a jet. That leaves taking the bus (which you can make up your own mind about) or renting a car, or boarding the train. If you have an idea that renting a car might be a good idea, please read about our journey to Athlone, which is only halfway to Galway.

Ireland by train

Riding the Irish rails
It takes about 3 hours to ride the rails from Dublin to Galway, and costs roughly 30 US dollars round trip. If you wish, you can stop at Athlone, Tullamore or Kildare. There are also some interesting excursions that may be combined with your train trip so you can see even more of the country. Ask E-Vacations to guide you into what is available for the timeframe when you will be there.

Trains on the weekend are sometimes quite full, so do get a seat reservation if they are available on your specific train. If not, get there at least half hour early for trains going from Dublin on Friday, or from Galway on Sunday. As you can gather from this, there is a substantial number of people who live in Galway and commute to Dublin for the week's work. And from this you can gather that Galway is probably a pretty nice place to live. And to visit.

On the journey, you can look out the train windows in comfort from your seat or from the restaurant car, and see the passing sights... the country houses... the occasional ancient buildings... the many livestock and green fields and beautiful blue skys... and get a feel of what Ireland is really all about. On the journey, you can look out the train windows in comfort from your seat or from the restaurant car, and see the passing sights... the country houses... the occasional ancient buildings... the many livestock and green fields and beautiful blue skys... and get a feel of what Ireland is really all about.

And now it's time to take a look at Belfast.

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