Galway, on the Western Coast

Mmmmm...much better. I left Dublin on a long bus ride towards the other side of Ireland. A place supposedly more country-ish and welcoming. I got what I wanted.

Galway was a small town right on the coast, just oozing with character. My hostel was literally a hundred yards from the water, and it was surrounded by all kinds of small shops and restaurants. I got some Irish sausages and pasta to cook back at the hostel, and enjoyed my meal with the company of a young French woman.

My first day in Galway was spent walking along the coastline. I spotted a nice park about a mile down the shore, so I started walking. The water here was sooooooo much nicer than our side of the Atlantic. It had a deep grayish blue tint to it. Amazing. While at the park, I spotted a little lighthouse a couple more miles down the coast. I couldn't resist.

The whole day went pretty much the same way- seeing something interesting further down the coast and subsequently chasing after it. After the lighthouse, I saw another small town; after the town, I saw a cool looking peninsula/island; after there, I saw a cool mountain to climb. So I walked around for many hours, just taking it all in. It reminded me alot of Hawai'i.

At the end of my walk, I trudged out to a small island with sandstone cliffs on three sides. I walked across the narrow land bridge to discover my own private spot. The cliffs were awesome-looking, with signs posted everywhere that warned of the unstable state of the edge. I sat up there for a bit and enjoyed the cool ocean breeze. King of the island.

Along the way back, I grabbed a chicken sub covered in that sweet Mae Ploy chili sauce I always keep in my fridge. I thought it was really strange that they actually had that sauce on hand here in western Ireland. It was yummy. I'm gonna put that sauce on everything from now on.

I met a couple of Australian girls and a girl from Seattle that night in the hostel. One of them looked JUST like Megan Fox! From the side though...when she had a pouty face on. The three of us just chilled in the kitchen that night- eating, drinking, playing cards, etc.

I read one of the brochures on the table that told about a day trip down to the Cliffs of Moher. It was only a few hours away, and it was supposed to be really beautiful. So I arranged an overnight stay in Doolin (the closest town to the cliffs) and booked my spot on the tour for the next day.