IRELAND BICYCLE TOUR 2008, Part II
We
set out the next morning with intent to reach Galway. The misty rain was beginning to change, letting up for occasional sun breaks,
then returning in downpours to make up for the absence. We were soaked by the
time we stopped at the hardware store in Kinvarra to find a replacement bolt
for Mike's folding rear rack, prompting the tongue-in-cheek question from the
salesman, "Will ye be wantin' to come back soon?" Everywhere we went
the Irish were complaining about the exceptionally wet August. They said that
they had had rain everyday, and the "little school children had not had a
summer". The weather was starting to improve just as the kids were starting back
to school.
Things to check out in Kinvarra
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The local castle. Dunguaire castle hosts nightly medieval banquets during the tourist season like the one in Bunratty. Get your souvenirs here.
We made it into Galway just as the sun came out. 
Mike, at the Galway tourist kiosk on the left, gathering information on where to stay and what to do in Galway.
Galway quay
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In the evening,
we walked back to town from our B&B. It was a Saturday night, and the
night life in the old pubs was in full swing. Galway is home to the University
of Ireland, and the college students were back in town for the start of
another school year. The narrow cobblestone streets were crowded with students
out to party. More contemporary rock music had replaced traditional Irish in
many of the pubs as the tourist population gave way to the students. It was a
rowdy scene. We sat in one pub sipping Guinness and watching a team of 3
professional bouncers, equipped with blue-tooth technology and black uniforms,
select and remove individual customers as they became behavioral problems.
They were busy bouncers. We decided to remove ourselves before the bouncers
had to, and retired early.
Early
the next morning we were down at the Galway bus station to catch the bus to
the Aran Island ferry terminal in Rossaveal. This saved us miles of bicycling on typical
narrow Irish highways with heavy traffic. We folded our bikes, stashed them in
the hold of the bus, and climbed aboard to enjoy the sunny ride. We were
headed for the largest of the Aran
Islands, Inishmore, where we would spend
the night. The Aran Islands, windswept and rocky, were once an important Irish
political stronghold, but today they stand as quiet remnants of a simpler
Irish lifestyle. Gaelic remains their primary language.
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At the ferry landing on Inishmore, tour buses and horse carts line up to vie for business as the ferry unloads the day's bolus of tourists.
No
cars are allowed on the ferry, so most visitors ride over for the day and
explore the small island (5 miles long) by foot, rented bicycle, horse cart or
small tour bus. We hung back as the crowd of tourists chose their mode of
transportation and took off, leaving some of the prospective tour guides
behind without customers. One of these tried to talk us into hiring him for
his bus tour, but we explained that we had our own bicycles. "Well",
he said, "It looks like I'll be findin' meself in the American Bar
earlier than usual today." The American Bar, ironically, is the pub
frequented by the locals.
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They had a lot to say to each other in Gaelic about this situation.
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One
of the Aran Islands' claim to fame is the Aran
Island sweater, noted for it's history and unique patterns. We took
time to shop at many different woolen mills and sweater shops over the course
of our Irish tour, but it was special to be looking at hand knit Aran Island
sweaters on Inishmoor.
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She is one of a long line of knitters in her family who have been doing this for generations.
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After
allowing the other tourists a head start, we pedaled
off toward our B&B on the west end of the island along the quiet
traffic-free road. Half way to our destination, we hiked up to a stone tower
with an expansive view of the island with its ancient rockwork, grid of stone
walls, stark houses, and interestingly, not one sheep.
Inishmore
Dún Aengus, Bronze Age stone fort, sits on the high point in the background
Our B&B, the Kilmurvey
house, was the well restored historic residence of the "Ferocious
O'Flahertys", an important name in Aran Island history. Our hostess, a
member of the current generation, was preparing a Guinness beef casserole in the
large country kitchen when we arrived. Guests could sign up for dinner for 22
Euro. This translated to over $30 each. We were finding that prepared food was
very expensive in Ireland, so as delicious as it smelled, we decided to take our
chances on pub grub later in the evening in town. We had noticed that there was
supposed to be traditional music that evening at the American Bar and we
intended to be there. But first, we set out to explore Dun
Aengus, an ancient Bronze Age stone fort directly behind our B&B.
Dun Aengus consists of impressive concentric rings of impressive stone work,
probably best seen from the air, as the form is lost from the ground due to the
massive scale. The fort is set on the edge of a 100 meter sea cliff that drops
sharply to the waves below.
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Dun Aengus as seen from our B&B room
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At Dun Aengus, tourists posed so close to the windy edge, that it made me nervous to watch. We had read that every year, at least one tourist falls over the edge. More cautious tourists crawled on hands and knees to the edge to look over (method recommended by the Tourist Board). I took my photos from a distance and hiked back down. |
After Dun Aengus, we bicycled back into town to find some dinner. We had had
great weather so far on Inishmore, and figured that even after dark, we could
easily bicycle the 4 miles back to the B&B using our headlamps. In fact,
we thought it could be a very pleasant experience on such a peaceful quiet
road.
The band had not yet arrived at the American Bar when we got there, and it was crowded with locals who had been there a long time. We changed our minds about the pub grub, and opted for a nicer meal at another restaurant instead, then returned to the bar to discover, to our surprise, that the band consisted of three young but very talented boys. (We had come to learn that whenever you have three Irish boys together, at least one of them is named Sean and this was no exception). All three played a number of instruments well, and Sean, the youngest, had a beautiful voice, singing an emotional, lyrical "sean nos" solo in Gaelic. The pub patrons stomped, clapped, clogged and whooped with the music. We were enjoying it so much that it was late by the time we noticed that a storm had come up outside. We went to the pub door and peered out into the driving rain, our bicycling plans quickly dissolving. Fortunately, the bar maid helped us connect with a taxi driver who came to our rescue, and soon our bicycles were folded in the back of his minibus and we were back at the B&B dry and grateful.
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It was with some regret that we had to leave Inishmore the next morning. We
enjoyed the quiet peacefulness of the island and could have spent another day
or two exploring it, but we had many more miles to cover.
Storm clouds lingered over an Inishmore beach as we biked back to the ferry terminal the next morning
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