DAY 4 – GALWAY

We woke up early, around 6 am, with plans to have a nice breakfast in Dublin, do the Guinness brewery tour, and visit the Jameson distillery, all before heading to Galway for the night. All was going as planned until we walked out the front door. It was pouring. Not raining or sprinkling. Pouring. Loaded up with our backpacks we made a mad dash for our car, which was parked about 15 minutes away. We piled in quickly, and looking at each other, completely drenched, decided that we would head to Galway right away and enjoy the city there. We would have to squeeze in the brewery and distillery when we got back the next day.

(The brewery and distillery were both in areas of town that had little parking and we weren’t up for walking 20 to 25 minutes in ice-cold rain).

Galway was a small town on the other side of Ireland, about two hours away, which came highly recommended by my brother. And after the two-hour drive, with off and on rain, I understood why. The ambience in Galway is exactly what one would think of when thinking of the Irish.

We were staying at a bed and breakfast located in the heart of the Latin Quarter, which was a small area of town with small, winding streets covered in cobblestones and lined with pubs, cafes, and shops. Our room was at the top of two flights of stairs (so better than yesterday) and very tiny. There was enough room for a bed and for Tony to walk around the bed. I was not able to use my wheelchair in the room or the bathroom, so I resorted to crawling. Needless to say, my knees are starting to take a bit of a beating from the last few days of crawling around!

We had planned to take a quick nap when we arrived at our room, but the excitement of the streets was overwhelming and there was just no way we were going to sleep. We headed out to explore the area, thinking how nice it was that there was no rain here. But just as we turned the corner, not three minutes into our walk, a sudden downpour hit. I made a mad dash for the nearest café, with Tony chasing after me. We decided to wait out the rain and have lunch.

Later that night, after the sun had set, we experienced the nightlife of Galway. It was beautiful. The pubs full of locals, with live Irish music playing in virtually every place we entered. Little pizzerias and gelato shops were abundant, and Tony took the opportunity to enjoy a little of everything.

I wish that words could describe the feel and environment of Galway, but like so many places I’ve visited before, there simply are not enough words. As my brother recommended it to me, I will do the same and recommend it to you!

Please feel free to read Tony’s perspective of our trip at http://www.whereistony.com.