West Coast Ireland Adventures

This past weekend I participated in my first trip to another city in Ireland called Galway.  My roommates Sam and Katie, as well as myself, took about a three hour bus ride from Cork to Galway and it dropped us off right in the middle of the city centre. Our first stop was at the Salmon Weir Hostel. I was a bit weary about staying in a hostel in the first place because all I had heard from friends were horror stories.  The hostel we stayed at turned out to be wonderful as it had a very homey vibe.  Everyone was super friendly and I got to hear some great travel stories and advice. I'm going to partially going to debunk this issue. The quality of hostel's are completely dependent in the country and city in which you are staying. Ireland is considered one of the safest countries in Europe, even in their most touristy cities. Before you book a hostel do your research by reading the reviews and always lock your belongings in lockers.

Salmon Weir Hostel

It's not that bad!

 We wandered for a few hours and I got the feeling it was a largely touristy city.  Compared to Cork it felt a bit out of my comfort zone, as everyone on the streets was trying to sell me something. I found myself longing for the Cork atmosphere. For the remainder of the evening we listened to local music at one of the pubs then decided to call it a night. The next day we decided to head out of Galway and to some of the impeccable scenery in the surrounding area. I was initially against it but I took a tour bus around a loop of notable places within 2 hours of Galway. I usually like to explore on my own but it was only 16 euro and we were just dropped off at the locations and we got to have free time to ourselves.

Firstly we drove through an area called The Burren.  I had no previous knowledge of the area and was utterly shocked to see the incredible landscapes of thousands of flat limestone scattered through the plains. Some even covered hills in the distance.  I wanted to stay longer than I did, but there was heavy wind in which I did not preparedly dress myself for. At least I got to see the Poulnabrone Portal Tomb!

The Burren

Polnabrone Portal Tomb

Next I visited the Cliffs of Moher, which I recommend everyone to see before they die. I cannot put into words how utter breathtaking it was to see something like this.  The cliffs are so monstrous that one comparatively feels so small.  I was rendered speechless as I hiked the trail on the edge of the cliffs, which continued for several kilometers. I found my experience to be quite special as I experienced several types of weather in the 2 hours I was there. At first I was a bit disappointed because there was a misty type of rain occurring, as well as tremendous amounts of fog. There was heavy wind constantly, so much that I thought I was going to blow off the edge.  It was oddly mystifying and eerie to view. Thankfully the sun came out and the fog drifted away making the sea a bit more blue and allowing the cliffs to look larger than I thought!

Crazy winds and foggy cliffs

Everything is revealed, photos don't do it justice!

Finally we concluded our journey through the village of Doolin where I go to have traditional Irish seafood chowder.  We then all traveled back to Cork to prepare for the upcoming school week.  I never knew how much Ireland truly has to offer.  When I initially went through my search for schools in which to study abroad, Cork happened to be my third choice.  Yet there is still so much that I have not seen and that I look forward to experiencing in my remaining time here.  Cheers!