Galway City and the West Coast of Ireland

Ok...so here is part 2 of my Ireland trip. On Thursday morning we got on a train from Dublin straight into Galway City. Galway is known for attracting thousands of youth from all over the world, and is a beautiful city. We visited the ruins of the Spanish arch which weren't that big, but it was one of the main attractions in Galway. We ran into a bunch of other Franciscan students who were also travelling in Ireland before the semester in Austria began. We then went to see the cathedral in Galway which was HUGE!! The stone arches in the church were beautiful, and the size vaguely reminded me of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. After visiting the cathedral we went to Kelly's pub for a late lunch. After our trip into Galway, we headed off to our next destination: The Cliffs of Moher. Now I've seen pictures of the Cliffs, and they are beautiful, but seeing them with my own eyes was a completely different story. When you first walk up to the cliffs, there are guard rails up until a certain point, after you reach the end of the guard rails, there is a large sign in several different languages that say  STOP, DO NOT GO BEYOND THIS POINT. But seeing as many other people were simply walking past this sign without a second glance, my friends and I did the same. I am so glad I ignored that sign! The way the emerald green grass blends in with the craggy rocks on the cliffs is truly beautiful, and the sound of the ocean crashing thousands of feet below you, is amazing.  The Cliffs are one of those natural wonders that you will never forget, as long as you live. If I ever get the chance to go back, I will definitely take it!! We stayed the night in a small town called Kinvara which actually had " Galway Hooker" boats dock in the town's harbor. Right next to the town is a small castle, known as the Dunguaire Castle, which was home to the O'Hynes clan back during the 15th century. We then trespassed on some private property and climbed on ruins that were apart of the castle. It was great haha. After Kinvara, we traveled to the little village of Doolin, and from there we took a ferry over to Inisheer, the smallest of the Aran Islands. Aran Islands is home to the O'Brien castle, which Leah, Alissa, Danielle and I also climbed in the pouring rain. Inisheer is known for its strong Gaelic roots, as Gaelic is the most prominent language, other than English. We also stumbled upon the chapel of St. Caohme, brother to St. Kevin. There is a very thin and narrow window above where the alter is. Apparently if you can fit through the window, you go straight to heaven. We didn't even try to fit through it haha. We ended the night at O'Connell's Pub which had fantastic live music and more Franciscan students!! I loved Ireland so much, and I hope to go back there and spend more time in Donegal, where my family is originally from. I'm in Gaming, Austria now, but I'll fill you guys in on the Monastary of Melk and the village of Durnstein a little later. I miss you all very much!

Danielle