Thawing out...

I have returned to my 2nd home in England after a wonderful few days in Ireland.  After leaving the internet cafe on Friday, I headed out and thought I would be adventurous and go on a long walk out along the water and out of Galway, I lasted about 5 minutes before the cold got to me, so I headed into the Galway city museum for a quick warm up and was pleasantly surprised with what the museum had to say about the city's history and everything it had been through, including a mini exhibit on JFK's visit there just about two months before he was assassinated I think.  After a mini break in the museum, I decided to try and venture out into the cold, and was actually successful in surviving for a bit before I had to turn back.  Once back in the safety of the city's buildings, I found myself wandering to St. Nicholas' Cathedral.  It was a really beautiful cathedral, with impressive stained glass window and a massive organ, which was being played while I was there!  

From the cathedral, I wandered over the University of Glasgow and tried to imagine myself studying there....not very likely!  I made it back into the city center and wandered down the main drag of Shop Street and did a bit of souvenir shopping and finally decided it was time to eat and warm up a bit.  I had a very late lunch and early dinner, at Galways famous fish&chippery, of cod, chips, and mushy peas!  It was absolutely delicious and exactly what I needed before the crazy cold could get to me again.  I did some more wandering and popped into shops here and there, and even wandered into their version of a, very small, shopping mall.  Actually made a purchase of a hat because of course I had left my plethora of hats behind when I really needed them.  

 Hung out in a coffee shop and wrote for a bit and listened to 'Galway Girl' on the radio!  At around 7 p.m. headed to a famous pub called Taaffe's and listened to traditional music for about an hour.  It was so cool to just sit and listen to a very informal group just playing and enjoying the friendly atmosphere!  With my last night in town almost over, I walked the drag once more and walked along the water to take it all in again.  Headed back to the B&B to pack and get an early night.

  Waking up early has never been a strong point, so I was quite proud of myself that I made it to my 7:15am train with plenty of time!!  Train back to Dublin, then 30 minutes in Dublin, DART to Dun Laoghaire and rushed across to board the ferry to Holyhead, Wales.  On my train ride back to Manchester was pleasantly accompanied by a young guy who chatted with me for our two hour ride to Chester where we parted ways to catch our connections, but had a blast creating that memory and was kept well entertained  :-)   

  It's hard to believe that I left 5 days ago and spent the week in another foreign country, but I had such an amazing time, that I'm not surprised that it flew by.  It's still cold here in England, but I just don't think AS cold as it was in Ireland!!   Love to you all