Early morning again, somehow I just seem to like them... Car engine started at 6.30am and day started as normal tradition to pick up the team for the car. This time we had German-Slovenian-Finnish group on the wheels. As always I calculate some extra time just in case something happens... Like picking up one the person after ringing for several times there was an answer.. "Sorry I totally fucked this up, I just woke up and haven't even packed" ... Short conversation, boosting up the mood to hurry up to get going and after 15min we had a whole group in the car.
A motorway from Maynooth to Galway showed us the way and a smaller route even further to the port of Ros a'Mhil where we left our car and continued by foot to the ferry that took us to Inis Mór, the biggest island of the Aran Islands (there are three islands in total). It is one of few areas in Ireland where people mainly speak Irish (Gaelic). It is the kind of language that reminds me an elf language from Lord of the Rings, beautiful language but completely not understandable for me... Luckily they also speak English in there. This time we had a real passenger ferry to cross sea to and only after 45min ferry trip we stepped on to Aran Islands where we rented bicycles to cycle around the Island. The main island (Inis Mór) is only about 10km long and 2-3km wide having only few routes cycling is the best way to discover it.
Landscape is very rocky and most overcoming view was many stonewalls between green fields with farm animals (cows, horses, donkeys, goats) and rocky coast. The atmosphere on the Island could be describe as peaceful, non-rushing and relaxing. As our cycling tour around island started it wasn't more than few minutes as I met a new friend. I called him "buddy", it was a dog who walked toward us (in Ireland it's normal that dogs just run around without a lease on themselves) and then joined with us for the whole day, around five hours it ran along us while we were cycling and was our "guide" when seeing the sights... It became my new best friend.
Besides the nature itself there are several sights on island that are recommended to visit. First where we visited was called "a worm hole", a natural formation on rocks that looks like a swimming pool... surrounded by ground of smaller ponds that reminded kind of poisonous ponds because of green seaweed. Not to mention raging waves onto cliffs that splashed water meters high.
Another sight, most famous on the island is Dún Aonghasa, a ring fort originally built in 1100BCE and expanded on 500BCE built on top of the hill by the sea, about 100 meters straight drop to sea and other way kilometers long view over the island... I don't wonder that it's called "the most magnificent barbaric monument in Europe."
Continuing cycling tour we stopped on one beach where I tried to teach for the "buddy" how to retrieve a stick but he didn't agree with me about the idea and decided not to retrieve it. For some reason it reminded my the dog I used to have when I was still living at home who did exactly same thing: looked on me and probably would say something like "do you think that Im stupid or something to try make me run after a stick?" There was also a place where seals where living, I counted that I saw about 10 seals on the spot.
After a night at the hostel on the Island we returned to mainland and continued our trip by car around Connemara. When I was there last time, it was mostly very windy and rainy and now sun was shining.. It is true how much difference does actually the weather do. Difference on this Connemara driving route was to visit in Kylemore Abbey, last time I only stopped there but didn't went in there. Once again it was closer to 11pm when we reached Maynooth so the same routing was keep repeating itself: Quickly to bed to have some sleep before a wake up again on a next day.
A motorway from Maynooth to Galway showed us the way and a smaller route even further to the port of Ros a'Mhil where we left our car and continued by foot to the ferry that took us to Inis Mór, the biggest island of the Aran Islands (there are three islands in total). It is one of few areas in Ireland where people mainly speak Irish (Gaelic). It is the kind of language that reminds me an elf language from Lord of the Rings, beautiful language but completely not understandable for me... Luckily they also speak English in there. This time we had a real passenger ferry to cross sea to and only after 45min ferry trip we stepped on to Aran Islands where we rented bicycles to cycle around the Island. The main island (Inis Mór) is only about 10km long and 2-3km wide having only few routes cycling is the best way to discover it.Landscape is very rocky and most overcoming view was many stonewalls between green fields with farm animals (cows, horses, donkeys, goats) and rocky coast. The atmosphere on the Island could be describe as peaceful, non-rushing and relaxing. As our cycling tour around island started it wasn't more than few minutes as I met a new friend. I called him "buddy", it was a dog who walked toward us (in Ireland it's normal that dogs just run around without a lease on themselves) and then joined with us for the whole day, around five hours it ran along us while we were cycling and was our "guide" when seeing the sights... It became my new best friend.Besides the nature itself there are several sights on island that are recommended to visit. First where we visited was called "a worm hole", a natural formation on rocks that looks like a swimming pool... surrounded by ground of smaller ponds that reminded kind of poisonous ponds because of green seaweed. Not to mention raging waves onto cliffs that splashed water meters high.Another sight, most famous on the island is Dún Aonghasa, a ring fort originally built in 1100BCE and expanded on 500BCE built on top of the hill by the sea, about 100 meters straight drop to sea and other way kilometers long view over the island... I don't wonder that it's called "the most magnificent barbaric monument in Europe."Continuing cycling tour we stopped on one beach where I tried to teach for the "buddy" how to retrieve a stick but he didn't agree with me about the idea and decided not to retrieve it. For some reason it reminded my the dog I used to have when I was still living at home who did exactly same thing: looked on me and probably would say something like "do you think that Im stupid or something to try make me run after a stick?" There was also a place where seals where living, I counted that I saw about 10 seals on the spot.
After a night at the hostel on the Island we returned to mainland and continued our trip by car around Connemara. When I was there last time, it was mostly very windy and rainy and now sun was shining.. It is true how much difference does actually the weather do. Difference on this Connemara driving route was to visit in Kylemore Abbey, last time I only stopped there but didn't went in there. Once again it was closer to 11pm when we reached Maynooth so the same routing was keep repeating itself: Quickly to bed to have some sleep before a wake up again on a next day.
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