We left Dublin on Sunday to drive across to Galway, about a 2 hour drive to the western coast of Ireland.

Galway is a real gem. A mix of old and new. Bookstores, pubs, cafes, more
pubs, and more pubs. The weather has turned to the miserable side of the
weather vane. Wet and windy. But not as cold as we thought it would be -
about 10C. After a turn around the city area, we found a great little
pub to have some lunch in. Julie had a beef and Guinness stew while I
had pork & leek sausages with mash potatos and lashings of gravy -
takes pub grub to a whole new level.

Monday - went for a tour around the Connemara district, just to the north of Galway. Passed through the villages of Moycullen, Oughterard, Roundstone to Clifden, where we stopped for some lunch (and another example of exactly how pub food should be). The town of Clifden
has a historical connection to the war of independence in the 1920's,
as well as being the landing site of the first trans Atlantic flight
from Newfoundland to Ireland by Alcock and Brown.
The drive was quite spectacular. Not Swiss Alps spectacular, but
impressive all the same. Windswept hills, rushing rivers, mist shrouded
lakes, sleepy villages. Everything about the drive said "Ireland".

Arrived back in Galway late in the day. Still raining and cold. But a satisfying day of sightseeing nonetheless.