Like Ohmigosh! You're American too?

Galway is apparently where all the silly college sorority girls come to drink and party and shop and speak very loudly about very dumb things. This is actually the first place on the trip where I have met other Americans. I've heard a few American accents along the way, but I hadn't personally met any other American travelers yet. Australians, French, Canadians, South Africans (they were speaking Afrikaans!), but no Americans...and now I'm surrounded.

Last night I dined at a fine restaurant called Couch Potatas. All they serve is baked potatoes with different toppings. Brilliant. Why don't we have this in America?

After consuming all that potato I was in need of a long walk so I walked all the way up the coast to the next town (it's actually less far than I'm making it sound) called Sandhill. Sandhill is a little farther out to sea and the tourist information board tauts its "breathtaking views of Galway Bay." It's a cute little beach town complete with a sketchy little boardwalk carnival. I also booked a ticket to see a show in Sandhill on Thursday night called "Trad on the Prom" which, I believe stands for Traditional music and dance on the Promenade. It looks, from the brochure like it will be delightfully cheesy.On the Beach of Galway Bay. I couldn't tell if the auto timer was working which explains the quizzical look on my face.

Tonight I'm going to an event but I don't actually know what it is. In the program for the Galway Sessions Music festival it is listed as "Oiche Damsha Sean Nos." The only description I can find of the event is entirely in Gaelic. I think it is something I will want to go to though because I can recognize a few key words in the ads. I know "rince" and "damsha" both mean dance, and I know "damsha sean nos" is traditional "old style" dance, but I can't really gather any more information beyond that. I don't know if it is a performance or a class or if I'm allowed to go or if it will all be conducted entirely in Gaelic, but I guess I'll find out. I've already been in so many awkward and embarrassing situations on this journey, I guess I have nothing to lose.

Ireland just held their vote on the Lisbon Treaty and they voted no...I guess after hundreds of years of fighting for independence they were reluctant to give that up. Everywhere you turn there are campaign ads though, it was a pretty big deal.

Half way!

If I have calculated correctly, then today I am halfway done with my trip (or half started if you're an optimist.) Can you believe it? I can't. I've been gone almost a whole month and in that time I've developed a serious chemical dependency on tea, scones, and black current jam, and I have been suffering withdrawal symptoms from tofu, soymilk, and palatable tap water. I don't think I've picked up an accent yet, but I do feel like I can understand people a higher percentage of the time than when I began my trip.

This is probably like the nicest hostel I've ever stayed in...actually they advertise that they won some award for being one of the best rated hostels in the world, so I guess I'm not the only one with that opinion. The room is a little bit cozy with 5 people sleeping in there, but the facilities are very nice.

I can't believe my luck with this music festival that's going on here. It fits better with my research than anything that I had even planned on going to. I looked into it more last night and there is some kind of dance event that I will be able to go to almost every night that I'm here. In addition to that, I found some flyers in the hostel advertising some other dance shows--I guess it's true what they say about the West of Ireland having the strongest traditions in music and dance! I'm wondering if I might be psychic in choosing to come to Galway this week. Or maybe the gods of Irish dance are just looking out for me.

Next to Cashel I'd say Galway is the second most tourist-ridden place I've been to so far, but next to Cahir I'd say it's the second cutest. I took a little stroll around Galway last night and I wasn't even going to bring my camera because I figured I would be here for a week and I didn't need to take pictures right away, but like...I couldn't stop taking pictures...it's just that cute!

You will note that most of these pictures look like they were taken in the afternoon because it's bright daylight, but actually they were all taken around 10pm...It just never gets dark here, it's so far north and it's so close to the solstice that the sun doesn't set until about 10:45- 11pm then it never actually gets to be completely dark then the sun rises again super early...weird, no?

One of the cute little pedestrian streets. (I lied, this one was taken this morning, but the rest are at night.)

Colorful houses along the River Corrib at the edge of town.

boats.

Then finally the sun started setting at like 10:45 and that was really pretty too.

all the way to galway

blahhhhhh I began today's journey in Belfast at 10am and now it's 8pm and I'm just getting settled in the hostel... The moral of the story is that buses move very slowly. They certainly take the "fast" out of BelFAST.

I got here though. Actually I came straight to the hostel and haven't even seen any of the town yet, but the hostel is pretty nice...although I'm supposed to stay here for a week and that may be a long time to go without privacy. When I arrived there was a line--excuse me, a queue--out the door and half way down the block of people in sweaty spandex bike-gear. I guess they all arrived on a bike tour moments before me and were all checking in at once. I had to wait in the line/queue for a long time, but at least I had a reservation. Just one thing...co-ed bathrooms? seriously? At least they have wifi.

I wasn't sure what I was going to do for my research in Galway because the event I had planned on coming to here was canceled. But instantly upon my arrival I saw a sign for a week-long music festival that happens to be going on here this week that includes a few dance events. So that was easy.

I've recovered a bit from the shock of seeing my identical car-twin...but it may be a long healing process. In answer to Nicole's questions, yes, MY pink hubcaps have glitter, this one did not...but I have to give them points for the pink race-car stripes. Also, it was not a Toyota Yaris, but a Toyota Aygo which we don't have in the USA but...dare I say...they may even be cuter than Yarises...and I looked it up, they get better mileage. damn.

And now I offer you a few parting glances of Belfast.This is Queen's University. Pretty nice campus...I guess...If you're into that whole beautiful historic architecture thing...

Ok, my bad. I forget what this building is called. But it's famous. It's a big Victorian era greenhouse. The placard in front claimed it was a "perfect representation of the Victorian passion for horticulture."Other things the Victorians were passionate about: Brass bands.
This is the City hall building with the "Belfast Big Wheel" in the background. No, I did not ride the Belfast Big Wheel.
Things like this were really beginning to trouble me.

Final thoughts:
Irish people seem to be full of wisdom. Two nights ago a drunk old Irish man who claimed to have met God face-to-face offered this gem: "Tell an Irish girl she's beautiful, she gives you a dirty look. Tell an American girl she's beautiful, she gives you a smile."

Shaken to the core.

I was determined to find Wifi internet today because I needed to tell you all about one of the most traumatizing experiences of my life. Yesterday this car drove by me:
I had to chase it down for about a block in order to take that picture. I just don't even know what emotion this is that I feel. My entire sense of individuality is lost. I have either a soulmate or a nemesis driving around Belfast.

I've done a few other things in the last few days too but like...nothing else matters.

I can't think of a good subject line

Everything in Belfast is pretty expensive...including this internet time! Ahhh!

I have like...nothing to report. If I could find wifi I would share pictures but...alas.

The buses in Belfast are bright pink.

Oh, ok I thought of a story:
I was in Derry for a relatively long time so I got to know the Australian couple running the hostel pretty well...good people. Anyways, I checked out yesterday and then I was hauling my giant suitcase down the three flights of narrow stairs. I've kind of gotten this down by now, its just a matter of momentum and stamina, but a 50 lb suitcase can, in fact, be moved by a girl of my size. So Jason, the Australian hostel guy saw me engaging in this rigorous exercise and goes "Oh my god! Do you need help?!" And I said, "Oh, it's ok, I've got it." And then he looked really stumed and said "Well...I guess I'd expect that from you...being all independent and stuff..."
I thought it was funny...

That's all I've got.

I don't think we're in Kansas anymore...

BELFAST.

Arrived safely. Fell asleep on the bus much to my embarrassment.

The hostel is actually not too bad other than the fact that I'm in a 4-bed room about the size of the tiny single room that I had at school last year. Also, I have to pay for the internet! The location is very convenient to town and right by Queen's University so it's a trendy, college-y type area.

Belfast is a beautiful city, but all of the sudden it's very clear to me that I'm no longer in the Republic of Ireland; everything here feels very UK. I guess I'm perhaps more aware of it since I've been paying such close attention to folk culture...something that seems kind of absent here. Actually, before I left Derry I was speaking to someone who was a Catholic Irish Republican from Donegal and when I mentioned I was going to Belfast he said "Oh I've never been there! I'd probably be attacked! I'd never even drive through that city!" And he was completely serious. The cultural divide feels pretty prominent...especially considering when I was walking around Derry last night there were police cars on every street and later I heard there had been a bomb threat in the Bogside district (where all the republican rebels live).

In any case, it should be a fun city to explore for a few days, although I doubt I'm going to be able to find anything to go to for my research.

wish me luck.

Tomorrow I am off to Tory Island, a three mile long little island north of county Donegal with a population of 172 where the preferred language is Ulster Gaelic (more obscure than regular Gaelic.) Hmm. Today My goals are to 1) figure out how one gets to Tory Island 2) Try to contact a place where I can stay if and when I arrive. These tasks are somewhat daunting. Maybe I should have started worrying about this sooner.

Oh my god.

If you don't hear from me for the next few days you can assume one of two things 1) that I reached the island but being in one of the more remote corners of the world has left me without the internet 2) that I did not reach the island and I am desperately stranded somewhere in county Donegal.

EDIT
Now it is the late afternoon and I've been searching all day for how to get to Tory Island and basically I've just come to the conclusion that it is not possible. The buses run once in a blue moon and the only other way I could have gotten out there would have been to rent a car...which I am not actually old enough to legally do...not to mention the whole driving a stick shift down the left side of an unmarked gravel road thing...

THUS
I shall move on to Belfast tomorrow! Instead of going to one of the country's most obscure places, I'll be going to one of it's largest cities! Since it was such short notice I could only get a hostel that gets pretty questionable reviews...but I'll deal with that part when the time comes. I'm totally bummed that I don't get to go to Tory Island, but I guess this will have to do. C'est la vie.