Change in Plans

I woke up very early and started to rethink our plans. 

As this blog documents, we always do a lot on our vacations, thinking that we won't be back so we need to see as much as possible while still enjoying the culture and little nooks and crannies of the places we visit. But, I began to wonder if we were trying to do too much in Ireland: catching four cities and the cliffs in seven days, thinking about driving on the wrong side of the very narrow roads around a country where it got dark around 4:30--especially given our increasingly differing waking schedules. And, I was back in the boot. 

So, I started to think it through in the dark of an early Dublin morning. What if we just focused on Galway rather than adding in two more cities? What if we ditched the car and took the train instead? Then, we could just take a bus tour from Galway to the Cliffs of Moher, so we wouldn't miss this amazing site. We might lose a couple nights hotel deposit, but it would be worth it to have a more relaxing, less stressed out week. Right?

Rather than wake Ned up pre-dawn to run through my re-plan, I spent an hour on my phone--checking train schedules, hotels, and tours. Then, I woke him out of a dead sleep, gave him two minutes to open his eyes, and ran through it all. Like the saint he is, he grabbed his laptop and phone, shifting Chase points from one hotel to another; canceling the car; booking the train. Hero!

Then, it was time for coffee! Thankfully, Panem was right next to the Morrison, and there, coffee comes with super, scrummy, custard-filled croissants.

We told the kids, who were 100 percent behind the change, and gave them time to pack before walking over for one last meal at Lemon Jelly. We slowed into the lower gear over another delicious brunch and several Americanos.

Ned, saying goodbye to the Morrison.

The Dublin train station was welcoming, compact, and clean. We didn't know it, but most seats on Irish trains are reserved in advance. Luckily, we were able to grab four open seats together on a fairly crowded train; unfortunately, they were on the sunny side. We plugged in and slouched in for the two and a half hour trip.

 

Since I had been up since ... well, let's say 4 am ... I drowsed a bit, but also grabbed some lovely shots of the one-million-greens Irish countryside zipping by as the weather turned increasingly grey and drizzly. You can see the ghostly reflections of our group in some of the pics.

 

 

 

 

Finally, we could see Galway Bay in the distance and then closer. We were here!

 

Dublin is the largest city in Ireland, with over 544K people. Galway, on the far West coast of the island, is the fourth largest with ... 80K. This gives a sense of how small most Irish cities and villages are. When we walked out of the train station, there was one taxi :) We took it.

We had booked the Harbour Hotel, which looked to be easy walking distance to the city center with great reviews and a rate easily covered by our Chase points. The desk clerk was super-friendly with a very strong Irish accent. She offered that she hated Dublin, "too big, no one's friendly," and gave us several tour options for the Cliffs. She told us her favorite Galway restaurants, marked our way to the Christmas market on a map, and was just delightful. Our rooms were comfy and modern, much like the lobby.

 

By the time we checked in, the wind off the bay was howling and the rain whipping, so we opted to eat in the hotel before making our way to the market--one of the best in Ireland.

It was just a short walk to the center of Galway. The Christmas market was what you might expect in a small town. (To be fair to Galway, our comparison group was basically the best markets in Europe thanks to a Viking River Cruise down the Danube when the kids were little.) What was fun was that this was clearly a town meeting place with people who seemed like Galway area residents meeting up for the night out and families with little kids snacking on cookies and cocoa around the city's central square.

 

 

The square is surrounded by older hotels and lively pubs and restaurants. We did see a few "over served" individuals as well as convivial groups celebrating a day that ends in "y." Unlike in Dublin, most accents we heard were Irish.

We "did" the whole market in less than 30 minutes, so wandered the city's cobblestoned streets and alleys--all done up in their Christmas best merry-and-bright lights. 

 

Shops were closed for the night, so we made plans to check them out the next day. Galway was filled with narrow, inviting alleyways, each offering its own unique charm.

 

Ned even found two soulmates. By the way, this is a completely nonsensical pairing of individuals who never met, even once: Irish writer Oscar Wilde and Estonian writer Eduard Vilde. It was presented to Ireland when it joined the EU and is the physical manifestation of "it's the thought that counts."

We made our way back to the hotel and settled into our comfy beds for a good and full night's sleep, content with our change in plans and delighted to have time to explore little-big city Galway. As the Irish say, Better one look before you than two behind.