| Galway city |
|
Galway city - Galway
|
|
|
| The
atmosphere is what gives Galway its attractiveness. Cobbled streets,
colourful houses, buskers, performance artists, the banks of the River
Corrib, elements which make strolling across Galway a pleasure and a
magnetic experience. The pub scene also has its share of fame, as
Galway’s nightlife is very popular. |
Accommodation_Galway
History
Once a small fishing village at the mouth of the River Corrib,
Galway became a major walled town in Anglo-norman times. A prosperous
city ruled by merchant families, Galway was an outpost of the wild west
of Ireland, and a serious competitor to some important British towns
such as London and Bristol, commercially speaking. Useful Information
The Post Office is located on Eglinton St and is open from
9am to 5.30pm Monday to Saturday
|
Ireland West Tourism (call 563 0281 for information) is an
information centre and is open at the following times; 9am to 6pm daily
from Easter to September 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday and 9am to noon on
Saturdays from October to Easter
Sightseeing & Visiting Although not especially attractive, Eyre
Square is the point of focus of the eastern city centre. Galway’s most
important structure is undoubtebly the Collegiate Church of St Nicholas
of Myra (call 564 648 for inform0ation). Built in 1320, the medieval
parish church is the largest still in use in Ireland. Lynch’s Castle is
actually an old stone house, a fine town castle built in the early 17th
century. It belonged to the most powerful of the ruling Galway
families, the Lynch family, and its façade bears several coats of arms
(Henry VII, the Lynches, the Fitzgeralds of Kildare). Spanish Arch was
once a part of the city walls, used by ships unloading their goods.
Near the arch is the Galway City Museum (call 567 641 for information).
Galway Cathedral, a short name for the Catholic Cathedral of Our Lady
Assumed into Heaven and St Nicholas (call 563 577 for information) is a
massive building which stands on the banks of the river, right across
Salmon Weir Bridge, where you can often see salmons rushing upstream in
May and June. Entertainment
Tours
A number of tours are available from Galway City, amongst which:
The Corrib Princess tours (call 592 447 for information or
visit www.corribprincess.ie) will take you on a cruise on the River
Corrib and Lough Corrib .
Lally Coaches (call 562 905 for information or visit
www.lallytours.com) and O’Neachtain Tours (call 553 188 for information
or send an e-mail to naughtour@iol.ie) have bus tours of Connemara and
of the Burren and Cliffs of Moher.
Festivals
A number of festivals take place in the Galway area along the year,
with a suspension of licensing laws meaning pubs can open 24 hours a
day. Here are the main ones:
Galway Arts Festival (call 566 6577 for information or
visit www.galwayartsfestival.ie) is a two-weeks celebration of theatre,
music, art and comedy.
Galway International Oyster Festival (call 527 282 for
information or send an e-mail to oysters@iol.ie) is an
‘oyster-slurping’ festival with lots of partying going on.
Galway Race Week (call for information) is a horse-race
event which takes place in late July-early August in Ballybrit.
Drinking
Among Galway’s numerous pubs, here are a few you can visit: Séhán Ua
Neáchtain on Upper Cross St is an old pub with excellent atmosphere
Róisin Dubh on Upper Dominick St has a reputation for discovering new
rock and roll talents Taaffe’s Bar on Shop St is highly popular for the
nightly traditional Irish music sessions |
|
|
