Jameson Court Apartments, Salthill, Galway
Our one bedroom apartment was comfortable and well furnished, but on the 1st floor had no view of the sea from inside the apartment, just a very ugly Aquarium Building opposite . From the 3rd floor you would see over this to the sea beyond.They do not have many one bedroom apartments, and having read the small print, I asked for the one with the balcony - hence the 1st floor, and hence no view. I thought the balcony would give us a better view, but in fact it was a worse view.
It was a bit of a to-do to get in. To find the garage(which you must enter to find the reception) does need a bit of special navigation. Our instructions for arrival were a bit vague.
It is quite long walk into the centre of Galway You need to be clear what you want if you book here. It is a nice apartment - but how important is the view or the long walk into Galway to you. To me both these minuses mitigated against it.
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A walk around Galway Town
It would be fair to say that Galway is over-touristic. The old town, that is the only scenic bit that exists today, covers a couple of streets in the centre. Outside this twee bit, it is shabby and not worth visiting. If it stopped there, then all would be fine, but the problem is that the "twee" streets are full of either gaudy restaurants selling "authentic" Irish food, or grot shops, all selling the same grotty souvenirs.
Buskers have become such a problem that the council have recently banned them during the day. We probably saw around 15 acts on the streets, ranging from soloists, to bands of 4 or 5 musicians, to a tap dancer
The Protestant Collegiate Church was worth visiting - the Protestants do not have a bishop of Galway, so it is not a cathedral. Founded in 1320, it was created a Collegiate Church (which seems to be a cathedral without a bishop) in 1484. Over the centuries St. Nicholas's has played a central role in the life of the city. For many years the triennial elections of the mayor and city council were held within its walls. Only male members of fourteen select Galway families, known as the Tribes of Galway, had suffrage. Local legend states that Christopher Columbus worshipped there when he visited the city in 1477. The church is regularly used for worship by the Romanian and Russian Orthodox Churches, and the Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church. It is thriving today, which cannot be said of many C of I churches in the Republic of Ireland.
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Kai Restaurant
Kai is hidden away down a side street, well away from the city centre, but such is its fame that it was heaving at lunchtime when we visited. You need to research exactly where it is, as it is not easy to find. Its charm is that it does have scrubbed wooden tables and is packed with people who generate a fair amount of noise. As a result service is spotty and you may wait ages for your food, or you may get it served too quickly.
In addition, here is a tempting selection of cakes available at the counter .I was more than happy with the quality and price, but this is not gourmet eating, nor are they charging gourmet prices. It is all in the eye of the beholder .
A stop in Lisdoonvarna to look at the Matchmaker. No hanging around though as the wind continued to blow.
And finally up into the mountains to see the real Burren at first hand. I had to admire the Boys for forsaking the warmth of the car for a photo op - some of the family opted to stay in the car.
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A day in the Burren
By popular demand we had a day touring the Burren. Twas not the loveliest of days weather wise, but was sufficient to see the area reasonably well.
Dunghaire Castle in Kinvara was interesting as I had not seen it before. Then at one stop along the coast, where it was blowing a gale and the rain was slanting horizontally, we witnessed a woman taking a dip in the wild Atlantic
Lunch in a small pub by the sea, then the Hazel Mountain Chocolate factory. I never really found out why they were making chocolate in the wilds of the Co. Clare mountains, but they were passionate about it. I bought a bar of 89% chocolate from them, and still need to see if it is edible or not.
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Linnanes Lobster Bar
We enjoyed lunch here on a wet June day. It is a scenic spot right on the water. We arrived just before 12.30 and got a table without a reservation, but half an hour later people were being turned away. So be warned
This is good honest, fresh seafood. And fresh scallops are fresh scallops (and not the stingray tails that get served in most restaurants around the world as scallops).
Although they have "lobster" in their restaurant name, it is so expensive that I doubt they sell much lobster. The crab on the other hand was both well cooked and competitively priced.
It was too wet to sit outside when we had lunch, but on a sunny day, the garden would be the place to eat.
In short, well worth seeking out for lunch
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From Galway we headed up through Connemara to Castlebar