Galway Days 5 & 6: "That man cannot sing."
It has been a quiet but fun-filled two days in
Galway since I last wrote. Blustery winds and sporadic downpours could not keep
us inside in a place like this. We’ve been all over the city centre, hitting
funky shops and delicious restaurants. And we are not even halfway through our
list! It’s a good thing we’re not even halfway through our time here… We still
have some work to do!
Yesterday, we had class until noon and then
decided to get ready, go out, and get some nice lunch at one of the many
restaurants and coffee shops around Galway. Originally, we had our mind set on
McCambridge’s, a Mediterranean-influenced deli, sandwich bar, restaurant, and
off-license wine shop. They specialize in picnic baskets and take away as well
as sit down meals involving delicious items like hummus, olives, cheese, and
fresh bread. But halfway there, we stopped to check the menu at a local pizza
and Italian restaurant recommended to us by one of our professors. After about
two minutes of looking over the pizza list, we decided to just stop in then
rather than wait for another time. We were too hungry and their pizzas sounded
great. The shop itself is very small and cozy, with booths on either side and
chairs down the middle. The manager was our waiter, since it was only about
12:30 and the place was completely empty when we walked in. Since we would be
sharing one pizza, it was difficult to choose one of their more artisan options
because we have some conflicting ingredient preferences. We ended up choosing
the plain old pepperoni, but it was still a great meal. We each got four slices
of thin crust, crispy goodness that still had a bit of give in the middle. Delicious!
We thanked the owner profusely and walked out full and happy.
After our lunch, we just wandered around to do
some more browsing in places we had not been before. We popped into Treasure
Chest, a big blue building with white scrolling and huge, enticing window
displays. The bottom half is like an artisan Irish gift shop, with products all
made exclusively in Ireland or Scotland. Diana looked at some blankets, I
looked at candles and soaps and scarves (an intense form of browsing that I am
a master of), and then we checked the upstairs boutique just for fun. A large,
open space packed with clothes, shoes, hats, and jewelry welcomed us. The
mirrored walls and crystal chandelier made the whole place sparkle. Numerous
mannequins displayed the store’s best clothing and hats as they looked out the
windows at Shop Street. We tried on a few hats, then went back down the stairs
and said we would be back for another look around closer to our departure date.
There was just so much to look at that it was almost too much to take in after just
one visit!
The sun came out once we had finished in
Treasure Chest, so we decided to walk around St. Nicholas church in the very
center of town. Halfway around the church is a fabulous little shop called
Sheridan’s Cheesemongers, which has not only cheese, but a selection of local
produce, an olive and hummus bar, jarred jams and jellies (sweet and savory
blends), and a fresh meat counter. The smell of cheese is obviously the
dominant scent, but there was so much more in there than simply cheese. The
jams were all fairly affordable, as well. I might have to go back and pick up
some almond butter or other specialty. Continuing in that area, we popped into
River Island, where I saw an amazing cape that was too small for me but would
have gone home with me otherwise. We also spotted the world’s smallest double
strap bag that we are still not sure the function of… is it supposed to be a
wallet? Or is it really just the smallest purse ever? Who knows.
The next leg of the walk was through the Latin
Quarter, one of my favorite sections of me and most visitors to Galway. There
is a cute little pie shop that we want to go into some other day, as well as a
shop called Yes Flowers that display beautiful fresh flowers outside on the
sidewalk. The inside of the store looks just as beautiful as the outside. One
shop down is Tempo Antiques, a small but intriguing store full-up with fine
china, silver, brass, and jewelry. There were other things as well, all sparkling
in the mirrored cases and bright lights. Everywhere is a new and exciting
piece—all the way up to the ceiling. I would recommend stopping by here,
especially if a lovely tea cup is on the list.
Lastly for the day, we popped into Charlie
Byrne’s again. Diana did not buy anything last time, so she wanted to go back
and see about something. She only got one book, but we both had another look
around for new or old books that might interest us. I ended up getting three
printed cards: one saying I ♥ Galway, one with a tea cup design, and the last
with Go Raibh Maith Agat, or Thank You in Irish. It was good to be back, even
just to browse. Being surrounded by books is always a welcome experience.
We walked back to the hotel after that, tired
after a lot of exploring. Dinner was great once again—the Harbour has not
failed to impress yet. They had mussels, which Diana made me try. They were not
horrible, but they were also not something I would order on their own. My
salmon was delicious, and came with my own serving of vegetables! I got
broccoli and parsnips and green beans and snap peas all to myself. It was
glorious. And the lemon poppy seed cake for dessert was a welcomed change to
all of the heavy chocolate offerings we’ve been getting. Yum!
This morning, we slept in past breakfast and
then went outside for lunch, despite the less than favorable weather. Blustery
winds do not really encourage leaving the room, but it actually wasn’t so bad
outside once we got downtown amongst the buildings of Shop Street. For lunch,
we stopped at Pascal, a coffee shop and café close to our hotel. They claim to
be the Posh Sandwich Shop, and I would say they are right to do so. Their
sandwiches were delicious, fresh, and full of flavor. I got the Posh Toastie,
which had tomato, ham, onion, dill mustard, and cheese. Diana opted for the
pesto, bacon, and brie sandwich with rocket and tomato. Both were wonderful and
well-priced for the amount of food we got. It was a warm and filling meal for
such a gloomy day, which we both appreciated.
On the way out, I got a chai with chocolate dust
to go as we continued down the street to get Diana’s ears pierced at a place
called AWOL. The chai was one of the best I’ve ever had-I even liked the foam,
which says something, because I cannot stand milk foam. I sipped it up quickly
whilst waiting in the art-filled sitting room of the tattoo parlor. After some
minutes, it was her turn to go to the back. Once that was done, we did some
more quick shopping at a few places down Abbeygate Street. My favorite was a
vintage place called Public Romance. They stocked a variety of new or modified
clothes in the downstairs area, and a whole vintage stock upstairs. There were
some outrageous pieces, but they also had a couple beautiful dresses and a lot
lovely of sequined shirts. Shoulder pads notwithstanding, I would have bought
some if they were priced a little better. We might be back toward the end of
our trip just in case we haven’t spent all our money yet. Hah.
We walked home after our little shopping spree,
worked out for a bit, and then rested before dinner. It has been a full three
days here with class as well as adventuring. Today has been our first full free
day, and we can’t wait to have the whole weekend to go out and see some good
music, get some more great food, and do even more shopping. Stay tuned for more
updates in the next few days!
♥
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