Dublin Festival St Patricks Day Parade 2010- Special Coverage Part 2

Dublin Festival St Patricks Day Parade 2010- Special Coverage Part 2

Here is Part 2 of the Special Coverage Video of the BIGGEST AND BEST CELEBRATION OF ST PATRICKS DAY IN THE WORLD!!!

It is also called St Paddys Day, Patricks Day and Paddys Day. Named after Saint Patrick (AD 387- 461), Patricks Day is celebrated every year on 17th March and is a public holiday. Families go out together, visit heritage and art centres, attend masses, participate in sports events and attend the St Patricks Parade and engage in other festival activities and competitions like the Treasure Hunt. It is also one of the most busiest and profitable days for pubs and hotels as celebrations include mass alcohol consumption with singing and dancing.

The festival showcases Ireland art, heritage and culture. The city was filled with people and I managed to capture the parade for a short time. A big APPRECIATION to all the Garda, ambulance, volunteers and other authorities who did a great job in efficiently and effectively managing the people and parade.

Special Coverage Video Part 2:

Galway Trip 1: Galway Bay

Galway Trip 1: Galway Bay

Trip to Galway Bay


The afternoon we reached Galway Coach Station, our 'Tall and lean' friend, Mr. AJS drove us to his house, where our 'Crafty' Balto friend, Mr. KJR was preparing Vada and Chutney for us. What a welcome it was for us especially after our long and tired journey. Well, the journey was not so tiresome as we thought it would be because the City Links bus was really comfortable and we hardly felt like we were travelling on the road.

Historical Site- Galway Bay...

Anyway, that evening we visited Galway Bay. Geographically, Galway Bay is between Connacht in County Galway and The Burren in County Clare. In Galway City, you can actually see this bay from the bridge on the main road from Galway Coach Station to Galway City Center. As many locations in Ireland, this bay is also historical as it reminds you of the invading Spanish armies of the earlier centuries. Traditionally, Galway Bay is very famous for it's own unique Galway Hooker, a traditional sailing craft. Here, the bay houses all types of boats. Some boats were docked while many of them were out at sea mostly for fishing or sight seeing purposes. Across the deeper waters of the bay, there are many famous Irish islands. These are small islands and Galway Bay is the proud gateway to one of the world's most historically famous and beautiful island- 'The Aran Islands (Oileáin Árann, it's Irish name)!'

Welcoming sight for the Flatters!

We walked around the bay for some time just looking around and eyeing all the boats. At the end of the bay we stood on the steps that led down to the water level. Of course, we did'nt go down to the water level. On the side adjacent to the bay there's a big apartment where all the flatters (...heh, those who live in flats...) are sure to get the beautiful view from their balconies. Standing on the back side of the bay, you can see the other side of the bridge at the area on The Quays, where the Spanish Arch remains.

Digital Photography lessons at Galway Bay

Having spent time at the bay, we started to walk to the other side of the bridge where again the water was at a good view. There were many professional photographers and amateur photographers with their zoom lenses and tripods clicking the swans that were by the river banks below the Spanish Arch. There were also digital photography lessons being given to beginners as well. Finally our walk along Galway Bay was over. Well, this was a good evening and so we started off towards the Spanish Arch, which is above the banks of River Corrib (the river which is across The Claddagh).

We almost missed a last minute planned trip to Galway!!

We almost missed a last minute planned trip to Galway!!


Last minute call

Our crafty' friend in Baltinglass went to visit a common 'tall and soft spoken' friend who lives in Galway. He calls up the second night and tells us to reach there next morning as they have planned a few days visit to some locations in and out of Galway.


Baltinglass to Galway bus journey

Now, Galway is around four to five hours journey by bus from Baltinglass. Sheesh, a few days visit and we have no time to think, complete the house chores, select our dress, take cash from the ATM, finish the food we still have in our fridge and those which would expire in those few days time!!!

Now the plan was to book online tickets for the 12pm City Links bus from Dublin. And to reach Dublin, we have to get into the 10am Bus Eireann from Baltinglass so that we could reach Dublin by 11:45am.


Online booking service- We missed the bus!!

And guess what?- We started off the day by mising the 10 am bus! Why the delay?- Because the online booking took more time than we expected, which we did in the morning just before leaving the house as we were so much into packing the previous night that we forgot all about our online task!

Anyway, we went to Castledermot instead (as the next bus from Balto- short name for Baltingalss, was only at 12pm), and got into the 11:15 am J.J. Kavanagh bus which would reach Dublin Eden Quay (EQ is one of the the bus stations near the Dublin Bridge) at 12:45pm. Before boarding the bus at Castledermot we bought a sandwich for my wife (Bacon, lettuce and tomato) from the cafe called 'Mad Hatter Cafe' located centrally at Castledermot Town near the traffic light- opposite Londis Supermarket and in front of the bus stop. A really convenient location because we can have a quick snack or coffee and then just cross the road to the bus stop without having to rush at all- God bless them!!

Divine Reminders in life!!

But- as I was about to order the 2nd sandwich, for me, with only 5 minutes before the bus arrived, you know those last minute kind of intuitions or revelations that strike you at certain crucial stages in your life, well...that something struck me and I asked the lady at the counter if they accept card payment (we didn't have time to take cash from the ATM). This lady was really nice and all smiles :)

"Sorry, we accept only cash and no card payment!"

O boy! Here we go again... we ransacked whatever pockets we had including the luggage pockets and were glad to find extra change just more than our bus fare and only enough to pay for one sandwich!......I was thinking as to what would have happened had the lady prepared two sandwiches and I give her the Laser Card...Thank God for timely reminders!! :) The kind lady suggested going to the ATM which was few minutes walk from the town, but that was too far away for that moment. She even said that we can ask for a cash back from the Supermarket outside the cafe, but again, there was no time for it.

Good Customer Service... :)

So we bought the sandwich and said bye to the lady who kept on apologising because they dont accept card payments. What an Angel! There really was no need to apologise and so we kept on thanking her for all her kind help and quickly went to the bus stop. Oh, and just as we were about to leave the cafe, I noticed a small card on the cash counter with some small words printed on it. I looked more closely just to make sure. It read...

'We do not accept cards. Sorry for the inconvenience!!!'

Hmmmmm......


Travel and Food- Tamil Style!!...Yummmmy.....mmmmm!!!

Anyway, we reached Galway safely and happily by God's grace. We stayed there for a few days. The stay was real fun!! We visited a couple of places in and out of Galway. There is a famous song called 'The Galway Girl' by Steve Earle and Sharon Shannon with a cover version by Mundy and Shannon. Though about a Galway girl, the song expresses Irish lifestyle and Irish music. Not only was this tour memorable but I also have some mouth watering memories- These two Tamilians (...the Balto dude from Coimbatore and the Galway guy from Vellore... ) are excellent Tamil Nadu cooks I have to tell you! Really, they made some exquisite dishes just for us! Delicious!! Chicken Biriyani, Vada, chutney, Tamil Nadu dishes like Lemon Rice and Thairu Saadam (Curd Rice), Egg Salad, Chicken Masala curry, Barbecue Chicken, Payar thoren (Green Gram stir fry), Gulab Jamun....mmmm....But I shall tell you more about their menu later on in the blog though. Gotta get on with Galway first...

About Galway...a small info

Galway (Gaillimh in Irish) the largest county in Connacht is now considered as one of the fastest growing city in Ireland. Another name for Galway is 'City of Galway ('Cathair na Gaillimhe' in Irish). As Galway is located on the west coast of Ireland, it is from the River Corrib (Corrib: Gaillimh in Irish) that the city has got it's name. A Galwegian is a person from Galway. Famous for it's colorful and lively lifestyle along with it's reknowned and vibrant celebrations and festivals, Galway has now earned the nickname 'Ireland's Cultural Heart (Croí Cultúrtha na hÉireannin' in Irish)!

The places we visited were:

1. Galway Bay
2. Salthill, Galway- the Sea Front!
3. The Spanish Arch, Galway
4. Ashford Castle
5. Boating in Lake Lough Corrib
6. Island of Inchagoill- Inis an Ghaill Chraibhthigh (Irish)- 'Island of the Devout Foreigner' where the nephew of St'Patrick was buried.
7. The Burren
8. Aillwee Cave ( with the remains of a bear's bones dated 100's of years old...)
9. and finally the Cliffs of Moher.