Added Note: Relive the story of Galway town from medieval times, through the famine to the present day, where arts play a major role in the city. Highlights include a rare 17th century altar piece, the new location of the statue of storyteller Padraic O Conaire and a Galway Hooker boat. Open year round. www.galwaycity.ie Nora Barnacle Museum - Smallest museum in Ireland pays tribute to Nora Barnacle, wife and inspiration of James Joyce. Nora and her six siblings lived in this tiny, two-roomed house, lovingly restored to its former glory, and it was the downstairs kitchen that Joyce met his mother-in-law Annie Barnacle for the first time. www.norabarnacle.com In south county Galway, on the edge of the famous Burren (a unique limestone desert area), the seaside village of Kinvara is renowned for its picturesque beauty. Its traditional fishing boats and cottages are worthy of an Irish fairytale. Truly a place to discover the 'real Ireland.' www.kinvara.com Dunguaire Castle - this beautiful 16th century castle is one of Kinvara's most famous landmarks. Now owned by Shannon Heritage, it sits on a rocky outcrop overlooking Galway Bay. Visitors can visit the castle from May to September, while the Dunguaire Castle Banquet nights run from April-October, with an evening of music, song, and a four-course meal. Ross Abbey: Just west of Headford town, 15 miles (24 kilometers) from Galway city, this friary, founded in 1357, is one of the best preserved ancient buildings in Ireland. A spectacular view over the landscape below can be enjoyed from the Church tower. www.headford.org/ross Some 35 miles (56 kilometers) in length, and eight miles (13 km.) in breadth, Lough Corrib is the second largest sheet of inland fresh water in Ireland. It's regarded as one of the best game fisheries in the world, while its reputed 365 islands and backdrop of the lar-Connact (wet Connact) hills make it a place of breathtaking beauty. Numerous tours, guides and cruises available. www.galway-ireland.ie/lough-corrib Who could visit the west coast of Ireland and not take a trip to the Aran Islands, steeped in history, heritage and culture? Situated right on the edge of Europe, the islands are the perfect place to get a sense of true Gaelic spirit, and the inhabitants have a well-earned reputation for warm hospitality. Enjoy flora, fauna, peaceful scenery and unpolluted seas by day, and experience an Irish welcome at an island pub for music and dance by night. Ninety minutes by ferry from Galway city dockside. www.visitaranislands.com Glengowla Mines - Glengowla are 19th century silver and lead mines, which have become famous among mineral collectors for their quartz, calcite, and the rare blue-green octahedral fluorite crystals. The mines show techniques of extracting ore and processing it, 19th-century style. Open March to November daily, and December-February by appointment. Tel: 091 552021. - Excerpts, Dublin's "Ireland of the Welcomes" magazine Jan-Feb 2009 issue. (Note: A lister has pointed out a flaw in the Kylemore Abbey and Garden snippet - thank you! - so am posting another note.) My sister and I enjoyed the tranquility and birdsong on our walk through the grounds and the warm welcomes of the nuns on our guided Globus coach tour in the summer of 2006. The setting is very picturesque and we took many marvelous photographs of the area. The Benedictine Community has announced that they have, regrettably, decided to close the School in August 2010. It is my understanding that the abbey and grounds will continue to be available to tourists, but check their website: www.kylemoreabbey.com SNIPPET: One of the most beautiful places my sister and I visited on our summer 2006 trip to Ireland was Kylemore Abbey in Co. Galway. This is a "must-see" for anyone visiting Ireland! There is a real sense of peace there. Kylemore Abbey was originally built as Kylemore Castle by Manchester textile tycoon Michael HENRY in the 1860's and was a present to his beloved wife. They'd fallen in love with the area when on their honeymoon in 1849 and reportedly spent £155,000 to buy the land. They spent a further £250,000 to create their dream world. Boggy land was drained and thousands of trees were planted to serve as a windbreak for the Medieval styled fruit orchard and exotic gardens, which has just been reopened in 2000 after restoration brought it back to Lord HENRY's original design. Tragedy struck the family when HENRY's beloved wife died after contracting Nile Fever in 1874. In her honor he commissioned the building of the Gothic Cathedral, which is situated at the far end of the estate and is accessible by the tree-lined footpath. It's an exact replica of Norwich Cathedral in England. His wife was embalmed and her body buried in the mausoleum next to the church. In 1892, HENRY's daughter was killed in a freak accident when her horse threw her into a nearby river. HENRY was so overwhelmed with grief that he put the estate up for sale in 1894 but it was taken off market when the estate failed to fetch a reasonable price. It was finally sold to a U. S. tycoon named ZIMMERMAN from Cincinnati, OH, as a gift for his daughter, the DUCHESS of MANCHESTER. But not long after it was sold to an order of Benedictine Nuns who still run a private girls school there today. There are a few rooms open in the abbey, as well as the styled gardens, tree walk and the church. The grounds by the lake are a bit of paradise on earth! Jean SNIPPET: Per the March-April 2000 issue of Dublin's "Ireland of the Welcomes" magazine, the Kylemore Abbey Gardens were being restored -- "The Benedictine Nuns and their team have spent the last four years restoring their six-acre Victorian walled garden which lies one mile west of one of Ireland's most renowned heritage sites - Kylemore Abbey. This is the largest walled garden in the West of Ireland. The garden has been owned by the Benedictine Nuns since 1920, but it dates back to 1867, when it was created by an Englishman, Mitchell HENRY. This project was grant-aided by 'The Great Gardens of Ireland Restoration Scheme' and supported by FAS. Now for the first time since the mid 1880s, the garden is open to visitors. Carved out of mountain and bog, with shady walkways, this spectacular garden is laid out in typical late Victorian style with brightly coloured geometric flower beds. A microclimate exists within the walls of the garden. A mountain stream meanders between the trees dividing the garden into two distinct areas: the 'kitchen garden' as the Victorians called the vegetable garden and the 'pleasure garden' as they called the more ascetically pleasing area. Glasshouses once included separate houses for figs, palms, tropical plants and bananas. There was a display house for ornamental flowering plants, tomatoes, melons and nectarines. The beautiful largely intact entrance gates are still standing and remain a testament to the craftsmanship of their time. The garden walls stretch for up to half a mile long. The head gardener's cottage has been beautifully restored and is decorated in typical Victorian colours. The bothy, where he gardening staff once lived, is scheduled to be opened as museum in Spring 2000. The original garden is slowly being re-awakened by the Benedictine nuns, Ann GOLDEN and her team, who are using only traditional methods to restore this wonderful garden." The scenery around Kylemore Abbey and its shallow lake is stunning. This neo-Gothic country house was built by wealthy English businessman Mitchell HENRY in the 1860s after he and his wife had honeymooned in the area. They are now both buried on the grounds. During the First World War, refugee Benedictine nuns from Belgium took it over, and today, it is an exclusive girls' boarding school. www.kylemoreabbey.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jean R." <jeanrice@cet.com> To: <IRELAND-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, January 05, 2009 4:49 PM Subject: [IRELAND] A Dozen Galway Highlights > SNIPPET: Galway Bay has been immortalised in poetry and songs of old, > Galway Bay stretches for 31 miles (50 kilometers) along the west coast of > Ireland. <snip>