Back to Dublin

Back in Dublin. It's really crowded here because of the Bank Holiday weekend. I prefer Galway, with its winding cobblestone streets. The last two mornings we were in Galway, I took a long walk out before the city was fully awake, through the pedestrian area where people were driving delivery trucks and shopkeepers were scrubbing the fronts of their cafes or shops, or sweeping the cobblestones. The roads in the pedestrian area lead to the bay, where you can walk all around the water and out to the pier. It's so beautiful! The water reflects the colors of the houses along its banks: white, yellow, pink, blue. And large flocks of swans swim near the boats. There were few people awake this early (around 7), but some were out jogging or walking their dogs.

Also, I enjoyed people-watching in Eyre Square park while in Galway. I took a book out to the park one afternoon while John stayed at the hostel. My favorite image: there was a girl around 18 years old wearing black combat boots and with hot pink hair, with tattoos and piercings (I love how youth express themselves!). But her tough girl look was completely spoiled by the following: the roundest, happiest, fattest little brown puppy was bouncing along with her, at the end of a leash, and she was eating an ice cream cone.