Galway

On Monday Night we arrive in Galway and use the guide book to locate a hotel. We choose the Meyrick downtown and are pleasantly upgraded to a suite. 600 sq'ft of space

Inoshowen Peninsula

Monday Morning after tyre repair we are on the road to Inoshowen. Northwest Ireland. First stop abandoned castle #1. Culdaff wollen shop for a sweater purchase - Many Many Many sheep and stone fences and a turnabout and long drive to Galway on the east. It is all a blur of winding roads.

Trye Repair

At 7:00 AM Monday morning I awake in search of a timely tyre repair. Having scouted out two candidate garages I am off. Northwest Tyre is a premium facility, I arrive early, before they open. A retiring looking man is moving the service trucks and advises me that they should be opening soon. When The garage doors finally open at 8:15 I ask about the service.He is anxious to help. It seems as though we had retyred(!) in his 60's and wasn't what I expected of a strapping lad with tats who would be ready. He nod that I drive the car in to the ramp and without much fuss - minutes later my tyre was off and the younger service man found a new one. All installed at 8:35 - Five minutes after they really opened. Hats off to old tyre man at Northwest Tyre in Derry. On the road and ready tot travel

Three Times a Charm

Navigating the Derry city we try to settle on a Hotel, B&B's have been nixed and we are hotel bound. Settling on the 'City Hotel' (Good Name!) I wheel the car around the roundabout towards the hotel. As I try to park at the hotel I am diverted to a underground parking garage. As the car nudges through the parking lot entrance, my right brain is still too much left and the car front tire hits the curb (Note: reference other two times). We now have a flat and a rental and problem. The tire is cooked - split beyond repair. Fortunately we are meters from the Hotel - Aisha goes to check in and I review the tyre situation (tyre not tire).

I have pulled into the taxi roundabout, underground and away the rain - something is working. I nab the jack, tyre from the trunk and begin the Indy 500 jack-and-go. The lugs are off but the tire will not move. I enlist the support of the venerable parkign security cop and he lends me a hammer from the security office to 'nudge' the whee into submission. I start with a few gentle taps and nothing - he take the hammer and gives it the 'English' - it is starting to move. I see the method and take over, with a series of rotating taps getting harder and harder. Wheel is free, spare on, hands greasy, I thank my enlisted hammer mechanic and wheel the car back into the hotel garage.

Being Saturday night it will be unlikely to find a replacement in the morning, Sunday. We resolve to stay in Derry until Monday morning when we can source new rubber. Sunday (Happy Fathers Day) we will risk the spare to brave the Northern Ireland coast and explore

Giant's Causeway

Sunday morning we brave the hotel breakfast and mount our 80km max spare to the North to Giant's Causeway - A natural oceanside wonder - google it - this is not Geography class. The spare holds fine despite the rolling hill and 80km+ driving. With only the threat of rain we walk below to the rocks and admire the geometrics marvels of nature. Returning by shuttle to the visitor center we head further up the coast to explore the other ruins and sights along the way. Retuning back to Derry for a dinner and a Guinness

Day 2 - Arrive Dublin - Drive to Derry

The 6+ hour hour red-eye flight has allowed me to par-sleep and I am ready to brave the 'right-hand' to drive 3 hours to Derry. Finding my bags promptly and car hire counter as the farrrrrrrr back of the terminal, I am keyed and pumped to endure the drive in the rain/hail/sun changing weather of Ireland. I am ok to drive on the right hand side - I mean left - of the road and had done so several years earlier in the UK. Entering the car I re-tuned my brain and kept repeating left, left, left. All good,all going well traveling North along the M(insert number here) towards Derry. Minor bumps twice as the left wheel hits the curb - more right - bear hard to starboard!! Arriving finally in Derry to the UoU -Easy to find the campus hard to find the residence. As I stop at the fourth locked parking gate, a car stops behind. Thinking I am blocking another visitor I leave the car and excuse myself as I am lost. The drivers are equally lost Parisian parents, who are also picking up a daughter as the residence. At the end of my broken French and their better English we jointly decide that we are still lost despite the some of our dual-continent knowledge and combined information and agree to go it on our own. Minutes later after the 17th route around the city, I spot the sign and residence entrance. The French have arrived before me, only minutes. I meet (squeeze,kiss,hug) Aisha in Cell Block 5 Cell 7. Marginally better than what I imagine would be a minimum security prison. Being the last convict to be let out she has gathered all the remaining prison traded food, including scrumptous cheeses a yogurts and crackers. Prison life can't be all bad.

Day 1 - To Derry

I leave Toronto to Dublin but have a few hours to kill before the possibly cramped flight. I opt to use my has $35 CAD in the 'Executive Lounge' while i wait for the flight. I figure a beer and a meal = $35 or two beers and snack at the lounge on comfortable chairs would be the same. The lounge at T3 Toronto is not up to par. Small no windows, sketch food... I get by $35 worth to be sure. The positive is that I meet a nice couple returning from Kingston to Manchester, he is Irish and she is a Brit and they allow me to close my travel guide while he explains some better options for the Ireland excursion. As we all still have hours to go before our respective flights our conversation ranges from socialism to computers to rural economic development mixed with stories of children by a music and betting on a fast nag at the Sligo Races. We are given last call at the lounge as out 11:LATE ish flights are now starting the board. My fears of a cramp flight as alayed as by requested bulk head seat has plenty of room and by 2 seat mates and found other digs. I hope for the same return blessing.

Trip to Ireland

I have fortunately decided to join Aisha in Ireland. She was there for 1 week at the University of Ulster taking a course in Derry/LondonDerry/Derry and I have jetted over (Transat) not on a whim, but planned to connect with her in Derry for our next 5 day excursion across Ireland - Just like Pakistan but greener. I need to catch up on blog posting so the next few are all post-experience.