My day started early. I got up at 5AM to get a shower and get breakfast at McDonald’s. The only problem was even though McDonald’s said they were open 24 hours on Friday, that means that they didn’t open until 7AM on Friday…and they didn’t close until Sunday. While was there a older man told me they were closed. He asked me what time it was…5:30AM and I said “They probably don’t open until 7AM.” He then asked me what other places are open. I guess I looked like I knew what I was talking about, but I assured him I didn’t know. He later asked two passerby’s what was open and they directed him to another shop off.

My wife Sharon had planned ahead and downloaded Google Maps of our route on her phone. At around 7:12AM we proceeded to Eyre Square to catch the bus to the Enterprise car rental place. We arrived a bit early so we waited 10 minutes until we were welcomed inside to check out our rental. I got additional insurance on the car – a Hybrid Toyota SUV to make my deductible less. I thought it was a good plan for a small additional fee.

Driving a car in Ireland is a bit confusing at times. They drive on the left and the steering wheel is on the right. I had been warned that the windshield wipers and turning signal were reversed, but it just so happened not to be the case on my car.

Meanwhile roads in Ireland can be narrow with no shoulder. I had been warned about this. When I took a minor road to get to my main route, I met 2 cars suddenly and had to brake quickly.

We ate breakfast at a Centra gas station which consisted of muffins and orange and apple juice. We then headed to Cong. Surprisingly I felt as though I did really well getting to Cong. I had brought my iPod which was nice to have my music playing while I was driving.

We parked our car at a public (free) parking area in Cong. It was almost empty when we arrived. We walked up to Cong itself and looked around at some shops before proceeding to the Quiet Man Museum. Upstairs at the museum was a souvenir shop. Downstairs was the museum which consisted of some props from the movie and furniture and costumes similar to the ones in the film (read not original). Sharon loved it. It was great seeing her face light up from one of her favorite movies.

Afterwards we walked around and went to the Cong Abbey, a ruined Abbey in the heart of the city. There were many grave markers all around and in order to walk around the Abbey you had to step on graves as they were back to back.

Coming out of the Abbey we visited a ruined church across the street. Nearby sat a few motorcyclists working on their bikes near a ruined Abbey. New and old come together in Cong.

There was a statue of John Wayne carrying Maureen O’Hara near the tourist office. We got a few pictures before going to the tourist office. The tourist office worker told us that Ashford Castle charged 15 Euro just to come on the grounds. We decided to pass and go on to the ruins of the Monk’s Fishing House near the ruined Abbey. Consequentially there was a modern day fisherman there casting his reel. “If only the Monk could see his house today.” I thought to myself. The more things change the more they stay the same.

We then went to Pat Cohen Bar and Restaurant. We expected it to be busy, but it was us and a few patrons at the bar. I saw they had “Ham and Turkey” as the special for today. Thinking it was a ham and turkey sandwich I ordered it, while Sharon got the fish and chips. My order of “Ham and turkey” was actually ham and turkey with brown gravy along with mashed potatoes. I ate it without complaining to the staff. Sharon’s fish from the fish and chips was massive.

We then proceeded to Kylemore Abbey but not without getting caught in a traffic jam in Cong. I guess the streets are so small that if there was any obstruction it can cause a lot of grief for those behind the others.

The drive to Kylemore was wonderful. We drove by lakes and mountains and saw sheep along the way. Owners must dye their sheep with a small spray of color to distinguish it from the others. In some areas the sheep seem to roam free and sometimes hang out near the road way…even on it. So you have to watch for animals. I had a close call with a dog that jumped in my path, but no one (including the dog) was hurt or injured.

We could see Kylemore Abbey in the nearby scenery and slowed down to take a photo. We parked in the Kylemore Abbey parking lot and noticed there was a car of similar color, make and model as our rental car. So I took a photo of our license plate for reference when we came back. I also took a photo of an old Citroen car for Instagram.

Kylemore Abbey is a working Abbey which was gifted by a wealthy family in 1921. It consists of the main Abbey (former manor house ), gothic church and Victorian Walled Garden (about 2 miles away, accessible by a shuttle). We saw the Abbey and gothic church, but passed on the garden as we were running low on time. Sharon and I both agreed that the inside of the Abbey and Church was not as spectacular as the outside and it would be just as well to stop and take photos but pass on the tickets.

We then headed back to Galway, but not before stopping at a bridge made famous by being a setting for “The Quiet Man.” The bridge was quaint and seemingly not descriptive had it not been in the movie. We took several photos of the bridge.

Along the way back we had to drive up on a side walk (took the queue from the driver in front of us) to make way for an ambulance coming through. There wasn’t many other options. Europe is strange like that. The amount of space for cars is very limited.

After returning the car (with less than 1/6th of the tank used (thanks to hybrid cars) we tried to find our way to Shake Dog. The Enterprise folks didn’t really know how to get there (which bus to take) but offered to call a cab which we declined. Luckily we found a passing open wifi signal and got directions on the soonest bus. We walked quite a while to get to the correct bus stop only to be dropped off at around a 10 minute walk to Shake Dog.

Shake Dog is a 50s diner. The burgers and fries were ok. Sharon said the fries came from a bag and I’d ten to agree. The milkshake was wonderful

Afterwards a nice passerby told us the current bus we were waiting on was going to arrive in 20 minutes, but another bus was coming at another bus stop in 7 minutes. We decided to switch bus stops and buses, and made it home to write this blog.

Tomorrow will be our ferry ride to Innishmore. Looking forward to some down time.