We all had crazy, nutty weeks… like usual. However, there was even more madness with the stress of 2 six page papers due. So every day, mostly, we would go to class, eat at the college bar, and work on our papers. Instead of writing about the boring things that we did all week, I will instead give you a highlight reel of the fun stuff that we did as well. Cause all work and no play? No WAY!
On Monday night, everyone went to the Kings Head and Quay’s Bar. I had never been to the Quey’s before, but I really liked the old atmosphere and the band was very good! Therefore, we decided to go to the Quey’s 2 more times that week. On our way home from the Quey’s, we decided to get some food at Supermaxx. Little did we know, we were in for more than just a treat!!! We met a kind, drunken sir who kept our entire group entertained and laughing the whole duration of our fourth meal. He was mostly just obsessed with our straight teeth and our American beauty; his favorite thing to do was to compare us to celebrities. Kelsey got likened to a Kardashian, Alex was Kendra, and I got the pleasure of being Jaime Lynn Spearce. His obsessive knowledge of the E! Channel and his dirty tattoos definitely kept us rolling on the floor laughing at him!
On Tuesday, we went to the movie, The Butcher Boy for our literature class. This movie representation of the novel we read was absolutely dreadful and tragic. The main character, Francie, has terrible things happen to him his whole life and eventually goes crazy and kills someone. It is not a surprise that the movie put us in a bad mood. The only way to cheer us up was to go back to our favorite burrito place, Boojum. We finished the night listening to the Super Freaks at The Kings Head and started the next day at the Quey’s for Megan’s 21st birthday!
On Wednesday, we continued our birthday celebrations for Megan all together at Cooke’s. It was a really nice meal that offered reservations for a large group like us. The people who ordered the chicken pasta had the best meal, but everyone was full by the end of the night with the delicious cake. We walked around town after dinner with the cake in hand until we arrived home and had Thatcher Shot Night.
Thursday was a busy day filled with lots of class and the finishing of our paper. During our lunch break, we went to La Salsa. The burritos and taco fries were to die for! Once our bellies were full from Mexican food, we went shopping for our friend’s engagement! We stocked up on candles, lanterns, and white lace in order to set up the most beautiful spot on the river for Jake to pop the question. Our excitement grew for the engagement happening in 24 hours! We had the pleasure of going to one of the Galway Arts Festival’s plays, Stella and Lou. The play was so adorable, set in an American pub, with only three characters and an adorable love story. The theatre was incredibly hot with no air conditioning, but the play was very well done; I am glad that we got to participate in Galway’s most famous festival! We ended our night at The Kings Head for a true Irish punk band called Larkin. It was such an experience for every one of the Irish people to be singing and dancing to a song that none of us have ever heard in our lives.
Friday was the ENGAGEMENT! It did not matter that we had class or things to do because our dear friends, Jake and Abby would be engaged that night!!! All day was like Christmas as we waited for the perfect time at dusk to set up the spot and watch them get engaged. We set up, kicked some people out of the area, and shooed away tourists who were taking pictures; it was ALL worth it for Jake and Abby when she said yes and we were all there cheering for them! The ring is gorgeous, the night was gorgeous, and the pictures turned out gorgeous. We had them light lanterns (like in Tangled) and send it up into the sky… which was cheesy, yes… but also beautiful. It was so fun and we got free champagne from the club Carbon to celebrate! It was a wonderful night filled with love and friendship and I could not have asked for a better group to share our last Friday in Galway with!
As we could feel the end of our time in Galway approaching quickly, we decided to stay in our beautiful city and do some souvenir shopping at the market on Saturday. Galway has a beautiful market every Saturday with fresh fruits, vegetables and goods along with jewelry, artwork, pottery and homemade clothing for sale. The market was extra exciting because of the tourism for the arts festival. The city was hip-hop happening. It was a great last weekend in Galway!
Our Sunday was filled with studying and writing mostly, but we also found time for a Harry Potter movie and mass at the Galway Cathedral. It was a good and very short service; the beauty of the church and the uncomfortable pews honestly distracted me from the message. We were back at our accommodations in time to welcome back the other half of the CEA people who went to Barcelona for the weekend and to finish out the weekend with one last Thatcher Shot Night.
