Full day visit to the Connemara National Park, on the western seaboard, north of the Galway Bay. At first the weather, though dry, was a little bit misty but we were still able to enjoy the scenery. As the day wore on, the mist cleared up and we were fortunate in being able to enjoy the lovely views to their full. We stopped at the Connemara Heritage & History Centre at Lettershea (near Clifden, web site here) which was dedicated to Dan O'Hara, one of the many unfortunate people who were cleared off the land in the 19th century and had to emigrate to North America. We were well informed & entertained by the centre's charismatic owner, Martin Walsh. We went on to Kylemore Abbey (web sites here and here), once a castle for a millionaire and now home to Benedictine nuns. We had a late lunch there and split up to wander as we liked around the public part of the Abbey and the extensive gardens before our return to Galway and our last night at The Flannery's Hotel.

Reference	Description	Images : maximum size : 600 pixels in either direction
E14L5A	The view from just above the Connemara Heritage & History Centre.
E14L5B	Fortunately, we did not have to walk up the hill.
E14L5C	Martin Walsh talking about the lives led by those who lived in cottages such as this.
E14L5D	Having a look inside the cottage where a stimulating refreshment was offered - and welcomed by most.
E14L5E	Learning about peat ...
E14L5F	... with another virtuoso performance by our host.
E14L5G	Enjoying the view.
E14L5H
E14L5I
E14L5J	A slightly blurred picture taken through the window of the moving coach. For those not sitting at the front of the coach, one of the memories of the trip is that the polarisation of the windows made it often look like dusk outside - yet photos seemed to come out OK. [Whenever we felt unhappy about that polarisation we remembered why it was there - to keep the coach cool when otherwise it could have become uncomfortably warm.]
E14L5K	Kylemore Abbey
E14L5L

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