Travelogue - trip to connemara

Connemara is north of Galway.
6th February 2010.
The trip started at quarter past 10 from Galway bus station.The bus station is just 200 yards away from Radisson where i was staying.
My plan actually was to go to Aran Islands. As usual, it was the laziness in me brought me to this trip. Yes, the Aran Island buses leave at 9:30. But it was 9:45 when I got there.
That is how I ended up in connemara trip. Got the ticket at 9:50 for the tour that was going to start at 10:15. Having seen a subway near the station, could not resist having a foot long. But, it was just then, I had my stomachfilled with some flakes.

But still, did not want to miss this better food as compared to what I got during the Burren and Cliffs of moher tour.In Burren, It was so funny that I had to start the meal with a thick soup and end it with that as there was no other vegetarian food available.

So, got the foot long with cheddar cheese, lettuce, onions and a little bit of mayonese sauce. Had it packed and ready to be consumed at any time.
Got on to the bus at 10:15 and for the next 1 hour what I saw was amazing.No words to express and the pictures are so clear in my eyes even now.Coz, for the first one hour what i saw was dense fog and nothing else. Only clear pictures that I saw were, the driver and 2 ladies sitting right beside me.
They seemed to be mother and daughter, but later when they lit the cigarette together, I was a little doubtful. My doubts were further intensified, when this girl later during the trip, started preparing the dope. Seriously... She took out a piece of paper and put some powdery substance and prepared the cigarette (of course with something else than tobacco)
Anyways, luckily, the fog luckily cleared a little bit and I could get the glimpses of natural beauty around the shores of atlantic.
For about an hour, the journey was along the sea shore and the sea shore was like a marsh land. The water was receded and was a little far away from the shore. It was a calm sea with very very less tides. Later i came to know that during the evenings, the water would come in.

1st stop was somewhere near a stream. There was a small hut which the driver said Leprechaun's cottage.In fact, I could not get the name "leprechaun" correctly until I googled a few minute before writing this travelogue.Leprechauns are short dwarf angels is what google says and I could not see any real picture or video of em.
Anyways, the driver's version about that little hut was, it was a hut with a treasure and Leprechauns were the guardians of the treasure. And, the treasure was nothing but two coins.So, whats the big deal about those coins. They are magical coins. As soon one is spent,the other one would appear. So, akshaya paathram madhiri idhu kaasu paathram.
Then, we moved on to a famine affected village. Until I came to Ireland, I really had not known about Irish culture and other stuff about Ireland.
Ireland has also been ruled by Britishers for several years and Britishers had suffocated Irish the same way that they did to us.
They had made the Irish work on the fields for long hours, made them live in inhuman conditions, made 20 people stay in a pigeon hole and often used them to do something useless so that there was no economic development.
Anyways, this famine affected village brought another interesting thing about Ireland.In late 1840s, there was big famine and all potato crops failed because of some weird disease.That was when most of the Irish migrated to other parts of the world like America, Canada, Australia and Engaland.
They went in ships which are described as coffin ships. Becuase the death rates were so high in the ships.The driver said that most of the American, Canadian presidents have some strong Irish connection.Barrack Obama has some 6 Irish direct descendants is an extra bit of information that the driver said.[Action Item] Google da sangara.
Apparam, we went to Kylemore Abbey. On the way, we crossed Lough corrib (Lough is pronounced as laag meaning lake in Irish). It is a beautiful lake sorrounded by mountains). The lakes were so still which the sorrounding mountains use as a mirror. The views were truely amazing.
Kylemore Abbey is another good place which has been converted to a monastry now. Some Benedictine Nuns have occupied this place now.Kylemore Abbey was built by Lord Mitchell Henry. He lived there happily with his wife Margerette Henry who diedin 1874 after she contracted some disease when she was on a trip to Egypt.He did not remarry and lived happily ever after.But, he is a good guy. He has built a church (Neo Gothic church) in the same place in remembrance of his wife.Margerette's body was buried in the church and the nuns did not want it there and they move it to mausoleum.
So, I thought I should see this mausoleum. I thought, it would be big.But, it was like a tomb. Nothing great.
Then on the way back, we stopped for a while in a village where a film called "The field" was shot.
We boarded the bus back from the village at 4:00 PM.
"It is the last stop and we are heading towards Galway. The return route is different. So you could getsome beautiful scenaries " was the announcement from the driver.
After walking for more than 2 hours, I finally told myself that "Its rest from now on".
The cushy seat made my bum comfortable and the tired body made my eyes comfortable.Suddenly , this unbelievable picture started appearing.Yes. There was some cinema shooting going on on a far away cross road. As we approached the road, I realised that it was all Desi men and women.
As the shooting was around a cross road, the bus had to take a detour.But, it was Rajnikanth and Shreya. I was searching all over the place. I could see Shankar in one corner.I asked this driver to stop for a while. But, he said "we are already late".
I was beggin him like anything. When the driver was busy thinking about the detour, I was able to see Prabhu Deva explaining a dance step to Shreya.
I felt like asking the driver to drop me there if he cannot wait for 5 minutes.I asked him a few more times. But, he did not. I did not know what happened. I got petrified andheld his shirt collar and literally shouted at him to stop the bus.
"Welcome back to Galway. Those who are staying here in Galway, have a wonderful stay and those who are travellingback this week, have a wonderful journey ahead. Thanks for choosing... travel" , the announcement was initally vague and slowly heard clearly for the mind which just got off off a dream.....