Sunday, January 22, 2012

Galway, instructions for a pleasing weekend.

Shop St. Wooden Heart
.
I've just spent a lovely weekend in Galway, courtesy of some living social deals. We had a stay in the Forster Court hotel, which was most impressive - a very welcoming hotel, with comfortable rooms and pleasant and attentive staff. The hotel's just off Eyre Square so is merely minutes' walk from the main heart of Galway city.

Arriving on Friday night after work we had a tasty meal in the hotel. Saturday then we made our way to Kenny's Bookshop in the Liosbaun retail park, where the famous bookshop has moved to. In all the times I've been to Galway since they moved from the city centre I've never been to the new location so I had it in mind this time. It's in an almost industrial unit - but there's a lovely almost untidy (no offence!) clutter to the seats, couches and stacks of books in amongst the tall shelves that makes it very conducive to browse. 

So that was an enjoyable hour or so - my wallet escaped almost unscathed, though I did purchase a book on a practice Martian landing in the Arctic which will I'm sure warrant a mention at a later time. 

Out to Salthill then for a walk along the prom - we parked by the diving boards and walked back down towards the centre of Salthill. Stopped for a "Strange Brew" in the Oslo bar before heading back up to kick the wall. Oslo is a great bar, with a fantastic selection of beers (some brewed themselves) and a beer hall towards the back - well worth a visit if you're out that direction.

Back to town then for a freshen up before a tasty pizza in Fat Freddy's (pizza bianco - pesto, pepperoni, potatoes and cheese on a yummy base) - oh, and if they have a crostini with pear, honey and goats cheese when you're there, do order and enjoy. After that a couple more beers in the Salt House.  This is a real cosy little place with an even better selection of beer (We went for the Bay Ale and a Metalman Alternator, both tasty) but perhaps not such a great selection of board games (as advertised on the website). Get in there early as it's quite small, not so many seats, and has a fantastic selection of beers and whiskeys. 

After another tasty breakfast and checkout (with gift of cookies and bread!) from the hotel, we wandered along the canal which sort of parallels the river Corrib. This was a part we've never seen and is a lovely route for a walk. 

Another lunch in the Front Door pub - a deceptively large pub, but with loads of nooks and crannies so it feels really snug. Great food in here too, and this place will be on our "must go again" list. I had a vegetarian quesadilla which was really tasty. I didn't miss the meat and there was lovely salsa on the nachos that came with it. M had a chicken caesar salad that had plenty of chicken and bacon and lots of flavour. 

There will be photographs, once I get a chance to download them and upload them! 
  

No comments:

Post a Comment