Inish Oirr

Today, we took the boat ride out to the Aran Islands, which are just west of the Cliffs in the Atlantic. About a half hour to go the six miles. And about one hour and a half to reclaim my stomach. Candee was fine (passing out seasickness bags to my fellow sufferers), but the high seas and large swells had me pretty uncomfortable on the trip out (not so bad coming back). Regardless, it was one of our best days so far - certainly the best weather we've seen. Few people live on the islands (we were on the eastern island - less touristy than the bigger islands) and the culture remains one of the most unchanged in this changing land. It's a "Gaeltacht" area where ancient Irish gaelic is the official language. We heard several speakers while we were on the island - guttural, lyrical, lilting - a beautiful evocative tongue. The Aran Islands are famous for their beautiful handknit sweaters and Candee was fortunate to find and purchase a treasure. We explored a beautiful castle ruin and an ancient church. The stone walls are ubiquitous and marvels of construction. Tomorrow off to Connemara and Sligo.