A Few Weeks On The Irish West Coast
Alright, I’m not going to lie. Finding work in Ireland is really hard at the moment. There’s definitely still a recession going on over here. After leaving Belgium almost two months ago, I haven’t found a proper fulltime job yet. On the plus side, there is some money coming in. The website is finally taking off and I am doing some freelance work as a translator.
We – Caroline and I – spent a week or two in Dublin looking for jobs, without any luck, and then moved to Galway, on the windswept and rainy, but totally stunning Irish west coast.
Galway is where we decided to stay for a while, hoping for some job opportunities. In the end there seemed to be none. At all. It’s a gorgeous little city though, situated on the banks of the River Corrib, one of the shortest and fastest rivers in Europe. It’s absolutely a wonderful city to spend a week in when traveling; there are several sights to see and plenty of pubs to hang out in, including live trad music every single night.
Galway is also the perfect base to explore the remote regions in the west of Ireland. I’m talking about Connemara and the Burren.
We spent two days walking and cycling through Connemara, along its lakes and between its hills and mountains. Although it was the worst bike I have ever ridden, the views, landscapes and scenery were nothing less than spectacular.
We spent only another day driving through the Burren, which is a vast region covered in rocks and stones, as far as the eye can see. It looks otherworldly. Never in my life have I seen a landscape that looks anything like this.
Ireland’s #1 tourist attraction is located in the Burren: the Cliffs of Moher. No matter how busy it is, it’s a spectacular place and it totally lives up to the hype; definitely another highlight this year!
So although we haven’t been working in Ireland so far, we have done some exploring!
However, after about a month in the west the unsuccesful job hunt was becoming increasingly frustrating. Therefore we took a break last week, went to Belgium and caught up with friends and family. We seized the opportunity to visit some new cities in Belgium and the Netherlands as well.
Yesterday morning we flew back to Ireland, ready for part two of the job search. We’re in Cork now, checking out the employment situation in the south of the island.
Fingers crossed!
Stunning pictures! Damn, have to add Ireland to our to-do list as well. So much to see & do!
Cheers Annick! I highly recommend visiting Ireland; spectacular nature and the countryside is quiet and empty. I like that a lot.
So do we! And it’s closeby, which always makes it easier to travel to!
I’m heading to Ireland later this month for TBEX! I’m just starting to do some initial research and the west coast looks like the place to be, and this just confirms it. I’ll definitely be checking it out!
Awesome, I’ll probably see you at TBEX then! 🙂 The west coast is definitely one of the most beautiful parts of the island. I loved Galway a lot. The Irish coastline in is stunning everywhere though.
Good luck with the job hunts! You may not have been successful on the job front in the west, but you sure captured some gorgeous scenes!
Haha, thanks Jennifer! If you’re unemployed you might as well take a look around, right? 🙂
I loved your photography. Which camera did you use? I would love to know. I am happy you enjoyed your experiences in Ireland.
Rosaline, I used an Olympus PEN EP-3 camera. One of my all-time favorite cameras for traveling!
Very nice pictures. I was in Galway and drove around the Connemara Loop. Loved the dramatic views.
Thanks so much, Christobel. Galway and Connemara are gorgeous!