A must for lunch in Cong

Thu, May 28, 2015

The village of Cong in County Mayo is famous as the location where much of The Quiet Man was filmed. Although you can retrace the steps of the actors throughout the town, Cong is so much more than just a movie set for tourists. The village is small and intimate with friendly pubs. There are the ruins of the old abbey right in the town to explore, and a path along the river where you can stroll through one of the loveliest woods. Adjacent to the village stands the dramatic and magnificent Ashford Castle. Dating from the 12th century, you are able to stroll around the grounds and get a feeling of what Ireland was like hundreds of years ago. For all the elegance and splendour of the castle, you should consider looking further afield for lunch. Sure, it has speciality teas, champagne, and finger sandwiches, and there may be talk of tasty pastries and cupcakes, but after many decades in the shadows of the grandeur of Ashford Castle, Cong is at last is defining itself and carving out an identity of its own.

May Sunday at Menlo

Thu, May 21, 2015

Maytime was traditionally considered a time for festivals, and Galway was no exception to this. In fact it used to be said that the citizens had an almost reverential attachment to the old custom of going out to Menlo for three Sundays in May to partake in the pleasure of the open air and the early summer sun. It was known as ‘Maying in Menlo’.

Protecting Edward VII - A ‘friend of the Pope’, in Connemara 1903

Thu, May 21, 2015

Pleased with his friendly reception in Dublin in 1903, His Majesty King Edward VII determined to visit the wilds of Connemara and Kerry. Such a visit presented a number of problems for Dublin Castle, not least was security at a time when nationalism was rearing its head, and seldom lost an opportunity to express itself by demostrations and protests. I learn something of these concerns from a delightful book Memories: Wise and Otherwise. by The Rt Hon Sir Henry Robinson, Bart, KCB. (Published by Cassell and Co, London, 1923). Robinson was head of the Local Government Board in Ireland, and a man, who in the tradition of Somerville and Ross, saw humour in the Irish character, and indeed in the efforts of Britain to maintain control in Ireland.

Father Patrick Peyton, the Rosary Priest

Thu, May 14, 2015

Patrick Peyton was born on January 9 1909 in Attymass, Co Mayo, one of nine children. When they were growing up, the rosary was central to their lives. His family were subsistence farmers and unable to afford to send him to a seminary, so for a number of years he worked on the farm to help them earn a living as his father was too ill. Then he and his brother emigrated to America. They eventually entered a seminary in Notre Dame to study for the priesthood, but their hopes of being ordained together seemed to be dashed when Patrick got TB. The doctors told him his only hope was to pray, and pray he did, to the Blessed Virgin. He promised her he would dedicate his ministry to her and to the family rosary if he was saved. And so it came to be the two brothers were ordained as Holy Ghost Fathers together on June 15, 1941.

DruidShakespeare - A magnificent presentation of four great plays

Thu, May 14, 2015

Let us sit upon the ground
And tell sad stories of the death of kings,

Some awful things that George Moore said...

Thu, May 07, 2015

You might think that those at the core of the Irish literary renaissance at the beginning of the 20th century, were one big happy family beavering away in their rooms at Lady Gregory's home at Coole, Co Galway. In those early days it was a house full of voices and sounds. Sometimes you heard WB Yeats humming the rhythm of a poem he was cobbling together; or the click-clacking of Lady Gregory's typewriter as she worked on another play for the Abbey. There was the sound of the Gregory grandchildren playing in the garden; the booming voice of George Bernard Shaw, as he complains that he is only allowed to have either butter or jam on his bread, but not both to comply with war rations (He cheated by the way. He put butter on one side of his bread, and when he thought no one was looking, piled jam on the other!); or the voices of the artist Jack Yeats and JM Synge returning from a day messing about on a boat calling out to a shy Sean O'Casey to come out of the library for God's sake and enjoy the summer afternoon.

Me2UFitness Official Opening on Friday 8th May

Fri, May 01, 2015

Me2UFitness opened its doors in the middle of January and Christina Dillon has been very busy since welcoming clients old and new.

How Ireland lost thirty nine famous paintings

Thu, Apr 30, 2015

The sinking of the Lusitania on May 7 1915, off the Cork coast, by a German submarine electrified Ireland, Britain and America. In Ireland, the fact that German submarines were lurking so close to the Irish shore, added fuel to the propaganda that Germany was planning to invade the country. It spurred recruitment into the armed forces. In Britain, the shameful practice of using passenger liners to carry munitions across the Atlantic without telling the passengers they were in effect travelling on a British war ship, was to come to an end.

Galway Gaol

Thu, Apr 23, 2015

Our illustration today is of a ‘Wanted’ poster offering a reward for any information on a prisoner, John Hynes, who had escaped from Galway Gaol on November 29, 1892. We do not know what Mr Hynes was in jail for, but £100 was a lot of money in 1892, so it must have been a serious crime.

Annie Kelly, and her quest for love

Thu, Apr 23, 2015

Annie Kelly was just 19 when all her dreams appeared to be coming true. Annie was one of 11 children living with her widowed mother at Newgrove, Mountbellew, Co Galway. Her boyfriend, William Murphy, and her brother Thomas had earlier emigrated to Boston. Annie and William were pledged to be married just as soon as Annie got the money to follow him there. Full of excitement the young woman later sailed from Liverpool on the Cunard liner the Lusitania arriving in New York on April 24 1915.

The Jesuits in Galway

Thu, Apr 16, 2015

The Jesuits have been working in Galway since the early 1600s. Even before then, men from the west of Ireland had been joining the order. It was the policy of the order at the time that only priests with a fluency in the Irish language would be sent to work in their native areas.

‘The Hun was murdering Irish people in very waters of Cork’

Thu, Apr 16, 2015

The British ocean liner RMS Lusitania, famous for its luxurious accommodations and speed capability, primarily ferried people and goods across the Atlantic Ocean between the United States and Great Britain. On May 1, 1915, the Lusitania left port in New York for Liverpool to make her 202nd trip across the Atlantic. On board were 1,959 people, 159 of whom were Americans.

Irish Skin is Far Less Attractive than Other Skin Tones, According to Over Half of Irish

Tue, Apr 14, 2015

Majority of Irish have a love/hate relationship with their skin and almost a quarter of Irish women never let their partner see them without make-up.

Inspired Living

Thu, Apr 09, 2015

One of the things we’re always trying to do at my fitness studio in Barna is challenge our clients and push them to new levels, not only with their fitness but in every aspect of life. Last week I launched a '40 days of 40 burpees' challenge.

The Augustinian nunnery

Thu, Apr 09, 2015

The Augustinian Friars have been in Galway since 1508 when Margaret Athy, whose husband was mayor at the time, built a friary at Forthill, near a spring called St Augustine’s Well, the waters whereof wrought miraculous cures. In O’Flaherty’s Iar-Chonnacht, there is reproduced a document in which a miraculous cure is attested to by the signatures of several witnesses.

The Great Famine - A watershed in Irish history

Thu, Apr 09, 2015

During the seven years of the Great Famine approximately one million people died. A million more emigrated causing Ireland’s population to fall by between 20 and 25 per cent. The initial cause of famine was a potato disease which ravaged potato crops throughout Europe during the 1840s.

Weather plays its part as Galway Food Festival gets bigger and better

Thu, Apr 09, 2015

More than chocolate was on offer for the estimated 78,000 visitors who satisfied their culinary appetite at the fourth Galway Food Festival over the Easter weekend.

Healthy eating for children

Thu, Apr 09, 2015

Honor Geraghty, nutritional therapist and graduate of CNM, believes that it is imperative to teach your children healthy eating habits now, so that you will perpetuate a healthy lifestyle for them well into their later years.

“Children require a wide range of vitamins and minerals to support their health while they are growing. This is why it is paramount that they consume a diet rich in fruit, vegetables, and other nutrient dense foods. I work with kids a lot in my clinic and believe successful outcomes are as a result of getting the children involved, stimulating their interest. Let the child choose a new vegetable every week and together come up with a recipe for it. It is all about using your imagination and being creative to make food more exciting.

Fix your metabolism for a real weight loss miracle

Thu, Apr 09, 2015

Your metabolism is by far the most critical and powerful key to weight loss. It is with you 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The potential for calorie burn and weight loss is huge. It even controls the results from your diet and exercise. By combining a great metabolism with balanced food and exercise System 10 brings you the best weight loss plan of all.

We all have metabolism faults of varying degrees that we are unaware of. Signs of a weak metabolism include undiagnosed sluggish thyroid (40 per cent of people), hormone imbalances, nutritional deficiencies (70 per cent of people), elevated blood sugars (50 per cent of people), and sluggish liver or digestive disorders including constipation (60 per cent of people).

Galway Food Festival highlights

Thu, Apr 02, 2015

The launch of the programme for the fourth Galway Food Festival was held on Monday March 9 in one of Galway’s coolest new hangout spots, Bite Club. Celebrating Galway as a food destination, the festival strives to highlight the importance of food provenance and sustainability. Many of the great and the good of the Galway food scene were present — chefs, producers, restaurateurs, educators, and food writers. One of the best things about the launch being in Bite Club was the refreshments — spicy tacos, hot wings, and poitin slushies were the order of the day. It certainly made a difference to the usual smoked salmon on brown bread and a glass of pinot gris. A huge amount of organising goes into the festival, with the committee members and many others giving freely of their time and expertise to make it a success. More than 60 food related events will take place in hotels, restaurants, cafes, and shops throughout Galway city and county during Easter weekend. Fifty shades of kale, the Twelve Apostles, Cava on the Corrib, and Easter-themed afternoon teas are just some of the fun activities planned.

E-paper

Read this weeks E-paper. Past editions also available from within this weeks digital copy.