Galway, Ireland, Capital of Connacht - 04/25/17

Motto: Laudatio Ejus Manet In Secula Seculorum
 "His Praise Remains unto Ages of Ages"

On the 104th day of our journey outside the US, we arrived in Galway, Ireland, Capital of Connacht, and the sixth most populous city in Ireland and fourth most populous urban area in the ROI (Republic of Ireland, which we learned is separate from Northern Ireland).
Galway city had a population of 79,504 according to the 2016 Irish census, without counting the rural population, which is far bigger.
The city got it's name from a fort which was based in the region.
Constructed by Tairrdelbach Ua Conchobar, King of the Connacht, in 1124,, Dún Bhun na Gaillimhe was a small fort which later grew into a small settlement, the name Galway is derived from it's name.
The settlement grew into a walled city and was later conquered by Hiberno-Normans in the 1230s. As the invaders became Gaelicised (accustomed with Irish costumes), the merchants of the town pushed for control over the city.
The merchants became known as the Tribes of Galway, 14 merchant families which gained complete control over the walled city and were granted mayoral status by the English crown.
The city thrived on international trade and was the principal Irish port for trade with Spain and France in the Middle Ages.
Only two of those families were claimed to be of Irish origin, thus there were complications with Irish neighbors. The city remained loyal to the English crown until 1642, by allying itself with the Catholic Confederation of Kilkenny during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms (against Catholicism in Ireland).
After this event, the city was recaptured in the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, after a nine-month siege, destroying the Tribes and the city's economy, causing great famine.
The city has experience rapid growth due to the Celtic Tiger economic boom. It was only in the 20th century that the city recovered from the Great Famine and now thrives with local economy, including manufacturing, tourism, retail and distribution.

Interesting facts:

• Galway will be European Capital of Culture in 2020, alongside Rijeka in Croatia

• Galway is known as Ireland's Cultural Heart and it's renowned for it's vibrant lifestyle and numerous festivals

• On 1 December 2014, the Director General of UNESCO announced the official designation of Galway as a UNESCO City of Film, for it's film related festivals, such as Galway Film Fleadh and Super8 Shots.

• In 2007, Galway was named as one of the eight "sexiest cities" in the world

• It is sometimes referred to as the 'Bilingual Capital of Ireland'

• Galway Airport, located 6 km (3.73 mi) east of the city at Carnmore, ceased to have scheduled passenger flights on 1 November 2011 because the runway is too short to take modern passenger jet aircraft.

Important Event: Siege of Galway

We arrived by the Eyre Square, a reference to Ireland (Eire Land), at the city center.

Eyre Square is also known as John F. Kennedy Memorial Park, due to a speech Kennedy made in the square in 1963. The square is an inner-city public park, adjacent to the Galway station, William Street and Shop Street, on the route to our next stop.

Interesting fact: Eyre Square hosted the third longest Occupy Camp in the world, that ran for 216 days consecutively in 2011.

Shop Street is Galway's main shopping street and contains old brick buildings, bright storefronts, numerous pubs and an array of street performers.

We visited Galway City Museum, which checked two stops at once. 

Galway Museum is currently beside the Spanish Arch, an extension of the old city walls, and was founded in the mid 1970s. The museum, which at this point was at a different location within the city, began as a collection of medieval stones from the city, and then built up a general folklife, industrial and militia collection, but was was closed in 2004.

The new building, which is by the Arch, was built in 2007 and hosts a variety of permanent and touring exhibitions. 

In the museum we had an inside view of the city in different historical times; Pre-historic Galway, Galway in Medieval times, We saw many objects relating to Archaeology, Art, Geology, Natural, Historical, Political, Social and Industrial History and Folklife, as well as the old stone collection.

Next we headed to St. Nicholas' Collegiate Church, the place where the triennal elections of the mayor and city council were held. Only male members of the fourteen Galway Tribes had suffrage. The church was founded in 1320, dedicated to Saint Nicholas of Myra, the patron saint of seafarers, in recognition of Galway's status as a port.

Interesting Facts : 

• Local legend states that Christopher Columbus worshiped there when he visited the city in 1477.
• In September 2002 the Collegiate Church attracted controversy when it was the scene of the first public blessing for a same-sex couple in an Irish church. The Avowing Friendship service for a lesbian couple, it was reported, was conducted by the rector, the Reverend Patrick Towers, in September 2002. The Bishop of Tuam, Richard Henderson, prohibited any further services of this kind, and Towers agreed to abide by this ruling.
• The monumental work of Irish genealogy, the Leabhar na nGenealach was produced here in 1650 by Duḃaltaċ MacḞirḃisiġ.

This was a quick and interesting visit, just out of curiosity, for a place so iconic for the city's history.

Our last stop in Galway is less than a mile away (as with all other stops) at the National University of Ireland.

NUI is a tertiary-level educational institution ranked among the top 2% of universities in the world. The University is ranked #249 in the 2016 QS World University Rankings and has been also been awarded the full five QS stars for excellence.

National University of Ireland Galway was founded in 1845 as Queen's College, Galway and has graduated many relevant alumni, including Michael D. Higgins, president of Ireland.

The University's quality schools include: 

• School of Business and Economics
• School of Chemistry
• School of Education
• School of Geography and Archaeology
• School of Health Science
• School of Humanities
• School of Languages, Literatures and Cultures
• School of Law
• School of Mathematics, Statistics and Applied Mathematics
• School of Medicine
• School of Natural Sciences
• School of Nursing
• School of Physics
• School of Political Science and Sociology, and School of Psychology

Interesting facts: 

• - NUI Galway has more than 110 active societies and more than 50 sports clubs. Five constituent society types exist: Debating & Political; Artistic & Performing; Social & Gaming; Religious & Socially Conscious; Academic.

• International students make up 12 per cent of the student population at NUI Galway.