Connemara

Started to drizzle as we drove out of Galway on the way to Connemara.
First stop the Celtic Crystal Centre in Moycullen County. The crystal was stunning and the demonstration awe-inspiring. The cutters have to have a Diploma in Art & another in Graphic Design before they can work there and they then have to train for another seven years to be able to work as a craftsman. The work of Donal, who demonstrated for us, was amazing - all done freehand and from memory, no patterns or templates are used in any of the work here. The company specialises in incorporating Celtic designs and symbols into their patterns and they are unique in the world in doing this. (The Waterford factory has closed and moved its operations to Eastern Europe.)
Next stop Dan O Hara's Farm in Clifden. We went through some pretty bleak countryside to get there. The land is no good for farming and all that seems to grow there are gorse, some low shrubby bushes and sheep ( LOTS of them). We stopped in at the reception area and then went up the hill in a carriage pulled by a tractor to Dan O Hara's homestead. He was a tenant farmer who enlarged the window and door of his house but as this was illegal he was subsequently evicted and emigrated to America. We stopped at a peat bog on the way up the hill and saw how it is dug up by hand and then continued up to the homestead where peat (or turf as the Irish call it) was burning. This was VERY welcome as it had started to rain. What was even more welcome was the moonshine we were given - pretty potent stuff. It is still illegal to produce moonshine but it would seem that everyone ignores that fact!!
After dinner we went to Murty Rabbits pub to listen to some music. Wasn't very crowded so it was very pleasant.
First shot is the piece made by Donal that took 21 hours to make. Second is the reception area at Dan O'Hara's, third is digging the peat, fourth and fifth are O Hara's homestead. Last is of the musicians in Murty Rabbits pub.Leggi altro