I Landed in Ireland (Part 3): The Way from Galway to the Cliffs of Moher!

- June 27-28, 2026, Saturday to Sunday.

- It's a long way to Galway, but I made it anyway! Galway is Ireland's "cultural capital" and celebrates the traditional Irish culture and language regularly. It is around two hours by train from Dublin. If Dublin is in the far east of Ireland, Galway is in the far west. I'm glad I had the time to squeeze in Galway in my trip, even for a short stay!

- I arrived in the evening of the 27th. My hostel was conveniently located in the next block from the train station, so it took me no time to walk to my hostel. Kinlay Hostel is one of the best hostels I've stayed in in my UK-Ireland trip as it is spacious, modern, and extremely clean (at least when I stayed.) It also has a nice simple buffet breakfast. Some tours out of the city also meet at the lobby of our hostel, which makes it all the more convenient! One of these tours is the Cliffs of Moher tour that I booked for my first full day in western Ireland!

Even while riding the train through the Irish countryside, it's not impossible to see random things like a castle or two.

My hostel room. I'm in the top bunk huhu.

- My Cliffs of Moher Tour, which I booked on GetYourGuide, started with a brief visit to Dunguaire Castle. It was built in the 16th century, and named after King Guaire. Currently, the castle can only be seen from the outside due to property disputes and funding.

Dunguaire Castle.

- We later visited the Poulnabrone Dolmen in the Burren. A "dolmen" is a kind of megalithic ancient tomb with a single chamber. The Poulnabrone Dolmen dates back to 5th millennium BCE, and is one of the oldest in Ireland. It is one of hundreds in the country, and gives insight on some of the earliest people that inhabited Ireland.   

Fish and chips, as usual.

The pub looks nice!!

This is our pub.

- Our tour group later had a quick lunch at a nice pub before heading to the Cliffs of Moher. The cliffs run for around 14 kilometers, look flat on top and wavy on its side due to erosion from sea waves. To me, it looks like a cake! I've been wanting to see the cliffs since I saw various photos online in the past years. Seeing it in front of me felt surreal!

It still does not look real. Even in person, it looks like you're looking at CGI haha.

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince filmed here; they found Voldemort's locket inside the cave.

O'Brien's Tower, built in 1835, is the highest point in the cliffs. It was built as an observation deck. (A very very windy one too.)

Other side of the cliffs.

I'm so glad the sun came out! It was fairly cloudy earlier that afternoon.

It was also hard to keep my hair down because of the wind!!

Yes, I am finally here!

- As a last treat from our tour, we drove along the Wild Atlantic Way, which is a long drive along Western Ireland. Specifically, we had a brief stop at the limestone coast of the Burren. Just like the rest of the Burren, this coast isn't sandy, but rocky. It is often compared to the surface of the moon, giving it an otherworldly feel. It is said that the whole are used to be underwater millions of years before, which explains the different geology of the area.

Is it like the moon? We'll never know.

It does look different though. (Pardon my shirt, it was EXTREMELY windy.)

- An hour or so later we arrived in Galway. I spend some time exploring Eyre Square because I wanted to look for dinner. I also took some time to rest that evening after a long day out of the city.

At Eyre Square.

They have banners of the different clans.

- My first day in Galway started out strong, seeing all the breathtaking sites of Western Ireland. However, there was one major thing I have yet to do in Galway: to see Galway! And of course, that was next on my agenda for my Galway adventures!

I Landed in Ireland (Part 2): The Darkness and Pride of Dublin!

- June 27, 2026, Saturday.

- As jolly and colorful Ireland may seem, I always forget how much the country has gone through to be what it is today. I realized this after seeing which historic sites and museums I have grouped together to see for the day. There were many things and emotions to take in, but it was all part of learning and appreciating the country's history.

- My early morning stop was the Kilmainham Gaol ("gaol" is the British English spelling of "jail"; they're both read the same way). PLEASE BOOK TICKETS IN ADVANCE; this is an extremely popular tourist attraction and tickets can get sold out within seconds after online sales for a certain date become available. (I was trained well in college, when I frequently had to wake up early and enlist for my classes online so I can get the classes, professors, and the schedule that I wanted haha.) The jail was a bit of a distance from the city center so I rode an Uber.

- Built in the late 1700s, this "new gaol" was meant to treat prisoners with a bit more dignity compared to former jails. For example, the main hall has some sunlight, and there were prison cells that were bigger than older jails. Though there were still some questionable ways that prisoners were treated, it only begs the question of how far worse things were for older jails. During the Irish War of Independence from 1919 to 1921, many anti-treaty freedom fighters were imprisoned. (Members of the "Anti-Treaty" were those who did not want Ireland to be part of the United Kingdom and be a separate republic instead.) The whole jail became a museum just about a decade ago, though plans and the process to turn it into a museum started decades earlier.

I'm going to jail!

Court.

Stairs to goodness knows where.

Chapel inside the jail.

To the cells.

More cells!!

It is said that just simply by adding natural light in the room, prisoners are given a bit more hope, aiding in mental health.

Spiral stairs.

Fight for Ireland!!

So many details!!

One of the older sides of the prison.

This is how mugshots were made in the past.

Old prison gates, now housed inside the museum inside the visitor center.

The museum gives more insight on prison life, notable prisoners, and the Irish War of Independence among other related things.

- Across the street, one can walk through the gardens to the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA). Though established only in 1990 and opened in 1991, the building where the museum is housed was the Royal Hospital Kilmainham, built in the 17th century.

Entrance to the gardens leading to the IMMA.

IMMA.

Courtyard.

Museum (hospital?) halls.

- I rode an Uber all the way to the other side of Dublin, to the Jeanie Johnston Famine Ship replica docked at River Liffey. Used between 1848 to 1855, the ship sailed between Ireland and North America (USA and Canada specifically). The ship was mainly used for emigrating Irish people who wanted to try having a better life in a different continent due to the Great Family, and perhaps, eventually bringing their family along in the future. One of the highlights of the ship's history was its perfect safety record (did not sink!) Another, was the way people were managed in the ship. In the past, ships would often be overcrowded with little to no comfort; many people died from disease due to the ships' lack of cleanliness preventing proper hygiene. The Jeanie Johnston had less people on board, better food, and had a doctor on board who made sure everyone was healthy. This replica was created in the early 2000s and is capable of sailing between continents like the original ship. On normal days, it also functions as a museum, with a guided tour.

Jeanie Johnston.

Be warned, there are random mannequins in the quiet corners of the ship. This one scared the hell out of me.

The mannequins show how life was like on the ship. Here, a young boy fell ill. However, no one died on the ship. 

Captain, whom everyone loved because of how he treated all his passengers throughout the years.

Someone gave birth on the ship.

As usual, my favorite part of the ship was on the deck.

I look like the sea. HAHA.

From the front.

- Across the Jeanie Johnston is EPIC the Irish Immigration Museum. The whole museum is actually underground, in the vaults of the CHQ Building. Each vault is a gallery that tells part of the story of life in Ireland, and situations, such as the Great Famine, that led to mass emigration.

EPIC.

It was a very large museum.

They featured Riverdance!!

Museum halls. I also realized I didn't take many photos in the museum, mainly because many of the exhibits were digital so they were hard to capture on camera without any form of color distortion. Other exhibits were interactive.

- I also was not aware that that Saturday was when the Pride Parade in Dublin was to take place. The route of the parade was also along he street that I had to pass so I was sure to not get lost haha.

Dublin Pride.

It was loud, it was chaotic, it was colorful, just as expected.

I was impressed by how organized it was, given how the pride had to deal with vehicular traffic and massive crowds (both participants and passersby).

- I briefly passed by the Dublin Portal just to see how things were like back home. These digital portals are located in many cities around the world. The portals have video cameras that allow passerby to see how it's like across portals in other cities at that very moment. You get to see one city for a minute or so before seeing the next city; the cities go in a rotation. Of course, I waited for the portal to show to one in BGC, Taguig. I hope the people in BGC were not disappointed to see one of their kind from the screen, instead of some Irish person haha.

HELLO PHILIPPINES HELLO WORLD.

You probably can't see clearly, but there's a tiny Philippine flag there at the center. You can also see the video that's taking our live footage in Dublin.

A selfie with people in the Philippines realtime!

- Near the portal was another museum called the GPO Museum (General Post Office Museum). The Post Office was the headquarters of the 1916 Easter Rising, which lead to the capture and killing of forces against British forces. This rising further encouraged many Irish people to support the creation of a separate republic not under the United Kingdom.    

General Post Office.

They had many memorabilia on early 20th-century Ireland.

Museum interior.

They do want to let you feel the hardships of early 20th-century Ireland.

The Irish flag. Green represents the Irish nationalists and Catholics, while orange represents the Irish Protestants. White represents truce between green and orange.

At the actual post office. Westlife has their own limited edition postage stamps now!

Post office outside the museum.

Passed by Arnotts Department Store, Ireland's oldest and largest department store dating back from 1895.

- I had a late lunch at Gallagher's, which was near my hostel. The only reason why I decided to have lunch here was because they served colcannon as a side dish. Colcannon is just mashed potato with cabbage, and it was the very first Irish dish I was familiar with, thanks to the many cooking shows I watched as a kid. Not many places served colcannon (probably it's prepared in homes more than in restaurants? Not sure.) Together with my colcannon, I also tried Irish coddle. Normally, coddle is prepared with leftover meat and vegetables, hence its "messy" look. However, if making from scratch, it is made with carrots, potatoes, onions, bacon, sausages, and herbs. It is often served with Irish soda bread (a bit tough, made with no yeast. Not my favorite kind of bread honestly haha, but I'm all for the culture!)

Coddle in the middle, soda bread to the left, colcannon to the right.

Food in restaurants in Ireland can be really expensive, but I really enjoyed my meal here! (And I didn't often eat in restaurants across my stay in the UK and Ireland huhu.)

- After a hearty lunch, I took my luggage from the hostel and hopped over the Dublin Heuston Station for my next stop in Ireland: Galway! But wait, don't worry, I'll be back in Dublin to explore more things in the city!