Dia Duit!

You may be wondering what the title of this blog means. Peter taught us the common Gaelic greeting before boarding the bus today. You are to greet people, saying, "dia duit". This means "God with you." You are to answer it saying "dia is muire duit", which means "God and Mary with you". We had fun attempting to pronounce the sayings the rest of the day.

We began the day with a very nice breakfast at the hotel. The Irish mean business when it comes to breakfast foods! After eating, we all got on the bus to head over to Connemara where we were to get on the ferry.

The North Central gang had the pleasure of sitting on the top of the two-decker ferry on our way to the largest Aran Island, Inis Mor. It was a beautiful view, and the weather was perfect! We even took the opportunity to sing "Send Your Rain" for the others on the top of the ferry. The people I talked to after we sang said they enjoyed it very much, and they always asked where we were from. We proudly responded, "Naperville, Illinois!". After the puzzled looks, I would add that it's located outside of Chicago. That usually helped them place us better. :)

Having fun on the ferry!

When we got off the ferry, we headed for our tour buses. The Aran Islands include 3 separate islands, Inis Mor, which means big island, Inis Meain, which means middle island, and Inis Oirr, which means East island. The island we visited today was Inis Mor. They speak Irish there, and teach their kids Irish as well. There are only 200 cars on the island total, and 3 police officers (only 1 on duty at a time usually). The bank is only open on Wednesdays and Thursdays...can you imagine that?

Our tour bus took us all the way up to a small area of shops below the path that leads to Dun Aengus, a fort thought to be built around 1,000 B.C. or before. We climbed up the trail of gravel and later, large rocks, and arrived at the top of the fort. The view left many speechless. Many pictures were taken along the cliff edge and by the stone fort. We even sang "Danny Boy" while holding hands in a circle. It left many people, including the singers, breathless. 

On the top of Dun Aengus

After hiking back down the path, we had the chance to do a bit of shopping before the tour buses took us back to the "downtown" area of Inis Mor. Some bought Aran sweaters, some (including myself) bought claddaugh rings, and some decided to save their money for the next 5 days of traveling. :) 

When we arrived back in the downtown area, many tour members went to "The American Bar". One of the tour bus drivers said we should go there, even though we "left to get away from that American food". ;) Others went to the Aran Sweater Market, where there was a big sale on the authentic wool sweaters. 

By this point, the rain had picked up quite a bit. Thank goodness we brought our raincoats! Once we boarded the ferry to head back to mainland, we were able to dry off a bit and relax in our seats. Dr. Wis had the singers stand and sing three of our songs: Cunnla, Svatba, and May the Road Rise to Meet You. People were absolutely delighted to hear us. I joked with a woman standing in the aisle that it was good that she enjoyed it, because she had no choice but to listen! :)

View of Inis Mor from the ferry ride back

After taking the bus back to the hotel, we enjoyed a 3-course dinner with different menu options, including dishes like potato gnocchi, cream of broccoli soup, and tiramisu. We had a quick window to get ready in, which everyone observed very well, then we were back on the bus, dressed and ready for our concert.

The town of Galway is so neat and interesting. Our bus driver, David, deserves a trophy for his maneuvering through the narrow streets. Believe it or not, Irish streets are even more narrow than Naperville's! ;) 

St. Nicholas Collegiate Church was where we had our first concert on tour. It was so beautiful. Pictures do not do the building, which was built around 1320, proper justice. Our concert went very well, and we had fun listening to the reverberation after every cutoff. Personally, my favorite part of the concert was singing "Send Your Rain" while holding hands in a circle. The connection with the women of the group is amazing when we sing this way. Many people teared up, including our audience. :) 

Concert at St. Nicholas Collegiate Church

We headed home after the concert and pictures, and came back to a snack of sandwiches and fruit at our hotel. We had a very long, but awesome day. I am so thankful to be a part of this incredible group, as well as to be touring Ireland! Thank you for reading following along on our travels across Ireland. 

"and until we meet again, may God hold you in the hollow of his hand"