My week trip to County Mayo, in the extreme northwest of the country, was absolutely incredible! The people of the rural west of Ireland are the epitome of hospitality and friendliness. Every interaction out there was like a scene out of The Quiet Man. We stayed in Kilcommon Family Hostel, run by a German lady named Betty, with a turf fire in the hearth and fresh food every day. When one of the local farmer's wives found out that ten Americans were staying up the road from her, she rode her bicycle up to drop off a whole basket of fresh baked scones for our afternoon tea. The following night, a local fisherman came for dinner with us and brought a fresh caught Atlantic salmon to eat. The one night, in the local pub- McGrath's- we were sitting at a table, and a local came in with his Irish flute. The bar tender brought down his own fiddle and the two of them played and sang some Irish songs for us, around the turf fire. We all felt so welcome, it was unbelievable. Like something out of a dream.
Kilcommon Hostel
Turf Fire
McGrath's
The County Flag of Mayo
Croagh Padraig- from a distance
Croagh Patrick, from Westport.
Croagh Padraic- St Patrick's Mountain. According to legend, this is the site where St Patrick climbed and fasted for 40 days, tormented by the paganism of Connaught. After 40 days, he challenged the Druidic priests with his faith. He rang a silver Eucharist bell from the summit and threw it over the edge. In so doing, he cast all the snakes from the island, proving the power of his new Christian religion to the people of the west. After completing this feat, he constructed a chapel on the summit to commemorate the spiritual victory.
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