"And I ask you, friend, what's a fella to do
Cause her hair was black and her eyes were blue
And I knew right then I'd be takin' a whirl
'Round the Salthill Prom with a Galway girl"
Aah Galway! You humbly sit in my top 3 favourite cities, with your narrow cobbled streets, a glistening harbour and traditional Irish buildings. The city is situated in the West of the Emerald Isle and during the summer the streets are alive with buskers as the tourists, students and locals huddle around between their shopping trips. Of course, I want to be a part of it.
In my favourite pinafore dress from Exhibit, feeling like a bit like leprechaun, I refreshed it with the help of my...wait for it...Nana's wardrobe. Yes, this blogger with her artisan coffee has just become a walking cliche. Except, my nana's wardrobe doesn't have the typical 'gran' garments. I found a Sherman shirt with beautiful detailing around the buttons, a denim jacket (because y'know, classic) and the bright orange scarf which just contrasts to the green dress and blue denim so perfectly, it's a mis-matched made in heaven. So perfect I snuck the scarf and shirt into my suitcase back home. Sorry Nana.
Like Britain, Ireland's weather is just as unpredictable so layering is key and I found that tying this jacket round my waist threw my back to 2001 when my mum use to take me to the beach "for a healthy stretch of the legs". But somehow, I think it kind of works. As we know from Primary school, orange and blue are contrasting colours and what do we do when we are told not to put them together? Well we just can't help ourselves can we? For months I've been drawn to the colour orange, from clothes to make up and if I can add a splash of tangerine, then don't try and stop me. And as it stands, anything goes.
Despite being a city, there is a homely vibe with the buildings being more traditional and the streets appear compressed with little narrow lanes that leads to indie shops and secret hideaways. Just what you need after the hustle and bustle of busy main streets, I think. Galway is also home to the award winning theatre company, Druid and the Galway International Festival after having a strong theatre scene, itself and creatives that have no fear in showcasing their talents. Through the day I saw an ensemble of musicians, with a washboard, double bass, tin drums and a tap dancer which produced the most upbeat sound with Irish folk and jazz undertones. They quickly gathered a full crowd that wondered down from the Irish, violin puppeteer that was up the street.
The sun was shining bright all day that made the colourful surroundings appear a little brighter as me and my nana sat outside a cafe sipping on lattes; listening to the buskers, observed the people zip in and out of shops balancing their 'to go coffees' against their number of shopping bags. With every shop we wondered into ourselves, we were greeted with a smile as our heels clapped along the shop floor. Of course money was spent and a grand day was had. Galway, I love you.
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