Steve took Friday off from work and we drove to Sligo, on the west coast, stopping at the Yeats Tavern in Drumcliff for lunch. We arrived in time for the 3pm show at the Irish Raptor Centre. The show lasted a full hour and included many raptors flying right over the audience -- close enough that M and I even felt talons across our ears and forehead! The Himalayan vulture was one of our favorites.
He is 3 years old, weighs 10 kilos (22 lbs), and has a wingspan of 3m (9 feet)! Flying is tough if you are that big and he tried to "cheat," hopping from trainer to trainer to get his chicken treats. I always like the owls and we were allowed to pet the back of one of the owls, so soft. 
After the raptor show, we checked into our hotel and walked into the town center for dinner. After dinner, we walked more and looked at the abbey ruins through the gate. The abbey was built in the 1280s.
Saturday morning we got an early start and drove to the Carrowmore megalithic cemetery.
We enjoyed walking among the tombs and through one of the larger ones. From Carrowmore, we could see Knocknanera, the legendary tomb of mythical Queen Maeve. 
We drove south from Carrowmore and were surprised at how much flatter the land is south of Sligo, not the rugged rolling hills we're used to in the north part of Ireland. We arrived in Galway mid-afternoon. Galway is a vibrant town with a large pedestrian shopping area. It's also the first spot we've visited where we've seen crowds of tourists (and mostly American tourists). I bought some yarn made in Donegal at a yarn shop in the pedestrian mall.
Sunday morning we drove home so Steve and M could rest before heading back to work and to soccer camp, respectively.
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p.s. thanks to M for teaching me how the spell check in Blogger works.
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