Near the river, east of Wolfe
Tone Bridge,
the Spanish Arch appears to have been an extension of the walls through which
ships unloaded their goods, often wine and brandy - from Spain.
At that time, it was known as Ceann an Bhalla or Head of the Wall. The small, rundown Galway
City Museum
is by the arch. There are lots of exhibits but there's no cohesive narrative to
them.
Lynch’s Castle
Parts of the old-stone town house called Lynch's Castle,
which in some circles is considered the finest town castle in Ireland,
date back to the 14th century. Most of the surviving structure, however, dates
from around 1600. It is the only secular medieval structure left in the city. Decorative details on
its stone lintels are of a type usually found only in southern Spain. The finely cut stone lintels, coat of arms and fine stone
fireplaces in the interior are well worth a look. Now a bank, the “castle”
belonged to one of Galway’s leading merchant families.
Visiting Galway
Galway is serviced by busses and trains from throughout the Irish Republic.
An excellent reason for visiting Galway is the
numerous festivals that take place there. The Cùirt Poetry &
Literature Festival is a well-established event that takes place in Galway
and grows in importance each year. The Galway Arts Festival is another cultural
extravaganza, with two weeks of round-the-clock theatre, music, art and comedy.
And, of course, Galway Race Week in Ballybrit, 1.8mi east of the city, becomes a
site of feverish bacchanalia of horse racing, music, dancing, and drinking.