Our correspondent today is Brendan Keaney:
We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch - we are going back from whence we came.
~ John F. Kennedy
Today was yet another day of adventure for the Irish Studies students and our hosts from Achill Island. This morning, we all got on a bus and went down to a dock, where we got on a ferry boat. Our destination today was Clare Island. It was about a half hour journey through the choppy coastal waters of Clew Bay to Clare Island. Clare Island is a remote and scarcely populated with only 100 residents. It is famous for the being the home of Grace O’Malley and its untamed natural beauty.
After we all got off of the ferry, we were met by two guides who showed us the way to a fortified tower that served as a looking post for the legendary Grace O’Malley. Grace O’Malley was an Irish pirate in the 16th century. Her father was a sea captain, and as a child, Grace always wanted to be one as well. However, because of her gender, she was discouraged by almost everybody. Legend has it that when Grace’s father refused to take her on a sailing trip to Spain, she cut off all of her hair to look like a boy and forced her father to take her. Later on in her life, Grace became a bold and courageous leader both on the sea and on the land. She even had a face to face encounter with Queen Elizabeth I and won her respect.
After the tower, the guides took us on a two-mile walk to the Cistercian Abbey on Clare Island. Grace O’Malley is allegedly buried in the abbey wall. She is remembered today by the title of “Pirate Queen of Ireland.” After looking around at the Cistercian Abbey, we trekked back across the island to have lunch. Our lunch consisted of soup and sandwiches along with tea and cheesecake. It was in a hotel and the room was lit by candlelight. After we finished lunch, we had time to kill, so a couple of different people played music on a piano that they had found in an adjoining room in the hotel where we ate lunch.
Although the ferry on the way from Achill Island to Clare Island was not exactly smooth, the ferry on the way back from Clare Island was very rough. The weather today was wet and cool and conditions deteriorated significantly while we were on the island. A couple of the students from the Irish Studies group, including myself, thought it would be a fun idea to stay on the main part of the ferry on watch the huge waves fly over us. It was as if we stepped into a scene in the move the Perfect Storm. After a couple of large waves crashed over the main deck, the crew told us we had to go inside or on to the top deck. It was a lot of fun even though we all got soaking wet. There were several people who succumbed to sea sickness. Everybody was relieved when we arrived back ashore on Achill Island. Many jokes were made about our harrowing boat ride through the “Perfect Storm.” We took a bus back to Achill Lodge and Inis Aoibhinn. We had time to shower and change, as well as, hang out for a little while before going out for dinner.
It was hard to believe but it was our last night on Achill. We had a delicious dinner at Masterson’s Golden Strand. During the dinner we found out why so many pictures had been taken throughout our days on Achill. Damien, a teacher from Achill, had put together a memory video and we viewed it during dinner. Mr. Bizga was also presented with formal group picture, on behalf of the entire group, and given individual copies to pass out when we arrived back in Cleveland. After dinner we made our way back to our B&Bs for our final night on Achill Island.
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