Homestay Weekend in Carna

For my Irish language course I got to go on a trip to the Carna Ghaeltacht in Connemara, one of the Irish-speaking regions of Ireland.  I stayed with ten other students in a local family's home and they were lovely to spend time with.  The family had a 3-month-old puppy named Cooper who was excited to meet new people and it was nice to play with a pet again.  I was nervous because our course instructor made Carna sound like a very traditional place in which we would feel alien.  For a minute I thought they might not speak any English, and that I would be sleeping next to the cows!  Luckily, Carna was just a more rural town and everyone spoke English when my Irish wasn't good enough to understand them.  It was the type of town with only one store, one gas station and a few bars, but while it was simple it was very endearing and I found myself thinking that the slower pace wouldn't too bad and that I could live that way.  Indoor plumbing and electricity is all you'd really need, right?
In terms of my Irish skills the weekend was immensely helpful!  My host-mother spent the time to repeat questions and slow down on certain words so I could answer properly.  She was patient with all of us and taught us some new phrases.  We also got to do some group line dances and hear old-style music which was beyond great.  I wish I could find more of that in Galway! 
We also got to go on a cold, rainy walking tour of Ballynahinch Castle, which is now a luxury hotel.  I'm sure I would have appreciated it more had the weather been better but it was still a nice walk. 

Backyard of the home I stayed in

Local teenagers (who are VERY talented) came to play Sean-Nos, or old style, music to us

And they attempted to teach us all to dance

My friend Rachel has been taking an Irish step class at the University so she got up to give it a whirl!

Ballynahinch Castle

Ripples in the water from where a salmon had just jumped up-- the castle runs a fishery and the salmon come here to spawn

Tobar Feithin, the holy well on the castle grounds--this area was once ruled by the O'Flaherty clan and was a gathering place for matchmaking and celebration

The sun went down very quickly on us; I forget that it will only keep getting darker earlier