Galway 2012

I.Love.Galway

Hi All,

I have just moved here and am looking forward to at least 12 months (maybe more) in this wonderful city. What should I plan not to miss in Galway in the year ahead? With so much going on, and being new in town, how do I know what's good and what's only ok?

For example I am hearing a lot of positive noises about the Volvo Ocean Race but nothing specific. There doesn't seem to be a programme of events. Can anyone tell me what to expect? Everything I read about it all seems a bit vague right now but it is happening quite soon..... What's the story with it?

Thanks,

Adam

Lapin

~

I.Love.Galway

Thanks Lapin, I had found that alright but once you filter out the long passages of enthusiastic text all harking back to 2009, there is nothing specific about what the 2012 programme is.

I get that there will be an opening ceremony on the afternoon of June 30th but I don't get why that's happening a full 3 days before the raison d'etre of the whole thing (i.e. the racing boats) arrive. Is there something about this event that makes it different to say Formula 1? I'm not sure I would go out of my way to turn up at a Formula 1 track 3 days before the actual event.

Maybe I'm just not getting it?

Anyway what happens in between the opening ceremony and the boats arriving and then what happens after the boats arrive and until it is all over on July 7. There's another discrepancy by the way. According the Volvo Ocean Race Website it is all over on the 7th and according to that Global website it goes on until the 8th. Maybe they're not both referring to the same event at all?

By the way, what's a Global Village? I have tried to read and make sense out of that page on the website 3 times now and I'm still baffled as to what it actually is and why I would want to go there.....

Samich

You'll be hearing all about these things closer to the time You won't miss out anyways

Webbs

I.Love.Galway wrote: »

I get that there will be an opening ceremony on the afternoon of June 30th but I don't get why that's happening a full 3 days before the raison d'etre of the whole thing (i.e. the racing boats) arrive. Is there something about this event that makes it different to say Formula 1? I'm not sure I would go out of my way to turn up at a Formula 1 track 3 days before the actual event.

By the way, what's a Global Village? I have tried to read and make sense out of that page on the website 3 times now and I'm still baffled as to what it actually is and why I would want to go there.....

The Volvo is nothing like Formula 1 the race track is out there in the ocean somewhere. The boats are at the mercy of weather so planning an opening ceremony for a date they are expected to arrive would be a bit of a disaster if they arrived a day early.
The boats arriving if truth be told can be a bit of a side show to the inshore racing and whatever other events will take place including music etc.

The global village is pretty self explanatory with stalls (predominantly food from around the globe)

I.Love.Galway

Hi Samich - You've made my point very well for me. Everybody says the same thing, kind of along the lines of 'just you wait and see, it will be great'.

I really can't wait now, because I have never before encountered so much absolute certainty about an outcome as people seem to have about this event.

Everybody seems to just *know* that it is going to be amAAAzing, but then when I ask why or how it is so certain to be amAAAzing, the only answer I get is 'cause it was last time'.

In response to this I usually ask 'were you equally certain last time that it was going to be 'amAAAzing?' and the typical answer is 'oh no we were sure it was going to fall flat on its arse and be a disaster'.

So, it would appear that last time around the majority were wrong about what to expect........

I hate to say this but.... what if.... the majority are wrong again..... but in the opposite way???

So I hope you can understand why I'm inclined to look for concrete proof that the positive previews of the volvo race (for which there are no actual programme details available), have a solid basis in reality.

I.Love.Galway

Yes but the boats don't even leave the previous port for Galway until July 1. There's no way they could arrive into Galway even before they leave France.

You mentioned music - will there be music? Any idea who and when?

If the Global Village is all about food stalls, what's all that blather on the website about showcasing green marines to a global audience of 1.3 billion at a fourth of July party? Seriously - read it! The video looks utterly implausible......

snubbleste

I predict moderate to heavy precipitation on the dates in question.

Mars Bar

One of the big contributions to the success of the last VOR is that the weather was stunning. It would be utterly amazing if we got the same weather this time round! It has quite a baring on these kind of events.

Salthill was thronged with people those two weeks.


OP, just wait and see. There hasn't been much announced yet so we can't really fill ya in.



This is a pic of one of the concerts in action in the Global Village last time round.

I.Love.Galway

Hi Mars Bar,

Thanks for that. I'll bide my time and wait and see.

Just to clarify though. Is the Global Village the place where all the boats are going to be on Dock Rd like it appeared they were last time, or is it the park as you go out after the Cladagh towards Salthill or is it both?

The video shows a bridge from the docks across the mouth of the river to that park. When will that be getting built? Is planning permission in place? It would be a long walk around to the other bridge to get to that park if the one in the video wasn't there, wouldn't it?

Anyway, I really didn't meant to get stuck talking about just one single event in 2012.

What else do you particularly recommend?

Tks,

Adam

thesandeman

Jaysus Adam! We know you have just arrived and welcome to ya. But if you start chattin to the locals in some pub dont ask as many questions in the space of a couple of hours or we will have you deported fairly quick lol.

loser2old4board

Hi Adam!

Welcome to Galway. I can't give you much info on the Volvo Ocean Race
other than to say 'it will all come together on the week', and it will be a great party.
Galway is a bit like that. We could pretty much make a 'Festival' out of anything.
For example there is horse racing festival that goes on for a week in late July on the outskirts of the city and a corresponding drinking festival with city centre streets wedged with people from early evening to 3 or 4am:) But seriously Galway has great 'buzz' for about three months of the summer so you should enjoy your stay here. Be sure to visit the Aran Islands and take a boat trip on the corrib.

Mrs OBumble

OP, firstly let's think events:


Novena - if you're into church

Paddy's Day - if you into partying

Literature Festival - if you're into books

Early music festival - if you're into baroque(I think!) music

Galway Sessions - if you're in to Irish trad music
(actually, most of the pubs do the stuff year round, but, shhhh, don't tell the tourists)

Volvo race - if you're into boats or partying

Arts festival - if you're into arts / culture / theatre

Macnas Parade - if you're into street parades

Galway races - if you're into horses or partying

Oyster festival - if you're into oysters or partying

Barboro - if you're into kids theatre

Aboo - if you're into Halloween or partying

Christmas market - if you're into market food etc.

You may notice a theme in some of those ... as Mr justMary says, Galway is Ireland's Hotel California: you can check out any time you like but ...

I'm sure there are more too ...


Do you want to know about places to see, as well?

I.Love.Galway

Hi all,

Many thanks for the good advices. Really looking forward to my time in Galway and starting to think I may become one of those 'who can never leave' - how bad would that be :-)

Adam