Inishmaan is AranÕs best kept secret no more

Date Published: {J}

It is to my shame that I had never been on Inishmaan before last month – but after a glimpse of paradise just an hour from our doorstep, my first visit most certainly will not be my last.

It’s not just the beauty of the place; the Atlantic lapping or crashing onto the shores, the stone walls that separate fields that are little more than stone themselves anyway.

It’s the sense that you’ve stepped back into a better Ireland; where the front door is always on the latch, where there’s no need to close the door of the island’s only church – complete with its Harry Clarke stained glass windows – where people greet each other automatically even if they’ve never seen them before.

Everywhere you looked there were old men leaning on a wall chatting, or women stopped in the road talking. There was no point getting overly anxious about the speed of your pint in the island’s only pub either – because everything will be done in its own good time.

The word was that Inishmaan has no crime and perhaps there are two reasons for that; one is that a clean getaway would be more challenging than normal, but mainly it’s because these are peaceful people who know their neighbours and trust them.

No doubt, life on any small island is challenging – life on this bigger one is no walk in the park just now either – but even a quick visit would suggest they’re not as bogged down in materialism as the rest of us.

That might sound patronising and it’s not meant to, because Inishmaan boasts a very fine new hotel – albeit a little price prohibitive for the likes of us – one of the nicest pubs I’ve ever been in, a state-of-the-art new pier, broadband, a dynamic school, a fine hall, a welcoming church.....and a culture and history to envy.

Little wonder that Synge was so inspired in his famous stone chair, looking out over the waves, his mind cleared of all distraction as he contemplated nature at its most beautiful in front of him.

You can see the other islands, the Burren, Galway’s coastline....all on the horizon and all equally awe-inspiring – but most of all you can actually feel the peace, feel the worries and pressures of the world lift from your shoulders, experience the pace of life slowing to one that shows you there’s more to Ireland than a faltering economy.

And all of this isn’t an hour from Galway city – a straight run to Inverin, a seven minute flight to the island and a view as you arrive in that would take your breath away. There’s also the ferry which might even add to the sense of occasion as you approach the rocky shoreline.Inishmore and Inisheer are equally beautiful, but it’s the middle island that tends to get overlooked just a little – which in another way just makes it Aran’s best kept secret.

At least to me, because I may well be the last to know – there were many Galwegians already on Inishmaan before we arrived, but just in case there remains another unconverted mainlander out there, do yourself a favour this summer.

Pack an overnight bag, head for the plane or ferry and transport yourself into a better Ireland when we had time for each other – and in essence we just had time. You’ll come home with a radically improved sense of perspective.

For more, read this week's Connacht Tribune.