Ireland: A Weekend In Sligo

Hey guys! Hope your July has been great and you all are enjoying your summer! It's been a mixture of good and bad weather her in Ireland, as per. But we did get some really warm weather, which was great!
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Friday:
In the weekend just gone by, a friend of mine returned to Ireland and returned to Sligo, the town that I attend college in. So of course, being that I don't get to see her often, I made the trip to Sligo for the weekend to both see her and to get away for a couple of days. 
I left Tuam on the 9:25 Bus to Sligo with Bus Feda, a bus company that drives the route from Galway to Donegal and vice versa. The bus fare only cost €22 which paid for my trip up and an open return for the week, which is actually quite good! I left Tuam at 9:25 and arrived in Sligo at about 11 a,m or shortly afterwards. So the trip took only an hour and a half. The bus journey from Galway to Sligo is really beautiful. You look either side on the way and you're

captivated by picturesque scenes of Galway, Mayo and, of course, the Sligo region.
The bus pulled into Sligo just after 11. The bus pulls in at basically the center of town on Markievicz Road and beside the Garavogue River. As a traveller, it is prime location to stop in Sligo, with the Glasshouse Hotel (http://www.theglasshouse.ie/) literally in front of you as you get off the bus.
I got off the bus and got my bags together. I took the short walk to my friends house, where I was staying for the weekend. Dropping off my bags, the first thing I could think of after greeting my friends was "Food. Coffee. Now". Luckily, the location of my friends apartment was along Rockwood Parade, beside the river. I was hungry after the bus journey, so we went across the bridge to the other side of the river to a café called "Ósta". What made that side of the river nicer was that it was also a Pokemart, so not only were people out enjoying their food and coffee, but the sight of people walking around playing Pokemon Go was hilarious!
We arrived at Osta. The café hummed with customers and the background noise of the river made for a pretty amazing atmosphere. We took a seat outside and were greeted immediately by a waiter. Vanilla Latté for me. I was promised a nice meal cooked by my friend later in the day so I didn't want to ruin my appetite! The coffee was served in what felt like no time at all. It was kind of cloudy in Sligo. But it wasn't a bad day. So sitting outside and watching the river and people walking around whilst drinking coffee was actually really refreshing and relaxing. 
After that little coffee break and catch up with my friend, we decided to head off for a walk towards the college in Sligo. A nice walk out, passing the Model Arts Centre and the Collegiate Cathedral, the walk is nice and once you pass the hospital, the skyline is met by the peak of Knocknarea. We walked and chatted and made it to IT Sligo. The memories of exams, assignments and presentations began to make us rethink the decision to visit! We took a little walk around and then decided to head back towards town and get some more coffee.
Landing back in town, we made it to the Swagman Bar. A really cool pub with

really cool vibes and amazing food. Grabbing a seat, the waitress came to us. A very friendly and chatty waitress, promising to make us the best coffee. Not long afterwards, she served us our coffee and we were not disappointed. She made a mean cup of coffee, and was nice enough to give us a nice chocolate treat! I was in my element. One thing that is on par with coffee is chocolate!
The rest of the afternoon consisted of walking around and falling back in love with Sligo. 
Evening time came around and after possibly the best Italian dish I've ever eaten, we decided we'd head out and go over to a bar that was hosting "80's Night". We first headed to the Swagman for a drink and then over to the other bar. The bar is called 5th on Teeling and is a popular bar in Sligo. The DJ of the night, DJ Gingerbread Man was banging out some serious 80's music, getting everyone dancing. The place had a great crowd and it was a great time with great atmosphere.
Saturday:
The morning after the night before. Heads were sore and people were feeling tender. By people, I mean me! Not being able to sleep, the only thing I wanted was to head out for a walk. I walked out by the river and took in the fresh air for a good hour, letting the queasiness subside a bit.
Going back to the apartment, hunger started to step in a bit. So while my friends were getting ready, it was perfect time to take my piece of leftovers from dinner the night before. Pesto Lasagne is a god among foods, let me tell you. And as you may know, food is an experience for me. So, it was savored. After we all had a bit to eat and chilled out for a little while, the one thing we wanted was... Pancakes! 
Off we went across the bridge to Osta again for the second time during the weekend. From what I'd been told, they served the best pancakes in Sligo. Sitting down and letting the cool breeze pass by, it cured the sore head. What was interesting was the water that Osta served. They add fresh lime and other nice flavors to the water which settled the stomach and was really tasty! The waitress took our order and we watched the people going by. Pokemon Go players again, A wedding on the other side of the bridge and other cool things like musicians too. Then out came the pancakes.
Heaven. Absolute heaven. I've never inhaled anything as quick. Like... it was actually perfect and a proper hangover cure. Like, these pancakes had a reason to be called the best pancakes and if you are visiting Sligo, check them out!
Still not feeling 100%, we went to the Swagman to try and figure out a cure. The same waitress, our friend, came over, seeing us looking hungover. Well, me anyway. And said "I have just the thing. Trust me". I shouldn't have trusted her! But as they say, the hair of the dog and all that. Here she came with two Irish Coffee's. A delicacy over here but not something for a hangover. It was making me nervous in front of me. So I had to settle for water haha!
As evening came by, the only thing we could do was take a quick nap and then get ready for dinner. We ate in again, making dinner. Which was delicious. And tried to come up with a plan for the night. And of course, we decided to head out to 5th on Teeling. There was a live band called "Mass Band" A disco funk band (https://twitter.com/THEMASSBAND). A few people I haven't seen in ages. New people I made friends with. And it was just a really good night and a great atmosphere!
Sunday:
I woke up super late. I'm sure it was closer to afternoon than morning... The only place I managed to take myself was right next door to a little cafe, Grappa. I've been here a couple times before. The one thing I really needed was soup. Carrot and Sweet Potato soup. Let me tell you. One word to describe the soup. Yum.
Unfortunately, nobody was in a mood to go anywhere on Sunday, so we just chilled out before it was time for me to leave.
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A weekend in Sligo is never disappointing. You'll have great craic, probably meet a load of new people in the bars and just have a great time!
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