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Ireland’s Aran Islands are a bastion of native culture

In Galway Bay, an archipelago of traditional culture where J.M. Synge summered

By Thomas Breathnach

 |  Globe Correspondent  

  March 11, 2012

Perhaps the most vibrant bastions of the country’s native culture are the Aran Islands, “the stepping stones to the Atlantic.’’ The country’s roughest seas and 1,000 miles of ancient stone walls have successfully preserved Celtic tradition within their spellbinding shores. Last month, I made the journey across Galway Bay to Inishmore and Inishmaan to experience the islands at their wind-swept best.

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