For Aristotle, the central question of life was simple yet vast: what does it mean to flourish? Not just to feel fleeting happiness, but to live well — with purpose, friendship, creativity, and reflection. He called this deeper kind of living eudaimonia.

Now imagine Aristotle arriving in Galway today. What in Galway would Aristotle consider part of a flourishing life?

It might be the music drifting down Shop Street, where strangers gather around a busker... Philosophical discussions over a pint... A walk along the Prom... 

Or maybe eudaimonia would show up in the Claddagh, where fishermen still cast their nets, and traditions tie us to a sense of continuity and belonging.

It might be in the cafés of Galway’s Westend, where artists, entrepreneurs, and students gather to share ideas and create something new. 

Or in the laughter spilling out of a pub during a trad session, where music isn’t a performance but a shared language. Joy, friendship, and the weaving together of community — surely, these are marks of eudaimonia.

He might see it in the solitary walker at Silverstrand, reflecting quietly on their life as the tide rolls in. For Aristotle, reflection was not optional but essential. Without moments of stillness, we cannot know ourselves, and without knowing ourselves, how could we flourish?

And perhaps he’d nod with approval at initiatives like the Galway International Arts Festival or Culture Night, where the whole city opens itself to creativity and expression. To flourish is not only to survive but to participate, to contribute, to be moved by beauty and ideas.

And of course, if Aristotle wandered into Corbett Court Shopping Centre, he might be puzzled at first — escalators and shopfronts weren’t exactly his thing. But once inside MindSlí Studio, he’d probably feel right at home. Ten stations of reflection, questions about values and meaning, it’s basically the Lyceum, but with better lighting and complimentary chocolate...