A lot to catch up on again.
Saturday night I went to Corine's. I'm never sure if my CS hosts want to to arrive hungry and eat together or full because they don't have the time, money or desire to feed me. Corine wanted me to arrive hungry and then gave me the choice between liver or lamb. I chose liver but she made bacon also (not like our bacon, less cooked and much wider but still thinly cut) just in case I didn't like the liver. It was not too bad. Kind of gamey texture like venison but not a really overwhelming taste. We went out for drinks and I got a Beamish which is made in Cork.
The next day, Eleanor and Jen took me to Kinsale, about a 30 minute drive from Cork on the coast. It's a pleasant little harbour town with a star fort in it and lots of little shops. We explored the fort a bit, drove through an antique car show and then had lunch and wandered. In Europe, it's often more expensive to eat in than to take away because they want you to pay for the table so our sandwiches and pasteries were 1 euro more each but it was nice anyway.
On the way back, Eleanor let me drive! She got us out of Kinsale and on the main road and then let me take over. It wasn't too bad and beside one bike I had to pass (with no shoulder and a road barely wide enough for two American cars- their cars are much smaller in general) they said I did pretty well. I even got to do a few roundabouts which is exciting since the steering is on the right side of the car and you drive on the left side of the road. We switched back before getting back to Cork because there were some really strange roundabouts and I shouldn't do them on my first day driving in Ireland. Even Eleanor got confused as to which lane she should be in.
I went to their apartment for tea and biscuits (our cookies) and pretty soon about 7 of us were there and I had to figure out what they were all saying with their accents and the volume. It was pretty entertaining and good craic (a good time in Irish terminology! not the drug!). One of them guided me back to Corine's and she made lamb for me! Yummy! Great to have French hosts who cook amazingly! :)
The next morning, Monday, I caught a bus to Killarney where there is a lot of hiking. I got to the hostel and found out Killarney National Park is an hour's walk! I figured I would just rent a bike but when I got to my room to drop off my stuff, there was a German girl, Sabine, who had a car and was going there too so I got a lift (not ride- ride implies something different- sexual) with her to the shop (grocery store) and to the park where we had a picnic on a really nice sunny day, explored Muckross House and went to Torc Waterfall. She then drove me to some points on that end of the Ring of Kerry, Molls Gap and a few others with great views and the sun was setting so it was nice (just a bit chilly). We came back to the hostel and made dinner- just pasta- and went to bed after internet. She was leaving the next day to go back to Germany so gave me some of her leftover juice and nutella. Yeah!
The next morning, Tuesday, I got the bus to Dingle and on my connecting bus I noticed the American couple in front of me were passing back and forth a bag of Trader Joe's Rainbow Trail Mix. I commented on it and started talking with them and it turns out they're from Bellingham! Small world! They were nice and chatty and had family they were meeting up with so it didn't work out to make plans together.
I met up with my CS host for that night, Kristin but while she was finishing up some errands I went for a walk out along the harbour to the lighthouse and just beyond. There is a dolphin, Fungi, who has made the harbour his home and they do boat tour out to the harbour to see him. I noticed one of the boats and soon I saw a whole pod of dolphins doing flips and swimming alongside the boat. It was great.
I came back and met Kristin. She's American and really cool. We went foraging for plants for a salad and she taught me some plants I can eat that I found on the peninsula. Then we went to collect seaweed from the beach and put it in her car to use as fertilizer. The next day we took it to the garden and she let me pick some more plants for salads at the hostel, including some mint for tea.
Wednesday I took a minibus archaeological tour of the Dingle Peninsula recommended by Rick Steves. The bus only held 12 people so it was small enough to visit many smaller sites on the peninsula and were able to go into a beehive hut. On the tour I met a nice couple from Seattle. They took me out to lunch after which was great and then we wandered town together for a few hours. We went to an antique shop and I found some great mostly white shell earrings for 2 euro! That's nothing! Only about $2.60 or something. They're really pretty but quite large. For a 2 euro souvenir though, I won't complain. :)
Back at the hostel I made dinner (pasta) but realised I didn't have lettuce to add to my weeds so I shared with someone who did have some. We just made one big salad with his lettuce, my weeds, pepper and mushrooms. It was pretty good with some balsamic vinegar on it. There are usually free food shelves so it was good to have some different food besides my pasta.
There were some nice people at the hostel but one really loud obnoxious Canadian (nothing against Canadians- she just was one). She was really loud (most Europeans are quite and respectful) and was making fun of the German girl she met and was traveling with because she didn't know certain English words (she was mixing up mermaid and nightmare for some reason- maybe they're similar in German). The girl put up with it but I would have not. When I got up to the dorm, her bags were all over my bed and she said I 'hadn't claimed it properly' because I hadn't undone the sheets but she still moved them since I had my stuff out at the foot of the bed and I was getting ready to go to sleep then. Crazy Canadian! Strange girl. I'm glad she left really early this morning so I didn't have to listen to her again.
Well, today I'm just taking it easy. Just interneting, going to the ATM and making lunch. I met a girl from Australia who is working in Wales and has her car here so she is letting me go with her to Doolin this afternoon. She is out cycling now and should be back around 3 so I will finish this, do my errands and make some lunch and come back to the internet until she gets back and then we leave!
Doolin is really near the Cliffs of Moher and I think I'll stay there for the weekend. Lot of hiking and stuff to do. Hopefully I'll get at least one good day of weather. From there, I go to Inishmore, one of the Aran Islands, overnight (probably Monday night) and then on to Galway for a few days. I like to stay in one place for the weekend to relax and buses usually run less or not at all on Sundays so it's good to stay in one place for a few days. Plus shops may not be open on Sundays so it's good to get food on Saturday and then cook it on Sunday.
Ok- I'm off in the rain to the ATM and maybe the shop but I think I have some pasta and sauce left from last night so I'll just make that again for lunch.
09 May 2009
How many ways are there to have whiskey in Ireland?
I feel like this is Tour de Whiskey the past few days! Where I left off in my blog, I was in Cashel at a hostel where there were half dozen workers from Northern Ireland staying and they were in the kitchen drinking and listening to music and chatting... what you might expect is the stereotypical Irish evening but it was true. I went in and they invited me to sit down and one guy made me a drink but wouldn't tell me what it was. All I knew was whiskey. I later found out it was a Hot Toddy (medicine) with about two parts hot water, some sugar stirred in, then one part whiskey (it was Scotch whiskey though- shame). It was really good. They were chatty, but I was a sentence behind in deciphering their accent so it was hard to keep up.
The next day I went to explore Hore Abbey (yes, pronounced "whore") which is the abbey ruins and no entry gate or anything... you just have to walk through a cow pasture and avoid manure on the path to get to it. It has a great view of the Rock of Cashel, which was my next stop.
The Rock of Cashel is very cool- up on a hill in the town of Cashel and it's also an abbey ruin but they have tours and it's easier to see and understand than the abbey was. I met a gal from Saskatchewan and then found two people from Wisconsin from the hostel. There was a tour starting just after I got there and went I went to the meeting point, I saw three Rick Steves' Ireland books open and I just laughed because I hadn't seen any yet and now I saw three at once! I took the tour then went into town with the girls from Wisconsin. We found a €6 lunch and then a €40 sweater for one of the gals who was quite cold. A good souvenir I think. I went back to the hostel to check email and sort out couches and hostels for the next week or so and then went to top up my phone (add minutes to it) and catch the bus to Cork.
The bus was late by twenty minutes but I got to Cork and was greeted by my host, Bryan. I'm his first couchsurfer and it's a lot of fun here. He's in a house with three other people and we went to a house party at his friends last night... it was great. There, the girls were drinking Jameson and coke and Jameson and 7-up. After a beer, I joined in the Jameson and 7-up. It was good. I'm on to tea and juice now as I think most people are today after last night (I left before they went into town so I can only imagine how they're feeling).
Today is a relax day. Nice to be online again and do some researching for my next few weeks. As of yesterday I hadn't had anything planned for couches or hostels beyond Cork so now at least I know of youth hostels and have sent out couch requests for the next week in Killarney, Dingle and Doolin.
Today I go to Corine's house for the next two nights and on Sunday Eleanore, one of Bryan's friends, said she could take me to Kinsale which is a small harbour town that I was going to do by bus, but by car would be far better. Hmmm.... maybe she'd even let me drive part way... that would be exciting!
The next day I went to explore Hore Abbey (yes, pronounced "whore") which is the abbey ruins and no entry gate or anything... you just have to walk through a cow pasture and avoid manure on the path to get to it. It has a great view of the Rock of Cashel, which was my next stop.
The Rock of Cashel is very cool- up on a hill in the town of Cashel and it's also an abbey ruin but they have tours and it's easier to see and understand than the abbey was. I met a gal from Saskatchewan and then found two people from Wisconsin from the hostel. There was a tour starting just after I got there and went I went to the meeting point, I saw three Rick Steves' Ireland books open and I just laughed because I hadn't seen any yet and now I saw three at once! I took the tour then went into town with the girls from Wisconsin. We found a €6 lunch and then a €40 sweater for one of the gals who was quite cold. A good souvenir I think. I went back to the hostel to check email and sort out couches and hostels for the next week or so and then went to top up my phone (add minutes to it) and catch the bus to Cork.
The bus was late by twenty minutes but I got to Cork and was greeted by my host, Bryan. I'm his first couchsurfer and it's a lot of fun here. He's in a house with three other people and we went to a house party at his friends last night... it was great. There, the girls were drinking Jameson and coke and Jameson and 7-up. After a beer, I joined in the Jameson and 7-up. It was good. I'm on to tea and juice now as I think most people are today after last night (I left before they went into town so I can only imagine how they're feeling).
Today is a relax day. Nice to be online again and do some researching for my next few weeks. As of yesterday I hadn't had anything planned for couches or hostels beyond Cork so now at least I know of youth hostels and have sent out couch requests for the next week in Killarney, Dingle and Doolin.
Today I go to Corine's house for the next two nights and on Sunday Eleanore, one of Bryan's friends, said she could take me to Kinsale which is a small harbour town that I was going to do by bus, but by car would be far better. Hmmm.... maybe she'd even let me drive part way... that would be exciting!
07 May 2009
Polish host, French movie, Swiss dinner guests and Northern Irish partiers! Yes, I am still in Ireland.
So my last day in Dublin was great. I went to the bus station and found that I could catch a bus to Kilkenny in 8 minutes or in two hours and 8 minutes. I was very hungry so I opted for the later bus. I followed part of the walking tour in Rick Steves' travel book and part way though, went into a church that he just mentions, St. Mary's Pro-Cathedral. It isn't technically a cathedral because the pope hasn't said it is yet- but St. Patrick's and Christ Church in Dublin both are- but St. Mary's is the largest church in Dublin. I went in and there were people in the pews and I sat down and a choir rehersal with the organ began in the balcony. I couldn't see the choir, but I could hear the director and it was definately a rehersal. It was a good way to spend time before the bus. I stayed maybe a half hour.
The bus to Kilkenny was good, but long. Maybe two and a half hours. When I got to Kilkenny, Nina, my host came to meet me. She is Polish- I haven't had an Irish host yet! She took me to her house and I met her son, Bart, and had homemade soup (yum!) and then worked on my computer. She and I then went to a pub for International Movie Night with her friends. They projected a movie onto a screen and played it for everyone in the pub. This week it was The Science Of Sleep, a French movie with the guy from Motorcycle Diaries. It was very good. We had a beer there (her favorite German beer) and then stopped for chips (French fries) at what she said was the best chip shop in town. They were too salty for both of us, so neither of us finished. But they were good.
Today I had my first excitement with bus transfers. Not all stops are at a station and even if they aren't at a station, they are still transfer points. I had two of them and tried to talk to people at the stops to be sure I was on the right bus. Most everyone here is very helpful and will tell you more than you'd ever want to know about something you didn't ask about at all.
I found my way to Clonmel for my first transfer, about 20 minute wait, then on to Cahil, where it was an hour wait so I went to the castle, just near my stop. It was free as I bought the Heritage Card which gets me into many sites for free. They told me to have fun exploring the castle and it really was exploring- like a big kid jungle gym. There were stair (steep and without rails) and you could walk along the top of the castle and up the towers, passing the jail cells, and up to the lookout towers. It was very good. And free is never a bad thing.
Arriving in Cashel, I found my way to the hostel (my first hostel of the trip!) and met a few American girls traveling after graduating and a few Swiss people who I had dinner with (pizza, soup, salad, cheese and 7-up finish off with Ferer Rocher... a feast). They have just gone to bed and there are a half dozen Northern Irish guys in the kitchen of the hostel listening to traditional Irish music and I saw a bottle of whiskey... or is it whisky... either Scottish or Irish add the "e" in whisky... can't remember. They sound like they're having fun. They offered me a drink, so I may take them up on it before going to bed.
The bus to Kilkenny was good, but long. Maybe two and a half hours. When I got to Kilkenny, Nina, my host came to meet me. She is Polish- I haven't had an Irish host yet! She took me to her house and I met her son, Bart, and had homemade soup (yum!) and then worked on my computer. She and I then went to a pub for International Movie Night with her friends. They projected a movie onto a screen and played it for everyone in the pub. This week it was The Science Of Sleep, a French movie with the guy from Motorcycle Diaries. It was very good. We had a beer there (her favorite German beer) and then stopped for chips (French fries) at what she said was the best chip shop in town. They were too salty for both of us, so neither of us finished. But they were good.
Today I had my first excitement with bus transfers. Not all stops are at a station and even if they aren't at a station, they are still transfer points. I had two of them and tried to talk to people at the stops to be sure I was on the right bus. Most everyone here is very helpful and will tell you more than you'd ever want to know about something you didn't ask about at all.
I found my way to Clonmel for my first transfer, about 20 minute wait, then on to Cahil, where it was an hour wait so I went to the castle, just near my stop. It was free as I bought the Heritage Card which gets me into many sites for free. They told me to have fun exploring the castle and it really was exploring- like a big kid jungle gym. There were stair (steep and without rails) and you could walk along the top of the castle and up the towers, passing the jail cells, and up to the lookout towers. It was very good. And free is never a bad thing.
Arriving in Cashel, I found my way to the hostel (my first hostel of the trip!) and met a few American girls traveling after graduating and a few Swiss people who I had dinner with (pizza, soup, salad, cheese and 7-up finish off with Ferer Rocher... a feast). They have just gone to bed and there are a half dozen Northern Irish guys in the kitchen of the hostel listening to traditional Irish music and I saw a bottle of whiskey... or is it whisky... either Scottish or Irish add the "e" in whisky... can't remember. They sound like they're having fun. They offered me a drink, so I may take them up on it before going to bed.
04 May 2009
Polish Mass, Polish Sweets, Point Break and Octopus Sushi! Yes, I am in Dublin!
Busy few days without a chance to Blog. A lot to catch up on.
Friday I met with Elana and her sister Daniella for a bus tour of Hill of Tara and Newgrange. It was very cool. Very old obviously and full of prehistoric history. Met one of the drivers, Peter, while I was eating my lunch. He gave me suggestions on what to do and what to avoid. Also met some Americans there that were nice. I wound up going on a Literary Pub Crawl with them and then out for more drinks. They were so nice they even paid for a taxi for me to get back to Ibrahims house.
The next day I met with them to see Book of Kells, a really old book with beautiful artwork and lettering. The Long Hall, the library, was very Harry Potter-ish and I think I liked it more than the Book of Kells itself.
That morning, I met up with my new host, Jean-Christophe, who is Italian (I do not think there are any Irish people in Ireland). I am using his laptop now and it has a French keyboard so I have not found the apostrophe key yet so I sound very formal. I am not. Also, letters are in different places, mainly a m w z q and the . and numbers you use shift key. Sorry if things are misspelt.
Saturday we went for pizza- if an Italian tells me it is the best pizza in Ireland, I believe him. We went with his girlfriend and her surfer then to Phoenix Park for a CS BBQ. We got lost in the park for over an hour but once we gave up we found it. Of course. I stayed and the other three left to see a movie. After the BBQ I got a ride with someone but we were seven people to a five person car so two people rode in the trunk! It was funny. After going to someones house for a bit we met with other CSers for the weekly CS drinks at Elegance Bar. It was fun to meet people.
Sunday we went Joanna's Church for Polish Mass. It was interesting and had lots of incense and was in a very old church. We then wandered around town together to parks and shops and for coffee. It was really laid back and nice. On the way back to Jean-Christophe's house Joanna took us to a Polish shop where we got sweets and pretzels. We ate them with wine and sun dried tomatoes while watching Point Break.
Today is a Bank Holiday so much was closed. I slept in, did laundry, went to Tesco and bought cheap food for the day then met up with Jean-Christophe and Joanna and went for sushi. I had octopus! I decided to try something new.
Tomorrow I am in Dublin then the next day I take the bus to Kilkenny for a day. I will be sad to leave Dublin, but good to keep moving.
Friday I met with Elana and her sister Daniella for a bus tour of Hill of Tara and Newgrange. It was very cool. Very old obviously and full of prehistoric history. Met one of the drivers, Peter, while I was eating my lunch. He gave me suggestions on what to do and what to avoid. Also met some Americans there that were nice. I wound up going on a Literary Pub Crawl with them and then out for more drinks. They were so nice they even paid for a taxi for me to get back to Ibrahims house.
The next day I met with them to see Book of Kells, a really old book with beautiful artwork and lettering. The Long Hall, the library, was very Harry Potter-ish and I think I liked it more than the Book of Kells itself.
That morning, I met up with my new host, Jean-Christophe, who is Italian (I do not think there are any Irish people in Ireland). I am using his laptop now and it has a French keyboard so I have not found the apostrophe key yet so I sound very formal. I am not. Also, letters are in different places, mainly a m w z q and the . and numbers you use shift key. Sorry if things are misspelt.
Saturday we went for pizza- if an Italian tells me it is the best pizza in Ireland, I believe him. We went with his girlfriend and her surfer then to Phoenix Park for a CS BBQ. We got lost in the park for over an hour but once we gave up we found it. Of course. I stayed and the other three left to see a movie. After the BBQ I got a ride with someone but we were seven people to a five person car so two people rode in the trunk! It was funny. After going to someones house for a bit we met with other CSers for the weekly CS drinks at Elegance Bar. It was fun to meet people.
Sunday we went Joanna's Church for Polish Mass. It was interesting and had lots of incense and was in a very old church. We then wandered around town together to parks and shops and for coffee. It was really laid back and nice. On the way back to Jean-Christophe's house Joanna took us to a Polish shop where we got sweets and pretzels. We ate them with wine and sun dried tomatoes while watching Point Break.
Today is a Bank Holiday so much was closed. I slept in, did laundry, went to Tesco and bought cheap food for the day then met up with Jean-Christophe and Joanna and went for sushi. I had octopus! I decided to try something new.
Tomorrow I am in Dublin then the next day I take the bus to Kilkenny for a day. I will be sad to leave Dublin, but good to keep moving.
30 April 2009
Clam Chowder- shell and all! And don´t forget the butter!
Today was laid back for the most part. I woke up late and had to transform my daybag into an overnight bag. I am staying with Christof from CS. He lives just out of Dublin and on the way to Howth, which is where I went today.
This morning, I wandered town to explore. I was really disoriented yesterday, so it was good to see town. I found a Mark & Spencers, which is a big department store with clothes but also with a grocery in the basement. I found a sandwich, crisps (potatoe chips) and drink (cola, sparkling or still water) for €3.95 which is about $5.30 and a good price for Dublin. I also got an Orange Juice with ´juicy bits´, or pulp. That cost more, but juice sounded good.
Later in my strolls, I found a small street (really alley) market and bought an apple called a Delisdor. It looks like an asian pear and kind of tastes like one, but is certainly an apple. The guy gave me a sample and it turned out he was from New Jersey. Go figure. We chatted for a while and then I went on my way.
I took my sandwich to eat in front of the Book of Kells in Trinity College and got a phone call from Elana, from CS, asking if she and Daniella could join me for Howth. We met and headed out there. Note there are no toilets in the DART train station nor on the DART itself. We learned that the hard way. For €4.20 we got roundtrip tickets to Howth and once on, we sat next to a gentleman, Sean, who told us all about Howth and Dublin. He showed me just where my next host´s home was and gave plenty of suggestions. In Howth, we walked along the harbour. There were seals, islands, a lighthouse and plenty of fishing boats. We found a place with €3 clam chowder takeaway that we planned on returning to on our way out of town to eat on the DART. It smelled really good but they didn´t give us spoons. Elana and Daniella asked for one but they didn´t have any. She said usually the locals just drink it from the bowl and then pick out the shells with their fingers! Turns out the clam chowder is made with a buttery broth and the clams (small) are put in with the shells so you drink the buttery broth and then pick out the shells with meat in them still (most fall out) and eat them kind of like oysters. A good deal of meat sinks to the bottom so that´s a treat, too. Yummy, buttery, fresh clams. Neither Elana nor Daniella finished theres, so I boldly offered the three French guys from Brittany who were in the booth across from ours if they wanted it. The guy who took it (sorry if you are reading this, I´ve forgotten you´re name!) was the one who asked us if the train we were on went to Dublin, the bolder of the three. They seemed like nice guys. It always pays to be bold- you may get free soup out of it!
I got off at the DART station maybe 15 or 20 minute walk to Christof´s house. We had salad with lettuce, tomatoe, cucumber, blue cheese and a yummy yougurt and balsamic dressing. It was a good finish to the clam chowder. Christof is now off in town with some friends and I will be going to bed soon, possibly to not see him tonight nor tomorrow, but that is ok with him. Tomorrow he leaves for New York City and Niagara Falls.
Tomorrow I will go with Elana and Daniella (and a bus load of tourists) to Bru Na Boinne, or Newgrange, and Hill of Tara. Newgrange is a neolithic burial tomb and Hill of Tara has old land carving in it (ditches, mounds, other land formations). The tour is 6 hours, so it should be a lot of information.
tTomorrow night I will return to Ibrahim´s house and back to my computer and I won´t have to retype so much- I´m on Christof´s computer now and he is German so his Z and Y are switched, he has extra keys for Ä, Ö, µ, € and other buttons which throws off my typing. Of course, it doesn´t help that I´m about to fall asleep.
This morning, I wandered town to explore. I was really disoriented yesterday, so it was good to see town. I found a Mark & Spencers, which is a big department store with clothes but also with a grocery in the basement. I found a sandwich, crisps (potatoe chips) and drink (cola, sparkling or still water) for €3.95 which is about $5.30 and a good price for Dublin. I also got an Orange Juice with ´juicy bits´, or pulp. That cost more, but juice sounded good.
Later in my strolls, I found a small street (really alley) market and bought an apple called a Delisdor. It looks like an asian pear and kind of tastes like one, but is certainly an apple. The guy gave me a sample and it turned out he was from New Jersey. Go figure. We chatted for a while and then I went on my way.
I took my sandwich to eat in front of the Book of Kells in Trinity College and got a phone call from Elana, from CS, asking if she and Daniella could join me for Howth. We met and headed out there. Note there are no toilets in the DART train station nor on the DART itself. We learned that the hard way. For €4.20 we got roundtrip tickets to Howth and once on, we sat next to a gentleman, Sean, who told us all about Howth and Dublin. He showed me just where my next host´s home was and gave plenty of suggestions. In Howth, we walked along the harbour. There were seals, islands, a lighthouse and plenty of fishing boats. We found a place with €3 clam chowder takeaway that we planned on returning to on our way out of town to eat on the DART. It smelled really good but they didn´t give us spoons. Elana and Daniella asked for one but they didn´t have any. She said usually the locals just drink it from the bowl and then pick out the shells with their fingers! Turns out the clam chowder is made with a buttery broth and the clams (small) are put in with the shells so you drink the buttery broth and then pick out the shells with meat in them still (most fall out) and eat them kind of like oysters. A good deal of meat sinks to the bottom so that´s a treat, too. Yummy, buttery, fresh clams. Neither Elana nor Daniella finished theres, so I boldly offered the three French guys from Brittany who were in the booth across from ours if they wanted it. The guy who took it (sorry if you are reading this, I´ve forgotten you´re name!) was the one who asked us if the train we were on went to Dublin, the bolder of the three. They seemed like nice guys. It always pays to be bold- you may get free soup out of it!
I got off at the DART station maybe 15 or 20 minute walk to Christof´s house. We had salad with lettuce, tomatoe, cucumber, blue cheese and a yummy yougurt and balsamic dressing. It was a good finish to the clam chowder. Christof is now off in town with some friends and I will be going to bed soon, possibly to not see him tonight nor tomorrow, but that is ok with him. Tomorrow he leaves for New York City and Niagara Falls.
Tomorrow I will go with Elana and Daniella (and a bus load of tourists) to Bru Na Boinne, or Newgrange, and Hill of Tara. Newgrange is a neolithic burial tomb and Hill of Tara has old land carving in it (ditches, mounds, other land formations). The tour is 6 hours, so it should be a lot of information.
tTomorrow night I will return to Ibrahim´s house and back to my computer and I won´t have to retype so much- I´m on Christof´s computer now and he is German so his Z and Y are switched, he has extra keys for Ä, Ö, µ, € and other buttons which throws off my typing. Of course, it doesn´t help that I´m about to fall asleep.
29 April 2009
Here I am!
Greetings from Dublin! I arrived early this morning after more than 24 hours travel. Everything went well- I was allowed to carry on both my bags and I was able to sleep about three hours on each flight and two hours in the Boston airpot in my 11 hour layover.
I met a nice gal, Alice, who is from New York and traveling to Ireland for a week and renting a car with her son. I spoke with her on and off for a few hours while we were waiting for Aer Lingus check in to open. Before our flight left, she let me use her phone to call Mom and Dad and let them know I was alive and well. On the flight from Boston to Dublin, I sat next to a gentleman from Germany, Frank, who travels a lot to the US and elsewhere, and he had great advise for me.
At Dublin, I took the bus from the airport to city center but the bus driver pointed me in the wrong direction for Aungier Street, which I soon figured out and turned around. It was a bit early to go to my Couchsurfing host's house (around 6.30a by this time) so I went to the hostel just by his house and had a latte macchiato (with a beautiful heart of foam! yes, I took a photo. I'm a dork). Jetlag, hunger and exhaustion hit me hard while I was there, so I was grateful when Ibrahim let me nap while he was at work until he came back for lunch (he works a 5 minute walk away). When he went back for lunch, I went to wander the town and wound up at Dublin Castle. I bought the Heritage Card which gets you free entry to many sites in Ireland. It's good for a year and usually 21 EUR but they took my student ID (with out a year on it! The best thing I got from Luther besides an education) so I paid only 8 EUR. I came back to meet Ibrahim before he went to class and took another nap and then watched the football (soccer) match with him and his roommate. Now we're about to eat and watch the Obama 100 Day speech.
All's well. Plenty of sleep and rest and then tomorrow I plan to hike in Howth. Hopefully it won't be too rainy (it rained most of the day today). Friday I'm going to Bru Na Boinne (Newgrange) with a gal from Virginia and her sister who I met on Couchsurfing.
I met a nice gal, Alice, who is from New York and traveling to Ireland for a week and renting a car with her son. I spoke with her on and off for a few hours while we were waiting for Aer Lingus check in to open. Before our flight left, she let me use her phone to call Mom and Dad and let them know I was alive and well. On the flight from Boston to Dublin, I sat next to a gentleman from Germany, Frank, who travels a lot to the US and elsewhere, and he had great advise for me.
At Dublin, I took the bus from the airport to city center but the bus driver pointed me in the wrong direction for Aungier Street, which I soon figured out and turned around. It was a bit early to go to my Couchsurfing host's house (around 6.30a by this time) so I went to the hostel just by his house and had a latte macchiato (with a beautiful heart of foam! yes, I took a photo. I'm a dork). Jetlag, hunger and exhaustion hit me hard while I was there, so I was grateful when Ibrahim let me nap while he was at work until he came back for lunch (he works a 5 minute walk away). When he went back for lunch, I went to wander the town and wound up at Dublin Castle. I bought the Heritage Card which gets you free entry to many sites in Ireland. It's good for a year and usually 21 EUR but they took my student ID (with out a year on it! The best thing I got from Luther besides an education) so I paid only 8 EUR. I came back to meet Ibrahim before he went to class and took another nap and then watched the football (soccer) match with him and his roommate. Now we're about to eat and watch the Obama 100 Day speech.
All's well. Plenty of sleep and rest and then tomorrow I plan to hike in Howth. Hopefully it won't be too rainy (it rained most of the day today). Friday I'm going to Bru Na Boinne (Newgrange) with a gal from Virginia and her sister who I met on Couchsurfing.
25 April 2009
Slightly productive day
So today I got some done but not what I should have gotten done.
I went to Michael's craft store and bought some Velcro adhesives for the ties on one of my dresses. When I tie it in a bow, it makes a big lump and is quite uncomfortable to sit in. I'll have to apply them later tonight to try it out tomorrow.
I was at Best Buy and bought an extra battery for my camera and a flash drive to transfer files, music, whatever from my computer to someone else's or visa versa.
Lastly, I went to my Starbucks home and so hi/bye to some people working. I'll actually see a few of them when I come in on Monday to pick up my tips before I head South for the airport.
Actually, that wasn't last... I went to Trader Joe's but didn't actually go in... I just parked there and walked to Youngstock's- a outdoor fruit stand- and bought a mango I had been craving earlier in the day and a really crisp gala apple that I ate on my drive home.
When I got home, I planned my Dublin days more- but I'm sure most of the planning will come once I'm there and get advice from my hosts- and I transferred my music from my old laptop to my new one. Next task (besides packing) is to charge and sync my ipod and once Dad is home he can help me to transfer my photos from my old laptop to my new one. It told me I couldn't access my photos in the same way as I could my music. I don't remember what Dad did to fix the problem when it said that for the music, so I'll just wait for him to get back from him rehearsal since there are other things I should do.
I went to Michael's craft store and bought some Velcro adhesives for the ties on one of my dresses. When I tie it in a bow, it makes a big lump and is quite uncomfortable to sit in. I'll have to apply them later tonight to try it out tomorrow.
I was at Best Buy and bought an extra battery for my camera and a flash drive to transfer files, music, whatever from my computer to someone else's or visa versa.
Lastly, I went to my Starbucks home and so hi/bye to some people working. I'll actually see a few of them when I come in on Monday to pick up my tips before I head South for the airport.
Actually, that wasn't last... I went to Trader Joe's but didn't actually go in... I just parked there and walked to Youngstock's- a outdoor fruit stand- and bought a mango I had been craving earlier in the day and a really crisp gala apple that I ate on my drive home.
When I got home, I planned my Dublin days more- but I'm sure most of the planning will come once I'm there and get advice from my hosts- and I transferred my music from my old laptop to my new one. Next task (besides packing) is to charge and sync my ipod and once Dad is home he can help me to transfer my photos from my old laptop to my new one. It told me I couldn't access my photos in the same way as I could my music. I don't remember what Dad did to fix the problem when it said that for the music, so I'll just wait for him to get back from him rehearsal since there are other things I should do.
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