Kathleen and Pat kept this amazing garden at our B&B. This was the view out of our room.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Right about this spot...
Barb stopped having fun. You can see all the fun twists and turns that we had just been through down in the valley.
It was on the ring of Beara drive that Barb decided that her love of Irish driving had it's limits. True, she had found the unbelievably narrow roads with no shoulders nerve racking (and the accompanying 100 kph speed limits hilarious). However, the 100 kph, narrow road with no shoulder climb to one of the highest mountain passes in the rain was no fun at all. The barrier to going over the edge was a curb of stone about 10 inches high. Not a confidence inspiring sight. Me? I'm a fatalist so I took pictures and offered words of encouragement. I offered to drive, but the thought of being a passenger with a side-on view of the abyss was even more upsetting. I got lots of pictures but none of them are of Barb smiling.
We did get to see some beautiful towns and the rural Ireland that everyone talks about. In small towns like Castletownbere, the length of time it takes to pour a pint (about three minutes) is the time that you'll be asked where you're from, why you're here and how you're doing. Not that it's nosy, you are just being invited into the conversation taking place around the bar. If you sit at a table, everyone will leave you alone. Thinking back on it now, I wish we had known that from the beginning, we would have spent a lot more time at the bar in conversation.
A famine house
As you can see Fuchsia grows as a weed in Ireland
Since there is almost no public land in Ireland, any hike involves crossing the property of others. There is much more of a walking culture here and landowners are very tolerant of walkers provided they follow some basic rules. No dogs (they spook the sheep), leave gates open or closed as you find them. If you are injured on their property, the owner assumes no liability. With that knowledge, I went through three different fences and began my climb.
Working my way past the first hedges and nettles, I found a pre-famine house. That's what they call the many homes abandoned during the famine years. Even today, the Irish population is still not as large as it was before the famine houses like these are not uncommon. Like any other Irish ruin, the stone walls were solid and covered with moss, vines and fuchsia, which grows wild here. Any trace of a roof must have disappeared years ago.
The hike up the hill offered some beautiful views and an opportunity to see sheep relatively up-close. I followed the paths they had worn on the ground and eventually arrived at the top and a cairn of stones left by other hikers. I saw great views of Bantry Bay. The sheep left souvenirs of their own all over the hill, but I was able to scrape those off when I returned.
Our neighbor at Glengariff
Our B&B backed onto this hill (and the neighbors flock).
From there we took off to the Beara peninsula, which is considered to be more rugged and less touristy than the Kerry and Dingle peninsulas. We stopped in Bantry to visit the gardens of Bantry House and called ahead to a B&B in Glengariff. I had hoped for a few days rest in the middle of our vacation. Ideally, a spot with a nice view and friendly people. Once we arrived, met our B&B hosts and saw the wonderful view from our room, we decided this was it and stayed for three nights. Kathleen and Patrick (our hosts) are terrific people and their home is close to lots of places while having a peaceful charm. I don't think they have a site on the web, but if you want information about staying there, please ask me an I can pass you their e-mail address.
Their house backs onto one of the large hills in the area and looks across to the bay and the highest range of mountains in the peninsula. I asked about hiking up the hill and Kathleen urged me to go ahead.
Yeah, but the marmalade was in plastic packets...
I shouldn't pick on the castle, the breakfast was good and the hosts were nice.
We would have happily stayed another day, but the castle was full up. Unlike in Canada\US where Friday afternoon marks the stampede for the countryside, in Ireland getaway weekends are booked on Saturday and Sunday. We were in prime getaway country for the folks who live around Cork, Ireland's second largest city.
Before we left the area though we stopped by the ruin of the last fort to be taken by the English. It's regarded as the last stand against colonialism by the clans. Hard to imagine how so much of the history of the world comes together at this point. The Spanish join with the Irish in the hope of getting a base on the windward side of England that would allow the armada to succeed in defeating Elizabeth I. Their defeat sealed the fate of the Irish, who went from being a nuisance to a threat to be destroyed. After this battle, Elizabeth began the plantation of English and Scots in Ireland to establish a loyal base. She inadvertently set the stage for the Northern Irish troubles of our time.
No comment
You don't suppose there's a car coming our way around that corner at 80 kph do you?
Now you know why we averaged about 40 kph
Castletownshend from above the Castle
I'd have to say that this was the coziest place we visited on our trip. We regretted that there was no place to stay in town the next night.
Being only one lane, It's posted for 80 kph
Remember places wide enough to pull over, because if you meet a car one of you will have to back up!
That isn't a hedge on the left side, it's a very old stone wall with many years of vines, thistle and moss. These were our curb feelers for much of the trip.
"Inside" Timoleague Abbey
I like this view. The Irish past is a jumble with hundred year old graves on older churches overtop of pre-christian ruins.
Timoleague Abbey
Our stop here wasn't planned. We were driving and pulled over to phone our next night's accomodation. Then we saw this ruined abbey from the 13th century. This was the first time that I'd seen lots of graves placed on the ruins of churches and abbeys. My guess is that people took advantage of available consecrated ground.
Mass Famine Grave
Outside of Skibbereen. The green grass beyond covers the thousands buried here during the potato famine. I recommend clicking on the photo to read the stones (It will take you to the Flickr site, then click the "All Sizes" button above the photo and choose original) This was a very powerful memorial.
Failed attempt with Timer
Here's I am trying to beat the 10 second delay and get a phot with Barb at one of the roadside shrines. Once Barb began driving on some of the scarier roads, these shrines began to make sense.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Our Cozy Little Cottage for the Night
8 June 2007, 10:15
Barb and I have repaired to the drawing room of the castle to read and to write our postcards.
Okay, I'll back up.
Once we got off the train, we caught a cab to pick up the car. Barb and I had been talking about driving in Ireland for a couple days, visualizing how you would turn left, turn right, go into a traffic circle, etc. I even drew it out on hotel stationary and followed the path with a penny (I drew my face on the right hand side of the penny to make it totally realistic). But now it was showtime. We decided to pay extra for automatic (a good idea), extra for two drivers, and extra for total insurance coverage (a really, really good idea).
So, to be nice, I offered to let Barb go first. She accepted happily and we started down the road. Within 5 minutes she was exhilarated and thrilled at her ability to drive on the left. I discovered what utter hell it is to be the passenger in the left hand seat. Sitting on the left, I felt like I should be in control of the car. Except that I wasn't. To further my unease, all the practice I had done in my head didn't take into account other drivers. At intersections, I spent a lot of time staring down the road, waiting for a car to come barreling along and broadside us (killing me first, since I'm in the death seat). Then we make the turn and I realize that I was looking down the wrong side of the road, and they would have come from the other direction.
Barb and I have compared notes and agreed that being a passenger is actually more nerve wracking than being a driver. As a result, I have graciously volunteered to be chauffeured this vacation.
So far we have been on the National main roads (nice two lane highways), National secondary roads (two lanes and narrow), regional roads (two lanes? Yeah, right!!) and roads (one lane and be prepared to back up). It was on the secondary and regional roads that I developed the fine art of cringing when Barb would slide to the shoulder as other cars came up at high speed. Problem is, there is no shoulder. The road either falls off two inches into the dirt, or some 100 year old brick wall is covered with vines and 4 inches from my window. I've gotten used to the sound of weeds brushing down the side of the car at 40 kph.
In one particularly narrow road in the town of Clonakilty, Barb got a little too close to the curb and WHACK!! the mirror of our car clipped the mirror of a parked car. Our mirror frame immediately slapped against the window (it was a folding mirror) but the glass was gone. Barb pulled over and I went up to see what damage we'd done to the other car. Fortunately, their mirror was the kind that would also bend outward (for just such a situation). I pushed it back into position and there was no marks. On the way back to our car, I found our mirror glass intact and was able to snap it back into place. Glad we bought the extra insurance or we'd be paranoid for the rest of the trip.
With the car, we spent a night in Ballyhassig and another night in Skibbereen. We've only travelled about 70 km from Cork but each day has been an adventure and I have lots to write. But for now, I am sitting in a castle built in the 1750's. It appears to be owned by a family that never threw anything away so I am surrounded by 250 years of paintings of ancestors, swords, dusty old animal heads and heraldic knick-knacks of every description.
When we were at the pub earlier, John from the village asked if we found the decor, "well, you know, tired." Absolutely, but it's wonderfully tired and I wouldn't trade it for a plain old hotel room for anything.
Our driving days have all sort of run together. We drive along narrow roads while I play navigator to the next site of interest. On the way to Skibbereen, we saw a stone circle from the stone age. Like Stonehenge (and Newgrange) it was aligned with the path of the sun through the year. On December 21 when you look between the two "Portal stones" the sun rises over an alter like flat stone. We also saw a wedge tomb which is another paleolithic burial site, this time a large Flat stone sitting atop other flat stones standing on end.
From more recent times, we seen the locations where the Spanish (in 1601) and the French (in 1796) tried to "liberate" Ireland. Had either succeeded, They would have had an excellent base to move on to invade England. After each failed attempt, England responded with more repressive acts against the Irish.
Skibbereen was the site of the worst suffering of the potato famine. The heritage centre there had an excellent exhibit on the potato blight, poverty and government inaction resulted in 28,000 deaths. Outside of town, on the ruin of a medieval abbey, about 10,000 were buried in mass graves.
Even more recently, we are in the heart of Michael Collins country. He was one of the leaders of the war of independence and apparently a genius of urban guerrilla warfare. He grew up in this area and his portrait hangs in the pub down the road.
Finally, we've been checking out the gardens at Ilnacullin. These are massive and beautifully laid out. Here in the South of Ireland, the average winter temperature is 10 Celsius and close to the ocean it never freezes. As a result, they successfully grow many tropical plants and it's not unusual to see palm trees in people's front yards. With the combination of mild temperatures and frequent rain and mist, it must take real talent to kill a plant here. Barb has seen some plants that she bought and couldn't make thrive in Toronto growing as weeds along the sides of the roads.
On the other hand, the constant damp ages everything. Vines, moulds and moss cover everything that isn't moving. I've seen tombstones that could pass for being 50-100 years old in North America that were for people who died in 2000.
Barb and I have repaired to the drawing room of the castle to read and to write our postcards.
Okay, I'll back up.
Once we got off the train, we caught a cab to pick up the car. Barb and I had been talking about driving in Ireland for a couple days, visualizing how you would turn left, turn right, go into a traffic circle, etc. I even drew it out on hotel stationary and followed the path with a penny (I drew my face on the right hand side of the penny to make it totally realistic). But now it was showtime. We decided to pay extra for automatic (a good idea), extra for two drivers, and extra for total insurance coverage (a really, really good idea).
So, to be nice, I offered to let Barb go first. She accepted happily and we started down the road. Within 5 minutes she was exhilarated and thrilled at her ability to drive on the left. I discovered what utter hell it is to be the passenger in the left hand seat. Sitting on the left, I felt like I should be in control of the car. Except that I wasn't. To further my unease, all the practice I had done in my head didn't take into account other drivers. At intersections, I spent a lot of time staring down the road, waiting for a car to come barreling along and broadside us (killing me first, since I'm in the death seat). Then we make the turn and I realize that I was looking down the wrong side of the road, and they would have come from the other direction.
Barb and I have compared notes and agreed that being a passenger is actually more nerve wracking than being a driver. As a result, I have graciously volunteered to be chauffeured this vacation.
So far we have been on the National main roads (nice two lane highways), National secondary roads (two lanes and narrow), regional roads (two lanes? Yeah, right!!) and roads (one lane and be prepared to back up). It was on the secondary and regional roads that I developed the fine art of cringing when Barb would slide to the shoulder as other cars came up at high speed. Problem is, there is no shoulder. The road either falls off two inches into the dirt, or some 100 year old brick wall is covered with vines and 4 inches from my window. I've gotten used to the sound of weeds brushing down the side of the car at 40 kph.
In one particularly narrow road in the town of Clonakilty, Barb got a little too close to the curb and WHACK!! the mirror of our car clipped the mirror of a parked car. Our mirror frame immediately slapped against the window (it was a folding mirror) but the glass was gone. Barb pulled over and I went up to see what damage we'd done to the other car. Fortunately, their mirror was the kind that would also bend outward (for just such a situation). I pushed it back into position and there was no marks. On the way back to our car, I found our mirror glass intact and was able to snap it back into place. Glad we bought the extra insurance or we'd be paranoid for the rest of the trip.
With the car, we spent a night in Ballyhassig and another night in Skibbereen. We've only travelled about 70 km from Cork but each day has been an adventure and I have lots to write. But for now, I am sitting in a castle built in the 1750's. It appears to be owned by a family that never threw anything away so I am surrounded by 250 years of paintings of ancestors, swords, dusty old animal heads and heraldic knick-knacks of every description.
When we were at the pub earlier, John from the village asked if we found the decor, "well, you know, tired." Absolutely, but it's wonderfully tired and I wouldn't trade it for a plain old hotel room for anything.
Our driving days have all sort of run together. We drive along narrow roads while I play navigator to the next site of interest. On the way to Skibbereen, we saw a stone circle from the stone age. Like Stonehenge (and Newgrange) it was aligned with the path of the sun through the year. On December 21 when you look between the two "Portal stones" the sun rises over an alter like flat stone. We also saw a wedge tomb which is another paleolithic burial site, this time a large Flat stone sitting atop other flat stones standing on end.
From more recent times, we seen the locations where the Spanish (in 1601) and the French (in 1796) tried to "liberate" Ireland. Had either succeeded, They would have had an excellent base to move on to invade England. After each failed attempt, England responded with more repressive acts against the Irish.
Skibbereen was the site of the worst suffering of the potato famine. The heritage centre there had an excellent exhibit on the potato blight, poverty and government inaction resulted in 28,000 deaths. Outside of town, on the ruin of a medieval abbey, about 10,000 were buried in mass graves.
Even more recently, we are in the heart of Michael Collins country. He was one of the leaders of the war of independence and apparently a genius of urban guerrilla warfare. He grew up in this area and his portrait hangs in the pub down the road.
Finally, we've been checking out the gardens at Ilnacullin. These are massive and beautifully laid out. Here in the South of Ireland, the average winter temperature is 10 Celsius and close to the ocean it never freezes. As a result, they successfully grow many tropical plants and it's not unusual to see palm trees in people's front yards. With the combination of mild temperatures and frequent rain and mist, it must take real talent to kill a plant here. Barb has seen some plants that she bought and couldn't make thrive in Toronto growing as weeds along the sides of the roads.
On the other hand, the constant damp ages everything. Vines, moulds and moss cover everything that isn't moving. I've seen tombstones that could pass for being 50-100 years old in North America that were for people who died in 2000.
Us at the Stone Circle in Drombeg
On Decemeber 21 the sun rises in a gap between two distant hills on this flat altar stone.
Obligatory Pub Photo-Skibbareen
We've been in a few the past week. If you sit down, everyone leaves you alone. You stand at the bar and you're invited into the conversation.
The Doorway of St. Multose Church
As mentioned previously, look on the sides at shoulder height to see where the Normans sharpened their swords
St. Multose Church in Kinsale
At the back of the church was this ruined section. At the main doors, the archway stones were grooved where Norman soldiers had sharpened their swords as they walked into church.
Thursday, June 7, 2007
Our first day with a car... in Ballynahassig
We planned on having an afternoon of driving practice with it so we booked a B&B fairly close to the Cork airport. It turns out that this is racehorse country and our hosts had a sizable Horse farm. This lovely mare was hanging out in the front yard when we arrived
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
Our Last day in Dublin and an Agreed Upon Ireland
Sorry folks, this is a painfully awkward internet set-up. I'll get the text up now and go back for more picture posts when I can (That's the Hill of Tara in the picture).
6 June 2007 10:50 am
This morning we're on a train from Dublin to Cork. It's supposed to take just under three hours so I should be able to package up all the postings I've written over the last three days and get them on the blog.
We booked a rental car in Cork to pick up today before we left. We are now back on schedule. The two or three days we lost due to the airline screw-up turned Dublin into a bit of a mad scramble. As I mentioned previuosly, we had a few hours Sunday night to explore the city and then spent the bank holiday Monday on a tour of Tara Hill and Newgrange. That made sense as a lot of the museums were closed. That left one day, Tuesday as our chance to see all the sights.
One good piece of advice we got from our tour book was to use the hop-on hop-off double decker bus to get around. They came by every ten minutes so it was very handy and Dublin's sights are clustered in a pretty small area.
(Side note: they've just advised that a cart will be along to serve snacks, beverages and minerals. Can't wait to see what the minerals are)
We saw the book of Kells which came with a tour of the college by a Phd student of Medeival History. The exhibit that they built around it though was facinating and covered all the history, art and technology that went into making the book. It made looking at the 2 small pages open that day seem anti-climactic).
We then went to see Christ Church Cathedral and an adjoining exhibit caled Dublinia. Dublinia was a good multimedia presentation on Viking and Medieval Dublin. Vikings founded Dublin as a trading port in 879 AD and were in charge until the Anglo-Normans under Strongbow defeated them about a century later. I learned that Irish slaves were sold by Vikings around the known world and
that as a result, they have a lot of genetic similarities to the people of Iceland, Russia and other places today.
From there we went to Kilmainham Gaol. As prisons go, it was a model of penal reform for the year it was built (in the 1790's). A large piece was also added about 50 years later which looks exactly like the old Don Jail with it's huge central rotunda of cells. It was all about the ability to see every cell from any one vantage point.
For the Irish though, this prison was the centre of British oppression. Three uprisings in 120 years were crushed and the leaders brought here for imprisonment, transportation to Australia or execution. It was the heavyhanded response to the 1916 rebellion (10 executions by firing squad on the prison grounds) that provoked revulsion throughout Ireland and created the right political environment to successfully push for independance. Once free of the British, the Irish then went into a violent civil war and the prison saw more executions before being closed for good in 1924. Names of the leaders of the uprisings were posted above their cells and the Gaol is the place the Irish go to see where their country was born. I could see school groups going around being taught about the founders of a free Ireland.
At that point we'd had our fill of walking and learning and were too bushed to even hit the pubs. It's too bad we did't get the five day's we'd planned to stay here. On the other hand, I'm really looking forward to getting out of the cities for a while and slowing down in the countryside.
(A long write-up on Irish politics follows, skip it if you want to move on to more travel stuff)
We have come to Ireland at a historic juncture. With Gerry Adams and Ian Paisley in the same government, there is a belief that peace is now a likely in the long term. While we were on our tour bus to Newgrange, our tour guide, Mary Gibbon, kept us entertained with the history of Ireland from the stone age to present. It was excellent and in depth so I'm sure she had given this presesntation hundreds of times. She also talked about how, when the Republic of Ireland was desparately poor, there was never was never really any desire by the North (even among the catholics there) for uniting with an economic basket case. Now that the "Celtic tiger" economy is booming, the people of Northern Ireland are warming to a political alignment with the South as a way to be integrated into the EU more fully. Paving the way to the current peace was a declaration by UK saying that they had no long term interests in Ireland. Similarly the epublic of Ireland held a national plebiscite where they agreed to amend their constitution to remove their claim to the whole of Ireland. Whichever way it goes now, it will be a product of discussion rather than combat.
Then Mary read us an article from a local paper. It was an editorial which was encouraging the Irish people to look to the Scots-Irish protestants of the North not as enemies, but as a people with a heritage and character that were a valuable contribution to Ireland as a whole. It spoke approvingly of the fierce independance of the Scots Irish that had transformed America (Many of the founders, 17 US presidents and the bulk of the pioneers who pushed into the west were Scots Irish). These were people who needed to be recognized not as foriegners planted here by the English, but part of the fabric of Ireland in their own right. It seems as though she, and others are adjusting themselves to the idea that an Ireland of the future was going to include everyone.
This morning we're on a train from Dublin to Cork. It's supposed to take just under three hours so I should be able to package up all the postings I've written over the last three days and get them on the blog.
We booked a rental car in Cork to pick up today before we left. We are now back on schedule. The two or three days we lost due to the airline screw-up turned Dublin into a bit of a mad scramble. As I mentioned previuosly, we had a few hours Sunday night to explore the city and then spent the bank holiday Monday on a tour of Tara Hill and Newgrange. That made sense as a lot of the museums were closed. That left one day, Tuesday as our chance to see all the sights.
One good piece of advice we got from our tour book was to use the hop-on hop-off double decker bus to get around. They came by every ten minutes so it was very handy and Dublin's sights are clustered in a pretty small area.
(Side note: they've just advised that a cart will be along to serve snacks, beverages and minerals. Can't wait to see what the minerals are)
We saw the book of Kells which came with a tour of the college by a Phd student of Medeival History. The exhibit that they built around it though was facinating and covered all the history, art and technology that went into making the book. It made looking at the 2 small pages open that day seem anti-climactic).
We then went to see Christ Church Cathedral and an adjoining exhibit caled Dublinia. Dublinia was a good multimedia presentation on Viking and Medieval Dublin. Vikings founded Dublin as a trading port in 879 AD and were in charge until the Anglo-Normans under Strongbow defeated them about a century later. I learned that Irish slaves were sold by Vikings around the known world and
that as a result, they have a lot of genetic similarities to the people of Iceland, Russia and other places today.
From there we went to Kilmainham Gaol. As prisons go, it was a model of penal reform for the year it was built (in the 1790's). A large piece was also added about 50 years later which looks exactly like the old Don Jail with it's huge central rotunda of cells. It was all about the ability to see every cell from any one vantage point.
For the Irish though, this prison was the centre of British oppression. Three uprisings in 120 years were crushed and the leaders brought here for imprisonment, transportation to Australia or execution. It was the heavyhanded response to the 1916 rebellion (10 executions by firing squad on the prison grounds) that provoked revulsion throughout Ireland and created the right political environment to successfully push for independance. Once free of the British, the Irish then went into a violent civil war and the prison saw more executions before being closed for good in 1924. Names of the leaders of the uprisings were posted above their cells and the Gaol is the place the Irish go to see where their country was born. I could see school groups going around being taught about the founders of a free Ireland.
At that point we'd had our fill of walking and learning and were too bushed to even hit the pubs. It's too bad we did't get the five day's we'd planned to stay here. On the other hand, I'm really looking forward to getting out of the cities for a while and slowing down in the countryside.
(A long write-up on Irish politics follows, skip it if you want to move on to more travel stuff)
We have come to Ireland at a historic juncture. With Gerry Adams and Ian Paisley in the same government, there is a belief that peace is now a likely in the long term. While we were on our tour bus to Newgrange, our tour guide, Mary Gibbon, kept us entertained with the history of Ireland from the stone age to present. It was excellent and in depth so I'm sure she had given this presesntation hundreds of times. She also talked about how, when the Republic of Ireland was desparately poor, there was never was never really any desire by the North (even among the catholics there) for uniting with an economic basket case. Now that the "Celtic tiger" economy is booming, the people of Northern Ireland are warming to a political alignment with the South as a way to be integrated into the EU more fully. Paving the way to the current peace was a declaration by UK saying that they had no long term interests in Ireland. Similarly the epublic of Ireland held a national plebiscite where they agreed to amend their constitution to remove their claim to the whole of Ireland. Whichever way it goes now, it will be a product of discussion rather than combat.
Then Mary read us an article from a local paper. It was an editorial which was encouraging the Irish people to look to the Scots-Irish protestants of the North not as enemies, but as a people with a heritage and character that were a valuable contribution to Ireland as a whole. It spoke approvingly of the fierce independance of the Scots Irish that had transformed America (Many of the founders, 17 US presidents and the bulk of the pioneers who pushed into the west were Scots Irish). These were people who needed to be recognized not as foriegners planted here by the English, but part of the fabric of Ireland in their own right. It seems as though she, and others are adjusting themselves to the idea that an Ireland of the future was going to include everyone.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Carvings at Newgrange
This is near the back end of the tomb. It's amazing to think that you can touch carvings made over 5,000 years ago.
Entrance to the Newgrange Tomb
The spirals may describe the passing of the seasons, no-one know. Vistors walk in through the doorway, the sun will stream in on December 21 through the transom above.
Side View of Newgrange Passage Tomb
June 4, 11:05 pm Dublin
We arrived yesterday in the rain (quel surprise). Our cab took us through crowds of Irish football fans heading to one of the great games of the year, Dublin vs Meath. Throughout the day we continued to see supporters of "The Dubs" in their black and blue/grey jerseys. Driving past the crowds in the rain, I saw how the Irish handled the inclement weather: they pretended it didn't exist. In a country where it can rain for days, lots of folks wear non-waterproof coats and no hats, walking with (damp) heads high. This is no place to be a weather wuss.
We got to our hotel, rested for an hour and then set off for a couple of pubs which were recommended to us for their music. Walking into the entertainment and dining district, it was clear that Dublin is a young person's town. our guide book says that 40% of the Irish are under the age of 25. Sometimes Dublin looks like one big college town. In the first pub, we sat and watched the big game while we waited for the band to get started. Irish football looks a lot like rugby with occasional dribbling and kicking of the ball. The goals had both a soccer style net and two posts that went up 30 feet like American style football goalposts. I think the score was Dublin 1-8 and Meath 0-9 (I have no idea, other than when they kicked a ball through the goalposts, the second number went up). However, you didn't need to understand the rules to see that the Dubs were being totally dominated by their opponents. Then the band began to play. While good, they were playing 1960's Irish Rovers style of music. Not what we were looking for. We slipped out and went on to find the other pub. This next pub did have two great musicians who were blazing their way through a reel on guitar and tin whistle when we arrived. Unfortunately there was absolutely no room to sit or stand and we left after a couple songs. After that, we decided that trying to go hear music on a big holiday weekend (it's a bank holiday), was going to be a bit too much for us in our jetlagged state. We went to a terrific restaurant and then came back to the hotel and collapsed.
This morning we had a quick breakfast and got on a day trip to Tara Hill and Newgrange.
Tara Hill was the centre of Gaelic Ireland. It was the place where the top chieftain held court and also where the Celtic religion's most powerful goddess was centred. Ironically this site also marked the end of the Celtic era when St. Patrick came here and converted the king to Christianity. The ceremonial sites have worn down through the years to become high mounds with trenches between them and it takes some imagining to guess what might have been here. Standing at the top, you literally were "King of the Mountain" with a great view of the countryside. Pretty but not particularly awe inspiring.
From there we saw Newgrange, a Neolithic (middle stone age) monument.
Newgrange is called a passage tomb and is one of the oldest known human structures. While cremated human remains found inside suggest it was a tomb, it was also an observatory for tracking the seasons and probably of great religious significance. To enter the centre chamber, we slid through a 90 foot long narrow passage built of huge stones then covered in a giant mound of dirt. In the central chamber there was a vaulted ceiling about 25 feet high and all sorts of geometric carvings on the walls. Built 500 years before the pyramids in Egypt, the interior appears just as it had been built. 5,200 years old, it is an engineering marvel. The stones have been precisely aligned to the position of the sun on the shortest day of the year, December 21. Usually the tomb is completely dark. On that day only, for the first seventeen minutes following sunrise, the sun will stream through the passageway and fill the interior chamber with light. Our guide was kind enough to demonstrate by turning out all the lights in the passage and then simulate the sun with an electric bulb aimed from the entrance. Impressive. Unlike Rome or Egypt, this place seemed more connected to me because my ancestors could have built this or the other neolithic ruins across northern Europe. Because there's no surviving record of what the builders were thinking, everyone can imagine for themselves what must have happened here more than 5,000 years ago. When the Celts arrived here, they wove these monuments into their own mythology.
As you can imagine, there's real competition to be in the tomb on December 21 to watch the sunrise. In keeping with Irish tradition, who gets to be there is now decided by sweepstakes. Barb and I have now joined the millions of visitors who write their names on cards for our chance to be there.
We arrived yesterday in the rain (quel surprise). Our cab took us through crowds of Irish football fans heading to one of the great games of the year, Dublin vs Meath. Throughout the day we continued to see supporters of "The Dubs" in their black and blue/grey jerseys. Driving past the crowds in the rain, I saw how the Irish handled the inclement weather: they pretended it didn't exist. In a country where it can rain for days, lots of folks wear non-waterproof coats and no hats, walking with (damp) heads high. This is no place to be a weather wuss.
We got to our hotel, rested for an hour and then set off for a couple of pubs which were recommended to us for their music. Walking into the entertainment and dining district, it was clear that Dublin is a young person's town. our guide book says that 40% of the Irish are under the age of 25. Sometimes Dublin looks like one big college town. In the first pub, we sat and watched the big game while we waited for the band to get started. Irish football looks a lot like rugby with occasional dribbling and kicking of the ball. The goals had both a soccer style net and two posts that went up 30 feet like American style football goalposts. I think the score was Dublin 1-8 and Meath 0-9 (I have no idea, other than when they kicked a ball through the goalposts, the second number went up). However, you didn't need to understand the rules to see that the Dubs were being totally dominated by their opponents. Then the band began to play. While good, they were playing 1960's Irish Rovers style of music. Not what we were looking for. We slipped out and went on to find the other pub. This next pub did have two great musicians who were blazing their way through a reel on guitar and tin whistle when we arrived. Unfortunately there was absolutely no room to sit or stand and we left after a couple songs. After that, we decided that trying to go hear music on a big holiday weekend (it's a bank holiday), was going to be a bit too much for us in our jetlagged state. We went to a terrific restaurant and then came back to the hotel and collapsed.
This morning we had a quick breakfast and got on a day trip to Tara Hill and Newgrange.
Tara Hill was the centre of Gaelic Ireland. It was the place where the top chieftain held court and also where the Celtic religion's most powerful goddess was centred. Ironically this site also marked the end of the Celtic era when St. Patrick came here and converted the king to Christianity. The ceremonial sites have worn down through the years to become high mounds with trenches between them and it takes some imagining to guess what might have been here. Standing at the top, you literally were "King of the Mountain" with a great view of the countryside. Pretty but not particularly awe inspiring.
From there we saw Newgrange, a Neolithic (middle stone age) monument.
Newgrange is called a passage tomb and is one of the oldest known human structures. While cremated human remains found inside suggest it was a tomb, it was also an observatory for tracking the seasons and probably of great religious significance. To enter the centre chamber, we slid through a 90 foot long narrow passage built of huge stones then covered in a giant mound of dirt. In the central chamber there was a vaulted ceiling about 25 feet high and all sorts of geometric carvings on the walls. Built 500 years before the pyramids in Egypt, the interior appears just as it had been built. 5,200 years old, it is an engineering marvel. The stones have been precisely aligned to the position of the sun on the shortest day of the year, December 21. Usually the tomb is completely dark. On that day only, for the first seventeen minutes following sunrise, the sun will stream through the passageway and fill the interior chamber with light. Our guide was kind enough to demonstrate by turning out all the lights in the passage and then simulate the sun with an electric bulb aimed from the entrance. Impressive. Unlike Rome or Egypt, this place seemed more connected to me because my ancestors could have built this or the other neolithic ruins across northern Europe. Because there's no surviving record of what the builders were thinking, everyone can imagine for themselves what must have happened here more than 5,000 years ago. When the Celts arrived here, they wove these monuments into their own mythology.
As you can imagine, there's real competition to be in the tomb on December 21 to watch the sunrise. In keeping with Irish tradition, who gets to be there is now decided by sweepstakes. Barb and I have now joined the millions of visitors who write their names on cards for our chance to be there.
Monday, June 4, 2007
You mean I can get liver insurance in Ireland?
From our Dublin stroll along the River Liffey (Now right way up).
Sunday, June 3, 2007
View Over Greenland
4 June 2007 3:30pm Dublin Time
We've been in Dublin for a day now. I'm doing my best now not to think about the time in Hamilton and the flight so I'll gloss over it quickly. We got on the plane finally at about 9 pm and finally flew out. We were on an actual Globespan plane this time so it was a 737 configured for the European cheap flight business. Seats were narrow to hold maximum passengers and with the larger number of passenger bags, there wasn't enough room for fuel for a Hamilton\Dublin non stop. As a bonus, I can now say that I have seen Iceland (or the tip of it at Keflavik airport) and Greenland as we flew over. Greenland was stunning, mountains sticking out through a snowy desert, you could see ripples made by the wind that must have been miles across. truly a landscape I could not have imagined. Iceland by contrast was brownish green and flat. as we rolled along the tarmac, we could see the arctic grasses and fields of purple lupins.
Aside from those two views from the window, it was a quiet flight puctuated by frequent apologies by the flight crew for all that we had been through the previous days. Even so, I doubt that anyone on our flight will ever use Flyglobespan again.
We've been in Dublin for a day now. I'm doing my best now not to think about the time in Hamilton and the flight so I'll gloss over it quickly. We got on the plane finally at about 9 pm and finally flew out. We were on an actual Globespan plane this time so it was a 737 configured for the European cheap flight business. Seats were narrow to hold maximum passengers and with the larger number of passenger bags, there wasn't enough room for fuel for a Hamilton\Dublin non stop. As a bonus, I can now say that I have seen Iceland (or the tip of it at Keflavik airport) and Greenland as we flew over. Greenland was stunning, mountains sticking out through a snowy desert, you could see ripples made by the wind that must have been miles across. truly a landscape I could not have imagined. Iceland by contrast was brownish green and flat. as we rolled along the tarmac, we could see the arctic grasses and fields of purple lupins.
Aside from those two views from the window, it was a quiet flight puctuated by frequent apologies by the flight crew for all that we had been through the previous days. Even so, I doubt that anyone on our flight will ever use Flyglobespan again.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
One Last Attempt
2 June 2007, 15:15 EST
We're pretty much at the end every one's patience. Two more delays and the rumors continue to swirl. Barb's brother was terrific and picked us up and we visited with them for a while. we also took a swing around to the airport and they had a second Flyglobespan plane. The Air Canada rep, who was speaking for Flyglobespan said we were definitely leaving at 8:30 pm. Other people talking to their travel agents are hearing 12:30am. We are going to give them one last benefit of the doubt. We will check in 2 hours from now. If we get our bags handed back to us in Hamilton (as opposed to Dublin), I've located an Alaskan Cruise that we can get on last minute. We' can fly out to Anchorage at 11:00 am tomorrow. It will run for a week and we'll spend the rest of our time in Vancouver where it ends. Then we'll spend a year in small claims getting our flight money back plus the other expenses we've lost. Fortunately we booked only our first few nights in Dublin and a Rental car for the 6th of June that we can cancel at no charge.
Two rules from this:
Time to retire to the plaza lounge for a chat and a wait...
We're pretty much at the end every one's patience. Two more delays and the rumors continue to swirl. Barb's brother was terrific and picked us up and we visited with them for a while. we also took a swing around to the airport and they had a second Flyglobespan plane. The Air Canada rep, who was speaking for Flyglobespan said we were definitely leaving at 8:30 pm. Other people talking to their travel agents are hearing 12:30am. We are going to give them one last benefit of the doubt. We will check in 2 hours from now. If we get our bags handed back to us in Hamilton (as opposed to Dublin), I've located an Alaskan Cruise that we can get on last minute. We' can fly out to Anchorage at 11:00 am tomorrow. It will run for a week and we'll spend the rest of our time in Vancouver where it ends. Then we'll spend a year in small claims getting our flight money back plus the other expenses we've lost. Fortunately we booked only our first few nights in Dublin and a Rental car for the 6th of June that we can cancel at no charge.
Two rules from this:
- Always get good trip insurance (those who did got flights out on other airlines)
- Search the web for comments about airlines. Had I done that, I would have heard that Flyglobespan's launch into Canada has been plagued with bad situations like ours.
Time to retire to the plaza lounge for a chat and a wait...
Friday, June 1, 2007
Some News...
1 June 6:10 pm EST
We're now ensconced at the Plaza, just up the street from the Sheraton where we stayed last night. For the first few hours we heard many different stories as to what would happen to us next. It was only in the last hour and a half that our new hotel posted a fax from the airline with the details. They are flying a plane from the UK to come get us an hour from now. By the time the plane arrives and the crew on board get their required rest, we will leave for Dublin at noon tomorrow.
Our Flyglobespan family are now in a terrible funk. I would say the surly is the best description of the mood. Ironically, we are local celebrities. A slow news day combined with our "Terror in the Skies" engine trouble resulted in several news stories and interviews.
Barb and I have decided that we will not have a bad vacation day so we have temporarily declared that Hamilton is the number one vacation destination in the universe.
Earlier we had a easy stroll down James street, pausing for a beverage at Chester's World of Beers. eventually we reached the Hamilton Gallery of Art, which had a pretty good collection. We were both surprised at the ratio of painting that showed either dead animals (posed beside fruit) or animals about to die (posed beside their predators). Their past curators must have had an interesting view of art.
The evening awaits. Perhaps we will see Shrek 3 playing down the street or just relax in the Amore Lounge with a glass of wine. Tomorrow we try again.
We're now ensconced at the Plaza, just up the street from the Sheraton where we stayed last night. For the first few hours we heard many different stories as to what would happen to us next. It was only in the last hour and a half that our new hotel posted a fax from the airline with the details. They are flying a plane from the UK to come get us an hour from now. By the time the plane arrives and the crew on board get their required rest, we will leave for Dublin at noon tomorrow.
Our Flyglobespan family are now in a terrible funk. I would say the surly is the best description of the mood. Ironically, we are local celebrities. A slow news day combined with our "Terror in the Skies" engine trouble resulted in several news stories and interviews.
Barb and I have decided that we will not have a bad vacation day so we have temporarily declared that Hamilton is the number one vacation destination in the universe.
Earlier we had a easy stroll down James street, pausing for a beverage at Chester's World of Beers. eventually we reached the Hamilton Gallery of Art, which had a pretty good collection. We were both surprised at the ratio of painting that showed either dead animals (posed beside fruit) or animals about to die (posed beside their predators). Their past curators must have had an interesting view of art.
The evening awaits. Perhaps we will see Shrek 3 playing down the street or just relax in the Amore Lounge with a glass of wine. Tomorrow we try again.
A Bump in the Night
Slight change in plans. At 10:45 we we're just lifting off the ground. Three minutes later,
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
From our seats over the wing, it sounded like hammer blows on the port engine.
For a minute, nothing happened. Both engines sounded normal and we continued to climb. Then the plane leveled and the Captain came on over the loudspeaker. Our port engine was working but wasn't working quite well enough. We were turning back and, although our landing would be a little faster than normal, everything was going to be just fine.
True to his word, the landing was faster and steeper than you'd expect and we used serious braking as we touched down. However, it was otherwise a very smooth touchdown and the Captain got a well deserved round of applause. Later, we heard from folks sitting behind us on the left that with every bang, flames shot out of the left engine.
Other than the fire trucks and ambulances that had come to greet our returning aircraft, Hamilton International Airport had pretty much turned out the lights. We waited 20 minutes on the plane while they found staff to roll up the stairs. We waited an hour for them to get staff in who could let us out of the secure waiting area and pull our bags, the we waited an hour to be handed hotel and taxi vouchers.
At 2:15 we hopped into a cab and were soon in bed. We had instructions to contact the desk at 8 am. We called and they asked that we call back at 9:30. We checked in then and they asked to call back at 10:30. You get the picture. We had breakfast and continued to meet and chat with our new Flyglobespan family. It is now noon and they have something new to tell us. The airline doesn't know what to do about the whole flying situation, but they are shipping us off to the Plaza hotel, where we will wait for more news.
They are loading up the shuttles now, so I will take one last fond look at the O'Copps Coliseum (Hey, I'm on my Ireland vacation, dammit) and see what fate has in store...
Still Life With Trashy Novel
31 May 2007, 9:45 pm EST
We've made the trip to Hamilton International Airport. We got word yesterday via e-mail that our plane will leave later and we now have a stop in Shannon along the way. Now we will leave at 10 pm Eastern and arrive in Dublin at 11 am. The people in the line ahead of us mentioned that they are supposed to be in Shannon for 9:30, so I expect a 40 minute layover. Oh yeah, Globespan is growing so fast that their leasing a plane and crew from Air Iceland. Should be interesting.
Globespan just started their Hamilton to Scotland and Hamilton flights this Spring. The person who took our bags said that every flight has been full so far. Interesting mix in the waiting room, a surprising number of the very elderly. I think these folks found out about it through the British Isles Show last winter (Globespan had a booth).
If this turns out to be a good way to go, I am thinking that we may travel to Europe through them. We can fly to Glasgow then take Ryanair to just about anywhere.
Speaking of which, they are following the Ryanair rule of refusing to issue a boarding pass to anyone showing up less than 45 minutes before takeoff. They'll be boarding shortly so I'll sign off.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Sunset at Lakeport
This is a test of the Mobile Blogging System. Keyboard palm and camera card are all go (I think)
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
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