Dublin, Wednesday night, switched to a cheaper hostel with co-ed dorms, shared a big ol' room with a pleasant German fellow named Falk.
Early-ish Thursday to the AirCoach to Cork city. Arrive in time to catch the next bus to Bantry in 5 minutes, so no exploring Cork for me, but the bags were heavy anyoldway. The 17 Euro bus ticket for a less-than 2 hour ride to Bantry about pissed me off, though.
Arrive in the afternoon and Monique and Kate are there to meet me. Grocery shopping and off to my new home in Ahakista. Monique and Luc are a Belgian couple, retired here for the last 12 years. They have a gorgeous 36 seaside acres with sheep and horses, cats, dog, garden. Luc is an ex-architect, living out his dream of always wanting to be a fisherman, and he makes an old salty one at that. Monique handles all things terrestrial and domestic, basically; a very capable woman, although she was a bit concerned about my being vegetarian and not really knowing what to feed me... we worked it out. (When their son and daughter, Peter and Grina (sp?) were about 10 years old, they took off and went sailing with them for a year. I loved talking about this experience and imagining the kind of bonding and mutual understanding and respect that must come from it.) I like these folks, and I am content in their home-space. I like this piece of land and sea quite a lot.
A bit about the routine: Meals are set – breakfast is at 9 and involves bread and spreads, coffee and tea, Lunch is at 1 and is the big, hot meal of the day. Always followed with a dessert. Tea is at 6 and is similar to breakfast, really, sometimes with a few other savory bits thrown in. It's interesting and I like the experience... a different way of doing things. Interesting.
(In general, the most characteristic thing about the following month of my trip is that I did not talk to Jay enough, really. But that's just always the case.)
Friday –
Kate and I mucked the stable and then did a bit of weeding in the garden. Luc and Monique were off to a family event for the weekend and we only had orders to watch after things for the weekend. Fair enough. I had my first swim since arriving here and it was excellent! The water was cold, sure, but whatever.
Kate made a nice lasagna for dinner and we just took it easy. People come around Friday nights to the private bar at the boathouse, attached to where WWOOFers stay, but we didn't join the group tonight.
Saturday –
Little bit of tending to the animals and garden and generally taking it easy...
Stevie, Luc's fishing partner, came by to pick up a few crabs (from the catch which they store in a sectioned-off sort of cement holding tank) for tomorrow's dinner, and he inspired Kate and I to go ahead and try our hand at preparing some. Eating crab has got to be one of the most savage activities one can participate in, but we did and it was really very tasty.
Sunday -
Afternoon, the family arrived home again, with son Peter and his girlfriend Sarah and their young child Daniel in tow. This little one is quite a performer – a flirt and a ham and very energetic. It was nice to have the extra energy of the family around, although Suzie, the dog, would regret the little one chasing her around and around before long.
Monday –
A bank holiday, so not quite back to routine. We had the afternoon off and went hiking over the hill to Kilcrohane, along the beach and back. It was a good exploration and got me started on my walking and exercise kick for the rest of the week. I could have just as easily been lazy... Thanks Kate for inspiring the walk.
Tuesday -
Who can recall anymore?
Got up early and had a good walk before breakfast. More like my own routine, feels good.
Wednesday -
Sometime this week the sheep-shearer came around and we rounded up the woolly ones for their seasonal clip. That was entertaining and character-building. Strong, they are, little things. We had one escapee, but he eventually came around to the flock again, as they do.
Kate is certainly a party girl. It's nice because she is out there on the scene, and she met a couple from Marin who she then arranged to introduce me to, and it's always good to make home connections.
Thursday -
Ah, writing this after the week is long over and my dates are confused, but I think today we did a lot of moving of hay bales, which felt like real good, solid farm work.
Luc and Monique have a little 'practice' vineyard with about 10 plants. It was in desperate need of some love, and a nice place to work with a breeze and a good view.
Friday –
Morning trip to Bantry for the market - a big affair something like a swap meet, with something old, something new, something cheap, and something completely useless - whatever you wish. The farmer's portion of the market is rather small and dominated by baked goods, but still I was glad to have a browse. I like cookies, after all. Actually, what I had was a gluten--free chocolate cake slice. And a mushroom soup for lunch.
Afternoon, nap and then finish up with the vineyard.
Been swimming every day this week, and I love it love it love it. My rule for time to get out is when I can't cup my fingers together anymore, because they are going numb. Seems to be working.
Saturday -
Day trip to Glengariff - hike to Barley lake and then back down and into town through the nature reserve. Different landscape out here - higher mountains, more warped geology, more forest. And goats.
The town is a little slip of a thing, not much bigger than Ahakista, but apparently more famous with the tour-guides, with lots of souvenir shops.
Sunday -
Monique and I took Kate to Bantry for her bus first thing after breakfast.
Lovely afternoon meal with Luc and Monique, with the Sunday wine... it's a sweet ritual. And we had very good conversation - we talked a lot about sailing and family. I told them to let me know if they hear of anyone they trust taking a sailing trip who would want me along as crew, and be willing to teach me as we go. Maybe. Could be incredible. I'm compelled by bonding activities, if you haven't yet noticed.
I wanted to work a bit on a project I had started, especially since I had not worked Friday much or Saturday at all, so I did that until it was time to swim and then be on my way over to Peter and Amanda's, just down the road, around the bend. Monique drove me over with my bags and invited me to come swimming anytime while I was around, since the P&A live in a sheltered little hollow without sea access.
We had a good chat and a pleasant meal (they are also veg, so no worries about what to feed me).
Monday -
Weeding outside... getting used to the different rhythm here. Plenty of time alone, and it feels more isolated, more like being in the jungle.
Had an evening walk up the mountain for a look around before dinner, which was satisfying.
Tuesday -
Rain - painting Nirvana - weeding polytunnel
We watched a lovely, bizarre French film called The Hairdresser's Husband.
Wednesday -
Weeding outside
Living-willow-sculpture-gazebo project
Alder path clearing
Thursday -
More with the Alder path, plenty of bramble. Peter says my arms look like I have been self-harming.
Evening walk out to the Air Disaster Memorial – I don't know how long ago, a flight carrying mostly Indian-Canadian passengers was the victim of some sort of terrorist activity and went down over the sea about 100 miles out, but much of the wreckage washed up on the beach here and a memorial was erected. It is a lovely, peaceful place to reflect on tragedy and human folly.
Friday
Made nettle and comfrey compost tea – drove to Bantry for the market - Organico Cafe for lunch (good, and a comfortable place that makes a good social center for me and my ilk). Made a sweet potato, rice and black bean, kale and tikka masala casserole with fresh green beans in a honey-mustard-garlic glaze for dinner. And yogurt-cucumber salad, of course. Annabel (a fine local artist with a lovely garden of her own, and supplier of the kale and beans) and Klaus joined us for dinner and brought a local farmhouse cheesecake, which we topped with fresh berries, including some fine Irish strawberries. We went over to the Tin Pub after for more socializing. Played a game of darts called Killers. Too much fun. Found out I will be on the kitchen crew for the Vancouver Folk Music Festival - woohoo! That's mid-July. Should be a good time :)
Saturday
An altogether satisfying day. Laid around reading in the morning and had a leisurely late breakfast. Bit of fussing in the garden just for exercise and to commune with the buzzers and chirpers and Amanda took me along for a little tour of the neighboring peninsula, to run errands and to play. We went through Schull, where Annabel and Klaus have another gallery and their friend Lisa has a little health food shop. We had crepes (I went for sweet - called Honeyombs) at a little place with a back patio over a stream. The people operating the place are very French. Fresh off. It was lovely. We went to the little chocolatier, also French, but a local artisan if ever.
On to Skibbereen for the paint for Nirvana, and then to Lake Hyne for a walk up the hill. Gorgeous. The weather seemed threatening all day but stayed clear.
We came back and had a tea and then I got into making a stirfry and we had vanilla ice cream and berries for dessert, and a few of the French chocolates.
After, we watched Circle of Friends, and Amanda and I enjoyed sharing a bit of Tullamore Dew.
Kitties are piled all around me tonight as I wind down with my cuppa chamomile and my little laptop.
Sunday -
Leisurely morning and late breakfast again. After perusing recipe books for a while and putting ingredients into the bread machine for a basic French loaf; waiting to see if the weather would do something or simply be threatening all day, I decided the latter and went walking. Up over the mountain and along the ridge, down Finn McCool's seat and up to the Peakeen Ridge and finally down into Black Gate where I wasn't on the road long before a lovely little Irish family stopped to pick me up and take me along with them to the end of the Sheep's Head Peninsula. Amanda had told me the cafe there made a nice Guinness cake, so I had a slice of that and then headed down the path to the lighthouse, where I saw the family on their way back up. I had some time to stand at the edge of everything and muse poetically about the sea and the stone and caught up with them again just as they got to the parking lot. It was getting around supper time and I could have been left with a very long walk back, so it was nice to catch them. They were Amanda, John and Sarah (who was in her first communion dress, having been in the procession for Corpus Christi) and Jack. They had wonderful West Cork lilting, sing-song accents and were very kind to drop me back at Peter and Amanda's doorstep.
I made Dukkah (and Egyptian spice and nut blend I discovered in NZ and have not had since, but I sometime think of it and recall that I loved it. I never tried to make it before, but it turned out very well.) The bread was ready and fluffy and perfect (I think I could get used to having a bred machine, after all.) Amanda made a nice pasta dish with fava beans and peas and beet greens and it rounded out my weekend just fine. We finished with a bizarre recipe I found in the Irish Farmhouse Cheese Recipe Book – basically blue cheese stuffed dates and prunes. The dates went better than the prunes, but it was all a bit intense and I think the remainder of the stuffing will have to find it's way into a gratin of some sort.
Monday -
By the time we finished breakfast, it was simply pouring rain, straight down. I painted inside the little shack called Nirvana and then came in and made soup for lunch. After lunch, it was bright blue, clear sky and hot sun. Wild.
Weeding outside and afternoon tea by the pond. Perfect for swimming, so Amanda came along and we began at the usual swimming cove at Luc and Monique's. Amanda saw some jellyfish at the shoreline, but I thought I would brave it anyway – I was cruising along and it was a bit challenging because the normally crystal-clear water was rather murky (ostensibly from the morning rain washing the mountains into the sea) and suddenly I realized I was swimming in a SEA OF TINY JELLYFISH. It was a bit startling, to be honest, and I made my way back to shore. Yes, indeed, the jellyfish were spawning. They were everywhere. We saw about four different species. The most plentiful seemed to be something called a Sea Gooseberry and they were very shiny and lovely to watch. Anyway – we moved down to the next potential swimming area – to find more murky water and more spawning jellyfish. Luc came out to encourage us to swim, saying he saw plenty of them all morning while he was out with the fishing boat, all across the bay, but that they wouldn't sting (which I was willing to believe, actually) but it was all too much for me – the murkiness, low-tide and high-seaweed, and the odd feeling of little creatures bumping into my hands with every stroke... and being all in my face. Yeah, it wasn't happening.
But we tried again anyway. Down to another secluded cove with way too much seaweed and jellyfish littering the shore. Alright, fourth try down to the public dock and beach. I had a few laps of a swim, and Amanda even got in despite the cold water, but the little ones were overwhelming and I got out much sooner than I would have due to temperature or tiredness. I still wanted to swim and it was a bit frustrating, but that's what I get for being squeamish, I guess.
It was very nice that Peter had supper waiting for us when we returned home – avocado salad with some of the tastiest capers ever and a risotto. With a light, sparkling wine, Prosecco. Perfect.
Amanda wasn't feeling well this evening, though, and I hope it wasn't the shock of the water from our swim. I'd feel guilty about that – I did egg her on a bit...
Tuesday -
Hmmm... Pretty much just a regular day of gardening and chilling around the old homestead. No sign of Amanda, who was down for the day with the ick. Moved a bit of earth, opening a path through the canal mound past the alders. Unfortunately found and disturbed a hive of ground bees – they were flustered and would have rather I weren't there, but they weren't stinging. Lucky for me.
A gentleman called Harry came around with the new conservatory for the front of the house – it is essentially a greenhouse built over the porch. It's a several-day construction project, but I wasn't commissioned to help.
Rain rolled in for the afternoon and proceeded for the rest of the night, which made it a bit restless. I had been having lots of dreams here, unusual for me to remember them, which I think had something to do with the Valerian tea before bed - but I think it was also making me groggy, so I stopped drinking it. Alas.
Wednesday -
Rain cleared and it was a gorgeous day. I sliced my finger with the scythe and had a run-in with some bramble, but nothing I won't survive. It's my last night in Ahakista. Amanda was out and about a bit more and joined Peter and I to watch an odd film called 'Withnail and I', which I haven't decided whether I particularly like or not...
Stayed up too late because that's what you do before a trip, right?
Thursday -
Peter woke ill with the stomach bug, so our plans to drive to Cork together were dashed and Amanda offered to take me to Bantry for the bus to Cork. I had enough time to go over and say goodbye to Luc and Monique... so I thought. I got there and the fishing boat was out and Monique was not around the house or fields near to it. I figured she might be in the far field, but then thought I should just leave a note and be on my way. Ages to find a pen and paper and as I finished it, Luc and Stevie were pulling into the harbor and Suzie spotted me and was barking madly. So of course I had to run down, and he said Monique was, indeed, up in the back field. I ran out to find her and we walked back together chatting and saying goodbye and then I ran back to meet Amanda just in time. It was good to have the exercise, given all the auto travel I was embarking upon.
I met a couple girls on the bus who had been WWOOFing with Annie King, who co-operates WWOOF Ireland, and it was nice to chat and exchange stories. They were headed to Kinsale, which I was envious of, because I've heard it's interesting and there is a permaculture program there that draws people, but alas, I was on my way to Cork where I would meet Ella, with whom Kate (my co-WWOOFer in Ahakista) had connected me. I met her at her hydroponics shop, Utopianation, on Barrack St. She made me a coffee and we talked along with the other few folks who were coming and going and sorted out our plans for the evening before I went to explore town for a while. Didn't get up to much but had a salad at the Quaay Co-op and then visited the English Market, which was alright, but didn't impress me as much as people seemed to think it would. Alas.
Back to the shop and to Ella's apartment on the Quay, comfortable and with a great view :) For the night our group would be me, Ella and her boyfriend Dennis, who is long in the music industry, and friend Kate, who is a gorgeous musical artist from the US. We left around 7pm for a private send-off party at the Black Rock Castle, which is an observatory (astronomy) for a woman named Connie who is part of Ella's social group and returning to California after 20 years in Ireland. It was a great scene, lots of families and friends enjoying the evening together. There were burrito and mojito fixin's and music and everyone was very social. Dinner, dancing and then we were off to a mixed-bill concert of Punk music which was a benefit for cancer research at a venue called the Pavillion, which was across the alley from an old Huguenot burial ground. (It's Ireland, and these things happen.) More dancing, and having my ears blasted, which I could do without, but it suited the atmosphere... home for a late-night meal and a late night in general; bed at 4:30...
Friday -
...sleep until afternoon and brunch at home for me, Kate and Ella. And Montana Kate, who joined us. So it turned out I didn't have time for shopping or lunch at Cafe Paradiso as I had planned to do with my day in Cork, but it was well worth the change of plans. I was able to ride along with Kate and another friend, Joia (a gorgeous Dutch girl who was driving North to do shamanic firewalking in celebration of the solstice) up to Dublin and hear their stories of love, loss and lunacy instead of taking the long, quiet bus alone. And that was good. Made it to Mooney's place. Sadly, Winnie had gone home for the weekend to meet some cousins visiting... all old school like. But still it was a good way to round out my trip, since I had stayed with them when I first arrived in Ireland. We talked, walked, and had dessert at Eddie Rocket's, an Americana-type diner. It was suitably ironic for me. And that's about it.
Saturday -
Travel - you know the routine. Nothing extraordinary, just on my way over the Atlantic and back to old homesteads. DC/MD first. Watched Arsenic and Old Lace on the plane and dozed and read and eventually got to Newark, transfer to Baltimore, where Lex met me at the airport and we came home and visited with Alex and rested and then dressed and off to a concert of Madeleine Peyroux and her excellent band, opened by Kelly Joe Phelps, so very good. I was in that ethereal drowsy state for most of the concert that makes the world surreal and beautiful.
Sunday -
Happy Solstice. And happy father's day. Lex made omelets for breakfast and we went to the Farmer's Market in Takoma Park so I could say hi to all the old friend there and get my greens fix. After, Alex came along with us to Shenandoah National Park for a hike up Old Rag, which made me say things like 'I have to be honest, I really like America' and 'oh yeah, I want to hike the Appalachian Trail'. It's a great walk and climb and I hope I'll go again someday. We made it home around 11pm, exhausted. Emily came home and we caught up for a minute before I crashed. Tomorrow, tomorrow. I'm really fighting the jet lag, and the change-of-weather sore throat and ick that seems to want to settle in. I'm surprised it never came sooner.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
May 20-27. Week by week: Edinburgh.
Wednesday
Up and out before 10 to explore. Walked the tourist main street (The Royal Mile). Had a lovely bit of Amaretto/Marzipan fudge. (Fudge appears to be a big Scottish thing. And something called 'tablet', which is a lot like fudge, basically.) Went to the National Museum and spent hours there. Wandered and wandered and looked at every bill-board posting to find out what's going on, as I do. It was a full and exhausting day, but it was all just wandering and exploring and there is not much to say about it. Did a bit of grocery shopping so I could make dinner for my lovely hosts and ended up waiting quite a while in a cool wind outside the flat... Calum was held up with a work event. Nevermind, it was nice to relax together when he did return and after dinner we watched a film called the Stone of Destiny, about an event in the 1950's, when a group of Scottish college students stole the Scottish coronation stone back from the British, who were holding it in Westminster Abbey. I like these history lessons. Calum and I had talked over dinner about the issue of Scottish independence and I learned a bit more about the system here. Anyway, after all this, I decided to stay up for the laundry to finish, and I was wired from too much chocolate while I had been waiting on the steps earlier in the evening... so I was up until about 4am, as the birds were beginning to sing in the coming dawn. Alas.
Thursday
Got up at 11am after that late night and after morning logistics made my way to a tango practica at the University. It was good, but it is stressful, tango, especially when coming into a new group, unsure about my own current skill level and certainly unsure of theirs... a new way of teaching and learning... all so much all at once. But it was good, anyway. Toby, the instructor, teaches everyone to lead and follow in his classes – and that is excellent. But it was really hard to step in to an intermediate level group who had been learning this way without having had much instruction as a leader, myself. We learn, we grow. Practica over, I found my way to the Roxy Art House, in an old converted church, where a lecture was on about 3 Baghdadi Sufi Mystics... it is part of an ongoing series called “Reel Iraq” which includes films and art and lectures, etc. It was interesting and I spoke for a while with a woman from Japan who is studying Sufi Mysticism at the Uni here. Beautiful world. There was an exhibition of photographs adjacent to the lecture hall that occupied me a while and then around the corner to the Dovecot Studio where there was more good art on display. After all this gazing, I found my way to a really good, although small and expensive, salad at a big funky pub/restaurant and then to tango class for the night, which ran from about 5:30-8:30. All University students, the Edinburgh U. Tango Society in fact, and they were welcoming. Lots of people there, maybe 25-30. Good leaders... especially that good-looking Spanish boy. :)
Home to a lovely veggie curry and some time to myself as Mairi is napping to keep up with her 3-job schedule for the weekend, and Calum is off to a meeting about an upcoming Couchsurfing event he is helping to organize.
Friday
Hmmm... I don't recall the morning much anymore - but I did make my way out for a walk past town and into the hills, up to a rock outcrop called Arthur's Seat. Oh yes, I was going to attend a lecture but it was canceled... Anyway, really good hiking just in the middle of town, basically. Lots of folks out and about enjoying the greenery and views. On my way back into town, I just stopped in to a little boutique with a bright yellow dress in the window that caught my eye and wound up trying on luxurious lovely things I would never dream of actually buying, but then the fashion love of my life made it's way into view - so I went home with the conundrum of whether or not to purchase. Alas. Dinner at home (again, details are fuzzy) and off to dance tango at the opening night milonga. I was an hour late, but stayed the whole night and was surprised to find Calum was still out when I came home after 1:30am.
Saturday
morning - Edinburgh farmer's market, just around the corner from the Castle and the flat. Fresh veggies and local cheeses.
fitting dress
shopping with Mairi and her friend
summer ball... tired, overwhelmed, went home early
Sunday
bananas and pb
brunch fry-up
Tango lessons - much more comfortable
Tango cafe - many good dances, felt more relaxed in the group that remained
rest - soup for dinner
milonga - great! Bruce, Gerard
Left very late and went to meet Calum at a CSer wine and cheese party, but it was wrapping up as I got there and I only met the half-dozen or so folks very briefly before we went back home. On the way out there, a small group was doing capoeira in the Meadows - a big ol' park in the middle of the city - and it made me feel comfortable and added to my love for the place.
Monday
Sleep in!
Lazy morning
Out to wander the New Town - Princes Street Gardens, National Gallery
Groceries
Home, chill out with Calum, grapes and yogurt with cucumber, cilantro, garlic for dinner. ahhhh :)
Stupid stupid FB virus!
Milonga - so-so, I was feeling quite relaxed and good but then was dancing awkwardly and it all went to shit rather quickly. Performances were lovely - left around 11:30
Heather, friend of Mairi, is staying over and we stayed up chatting a while about pregnancy, India, small towns and friends.
Tuesday
The awesomest of days
Picnic with Mairi and Heather in The Meadows
Forest Cafe for tea - shared lemon ginger with heather
Dress fitting
shopping with the girls - indian frou frou, fudge
terrace rooftop at the museum
Home, and home-made pizza for dinner
Lindisfarne mead
off to the Afghan Sufi music concert
dance dance dance
off to The Royal Oak - Americana folk being played on guitar and trumpet, with a splash of harmonica
Whiskeys with Calum -Springbank, Le Froig (?) and Tilasker (?)
Wednesday
morning chill and share music with Mairi
yogurt and sauteed greens and onions for breakfast
fudge - rum raisin and peanut butter
genmaicha from Haleh - the quintessential sushi tea, nostalgia for SF
Final dress fitting, retrieval and immediately ship it to CA...
Visited Mairi at her new, good job in a mellow little pub. Tea and muffin. Hoped to go to a ballet class I saw advertised, but apparently it was not on, so I did some writing and creative thinking in a little basement cafe at the Roxy, called the Cloisters. Quick dinner at home and off to the bus to the airport and back to Dublin... Just passed the incoming CSers on my way out the door.
In summary, it was freaking awesome to stay with Calum and Mairi and have wonderful meals at home together and share stories and just be amongst them. Also, I dig Edinburgh and would like to return and see what I can get up to in the community there. Anybody want to try out Scotland for a year with me? I'm serious, you know - I don't want to go that long without friends from home, though. Consider it, let me know.
Up and out before 10 to explore. Walked the tourist main street (The Royal Mile). Had a lovely bit of Amaretto/Marzipan fudge. (Fudge appears to be a big Scottish thing. And something called 'tablet', which is a lot like fudge, basically.) Went to the National Museum and spent hours there. Wandered and wandered and looked at every bill-board posting to find out what's going on, as I do. It was a full and exhausting day, but it was all just wandering and exploring and there is not much to say about it. Did a bit of grocery shopping so I could make dinner for my lovely hosts and ended up waiting quite a while in a cool wind outside the flat... Calum was held up with a work event. Nevermind, it was nice to relax together when he did return and after dinner we watched a film called the Stone of Destiny, about an event in the 1950's, when a group of Scottish college students stole the Scottish coronation stone back from the British, who were holding it in Westminster Abbey. I like these history lessons. Calum and I had talked over dinner about the issue of Scottish independence and I learned a bit more about the system here. Anyway, after all this, I decided to stay up for the laundry to finish, and I was wired from too much chocolate while I had been waiting on the steps earlier in the evening... so I was up until about 4am, as the birds were beginning to sing in the coming dawn. Alas.
Thursday
Got up at 11am after that late night and after morning logistics made my way to a tango practica at the University. It was good, but it is stressful, tango, especially when coming into a new group, unsure about my own current skill level and certainly unsure of theirs... a new way of teaching and learning... all so much all at once. But it was good, anyway. Toby, the instructor, teaches everyone to lead and follow in his classes – and that is excellent. But it was really hard to step in to an intermediate level group who had been learning this way without having had much instruction as a leader, myself. We learn, we grow. Practica over, I found my way to the Roxy Art House, in an old converted church, where a lecture was on about 3 Baghdadi Sufi Mystics... it is part of an ongoing series called “Reel Iraq” which includes films and art and lectures, etc. It was interesting and I spoke for a while with a woman from Japan who is studying Sufi Mysticism at the Uni here. Beautiful world. There was an exhibition of photographs adjacent to the lecture hall that occupied me a while and then around the corner to the Dovecot Studio where there was more good art on display. After all this gazing, I found my way to a really good, although small and expensive, salad at a big funky pub/restaurant and then to tango class for the night, which ran from about 5:30-8:30. All University students, the Edinburgh U. Tango Society in fact, and they were welcoming. Lots of people there, maybe 25-30. Good leaders... especially that good-looking Spanish boy. :)
Home to a lovely veggie curry and some time to myself as Mairi is napping to keep up with her 3-job schedule for the weekend, and Calum is off to a meeting about an upcoming Couchsurfing event he is helping to organize.
Friday
Hmmm... I don't recall the morning much anymore - but I did make my way out for a walk past town and into the hills, up to a rock outcrop called Arthur's Seat. Oh yes, I was going to attend a lecture but it was canceled... Anyway, really good hiking just in the middle of town, basically. Lots of folks out and about enjoying the greenery and views. On my way back into town, I just stopped in to a little boutique with a bright yellow dress in the window that caught my eye and wound up trying on luxurious lovely things I would never dream of actually buying, but then the fashion love of my life made it's way into view - so I went home with the conundrum of whether or not to purchase. Alas. Dinner at home (again, details are fuzzy) and off to dance tango at the opening night milonga. I was an hour late, but stayed the whole night and was surprised to find Calum was still out when I came home after 1:30am.
Saturday
morning - Edinburgh farmer's market, just around the corner from the Castle and the flat. Fresh veggies and local cheeses.
fitting dress
shopping with Mairi and her friend
summer ball... tired, overwhelmed, went home early
Sunday
bananas and pb
brunch fry-up
Tango lessons - much more comfortable
Tango cafe - many good dances, felt more relaxed in the group that remained
rest - soup for dinner
milonga - great! Bruce, Gerard
Left very late and went to meet Calum at a CSer wine and cheese party, but it was wrapping up as I got there and I only met the half-dozen or so folks very briefly before we went back home. On the way out there, a small group was doing capoeira in the Meadows - a big ol' park in the middle of the city - and it made me feel comfortable and added to my love for the place.
Monday
Sleep in!
Lazy morning
Out to wander the New Town - Princes Street Gardens, National Gallery
Groceries
Home, chill out with Calum, grapes and yogurt with cucumber, cilantro, garlic for dinner. ahhhh :)
Stupid stupid FB virus!
Milonga - so-so, I was feeling quite relaxed and good but then was dancing awkwardly and it all went to shit rather quickly. Performances were lovely - left around 11:30
Heather, friend of Mairi, is staying over and we stayed up chatting a while about pregnancy, India, small towns and friends.
Tuesday
The awesomest of days
Picnic with Mairi and Heather in The Meadows
Forest Cafe for tea - shared lemon ginger with heather
Dress fitting
shopping with the girls - indian frou frou, fudge
terrace rooftop at the museum
Home, and home-made pizza for dinner
Lindisfarne mead
off to the Afghan Sufi music concert
dance dance dance
off to The Royal Oak - Americana folk being played on guitar and trumpet, with a splash of harmonica
Whiskeys with Calum -Springbank, Le Froig (?) and Tilasker (?)
Wednesday
morning chill and share music with Mairi
yogurt and sauteed greens and onions for breakfast
fudge - rum raisin and peanut butter
genmaicha from Haleh - the quintessential sushi tea, nostalgia for SF
Final dress fitting, retrieval and immediately ship it to CA...
Visited Mairi at her new, good job in a mellow little pub. Tea and muffin. Hoped to go to a ballet class I saw advertised, but apparently it was not on, so I did some writing and creative thinking in a little basement cafe at the Roxy, called the Cloisters. Quick dinner at home and off to the bus to the airport and back to Dublin... Just passed the incoming CSers on my way out the door.
In summary, it was freaking awesome to stay with Calum and Mairi and have wonderful meals at home together and share stories and just be amongst them. Also, I dig Edinburgh and would like to return and see what I can get up to in the community there. Anybody want to try out Scotland for a year with me? I'm serious, you know - I don't want to go that long without friends from home, though. Consider it, let me know.
May 13-19: Another week in Dublin
May 18, 2009
Arrived back in Dublin from Oslo last Tuesday (12th) night. Managed to meet up with Jess just in time to head home. She had a very ill housemate and company coming in for the weekend, so we did not get to hang out together much.
I went off Wednesday (13th) to wander Dublin and see what I could find. Evening, tango class where I met some lovely folks, and we all went together to a milonga at the Wynn hotel after class. It was really quite crowded, and I only got in a few dances – one of them those stressful types where a person expects you to know more than you do and you can feel it... ah well. It was fun anyway and I was out late. I had arranged to couchsurf with Frantisek, who had decided not to stay for the tango class, so I was after finding my way to his place after all the buses had finished running for the night. I walked halfway (it was pretty far out) and grabbed a taxi, the driver of which insisted on driving me right to the door despite my insistence that I would be able to find it on foot more easily from the crossroad. This practice ran up the taxi bill, of course, to about 10 Euro. Arrived about 2am and we stayed up chatting about Japanese music and tea and swimming and mathematics and travel and place for an hour or more. It was interesting conversation, anyway. I slept poorly, and decided to get a hostel rather than plan to couchsurf as long as I was going to be busy dancing late into the night.
Thursday (14th) - Got a dorm room at the Abbey Court Hostel on the River Liffey and felt better to have the independence of it. But that feeling vacillated with one of wanting interaction, as it was kind of a keep-to-one's-own atmosphere in the hostel. More wandering, and I had a huge delicious dinner at the Hare Krishna vegetarian restaurant - Govinda's. I was supposed to meet Mar, an Icelandic guy I had met at the tango class the previous night, at the same venue and we would go together to the class that night, as I did not know where it was. He didn't show (or I didn't see him anyway) and I gave up on tango for Thursday night, but went off exploring and found the Cultivate Center, where there was a panel of politicians (elections June 9th) discussing their positions on climate change and other environmental issues. I sat in, and the discussion and energy were comforting to me, in their academic way. That over, I walked into Temple Bar, the touristy cultural center of Dublin, and past a venue where a crowd appeared to be waiting for a show. Indeed, the Dublin Gay Theatre Festival had two shows on, and the Dublin Dance Festival had one beginning in 5 minutes. I grabbed a ticket and saw a piece called Fall and Recover, in which professional dancers worked together with survivors of torture, to create and perform a rather inspiring dance piece. There was a reception afterward and I hung around a bit and eventually asked just the right person (unknowingly, the Marketing Coordinator, Ellie) about how I might get a t-shirt. She said I could have one (yay!) and I also expressed an interest in helping with the festival, if they were short volunteers. She introduced me to the Volunteer Coordinator, Eve, who decided I could be useful and I went out with them and a few others to the sponsor bar at the Crown Hotel (apparently owned by Bono) across the way. (Also had a great conversation with eve's sister, Ayelet, who is a sculptor and who just had the very refreshing demeanor of a professional, and successful, artist.) Nice time at the pub socializing and it turned out to be a great night.
Friday (15th), I went to volunteer at the office for the DDF, distributed brochures and got to see some groovy parts of town I had not yet explored. Then spent a couple hours folding and stapling programs and just socializing. It felt so good to be contributing, to be involved in something, and to be interacting with interesting, engaged people.
Evening, I walked out to Rathmines to grab my big bag from Jess' place and made it back to the hostel just in time to make it to tango class at the Morisini-Whelan School. It was a good class, though I felt off-balance. The milonga followed at the same location, really relaxed and again pretty busy, but with a bigger dance floor. I danced a lot and stayed until after 2am. Mar was really coming on strong, in a humorous and unthreatening but persistent kind of way, and I enjoyed the attention for an evening, but really was not interested.
Saturday (16th) - I arranged to couchsurf in Balbriggan, a 40 minute train ride north of Dublin, little town on the seaside. But I was going to see a couple of shows in the DDF in the afternoon so I was wandering more (Amid the feeling: "I'm done, with all the waywardness, really, I have had enough wandering, I want to do something more productive with all this energy and time".) It turned out that the two shows were sold out so I did not get into either of them. Alas. But in between trying, I found a food market and a craft market in Temple Bar and both were very entertaining for me. Later, I had a salad at The Farm restaurant and later a desert at Govinda's. There, Shane met up with me, who I would be couchsurfing with in Balbriggan. I was exhausted, again, after walking all day with my stuff for the weekend. He seemed to want to hang around Dublin, though, and insisted on taking me on what he could remember of the Dublin walking tour. I did, indeem see some interesting things that otherwise would not have sought or noticed, but I wasn't very energetic about it all. Whenever he would ask what I wanted to do my answer was 'something relaxed, easygoing, laid-back.... in fact going home would be just fine'; but he still seemed to have quite his own agenda and we went to a pub and then to a club he was interested to see along the way to the train to catch the last one out at 11:20pm. When we arrived, we had some tea and listened to Mum, which was nostalgic and relaxing for me, but it was all a bit awkward of a household and by this point it seemed that Shane himself is a bit awkward and anxious and, well, generally lacking awareness in social cues. Anyway, it felt really good to go to bed finally and I slept great. Next day we cycled out to the Sonairte Ecology center, about 10km away. It was sunny on the way there. There was a small farmer's market, where I spent too much money on too many delicious baked goods. The garden was nice and I was glad to have a chance to visit the place. It began to rain just as we were leaving and it was quite a slog back. On the way, though, Shane decided he wanted to see this place that had been a holiday camp, but about 5 years ago was turned into a sort of refugee center, a place to house asylum-seekers. So we went off our path in the pissing rain to check the place out. Enter zenflowingrivermind. But it felt so good to get home and get dry. That's the way my brand of masochism works, anyway, after all.
Evening and we watched 'Sunshine', then had a nice walk by the seaside at sunset. Another movie 'Harsh Times' and bed.
Monday (18th) - Generally futzed around with breakfast and tea and got the train at noon to Dublin. Check in to the hostel again and repacked my bags for the next week, then just took a nap. Went to the venue for the DDF at 6pm to report for volunteer duty, which was rather light. It looked like I would not get to see the shows (the festival has been quite successful, which makes me quite happy) but at the last minute I was able to see both shows: 'Standing in Ink' by Daghda Dance Company and 'Happy Hour' by Wendy Houston.
Tuesday (19th) - When leaving the hostel, met up with a Canadian girl named Annika who went walking with me to find free internet at a cafe and we wound up at a place called Mocha, chatting and netting. I had an iced Orgeon Chai which went well with the Seal and Sting and the like on the stereo and suited my nostalgia just fine. She was good company and had great stories to share of her recent 3-month adventures around Ireland. She joined me to meet Jess, with whom we went to meet Rachel (EM's friend who was the original connection there...) for lunch at a really decent spot called Woodstock's. On the way back into town to pick up the handful of pounds I'd forgotten in my backpack from my little Belfast tryst way back when, we saw an art gallery and had a couple hours to pop in. There was a little exhibition of pieces of stained glass, a couple of which were captivating with their finely detailed fairytale art scenes. There was also an installation called 'Egg Fight' which involved a curtain constructed of eggs and two headless figures wearing funky pirate costumery. I could explain more, but I think that's enough. Oh, and it was based on Gulliver's Travels. Alright, that's all you get.
Onto the bus, to the airport, time to kill, read some more of Food First which has been more motivating and inspiring and informative in the recent chapters, perhaps simply because I have been able to focus better. Then chatted with a pleasant fellow named Greg, about farms and travel and restlessness. Very quick flight to Edinburgh, easy on to the bus into town, chatted with a good-looking young guy about work and recession and Ireland...
My couchsurfing host in Edinburgh, Calum, met me at the bus and showed me a winding back-route to his place through many stairways and cobblestone paths. He and his sister share a comfy little flat in the UNESCO World Heritage Area old town of Edinburgh right next to the castle. It's alright :). And they are vegetarians who have traveled in India and make delicious dinners at home. Ah, I'm contented here! The company is a very important part of this, but the feel of this gorgeous old city is wonderful and I want to spend more time with Edinburgh.
Also met Sara, from Mexico city, and Raquel from Brazil, who were staying just for the night with Calum and Mairie.We went out for a quick drink at a pub where there was a traditional music set going, and Calum, who is an absolute encyclopedia of whisk(e)y knowledge, recommended a nice peaty variety called Ardbeg. Excellent. What a wonderful day.
Arrived back in Dublin from Oslo last Tuesday (12th) night. Managed to meet up with Jess just in time to head home. She had a very ill housemate and company coming in for the weekend, so we did not get to hang out together much.
I went off Wednesday (13th) to wander Dublin and see what I could find. Evening, tango class where I met some lovely folks, and we all went together to a milonga at the Wynn hotel after class. It was really quite crowded, and I only got in a few dances – one of them those stressful types where a person expects you to know more than you do and you can feel it... ah well. It was fun anyway and I was out late. I had arranged to couchsurf with Frantisek, who had decided not to stay for the tango class, so I was after finding my way to his place after all the buses had finished running for the night. I walked halfway (it was pretty far out) and grabbed a taxi, the driver of which insisted on driving me right to the door despite my insistence that I would be able to find it on foot more easily from the crossroad. This practice ran up the taxi bill, of course, to about 10 Euro. Arrived about 2am and we stayed up chatting about Japanese music and tea and swimming and mathematics and travel and place for an hour or more. It was interesting conversation, anyway. I slept poorly, and decided to get a hostel rather than plan to couchsurf as long as I was going to be busy dancing late into the night.
Thursday (14th) - Got a dorm room at the Abbey Court Hostel on the River Liffey and felt better to have the independence of it. But that feeling vacillated with one of wanting interaction, as it was kind of a keep-to-one's-own atmosphere in the hostel. More wandering, and I had a huge delicious dinner at the Hare Krishna vegetarian restaurant - Govinda's. I was supposed to meet Mar, an Icelandic guy I had met at the tango class the previous night, at the same venue and we would go together to the class that night, as I did not know where it was. He didn't show (or I didn't see him anyway) and I gave up on tango for Thursday night, but went off exploring and found the Cultivate Center, where there was a panel of politicians (elections June 9th) discussing their positions on climate change and other environmental issues. I sat in, and the discussion and energy were comforting to me, in their academic way. That over, I walked into Temple Bar, the touristy cultural center of Dublin, and past a venue where a crowd appeared to be waiting for a show. Indeed, the Dublin Gay Theatre Festival had two shows on, and the Dublin Dance Festival had one beginning in 5 minutes. I grabbed a ticket and saw a piece called Fall and Recover, in which professional dancers worked together with survivors of torture, to create and perform a rather inspiring dance piece. There was a reception afterward and I hung around a bit and eventually asked just the right person (unknowingly, the Marketing Coordinator, Ellie) about how I might get a t-shirt. She said I could have one (yay!) and I also expressed an interest in helping with the festival, if they were short volunteers. She introduced me to the Volunteer Coordinator, Eve, who decided I could be useful and I went out with them and a few others to the sponsor bar at the Crown Hotel (apparently owned by Bono) across the way. (Also had a great conversation with eve's sister, Ayelet, who is a sculptor and who just had the very refreshing demeanor of a professional, and successful, artist.) Nice time at the pub socializing and it turned out to be a great night.
Friday (15th), I went to volunteer at the office for the DDF, distributed brochures and got to see some groovy parts of town I had not yet explored. Then spent a couple hours folding and stapling programs and just socializing. It felt so good to be contributing, to be involved in something, and to be interacting with interesting, engaged people.
Evening, I walked out to Rathmines to grab my big bag from Jess' place and made it back to the hostel just in time to make it to tango class at the Morisini-Whelan School. It was a good class, though I felt off-balance. The milonga followed at the same location, really relaxed and again pretty busy, but with a bigger dance floor. I danced a lot and stayed until after 2am. Mar was really coming on strong, in a humorous and unthreatening but persistent kind of way, and I enjoyed the attention for an evening, but really was not interested.
Saturday (16th) - I arranged to couchsurf in Balbriggan, a 40 minute train ride north of Dublin, little town on the seaside. But I was going to see a couple of shows in the DDF in the afternoon so I was wandering more (Amid the feeling: "I'm done, with all the waywardness, really, I have had enough wandering, I want to do something more productive with all this energy and time".) It turned out that the two shows were sold out so I did not get into either of them. Alas. But in between trying, I found a food market and a craft market in Temple Bar and both were very entertaining for me. Later, I had a salad at The Farm restaurant and later a desert at Govinda's. There, Shane met up with me, who I would be couchsurfing with in Balbriggan. I was exhausted, again, after walking all day with my stuff for the weekend. He seemed to want to hang around Dublin, though, and insisted on taking me on what he could remember of the Dublin walking tour. I did, indeem see some interesting things that otherwise would not have sought or noticed, but I wasn't very energetic about it all. Whenever he would ask what I wanted to do my answer was 'something relaxed, easygoing, laid-back.... in fact going home would be just fine'; but he still seemed to have quite his own agenda and we went to a pub and then to a club he was interested to see along the way to the train to catch the last one out at 11:20pm. When we arrived, we had some tea and listened to Mum, which was nostalgic and relaxing for me, but it was all a bit awkward of a household and by this point it seemed that Shane himself is a bit awkward and anxious and, well, generally lacking awareness in social cues. Anyway, it felt really good to go to bed finally and I slept great. Next day we cycled out to the Sonairte Ecology center, about 10km away. It was sunny on the way there. There was a small farmer's market, where I spent too much money on too many delicious baked goods. The garden was nice and I was glad to have a chance to visit the place. It began to rain just as we were leaving and it was quite a slog back. On the way, though, Shane decided he wanted to see this place that had been a holiday camp, but about 5 years ago was turned into a sort of refugee center, a place to house asylum-seekers. So we went off our path in the pissing rain to check the place out. Enter zenflowingrivermind. But it felt so good to get home and get dry. That's the way my brand of masochism works, anyway, after all.
Evening and we watched 'Sunshine', then had a nice walk by the seaside at sunset. Another movie 'Harsh Times' and bed.
Monday (18th) - Generally futzed around with breakfast and tea and got the train at noon to Dublin. Check in to the hostel again and repacked my bags for the next week, then just took a nap. Went to the venue for the DDF at 6pm to report for volunteer duty, which was rather light. It looked like I would not get to see the shows (the festival has been quite successful, which makes me quite happy) but at the last minute I was able to see both shows: 'Standing in Ink' by Daghda Dance Company and 'Happy Hour' by Wendy Houston.
Tuesday (19th) - When leaving the hostel, met up with a Canadian girl named Annika who went walking with me to find free internet at a cafe and we wound up at a place called Mocha, chatting and netting. I had an iced Orgeon Chai which went well with the Seal and Sting and the like on the stereo and suited my nostalgia just fine. She was good company and had great stories to share of her recent 3-month adventures around Ireland. She joined me to meet Jess, with whom we went to meet Rachel (EM's friend who was the original connection there...) for lunch at a really decent spot called Woodstock's. On the way back into town to pick up the handful of pounds I'd forgotten in my backpack from my little Belfast tryst way back when, we saw an art gallery and had a couple hours to pop in. There was a little exhibition of pieces of stained glass, a couple of which were captivating with their finely detailed fairytale art scenes. There was also an installation called 'Egg Fight' which involved a curtain constructed of eggs and two headless figures wearing funky pirate costumery. I could explain more, but I think that's enough. Oh, and it was based on Gulliver's Travels. Alright, that's all you get.
Onto the bus, to the airport, time to kill, read some more of Food First which has been more motivating and inspiring and informative in the recent chapters, perhaps simply because I have been able to focus better. Then chatted with a pleasant fellow named Greg, about farms and travel and restlessness. Very quick flight to Edinburgh, easy on to the bus into town, chatted with a good-looking young guy about work and recession and Ireland...
My couchsurfing host in Edinburgh, Calum, met me at the bus and showed me a winding back-route to his place through many stairways and cobblestone paths. He and his sister share a comfy little flat in the UNESCO World Heritage Area old town of Edinburgh right next to the castle. It's alright :). And they are vegetarians who have traveled in India and make delicious dinners at home. Ah, I'm contented here! The company is a very important part of this, but the feel of this gorgeous old city is wonderful and I want to spend more time with Edinburgh.
Also met Sara, from Mexico city, and Raquel from Brazil, who were staying just for the night with Calum and Mairie.We went out for a quick drink at a pub where there was a traditional music set going, and Calum, who is an absolute encyclopedia of whisk(e)y knowledge, recommended a nice peaty variety called Ardbeg. Excellent. What a wonderful day.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Monday and Tuesday 11-12 May
Another visit to the botanical gardens. Sunnier and bloomier than the last, unimaginably. Lots of communicating to arrange places in Dublin and Edinburgh and just when it was beginning to concern me, it all came together. Ahhh :) Also making plans for July in CA an elsewhere. Looks like it will be Rainier in early July and the Vancouver folk music festival July 17-19. Colorado in late July-early Aug. Let me know if you want to join in on any of this...
Afternoon walk up the hill to jog in the park and look back out over Oslo, goodbye. In the evening, EM's housemate Catherine (how have I not mentioned this woman? She's beautiful and interesting and a good housemate and I say so with even more confidence now that I have stayed at their place for this time...) returned and invited me to join her for a set of crunches. I was ecstatic! Yes! Of course! I can't go back to Mojo Fit in Davis in this soft-core condition, after all. Give me abs! Also, I have been stretching after jogging and can not believe how tight my hips and shoulders have become. But anyway, this is all being addressed. Never you worry. :) Really, it might be the prospect of all that tango dancing that has me so motivated.
EM and I made late-night granola and stayed up with a film called Kautokeino Opprøret, which is about a Sami community who rose-up against oppresive influences, set in the late 1800's. We stopped it early (at 1am...), so I am going to finish it today - I think it is an important Norwegian history lesson for me.
Tuesday and we went together to the post office in the morning to pick up a care package Haleh sent to me. Oh my goodness, what a special treat and wonderful feeling this is! I just want to tell the world how ridiculously happy this little box has made me. And that I am now the proud owner of an orange Davis Food Co-op water tin.
I am hanging out with EM at work for a bit this morning an then will be off to pack and shuttle off to Dublin. There is a 2-hour or so bus ride to the airport in Torp (gah Ryanair!) and the flight and bus into city center and I am sure to be finished with the day when I arrive after 9pm.
Last night, this feeling of inspiration and refreshment began to renew itself in my little heart, from some myriad of influences, and today it is growing alongside the sadness of leaving my sweet EM.
Afternoon walk up the hill to jog in the park and look back out over Oslo, goodbye. In the evening, EM's housemate Catherine (how have I not mentioned this woman? She's beautiful and interesting and a good housemate and I say so with even more confidence now that I have stayed at their place for this time...) returned and invited me to join her for a set of crunches. I was ecstatic! Yes! Of course! I can't go back to Mojo Fit in Davis in this soft-core condition, after all. Give me abs! Also, I have been stretching after jogging and can not believe how tight my hips and shoulders have become. But anyway, this is all being addressed. Never you worry. :) Really, it might be the prospect of all that tango dancing that has me so motivated.
EM and I made late-night granola and stayed up with a film called Kautokeino Opprøret, which is about a Sami community who rose-up against oppresive influences, set in the late 1800's. We stopped it early (at 1am...), so I am going to finish it today - I think it is an important Norwegian history lesson for me.
Tuesday and we went together to the post office in the morning to pick up a care package Haleh sent to me. Oh my goodness, what a special treat and wonderful feeling this is! I just want to tell the world how ridiculously happy this little box has made me. And that I am now the proud owner of an orange Davis Food Co-op water tin.
I am hanging out with EM at work for a bit this morning an then will be off to pack and shuttle off to Dublin. There is a 2-hour or so bus ride to the airport in Torp (gah Ryanair!) and the flight and bus into city center and I am sure to be finished with the day when I arrive after 9pm.
Last night, this feeling of inspiration and refreshment began to renew itself in my little heart, from some myriad of influences, and today it is growing alongside the sadness of leaving my sweet EM.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Another week in Oslo. May 4-10
Monday:
Train back to Oslo from Bergen - very melancholy morning, on account of the departure. We tried to play Carcassonne on the train seat-back tray, and that was pretty entertaining. Gave up halfway through. EM treated me to a Vestlands lefse in the cafe, where there were large windows for watching the countryside rush by. It was sunny (had been cloudy on the way to Bergen).
When we returned, EM had a work meeting so we went by the office for a while. I don't remember what kept us up late when we got home, but something certainly did, and I was exhausted.
Tuesday:
On my own for the day. Ferry to Bygdoy for a nice walk around and to see the Norwegian Folk Museum. There are indoor exhibits (which included one devoted to folk costumery, yay!, and one about the 1980's... which is very popular these days in European fashion) and a feature on the Sami (indigenous Norwegians). Most of the museum is a collection of buildings, however, from various regions and time periods. It was a sunny day and I really enjoyed it. All those big old wooden structures smell so lovely. There were plenty of little gardens and nooks in which to hide away and contemplate the birds and eccentric architecture.
Wandered, saw the big expensive mansions of Bygdoy (a sort of peninsula of Oslo, wealthy, ambassadorial residences and all, more on that later), wasted time in the sunshine in a coastal park and ferried back to town to meet EM at the old dome church, hummus wrap on the way home... Stayed up late again; watching Juno.
Wednesday:
I stayed in for the morning and worked on a cover letter to Marin Organic. (They have an apprenticeship program which excites me to no end and I am giddy with a crush on the idea of working with them... but that is a whole other essay. One that goes into an ambiguous speculation about 'home' and my contradictory desires to put down roots and remain a tumbleweed.)
I went out in the afternoon just to walk and be outside and must have looked like distressed prey - single female traveler sitting and thinking on a very public park bench in town center - because this guy totally came around to hit on me. Maybe he was from Belize, but no thanks, anyway. Not all such experiences are quite so close to the edge of lecherous and unpleasant, but then some are. I made my way to a chai and brownie at a great little cafe that EM pointed out previously. Back home to meet EM after a long day (she volunteers at the teen Refugee Center on Wednesdays after work). We stayed up late having chocolate and beer, which was altogether a mistake... because dinner had been the chai and brownie. Ah, someday I may cease doing these things to myself... may. It was a cozy eve at home together. I am loving this.
Thursday:
EM had the day off. We had a lazy morning... me online (where I found out there is a tango festival in Edingurgh in late May and decided to go, feeling a little impetuous, but only a little. The flight is 2 Euro roundtrip and I just couldn't help myself). Then a walk to the Botanical Garden, which was not a disappointment :)
Afternoon dear Haleh, I finally up and went for a jog. Felt so good!
EM's friend Jeni came for dinner; I made Lentil rice ambrosia and EM made lefse from scratch. YUM. We watched a totally bizarre film called Bagdad Cafe and late to bed again.
Friday:
Oh boy did I sleep in... until 11! More work on the app to Marin Organic and a good bit of thinking about a Ph.D. program at the Bren School of Envtl. Science and Mgmt. at UCSB. Indeed. And then...
Cinco de Mayo party and drinks at the American Embassy.
Jeni works for the Canadian Embassy here and those Canadians apparently had a standing invitation to a Friday happy hour event at the American Embassy. It's only open to external visitors once a month, lucky us it was this week. She got us on the list and we went along for beers and strawberry margaritas and tequila shots... a bit late for Cinco de Mayo, but I was glad to get the celebration in. Talked with a whole pile of interesting people, and then the whole crowd had to be run out of the place. Went next to a little bar with a window seat and from there, 10:30 pm but still light out, to Nomaden, a nightclub/bar where we were the first on the dance floor and that was how we liked it. Home and EM made delicious fried potato-onion-cheesy love and I typed while half-watching the Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood.
Saturday:
Had a walk with EM to a new part of the neighborhood and went jogging (again!) from there. Quick change and met her at the trolley to go to a choral concert featuring a friend of her's from work. It was billed as an A Capella exploration of the history of pop music... but it turned out to be a simple, well-performed random selection of various-genre. I guess they would all be technically classified as pop. But now I am nitpicking. It was good! And we had a good walk, and EM took me to have Kokosboller, which are a Norwegian specialty, funny little meringues with a thin coating of chocolate and coconut flakes. It was fun to share and we deserved it after our walk in the rain that snuck up in the afternoon. Roundabout bus home for a siesta. We missed cheering Jeni on in the relay race she was running with a team from the Embassy, some big fundraiser event, but she still invited us to the after-race celebration...
Dinner at the residence of the Canadian ambassador. Lovely, relaxed, delicious. EM was not feeling well after the previous night so she stayed in to rest. The weather almost kept me home, but at the last minute cleared and I went, and glad I did - such a pleasant evening! Met and chatted with some really good people and around dark we went out into town together and chilled at an outdoor bar that reminded me of something from Miami. Despite the cold, it was lively, and eventually we got to dancing. We made to leave several times, but then another good dance song came on and we just moved to different parts of the patio... eventually we left the area of the bar and danced in a little gazebo in the town square next to the bar. That Jeni, she's a good influence... I had told EM I would be home around 10:30 and think I finally made it around 2:30. It was good company and good conversation and good times all around. And Jeni gave me the bag she was carrying that says 'Bergen!', because I totally coveted it, and she is sweet as pie, that girl. I am so going to Montreal to visit her after she returns from the embassy job in Finland where she'll be next month... if I was lacking inspiration about how things just seem to come together right, she brought it all back.
Sunday:
EM took me for a nice walk up into the hills and we both discovered some nice new areas. And a big old ridiculous American-style car show. Go figure. It is pleasant to wander the sidewalks up in the wealthy hill suburbs of Oslo. Reminded me of good times in Marin.
We made a simple veggie stew for dinner and it was so satisfying. Shared a good Norwegian beer in the garden nearing sunset. I am reading a book called "Always the Mountains" the quality of which I am still undecided about... but it feels good to have a book in hand and a friend in the garden :)
Train back to Oslo from Bergen - very melancholy morning, on account of the departure. We tried to play Carcassonne on the train seat-back tray, and that was pretty entertaining. Gave up halfway through. EM treated me to a Vestlands lefse in the cafe, where there were large windows for watching the countryside rush by. It was sunny (had been cloudy on the way to Bergen).
When we returned, EM had a work meeting so we went by the office for a while. I don't remember what kept us up late when we got home, but something certainly did, and I was exhausted.
Tuesday:
On my own for the day. Ferry to Bygdoy for a nice walk around and to see the Norwegian Folk Museum. There are indoor exhibits (which included one devoted to folk costumery, yay!, and one about the 1980's... which is very popular these days in European fashion) and a feature on the Sami (indigenous Norwegians). Most of the museum is a collection of buildings, however, from various regions and time periods. It was a sunny day and I really enjoyed it. All those big old wooden structures smell so lovely. There were plenty of little gardens and nooks in which to hide away and contemplate the birds and eccentric architecture.
Wandered, saw the big expensive mansions of Bygdoy (a sort of peninsula of Oslo, wealthy, ambassadorial residences and all, more on that later), wasted time in the sunshine in a coastal park and ferried back to town to meet EM at the old dome church, hummus wrap on the way home... Stayed up late again; watching Juno.
Wednesday:
I stayed in for the morning and worked on a cover letter to Marin Organic. (They have an apprenticeship program which excites me to no end and I am giddy with a crush on the idea of working with them... but that is a whole other essay. One that goes into an ambiguous speculation about 'home' and my contradictory desires to put down roots and remain a tumbleweed.)
I went out in the afternoon just to walk and be outside and must have looked like distressed prey - single female traveler sitting and thinking on a very public park bench in town center - because this guy totally came around to hit on me. Maybe he was from Belize, but no thanks, anyway. Not all such experiences are quite so close to the edge of lecherous and unpleasant, but then some are. I made my way to a chai and brownie at a great little cafe that EM pointed out previously. Back home to meet EM after a long day (she volunteers at the teen Refugee Center on Wednesdays after work). We stayed up late having chocolate and beer, which was altogether a mistake... because dinner had been the chai and brownie. Ah, someday I may cease doing these things to myself... may. It was a cozy eve at home together. I am loving this.
Thursday:
EM had the day off. We had a lazy morning... me online (where I found out there is a tango festival in Edingurgh in late May and decided to go, feeling a little impetuous, but only a little. The flight is 2 Euro roundtrip and I just couldn't help myself). Then a walk to the Botanical Garden, which was not a disappointment :)
Afternoon dear Haleh, I finally up and went for a jog. Felt so good!
EM's friend Jeni came for dinner; I made Lentil rice ambrosia and EM made lefse from scratch. YUM. We watched a totally bizarre film called Bagdad Cafe and late to bed again.
Friday:
Oh boy did I sleep in... until 11! More work on the app to Marin Organic and a good bit of thinking about a Ph.D. program at the Bren School of Envtl. Science and Mgmt. at UCSB. Indeed. And then...
Cinco de Mayo party and drinks at the American Embassy.
Jeni works for the Canadian Embassy here and those Canadians apparently had a standing invitation to a Friday happy hour event at the American Embassy. It's only open to external visitors once a month, lucky us it was this week. She got us on the list and we went along for beers and strawberry margaritas and tequila shots... a bit late for Cinco de Mayo, but I was glad to get the celebration in. Talked with a whole pile of interesting people, and then the whole crowd had to be run out of the place. Went next to a little bar with a window seat and from there, 10:30 pm but still light out, to Nomaden, a nightclub/bar where we were the first on the dance floor and that was how we liked it. Home and EM made delicious fried potato-onion-cheesy love and I typed while half-watching the Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood.
Saturday:
Had a walk with EM to a new part of the neighborhood and went jogging (again!) from there. Quick change and met her at the trolley to go to a choral concert featuring a friend of her's from work. It was billed as an A Capella exploration of the history of pop music... but it turned out to be a simple, well-performed random selection of various-genre. I guess they would all be technically classified as pop. But now I am nitpicking. It was good! And we had a good walk, and EM took me to have Kokosboller, which are a Norwegian specialty, funny little meringues with a thin coating of chocolate and coconut flakes. It was fun to share and we deserved it after our walk in the rain that snuck up in the afternoon. Roundabout bus home for a siesta. We missed cheering Jeni on in the relay race she was running with a team from the Embassy, some big fundraiser event, but she still invited us to the after-race celebration...
Dinner at the residence of the Canadian ambassador. Lovely, relaxed, delicious. EM was not feeling well after the previous night so she stayed in to rest. The weather almost kept me home, but at the last minute cleared and I went, and glad I did - such a pleasant evening! Met and chatted with some really good people and around dark we went out into town together and chilled at an outdoor bar that reminded me of something from Miami. Despite the cold, it was lively, and eventually we got to dancing. We made to leave several times, but then another good dance song came on and we just moved to different parts of the patio... eventually we left the area of the bar and danced in a little gazebo in the town square next to the bar. That Jeni, she's a good influence... I had told EM I would be home around 10:30 and think I finally made it around 2:30. It was good company and good conversation and good times all around. And Jeni gave me the bag she was carrying that says 'Bergen!', because I totally coveted it, and she is sweet as pie, that girl. I am so going to Montreal to visit her after she returns from the embassy job in Finland where she'll be next month... if I was lacking inspiration about how things just seem to come together right, she brought it all back.
Sunday:
EM took me for a nice walk up into the hills and we both discovered some nice new areas. And a big old ridiculous American-style car show. Go figure. It is pleasant to wander the sidewalks up in the wealthy hill suburbs of Oslo. Reminded me of good times in Marin.
We made a simple veggie stew for dinner and it was so satisfying. Shared a good Norwegian beer in the garden nearing sunset. I am reading a book called "Always the Mountains" the quality of which I am still undecided about... but it feels good to have a book in hand and a friend in the garden :)
Sunday, May 3, 2009
The good life...
Ah, the weekend in Bergen, with Ellen Marie and Carl Phillip and Co. Glorious.
Friday. May Day. It is a proper holiday here, time off work, parades, flags everywhere. Ellen Marie wanted to walk in the local parade, which is as simple as finding a sign to get behind. We joined up as they were beginning after we had a walk in the very charming neighborhood of Nunez (sp?), which is probably very expensive, but then again, so is all of Norway.
I peeled off to walk about town on my own and do a bit of writing. After the parade, we got a soft ice cream - I was told I could have strawberry and chocolate, so asked for both - and what I got was vanilla soft-serve rolled in this weird strawberry candy and cocoa. It was very bizarre, but fun enough to try.
Carl Phillip hosted a board game party at his house, so we made our way back and he had made us all a lovely veggie soup for dinner, then right into socializing and games. I was a bit low on energy and did not make much effort to start conversation, so most of it was held in Norwegian, and I slid out of the scene after the first game (Elfenland), a long one since we were all working on the rules as we went. Despite my self-exclusion, it was a fun time and I was feeling everyone's good vibes, though I was disappointed we never got around to Twister :(
Saturday, meant to go for a full-day hike, but the weather did not cooperate, so we wandered town again and went to the Hanseatic museum at Bryggen. It was quite interesting - huge, sturdy wooden houses with high ceilings and very heavy door-latches built by German traders who set up office here in Bergen for hundreds of years, back in the day. We wound up doing a bit of shopping, which made EM quite happy. Among the treasures, she bought the game Carcassonne at this game shop that was having some kind of costume contest and giving away free comic books. I appreciated the Lara Croft look the most, perhaps, but the whole scene was lively and interesting. Groceries (oh god, the cost of food!) and home to make pizza for dinner. Yes! We read the rules to the game before crashing asleep on the table and giving up on the day.
Sunday and the morning weather was just fine, indeed. Over breakfast, we discussed this article, which Nick linked to me and I thought important to share with EM because we have a continuing theme about positivity in American culture vs. other nations (Norway, Russia, and Ireland, for instance): http://www.skeptic.com/eskeptic/09-04-15.html#feature
Another late start to the morning and we decided on a relatively short hike up Lovostakken (sp?) which is perhaps the prettiest little urban mountain ever. It was a very good hike with amazing views and a good sense of distance from the city below. We had fishcakes for lunch (special Norway diet exception) in the shelter of a friendly boulder. The cakes came form Sostren Agelene, sister restaurant to Madame Bergen, which are local institutions, but were bought by a large company some while back which has now found itself in a bit of a pickle and has announced it will close both. People are unhappy about this. After an adventurous descent, back to town for ice cream, proper gelato for me this time, and then home to rest, study, dance in the kitchen a bit and make pizza again, as it just struck our fancy. And was just delicious again. This time we got in a round of Carcassonne, and it was quite fun. Such a good day, such a lovely weekend. Mellow, melancholy, leave-tomorrow kind of mood to the evening, lightened for a moment by CP sharing a video of Michael Jackson-inspired dance performance for a high school talent show. Quite impressive. Hilarious. But impressive. Had to reprimand him for not busting out the dance a little more while I've been here.
Sharing time! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ofd-SzGweTo&feature=related
Friday. May Day. It is a proper holiday here, time off work, parades, flags everywhere. Ellen Marie wanted to walk in the local parade, which is as simple as finding a sign to get behind. We joined up as they were beginning after we had a walk in the very charming neighborhood of Nunez (sp?), which is probably very expensive, but then again, so is all of Norway.
I peeled off to walk about town on my own and do a bit of writing. After the parade, we got a soft ice cream - I was told I could have strawberry and chocolate, so asked for both - and what I got was vanilla soft-serve rolled in this weird strawberry candy and cocoa. It was very bizarre, but fun enough to try.
Carl Phillip hosted a board game party at his house, so we made our way back and he had made us all a lovely veggie soup for dinner, then right into socializing and games. I was a bit low on energy and did not make much effort to start conversation, so most of it was held in Norwegian, and I slid out of the scene after the first game (Elfenland), a long one since we were all working on the rules as we went. Despite my self-exclusion, it was a fun time and I was feeling everyone's good vibes, though I was disappointed we never got around to Twister :(
Saturday, meant to go for a full-day hike, but the weather did not cooperate, so we wandered town again and went to the Hanseatic museum at Bryggen. It was quite interesting - huge, sturdy wooden houses with high ceilings and very heavy door-latches built by German traders who set up office here in Bergen for hundreds of years, back in the day. We wound up doing a bit of shopping, which made EM quite happy. Among the treasures, she bought the game Carcassonne at this game shop that was having some kind of costume contest and giving away free comic books. I appreciated the Lara Croft look the most, perhaps, but the whole scene was lively and interesting. Groceries (oh god, the cost of food!) and home to make pizza for dinner. Yes! We read the rules to the game before crashing asleep on the table and giving up on the day.
Sunday and the morning weather was just fine, indeed. Over breakfast, we discussed this article, which Nick linked to me and I thought important to share with EM because we have a continuing theme about positivity in American culture vs. other nations (Norway, Russia, and Ireland, for instance): http://www.skeptic.com/eskeptic/09-04-15.html#feature
Another late start to the morning and we decided on a relatively short hike up Lovostakken (sp?) which is perhaps the prettiest little urban mountain ever. It was a very good hike with amazing views and a good sense of distance from the city below. We had fishcakes for lunch (special Norway diet exception) in the shelter of a friendly boulder. The cakes came form Sostren Agelene, sister restaurant to Madame Bergen, which are local institutions, but were bought by a large company some while back which has now found itself in a bit of a pickle and has announced it will close both. People are unhappy about this. After an adventurous descent, back to town for ice cream, proper gelato for me this time, and then home to rest, study, dance in the kitchen a bit and make pizza again, as it just struck our fancy. And was just delicious again. This time we got in a round of Carcassonne, and it was quite fun. Such a good day, such a lovely weekend. Mellow, melancholy, leave-tomorrow kind of mood to the evening, lightened for a moment by CP sharing a video of Michael Jackson-inspired dance performance for a high school talent show. Quite impressive. Hilarious. But impressive. Had to reprimand him for not busting out the dance a little more while I've been here.
Sharing time! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ofd-SzGweTo&feature=related
Saturday, May 2, 2009
I think I am going to buy myself a present...
I have considered one of these before:
http://www.rei.com/product/760622
But this might be the more useful option, actually:
http://www.rei.com/product/735317
http://www.rei.com/product/760622
But this might be the more useful option, actually:
http://www.rei.com/product/735317
Friday, May 1, 2009
Happy May Day
Friday night - EM is happy here, to be with CP and to be in Bergen generally, as am I. Feels relaxed and friendly. We were about a dozen or so for the CS meetup... and wound up at a little outdoor patio down on the harbor at Hanse Bryggen (sp?) which is the ancient city front for trade with everyone, but mostly Germans. Lots of conversation. I was better prepared for this than the Oslo meeting, being in a good mood, and happy with the smaller crowd.
Thursday morning, sleep in, lazy breakfast at home and then into the city center to dawdle in shops, waiting out the rain, on our way to climb Floyen. We took time to savour the view at the top, and came down to treat ourselves to really lovely pizza and pastry at the Godt Brod bakery, a local/organic type of place. Shop for ingredients and home to make sushi. Cuddles and lazing after dinner.
Folks came around after the futbol game - success and cause for celebration - and we got ready to go out salsa dancing. First, a quick tour of a very funky church by CP's friend Mariet, with a jillion little pathways and rooms tucked away in its corners. Then to Club Pacific where I was glad that they played a bit of reggaeton, not because I love it, but because it is easier for me to dance to than salsa - all freestyle like. It was good to dance! CP was a good, kind, patient lead, taking em through a few salsa rounds, and obliging when I insisted on merengue. Then, randomly, found myself freestyling with a hip-hop sort of dancer, which went well. He said something to me in Norwegian, but it was too loud to bother with all the 'huh?', so I just assumed it was kind and went on with my evening.
We left as it began to get too crowded around 2am, and on the streets the pre-May Day celebrations were in full swing. There is a tradition here where the students graduating high school, called Russ, dress in specially decorated red overalls and congregate in unruly masses and on May Day begin performing stupid human tricks and this all goes on for about a month or so... it's quite a scene. The other day I saw one of the special buses all get-upped for the occasion, like a disco on wheels. It's entertaining. Anyway, last night was a big night for them, and everyone else, really, since today (Friday) is a national holiday.
Home, surprisingly contained mess from the party we left here when we went out, leftover pasta with pesto for an early morning snack before bed. So far today - CP and I have been monopolizing the net all morning while EM has a very good sleep-in. It has been good to catch up on some articles and news I am interested in - like Japan's stimulus plan including a program to return young folks to farming.
It is about time to go hiking... and May Day festivities later this afternoon. Tonight there will be juggling and a board game party. And probably 3 other things I am forgetting. First, brunch.
Thursday morning, sleep in, lazy breakfast at home and then into the city center to dawdle in shops, waiting out the rain, on our way to climb Floyen. We took time to savour the view at the top, and came down to treat ourselves to really lovely pizza and pastry at the Godt Brod bakery, a local/organic type of place. Shop for ingredients and home to make sushi. Cuddles and lazing after dinner.
Folks came around after the futbol game - success and cause for celebration - and we got ready to go out salsa dancing. First, a quick tour of a very funky church by CP's friend Mariet, with a jillion little pathways and rooms tucked away in its corners. Then to Club Pacific where I was glad that they played a bit of reggaeton, not because I love it, but because it is easier for me to dance to than salsa - all freestyle like. It was good to dance! CP was a good, kind, patient lead, taking em through a few salsa rounds, and obliging when I insisted on merengue. Then, randomly, found myself freestyling with a hip-hop sort of dancer, which went well. He said something to me in Norwegian, but it was too loud to bother with all the 'huh?', so I just assumed it was kind and went on with my evening.
We left as it began to get too crowded around 2am, and on the streets the pre-May Day celebrations were in full swing. There is a tradition here where the students graduating high school, called Russ, dress in specially decorated red overalls and congregate in unruly masses and on May Day begin performing stupid human tricks and this all goes on for about a month or so... it's quite a scene. The other day I saw one of the special buses all get-upped for the occasion, like a disco on wheels. It's entertaining. Anyway, last night was a big night for them, and everyone else, really, since today (Friday) is a national holiday.
Home, surprisingly contained mess from the party we left here when we went out, leftover pasta with pesto for an early morning snack before bed. So far today - CP and I have been monopolizing the net all morning while EM has a very good sleep-in. It has been good to catch up on some articles and news I am interested in - like Japan's stimulus plan including a program to return young folks to farming.
It is about time to go hiking... and May Day festivities later this afternoon. Tonight there will be juggling and a board game party. And probably 3 other things I am forgetting. First, brunch.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Long overdue...
Weekend adventures
Friday morning, there was some sunshine so I got to it with the patio weeds for a bit, and then Beryl and I spent a bit of time babysitting the new goat, Liam, who really has some dependency issues. Then it was suddenly noon and Michael, the New Yorker couchsurfer, was in Ballina to pick me up for a drive north and an adventurous weekend. (This was all arranged rather at the last minute, but turned out. It should not surprise you much by now, I guess.) We drove rather quickly north, as though we had a pressing need to be someplace, and stopped for just long enough in the town of Donegal to grab a traditional marzipan and fruit cake layered easter cake at a little bakery and have a look at the shi-shi hotel. In fairness, we were meeting another Dublin-based couchsurfer in Derry that evening, and we got there in just about perfect time. From there up to Carndonaugh where we met up with our host, Ed, and his 4 housemates and a whole pile of other folks who were already beginning to assemble for a Good Friday party at about 7pm. (The Good Friday party is a distinctly Irish sort of phenomenon... Good Friday being one of the two days in the year during which one may not purchase alcohol in the Republic of Ireland, folks stock up and have private house parties and get especially wasted, just to make a point.)
This was all in good fun, though, and the party was silly – reminding me very much of KAOS parties back in NZ. Different, to be sure, but similar. The music was largely from the 80's – like all the popular fashion here, oi! - and I only got in a couple decent dances, but it was fun to hang back and watch the party unfold, with many impromptu performances by the household and guests. Lots of conversation, too. Finally exhausted to bed around 4am... to get up again at 7, being out-of-sorts with the traveling vibe and planning to clean up a bit before heading out to explore the Inishowen peninsula.
And what a peninsula! It was gorgeous :) I am eager to return to Co. Donegal to hike away a summer. Beautiful coastal vistas and hills and tucked-away enchanting little landscapes. We drove all day around to various points and heads. The company helped me to develop a deeper appreciation for my own good traveling friends, my companions for the weekend being... fine enough as folks, but, well I actually don't want to go into it, but I did struggle, in moments, to enjoy this amazing journey – sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you get something else entirely. I considered other options, but decided to stick it out and I think it turned out fine in the end, providing me a relatively comfortable and flexible opportunity to see a lot of Ireland and yet another handful of lessons about “myself and others”. Which sounds like a good title for a sitcom.
12 April - ish
So... while away from the net I failed to keep a very good daily record... so you'll be getting a condensed version of the last week or so.
From Belfast, where I stayed with Natalie, a lovely Australian girl who took me jogging with her and took extra time out of her free day to show me and several other couchsurfers (including a crew of French boys fresh off the bus from Dublin) around to the murals and notable neighborhoods of Belfast. It was excellent – a drink in the Crown Bar was definitely worth it, just to spend a few minutes inside, looking around. I had difficulties getting in touch with Isa, and at the last minute finally did – and was able to catch the last evening bus to Enniskillen, after trying to catch the one before and getting myself fully lost in Belfast city center, working my way out eventually, with a lot of unhelpful stops to request directions. Anyway – the bus ride was fine, and Isa picked me up at the station to bring me out to the countryside near Blacklion, which is not even on the map. Nevertheless, it is gorgeous out here. Monday night and I find myself on a little smallholding in County Cavan – the home of Isa, her boyfriend Andy, and her 3 kids; Siog, Oisin and Siaorse. And the goats, chickens, horses, cats, dogs.... etc. The weather was lovely all last weekend for traveling, and this week it will be touch and go, as it is, clear one day, rain the next.
We went to Sligo Tuesday for a day in town – errands and such. WWOOF work here has involved sawing wood, gathering ivy and willow, doing the chicken rounds, tending the goats a bit, an odd handful of gardening – weeding, always, planting potatoes and onions now - and washing a lot of dishes. It's a good mix. Isa has shared her art with me – which has been inspiring – and a lot of philosophy about life and fairies... some knowledge about herbs, and she has done several tarot readings for me. Which has all been interesting at least. I discovered tansy here, it is a highly aromatic herb meant to keep flies away. I like it plenty. Also, I discovered that gorse flowers smell something like coconut and vanilla, but taste rather like cucumber.
And ah the glorious sunny days of the weekend, complete with trips out and around the countryside to see the wells, the ancient sweat lodge and graveyard... the forest park, the lakes, the charming local pub(s). Saturday was a party for Siog's 10th birthday – so we went out to Boyle Forest Park (Lough key) for a little party. Picnic in the park and a walk while the kids went into the activity center whwere they have obstacle puzzles set up. Looked like fun. It was good to interact with some other adults... I felt inspired and sociable... this week I had been feeling reserved and quiet and wondering a little what happened between the motivation to come do this thing and being here, in a perpetually subdued condition. I know I am getting something out of all this, but 'what' is not always apparent from day to day. I haven't been swimming since DC. Maybe that has something to do with it.
Following Tuesday morning, up early (god, I never got enough sleep this week and was seriously collapsing by the time I got to bed each night) and off to Sligo to catch the bus to Ballina. On the way: kids to school, eggs to Bee and the cat to the vet to have the metal pin removed from his leg (he is recovering from a forklift accident.) Drowsy on the bus but couldn't stand to miss the view under the extraordinary sunlight today, so kept awake and trekked it from the Sligo road back down to Beryl's – where her taxi met me along the road just as I was about ready for a rest- perfect timing. Straight into the garden with us. So satisfying to be working outside in this weather!
The weather, oh god the weather! Ballina is so much more pleasant under this light.
Feeling that old motivation come 'round to tug me along to be more productive, in some abstract way I never have quite defined.
22 April
Last minute and I hear from Dawn (the French one) in Ballina about a trip to Galway for a couchsurfing meetup at Quay's Pub. It was a quick turnaround, less than 24 hours really at Beryl's, and I thought about staying just to have enough time to get some work done in return for her hospitality, but she encouraged me to go, and I really thought it would be a good chance to see this other bit of the island. It turned out to be an excellent night!
Dawn drove, and we had good conversation and new countryside to view the whole afternoon. (She had to wait for me a bit because there was this little washing fiasco... I tried to plan for enough time for everything to line dry – but I was surprised when the wash took 3 hours... something funny about these little front-loader machines. Then it began to cloud over and rain a bit, so I was draping things over radiators and still packed it damp. Argh. These little details of life get exhausting. But I guess we can get used to anything, given enough time and resolution.)
We had dinner at Fat Freddie's – where I had a really nice salad – with her friend Marie, also from France, with a much more Irish sounding accent, and with whom we would stay for the night. Then next door to the pub to meet up with about a dozen other folks. A lovely time, complete with live music – lots of rock covers, but played quite well. Chair dancing ensued. I have been desperate to hear 'Float On' for days and frustrated I did not bring it with me - and they played it, all unexpectedly. That was a standing dance.
I left the evening with a tourist guide for the Czech Republic, and I'm thinking 'go with the flow (?)'.... It was an unexpected and welcome gift.
23 April
On a train leaving Galway for Dublin and no plan for what I will do for the night because I never did get in touch with my friends there about this quick trip through, carrying everything with me and hoping to leave most of it with someone in Dublin rather than take it all to Norway, which costs a load via RyanAir, and which would also be generally a burden.
Galway is a lovely, interesting city that I bet would suit me, for a while at least. Wish I had more time to spend, but at least the weather obliged with sun and comfort for walking about today.
I'm glad I wound up, by luck alone, with a seat at a table on this train; it is packed. I found out that I could have had a bus for 5Euro, and the train was 15... point being: it is nice to see cheap public transit options. (There are 3 teenage girls sitting in this vicinity, all 80's get-up, making quite a fuss of putting on their makeup between invections of gossip.)
So, with all this unexpected time away from the net and running about, I failed to plan my trip to Norway via Dublin tonight and I am very last-minute frantically trying to piece it together. But suddenly got a text from a friend of a friend of Ellen Marie who will take me in for the night :) I could always grab a hostel, but it is so much more satisfying to spend the evening weaving the network, one degree or six at a time. Ah, if it keeps always coming together so nicely, what will ever encourage me to plan things better?
On this trip, the landscape is relatively flat... different – another glad opportunity with a new vista. (Athlone looks like a cute little place worth checking out. At least from the train it does.)
Ah... getting attacked by the train sleepies now, and suddenly it is a different world. So interesting, how quickly we can seem to leave one thing behind... whether or not it is truly left behind is another psychological endeavor entirely. And these are the sorts of musings you get from a drowsy Laura.
In Dublin, exercise for my shoulders, walk in the drizzle a few km, trail a tipsy crowd of women who are walking too slow for my taste, but not slow enough to justify passing on the narrow path with this wide load – they turn out to be all visiting together from Norway, and are delighted when I mention I am going tomorrow, stop in to Avoca for a scone, then to Trinity College to meet Jess (in a master's program in literature), Rachel (EM's friend from undergrad), and a number of their friends for dinner at Mona Lisa (not recommended, though they were accommodating to our requests and the gigantic backpack I dragged in) before heading out to Jess' student apartment to crash.
Friday 24 April
Whew! Morning meant packing down in to a tiny backpack I could carry-on so as to avoid the RyanAir 30 Euro checked-bag fee, (almost got stuck with a 20Euro fee because I was 5 minutes late for the online check-in, but somehow by a twist of fate at the airport, I escaped that one, and was almost stopped at the gate because I actually had a small bag strapped to the outside of me backpack, but the guy was obviously stressed and could not hold up the line to fuss with me and my little bag), bus to City Center from jess's place, another bus to the airport form there, and I was finally in the air. Made it to Oslo... after finding myself in a tiny airport in Torp through which it took ages to get though passport control lines and then find some cash to be on my way by bus to Oslo. Chatted with a lovely woman on the bus the whole way – 90 minutes or so – and Ellen Marie was waiting patiently for me at the station. Late night by then, and a full day.
Saturday 25 April
EM's brother invited us out to Drammen, about 25 minutes on the train from Oslo center, to visit with him and his son and daughter while the son was taking part in the St. George's Day festivities for scouts... and we all got to participate! They had scores of booths and activities set up for the scouts to hone their skills – I sampled coffee and lefse and campfire-cooked popcorn and bread. (Some of these ideas were excellent! Like the bread dough wrapped on a stick and cooked over coals. Seriously.)
Home, exhausted, in the afternoon (after a stop to get contact lens solution, which I managed to spend $18 on – maybe should have paid RyanAir that 30Euro to check a bag after all and brought illicit eye-hygiene supplies for resale... phew) and green veggie curry for dinner. We were invited to a birthday party for a friend of EM and we were late, but it was going strong the whole time. Delicious carrot cake and fruit-muffiny cupcakes. And weird little smoke-flavor orange-colored pasta-shaped crisps. And lots of people talking in Norwegian... unless they wanted to include me in the conversation, which was often enough. No dancing though. :(
Sunday 26 April
Supposedly there was a big cultural festival at the roof of the new opera house in Oslo, so we went down to check it out, but it turned out that there was only a remainder of the festival that was on yesterday. But we did get to sit in on a rehearsal happening on a ship which involved a female British conductor, an orchestra of mid-age Norwegians and a battery of teenage mixed-ethnicity drummers. It was pretty good stuff. Outside the rehearsal area, we had some damn good fried spring rolls while we listened to the DJ's choice of reggae.
Walked out and around the old city fortress, around into city center where we treated ourselves to ice cream, then found our way home in time for dinner – salad and rice porridge. Yum. Watched a little documentary about an American woman who came from a wealthy East coast family and settled in a remote area in Norway to homestead and learn traditional crafts and generally be self-sufficient. Took it easy in the evening, early to bed with work looming tomorrow. I finally began to catch up on... everything, but slowly.
Monday 27 April
After getting up to have cappuccino with EM, she went off to work and I got to it with my application for the Christine Mirzayan Science Policy Fellowship with the National Academies of Science. I struggled with that all day until it was time to make a bite of dinner before EM came home – then we took the train about 25 minutes out to the end of the line and were in the mountains, forest, compelte with ski and hiking trails with a fair bit of snow still on the ground. We started walking around 7 pom and it was nice that the twilight lingered until about 10:30 because we needed every last bit of it to get to the end of our trail, where we just missed the waiting train by half an arm's length.. But the next came after 30 minutes and we arrived home pleasantly exhausted.
Tuesday 28 April
EM likes to make cappuccino in the morning and I don't mind the little ritual myself. Still struggling with the sleepies... but I am glad to be up in the morning – I need to get to bed a bit earlier.
Finished the fellowship application, went walking to celebratre. Got some fancy seeeded sourdough bread and then to Asylet to attend the Oslo monthly couchsurfer meeting. Luck, again, that I happened to be here for the event. It started early, 6pm, with a small group of 3, 6, 10.... and by the time I left at 9:30, there were certainly 50 or more. It was nice, lots of conversation, many languages – I used my teensy bit of Norwegian, just for fun, as well as Russian, Spanish and some Farsi. Again, new people and new conversation was all good – no dancing, yet again. We left a bit early because we were starving. I had a little waffel there, but it was not so great. I cooked \up a bit of random-leftover veggie curry for a late dinner and we packed up and crashed.
29 April
On a train to Bergen, 8am. And I say 'helloooooo Norway!' Spectacular. Plunging slopes carpeted in forest, glassy fjords and wild, rushing rivers. Sweet little farms with white houses and red barns. Patches and splashes of different greens, greys, black, blue... so much grandeur. Really, spectacular.
EM made coffee again for our morning, and oatmeal. Snack of crispbread with salty crunchy peanut butter and apple jam. Uytz! (That's the first time I have tried transliterating that little thing I like to say... I don't know if it works, but experimentation begets innovation.) I am enjoying being with her, just happy to share and catch up and feel more at-home.
Tonight I will meet her charming boyfriend, CP, who has promised to take me dancing and hiking.
Friday morning, there was some sunshine so I got to it with the patio weeds for a bit, and then Beryl and I spent a bit of time babysitting the new goat, Liam, who really has some dependency issues. Then it was suddenly noon and Michael, the New Yorker couchsurfer, was in Ballina to pick me up for a drive north and an adventurous weekend. (This was all arranged rather at the last minute, but turned out. It should not surprise you much by now, I guess.) We drove rather quickly north, as though we had a pressing need to be someplace, and stopped for just long enough in the town of Donegal to grab a traditional marzipan and fruit cake layered easter cake at a little bakery and have a look at the shi-shi hotel. In fairness, we were meeting another Dublin-based couchsurfer in Derry that evening, and we got there in just about perfect time. From there up to Carndonaugh where we met up with our host, Ed, and his 4 housemates and a whole pile of other folks who were already beginning to assemble for a Good Friday party at about 7pm. (The Good Friday party is a distinctly Irish sort of phenomenon... Good Friday being one of the two days in the year during which one may not purchase alcohol in the Republic of Ireland, folks stock up and have private house parties and get especially wasted, just to make a point.)
This was all in good fun, though, and the party was silly – reminding me very much of KAOS parties back in NZ. Different, to be sure, but similar. The music was largely from the 80's – like all the popular fashion here, oi! - and I only got in a couple decent dances, but it was fun to hang back and watch the party unfold, with many impromptu performances by the household and guests. Lots of conversation, too. Finally exhausted to bed around 4am... to get up again at 7, being out-of-sorts with the traveling vibe and planning to clean up a bit before heading out to explore the Inishowen peninsula.
And what a peninsula! It was gorgeous :) I am eager to return to Co. Donegal to hike away a summer. Beautiful coastal vistas and hills and tucked-away enchanting little landscapes. We drove all day around to various points and heads. The company helped me to develop a deeper appreciation for my own good traveling friends, my companions for the weekend being... fine enough as folks, but, well I actually don't want to go into it, but I did struggle, in moments, to enjoy this amazing journey – sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you get something else entirely. I considered other options, but decided to stick it out and I think it turned out fine in the end, providing me a relatively comfortable and flexible opportunity to see a lot of Ireland and yet another handful of lessons about “myself and others”. Which sounds like a good title for a sitcom.
12 April - ish
So... while away from the net I failed to keep a very good daily record... so you'll be getting a condensed version of the last week or so.
From Belfast, where I stayed with Natalie, a lovely Australian girl who took me jogging with her and took extra time out of her free day to show me and several other couchsurfers (including a crew of French boys fresh off the bus from Dublin) around to the murals and notable neighborhoods of Belfast. It was excellent – a drink in the Crown Bar was definitely worth it, just to spend a few minutes inside, looking around. I had difficulties getting in touch with Isa, and at the last minute finally did – and was able to catch the last evening bus to Enniskillen, after trying to catch the one before and getting myself fully lost in Belfast city center, working my way out eventually, with a lot of unhelpful stops to request directions. Anyway – the bus ride was fine, and Isa picked me up at the station to bring me out to the countryside near Blacklion, which is not even on the map. Nevertheless, it is gorgeous out here. Monday night and I find myself on a little smallholding in County Cavan – the home of Isa, her boyfriend Andy, and her 3 kids; Siog, Oisin and Siaorse. And the goats, chickens, horses, cats, dogs.... etc. The weather was lovely all last weekend for traveling, and this week it will be touch and go, as it is, clear one day, rain the next.
We went to Sligo Tuesday for a day in town – errands and such. WWOOF work here has involved sawing wood, gathering ivy and willow, doing the chicken rounds, tending the goats a bit, an odd handful of gardening – weeding, always, planting potatoes and onions now - and washing a lot of dishes. It's a good mix. Isa has shared her art with me – which has been inspiring – and a lot of philosophy about life and fairies... some knowledge about herbs, and she has done several tarot readings for me. Which has all been interesting at least. I discovered tansy here, it is a highly aromatic herb meant to keep flies away. I like it plenty. Also, I discovered that gorse flowers smell something like coconut and vanilla, but taste rather like cucumber.
And ah the glorious sunny days of the weekend, complete with trips out and around the countryside to see the wells, the ancient sweat lodge and graveyard... the forest park, the lakes, the charming local pub(s). Saturday was a party for Siog's 10th birthday – so we went out to Boyle Forest Park (Lough key) for a little party. Picnic in the park and a walk while the kids went into the activity center whwere they have obstacle puzzles set up. Looked like fun. It was good to interact with some other adults... I felt inspired and sociable... this week I had been feeling reserved and quiet and wondering a little what happened between the motivation to come do this thing and being here, in a perpetually subdued condition. I know I am getting something out of all this, but 'what' is not always apparent from day to day. I haven't been swimming since DC. Maybe that has something to do with it.
Following Tuesday morning, up early (god, I never got enough sleep this week and was seriously collapsing by the time I got to bed each night) and off to Sligo to catch the bus to Ballina. On the way: kids to school, eggs to Bee and the cat to the vet to have the metal pin removed from his leg (he is recovering from a forklift accident.) Drowsy on the bus but couldn't stand to miss the view under the extraordinary sunlight today, so kept awake and trekked it from the Sligo road back down to Beryl's – where her taxi met me along the road just as I was about ready for a rest- perfect timing. Straight into the garden with us. So satisfying to be working outside in this weather!
The weather, oh god the weather! Ballina is so much more pleasant under this light.
Feeling that old motivation come 'round to tug me along to be more productive, in some abstract way I never have quite defined.
22 April
Last minute and I hear from Dawn (the French one) in Ballina about a trip to Galway for a couchsurfing meetup at Quay's Pub. It was a quick turnaround, less than 24 hours really at Beryl's, and I thought about staying just to have enough time to get some work done in return for her hospitality, but she encouraged me to go, and I really thought it would be a good chance to see this other bit of the island. It turned out to be an excellent night!
Dawn drove, and we had good conversation and new countryside to view the whole afternoon. (She had to wait for me a bit because there was this little washing fiasco... I tried to plan for enough time for everything to line dry – but I was surprised when the wash took 3 hours... something funny about these little front-loader machines. Then it began to cloud over and rain a bit, so I was draping things over radiators and still packed it damp. Argh. These little details of life get exhausting. But I guess we can get used to anything, given enough time and resolution.)
We had dinner at Fat Freddie's – where I had a really nice salad – with her friend Marie, also from France, with a much more Irish sounding accent, and with whom we would stay for the night. Then next door to the pub to meet up with about a dozen other folks. A lovely time, complete with live music – lots of rock covers, but played quite well. Chair dancing ensued. I have been desperate to hear 'Float On' for days and frustrated I did not bring it with me - and they played it, all unexpectedly. That was a standing dance.
I left the evening with a tourist guide for the Czech Republic, and I'm thinking 'go with the flow (?)'.... It was an unexpected and welcome gift.
23 April
On a train leaving Galway for Dublin and no plan for what I will do for the night because I never did get in touch with my friends there about this quick trip through, carrying everything with me and hoping to leave most of it with someone in Dublin rather than take it all to Norway, which costs a load via RyanAir, and which would also be generally a burden.
Galway is a lovely, interesting city that I bet would suit me, for a while at least. Wish I had more time to spend, but at least the weather obliged with sun and comfort for walking about today.
I'm glad I wound up, by luck alone, with a seat at a table on this train; it is packed. I found out that I could have had a bus for 5Euro, and the train was 15... point being: it is nice to see cheap public transit options. (There are 3 teenage girls sitting in this vicinity, all 80's get-up, making quite a fuss of putting on their makeup between invections of gossip.)
So, with all this unexpected time away from the net and running about, I failed to plan my trip to Norway via Dublin tonight and I am very last-minute frantically trying to piece it together. But suddenly got a text from a friend of a friend of Ellen Marie who will take me in for the night :) I could always grab a hostel, but it is so much more satisfying to spend the evening weaving the network, one degree or six at a time. Ah, if it keeps always coming together so nicely, what will ever encourage me to plan things better?
On this trip, the landscape is relatively flat... different – another glad opportunity with a new vista. (Athlone looks like a cute little place worth checking out. At least from the train it does.)
Ah... getting attacked by the train sleepies now, and suddenly it is a different world. So interesting, how quickly we can seem to leave one thing behind... whether or not it is truly left behind is another psychological endeavor entirely. And these are the sorts of musings you get from a drowsy Laura.
In Dublin, exercise for my shoulders, walk in the drizzle a few km, trail a tipsy crowd of women who are walking too slow for my taste, but not slow enough to justify passing on the narrow path with this wide load – they turn out to be all visiting together from Norway, and are delighted when I mention I am going tomorrow, stop in to Avoca for a scone, then to Trinity College to meet Jess (in a master's program in literature), Rachel (EM's friend from undergrad), and a number of their friends for dinner at Mona Lisa (not recommended, though they were accommodating to our requests and the gigantic backpack I dragged in) before heading out to Jess' student apartment to crash.
Friday 24 April
Whew! Morning meant packing down in to a tiny backpack I could carry-on so as to avoid the RyanAir 30 Euro checked-bag fee, (almost got stuck with a 20Euro fee because I was 5 minutes late for the online check-in, but somehow by a twist of fate at the airport, I escaped that one, and was almost stopped at the gate because I actually had a small bag strapped to the outside of me backpack, but the guy was obviously stressed and could not hold up the line to fuss with me and my little bag), bus to City Center from jess's place, another bus to the airport form there, and I was finally in the air. Made it to Oslo... after finding myself in a tiny airport in Torp through which it took ages to get though passport control lines and then find some cash to be on my way by bus to Oslo. Chatted with a lovely woman on the bus the whole way – 90 minutes or so – and Ellen Marie was waiting patiently for me at the station. Late night by then, and a full day.
Saturday 25 April
EM's brother invited us out to Drammen, about 25 minutes on the train from Oslo center, to visit with him and his son and daughter while the son was taking part in the St. George's Day festivities for scouts... and we all got to participate! They had scores of booths and activities set up for the scouts to hone their skills – I sampled coffee and lefse and campfire-cooked popcorn and bread. (Some of these ideas were excellent! Like the bread dough wrapped on a stick and cooked over coals. Seriously.)
Home, exhausted, in the afternoon (after a stop to get contact lens solution, which I managed to spend $18 on – maybe should have paid RyanAir that 30Euro to check a bag after all and brought illicit eye-hygiene supplies for resale... phew) and green veggie curry for dinner. We were invited to a birthday party for a friend of EM and we were late, but it was going strong the whole time. Delicious carrot cake and fruit-muffiny cupcakes. And weird little smoke-flavor orange-colored pasta-shaped crisps. And lots of people talking in Norwegian... unless they wanted to include me in the conversation, which was often enough. No dancing though. :(
Sunday 26 April
Supposedly there was a big cultural festival at the roof of the new opera house in Oslo, so we went down to check it out, but it turned out that there was only a remainder of the festival that was on yesterday. But we did get to sit in on a rehearsal happening on a ship which involved a female British conductor, an orchestra of mid-age Norwegians and a battery of teenage mixed-ethnicity drummers. It was pretty good stuff. Outside the rehearsal area, we had some damn good fried spring rolls while we listened to the DJ's choice of reggae.
Walked out and around the old city fortress, around into city center where we treated ourselves to ice cream, then found our way home in time for dinner – salad and rice porridge. Yum. Watched a little documentary about an American woman who came from a wealthy East coast family and settled in a remote area in Norway to homestead and learn traditional crafts and generally be self-sufficient. Took it easy in the evening, early to bed with work looming tomorrow. I finally began to catch up on... everything, but slowly.
Monday 27 April
After getting up to have cappuccino with EM, she went off to work and I got to it with my application for the Christine Mirzayan Science Policy Fellowship with the National Academies of Science. I struggled with that all day until it was time to make a bite of dinner before EM came home – then we took the train about 25 minutes out to the end of the line and were in the mountains, forest, compelte with ski and hiking trails with a fair bit of snow still on the ground. We started walking around 7 pom and it was nice that the twilight lingered until about 10:30 because we needed every last bit of it to get to the end of our trail, where we just missed the waiting train by half an arm's length.. But the next came after 30 minutes and we arrived home pleasantly exhausted.
Tuesday 28 April
EM likes to make cappuccino in the morning and I don't mind the little ritual myself. Still struggling with the sleepies... but I am glad to be up in the morning – I need to get to bed a bit earlier.
Finished the fellowship application, went walking to celebratre. Got some fancy seeeded sourdough bread and then to Asylet to attend the Oslo monthly couchsurfer meeting. Luck, again, that I happened to be here for the event. It started early, 6pm, with a small group of 3, 6, 10.... and by the time I left at 9:30, there were certainly 50 or more. It was nice, lots of conversation, many languages – I used my teensy bit of Norwegian, just for fun, as well as Russian, Spanish and some Farsi. Again, new people and new conversation was all good – no dancing, yet again. We left a bit early because we were starving. I had a little waffel there, but it was not so great. I cooked \up a bit of random-leftover veggie curry for a late dinner and we packed up and crashed.
29 April
On a train to Bergen, 8am. And I say 'helloooooo Norway!' Spectacular. Plunging slopes carpeted in forest, glassy fjords and wild, rushing rivers. Sweet little farms with white houses and red barns. Patches and splashes of different greens, greys, black, blue... so much grandeur. Really, spectacular.
EM made coffee again for our morning, and oatmeal. Snack of crispbread with salty crunchy peanut butter and apple jam. Uytz! (That's the first time I have tried transliterating that little thing I like to say... I don't know if it works, but experimentation begets innovation.) I am enjoying being with her, just happy to share and catch up and feel more at-home.
Tonight I will meet her charming boyfriend, CP, who has promised to take me dancing and hiking.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Away, away
I am on internet hiatus for a bit. Another week or so and I will have a chance to catch up. Until then, if you want to send me anything while I am here, I will receive things that arrive before May 11th care of:
EM Winther
Enerhaugplassen 4a
N-0650 Oslo
Norway
And that's all for now.
EM Winther
Enerhaugplassen 4a
N-0650 Oslo
Norway
And that's all for now.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Wednesday, 08 April: Glory Hallelujah
Success!
It looked like it would be a nasty day, and then a little blue began to show through - and after a few piddly showers made their way across the sky, it opened up in full, sunny majesty. I was elated! And so productive! There are 6 rows ready for potatoes and a new row of daffodils on the ridge.
Afternoon - I walked into town and, after many thanks to Jay and Josh for their help, was able to get a Vodafone sim card and I am all set to communicate - ah, it was missing, indeed.
So, if you need me: (Ireland country code is 00+353) 087-918-5253
That was a major highlight of my day. Met Beryl and we went for coffee - she figured we would have better luck at a place called Mocha Beans. I chanced an espresso and it was not so awful. More discussion of culture, politics, etc. We have lots of good talks, Beryl and I :)
Home again and out to walk in the fields and sit in the sun. A couple of the neighbors' calves were out on the path, clearing the roadside grass, and all the farmyard creatures were feelin' good. The pony was especially inquisitive and frisky today and tried to eat my elbow while I was enjoying the view. The eager puppy was around again, and a strange neighbor cat that chased Zazu in turns. I decided to do some more weeding of the paved lot around back and fantasized about having weekly dances there, with live music and wonderful food and all sorts of revelry. I mixed it up with dancing, myself, in the setting sunlight. The moon came up early and full and glorious behind the trees which are just budding out. So the day ends very full of promise. Well... the promise that all is transient, because of course now the moon is sheltered behind the drizzling clouds again :)
It looked like it would be a nasty day, and then a little blue began to show through - and after a few piddly showers made their way across the sky, it opened up in full, sunny majesty. I was elated! And so productive! There are 6 rows ready for potatoes and a new row of daffodils on the ridge.
Afternoon - I walked into town and, after many thanks to Jay and Josh for their help, was able to get a Vodafone sim card and I am all set to communicate - ah, it was missing, indeed.
So, if you need me: (Ireland country code is 00+353) 087-918-5253
That was a major highlight of my day. Met Beryl and we went for coffee - she figured we would have better luck at a place called Mocha Beans. I chanced an espresso and it was not so awful. More discussion of culture, politics, etc. We have lots of good talks, Beryl and I :)
Home again and out to walk in the fields and sit in the sun. A couple of the neighbors' calves were out on the path, clearing the roadside grass, and all the farmyard creatures were feelin' good. The pony was especially inquisitive and frisky today and tried to eat my elbow while I was enjoying the view. The eager puppy was around again, and a strange neighbor cat that chased Zazu in turns. I decided to do some more weeding of the paved lot around back and fantasized about having weekly dances there, with live music and wonderful food and all sorts of revelry. I mixed it up with dancing, myself, in the setting sunlight. The moon came up early and full and glorious behind the trees which are just budding out. So the day ends very full of promise. Well... the promise that all is transient, because of course now the moon is sheltered behind the drizzling clouds again :)
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Tuesday, 07 April: To Turlaugh
Cold, wet, miserable day. Gladly, we had planned a trip to the Museum of Country Life, out near the tiny townlet of Turlaugh. We got a bus form Ballina and in less than 30 minutes were at a lovely estate where they have constructed a rather nice little museum dedicated to, ta-da, country life in Ireland. Which did not change much until pretty recently, apparently. And was always pretty rough.
Schedules here are all written in military time, and due to a little misinterpretation of the bus departure time, we had an extra hour to while after we left the museum. We waited in the rain and hung out in a little express stop shop - the only thing in Turlaugh aside from newly built little miniaturized suburban estates. I got some marzipan. It is exceptionally cheap in Europe compared with the US, which I do not understand at all, but am always happy to remember when I am in Europe.
I noticed a paucity of art in the lives of common Ireland... there is some art in the textiles and of course music, dance, story-telling... but in terms of visual art, symbolic motifs, etc. I tend to associate certain motifs with Ireland - celtic art... but all that is something esoteric, carried out by ancient monks and not much to do with anyone's everyday life. Everyday life was always just about managing through the poverty. This was my thought theme for the afternoon.
Home again in the evening and I got in a mood to find out about some tango. There are quite a few groups in Ireland dancing tango - but none near here and all the workshops and festivals are in the wrong time/place combo for me. Alas. Might be Nora's Tango Week in the SF bay area for me in July if I can't get the bug out - I miss it desperately. Tango demands desperation, after all :)
Schedules here are all written in military time, and due to a little misinterpretation of the bus departure time, we had an extra hour to while after we left the museum. We waited in the rain and hung out in a little express stop shop - the only thing in Turlaugh aside from newly built little miniaturized suburban estates. I got some marzipan. It is exceptionally cheap in Europe compared with the US, which I do not understand at all, but am always happy to remember when I am in Europe.
I noticed a paucity of art in the lives of common Ireland... there is some art in the textiles and of course music, dance, story-telling... but in terms of visual art, symbolic motifs, etc. I tend to associate certain motifs with Ireland - celtic art... but all that is something esoteric, carried out by ancient monks and not much to do with anyone's everyday life. Everyday life was always just about managing through the poverty. This was my thought theme for the afternoon.
Home again in the evening and I got in a mood to find out about some tango. There are quite a few groups in Ireland dancing tango - but none near here and all the workshops and festivals are in the wrong time/place combo for me. Alas. Might be Nora's Tango Week in the SF bay area for me in July if I can't get the bug out - I miss it desperately. Tango demands desperation, after all :)
Monday, 06 April 2009: Good, hard work!
Ah... it feels good! I got on a roll today clearing up a section of the massive concrete portion of the farm yard. It was so satisfying! Partly because they had predicted lots of nasty rain all week and it turned out to only be windy with scattered bits of rain and I got to spend the whole day outside. Well, except when we came in to plant massive tons of seeds in little pots that we secured in little plastic baggie greenhouses... which was also fun. But I love to have things tidy, you know, and it feels better to look out the kitchen window now.
Beryl made some mighty fine popcorn as an evening treat, and the ubiquitous television brought us fascinating stories of intrigue and unrest while I casted about the net for more more more information, and generally socialized. I am feeling much more myself the last several days, energetic and curious and enthusiastic, after a little down-turn when I first arrived.
Founding Farmers is an excellent little restaurant in DC and they are planning a second location and looking for investors... so I learned about what it takes for a person to be considered and 'accredited investor'. It's not me. But I have been thinking of business models a lot lately, and I get these urges, you know. Well, it is nothing new, I have had a couple business schools on my list of possibilities for years.
Today I was invited by a friend of Beryl's form the Organic Centre to help at her 30-acre farm. I was just planning to stay here until I go to Norway, but it is a new spot and sounds like bustling family and they could really use some help with the goats and horses and it all sounds like too much fun to pass up - so I will be heading out to Co. Cavan come the weekend. Or perhaps after meeting up with some CSers for a god romp around the North.
Beryl made some mighty fine popcorn as an evening treat, and the ubiquitous television brought us fascinating stories of intrigue and unrest while I casted about the net for more more more information, and generally socialized. I am feeling much more myself the last several days, energetic and curious and enthusiastic, after a little down-turn when I first arrived.
Founding Farmers is an excellent little restaurant in DC and they are planning a second location and looking for investors... so I learned about what it takes for a person to be considered and 'accredited investor'. It's not me. But I have been thinking of business models a lot lately, and I get these urges, you know. Well, it is nothing new, I have had a couple business schools on my list of possibilities for years.
Today I was invited by a friend of Beryl's form the Organic Centre to help at her 30-acre farm. I was just planning to stay here until I go to Norway, but it is a new spot and sounds like bustling family and they could really use some help with the goats and horses and it all sounds like too much fun to pass up - so I will be heading out to Co. Cavan come the weekend. Or perhaps after meeting up with some CSers for a god romp around the North.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Sunday, 05 April: Communications...
Although it was a lovely day - as in, it is relatively dry (nevermind the cold and gushing wind and prevalence of ominous clouds) - I did not go out! I have been speaking with family and friends and generally trying to sort out communications... I think I will be setting up international roaming on my phone so you will then be able to call me at domestic rates and I will be able to call out at about $1 a minute. Not cheap, but cheaper than buying a phone here and I definitely am going to need to have one. I want to meet up with some other travelers and couchsurfers and it is altogether too challenging without a mobile phone. I realized the part in Norway could be tricky since I have to take a bus from the airport that Ryanair serves to meet Ellen Marie in Oslo. I'll feel much more confident with a functional phone.
So - it has been an internet day. But I had a great view of the wind across the fields and through the trees! And I didn't mind being inside on this 'lovely day'. Plus - I had an inspiring talk with Jay this morning and it lifted my mood about the DC fellowship this Fall, and I decided to go ahead with the application. The acceptance rate is about 10% and not based solely on merit, but has a lot to do with the match of current projects to applicants, and there is no way to know what projects will be available, so anyway, just saying it may still not happen, but I am definitely applying. Half done with the app already! Should finish tomorrow... The weather forecast suggests an awful lot of rain might be coming through next week.
Beryl and I made nettle soup and it was delicious! It was nice to cook together. Getting re-oriented to my self today... after the dizzying effect of sudden displacement/replacement/misplacement that travel can have. It was weird to open my work email account and suddenly have all this political news and activity to sift... even though it has not been long at all since it was a standard part of my daily life. But I love the rediscovery of the self/core/whatever that reveals itself when the settling occurs. It's awesome.
So - it has been an internet day. But I had a great view of the wind across the fields and through the trees! And I didn't mind being inside on this 'lovely day'. Plus - I had an inspiring talk with Jay this morning and it lifted my mood about the DC fellowship this Fall, and I decided to go ahead with the application. The acceptance rate is about 10% and not based solely on merit, but has a lot to do with the match of current projects to applicants, and there is no way to know what projects will be available, so anyway, just saying it may still not happen, but I am definitely applying. Half done with the app already! Should finish tomorrow... The weather forecast suggests an awful lot of rain might be coming through next week.
Beryl and I made nettle soup and it was delicious! It was nice to cook together. Getting re-oriented to my self today... after the dizzying effect of sudden displacement/replacement/misplacement that travel can have. It was weird to open my work email account and suddenly have all this political news and activity to sift... even though it has not been long at all since it was a standard part of my daily life. But I love the rediscovery of the self/core/whatever that reveals itself when the settling occurs. It's awesome.
Saturday, 04 April: To Market
Up early to set up for the ever-so-quaint Ballina Farmer's Market. There are about 10 producers supplying the market, and plenty of diversity of selection: produce, meat (terrestrial and oceanic), cheeses, baked goods...
Not busy enough, however, for me to be much help, so I went exploring town on my own. Got into the couple thrift stores (charity shops) and appreciated all the fashionable clothing (no, really!). Picked up a couple books (the Irish make fine authors) and a funny Irish trivia game called 'Gaelic Conquest'. I want to send it to my brother, but I don't know if he would appreciate it or find it frustrating, because who really does want to know all that much about Irish history?
Spent time nursing a sad little 'mocha' at a nice cafe where they were playing some classic rock/pop that made me want to dance. (It was just a weak mocha... I don't think they do a whole lot of coffee here, probably should have asked for tea. Also, soymilk is not a standard alternative; there is typically no alternative - whole or 2%).
Spent a while in the fine, sunny afternoon talking with other producers at the market, which was interesting. Weeds in the afternoon and a tepid bath (I had no left the 'immersion' - water heater - on long enough. Details, my friends. It is the details of daily life we take for granted. Partly it is the different country, and partly it is just being in the countryside... but these are interesting little things that really influence how people think and approach the world which we never really consider. Fascinating, all of it!)
Spent lots of time talking with Beryl about food, farming, science, culture - all the usual topics.
The puppy from up the road came around wanting to play and ran off with my shoe, but brought it back and was glad to join me for a walk. He's an eager one - a hunting dog of some lovely breed.
Not busy enough, however, for me to be much help, so I went exploring town on my own. Got into the couple thrift stores (charity shops) and appreciated all the fashionable clothing (no, really!). Picked up a couple books (the Irish make fine authors) and a funny Irish trivia game called 'Gaelic Conquest'. I want to send it to my brother, but I don't know if he would appreciate it or find it frustrating, because who really does want to know all that much about Irish history?
Spent time nursing a sad little 'mocha' at a nice cafe where they were playing some classic rock/pop that made me want to dance. (It was just a weak mocha... I don't think they do a whole lot of coffee here, probably should have asked for tea. Also, soymilk is not a standard alternative; there is typically no alternative - whole or 2%).
Spent a while in the fine, sunny afternoon talking with other producers at the market, which was interesting. Weeds in the afternoon and a tepid bath (I had no left the 'immersion' - water heater - on long enough. Details, my friends. It is the details of daily life we take for granted. Partly it is the different country, and partly it is just being in the countryside... but these are interesting little things that really influence how people think and approach the world which we never really consider. Fascinating, all of it!)
Spent lots of time talking with Beryl about food, farming, science, culture - all the usual topics.
The puppy from up the road came around wanting to play and ran off with my shoe, but brought it back and was glad to join me for a walk. He's an eager one - a hunting dog of some lovely breed.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Friday, 03 April: Finally, Music
Got up late on account of the rain and greyness of the morning... read and took it easy all morning, fussed with too-wet soil a bit then gussied up for town in the afternoon (finally met the neighbors, nearest, who gave us a lift). My phone won't take an Irish sim card, bah, but it picks up network fine - I need to ask ATT again about international roaming, because cheapest phone the could offer me here is 50E plus whatever operational costs. So anyway. The library is a cute little thing and the post office is always busy. I like this town alright.
Had an early dinner at a Chinese place that Beryl really loves. Something to understand bout this woman is that she is self-described plain-vanilla kind of person. Do you understand? It was ok, but you follow me, right?
Home for more fussing with the aforementioned soil and picking nettles for soup. The evening was gorgeous with mixed clouds and haze laminating the sunset.
Then in to Crockett's on the Quay for a traditional Irish music session, which finally actually happened, and it was a sweet little place to sit and chat and listen and have a scotch and watch the folks.
Home late - and up early tomorrow for the farmers market.
Had an early dinner at a Chinese place that Beryl really loves. Something to understand bout this woman is that she is self-described plain-vanilla kind of person. Do you understand? It was ok, but you follow me, right?
Home for more fussing with the aforementioned soil and picking nettles for soup. The evening was gorgeous with mixed clouds and haze laminating the sunset.
Then in to Crockett's on the Quay for a traditional Irish music session, which finally actually happened, and it was a sweet little place to sit and chat and listen and have a scotch and watch the folks.
Home late - and up early tomorrow for the farmers market.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Thursday, 02 April: A New Dawn
After battling with the internet until late last night, I woke surprisingly early to a glorious sunny day. I had been trying to meet up with the only active CSer in Ballina (Dawn, a lively French girl who has been here for 10 years now) and finally we connected this morning. She was taking a CS guest (Isaac, from Quebec) out for a drive to Lacken, on the beach, and picked me up to come along. We also picked up Mariane (sp?) a French au pair who is living in a funky modern house with a living roof near Lacken... we ran around quite a bit to get different views and generally enjoy ourselves, and we found out way to the cliffside at Downpatrick Head, where there are great big gaping holes in the ground leading to beautifully-colored ocean below. It was all very enter-at-your-own-risk. There was a little statue to St. Patrick, of course.
We returned by midafternoon and it was more weeds and planting flowers. Beryl uses the biodynamic calendar for her planting, so we can only plant certain types of things on any given day. Weeding is apparently ok any time, and that's good thing, because there is plenty of it to do. It was nice to be out in the afternoon sun, though the wind had picked up by then and was roaring away as usual. I had a walk in the evening and home for bean soup and rice. Beryl went into town for Irish language practice, but I felt like playing homebody. Travel timewarp is getting to me, a bit.
We returned by midafternoon and it was more weeds and planting flowers. Beryl uses the biodynamic calendar for her planting, so we can only plant certain types of things on any given day. Weeding is apparently ok any time, and that's good thing, because there is plenty of it to do. It was nice to be out in the afternoon sun, though the wind had picked up by then and was roaring away as usual. I had a walk in the evening and home for bean soup and rice. Beryl went into town for Irish language practice, but I felt like playing homebody. Travel timewarp is getting to me, a bit.
And so it begins in Ireland.
Thursday 26 March 2009: Leaving day
Lex returned late the night before from Seattle and Emily and I went to pick him up at the airport in Baltimore... another in a series of short-sleep nights. Since Simeon had been visiting since I had finished the Ag Science Policy Internship, there had been a lot of running around, exploring DC, just being together with friends... So anyway, by the time I got to this day, there was just a little packing left to do and a few chores. Lex and Emily came home to take me to Dulles around 5:30pm – just in time for rush-hour traffic. It took us ages to get through DC – which was fine by me because it gave us those few more moments in parting. Coming and going is easier all the time, but parting is always so damned painful.
Friday 27 March: Arriving Day
The plane trip was brief – about 5.5 hours – and they kept the lights on and lots of activity around the cabin – I wasn't sleepy, found it hard to rest, and only got about an hour. I was stuck in the middle of the plane and could not see out the windows, so it was all a little disorienting to suddenly be in Dublin. Customs and bag claim was quite easy to pass through. I had not spoken with or seen (only exchanged occasional emails) my friend Mooney since we shared a few hours on a bus in New Zealand about 6 years ago and wondered how I expected to recognize him.... Well, luckily he was waiting for me and found me quickly enough (after only asking one other person if she were me) and we were off to explore. I was wide awake by this time and ready to run out into the world. It was about 8:30am local time – again, perfect for rush hour, so we had a chance to catch up while stalled in traffic. We took an alternate route South of Dublin and out towards Bray. I think. It is hard to recall all the place names now...
Mooney took me to 'the best bakery' around for a cup of coffee and a delicious apple strudel. It perked us up for a walk in a little valley outside the city where there had recently been a great controversy over a proposed road-widening and a pile of activists went to live in the trees for a year in protest. Eventually, they reached a compromise and the road was widened, but with supports to prevent erosion. It was a nice little trail...
From there, we went on to the sea. After a little walk through a holiday park and along the beach, I tucked into a side-of-the-road pub to use the loo where the local men who were gathered in the middle of the afternoon really stared a bit too silently at us. We decided to be on our way back to Dublin.
I left Mooney to rest and went out to wander Dublin a bit on my own. Spent some time watching other tourists in St. Stephen's Green (a charming little park in the city center... there are many gated parks like this around the city, all nicely maintained) and walked up and down a few of the main shopping avenues. Took delight in finding little reminders of home. Generally just wanted to see the scene. It feels like a teensy little place, with such low buildings and a quaint feel – but busy busy busy. I like it, anyway.
Mooney's lovely fiance, Winnie, joined us around 6:30pm and we three went out for dinner and then to the pub. (There are a slough of both just a short walk up the Ranelagh Road from their flat... Dublin is composed of a series of little villages all joined together by sprawl.) We went to “Cafe, Bar and Deli” and I had a delicious salad. At the pub: Winnie had spoken highly of the pear cider, which is apparently a popular drink, so we each had a bottle – and suddenly another showed up! I was quite finished after one, but now I was expected to have another – and they were huge bottles! I got through about half, and there was talk of a third round, but I was definitely done. Mooney and Winnie lamented my poor soul, and how hard I would have it in the countryside pubs if I didn't get my alcohol tolerance up now. Eventually they relented and took me home for a long night's sleep. I had my very own cozy air-mattress in the front room, and I only remember waking up the next day after the others... surprised?
Saturday, 28 March: The Christening
No, really, it is not some obscure reference. We were to be at the church by noon for the Christening of Mooney's niece, Abigail. We got up rather late in the morning and were in just a bit of a rush, but after a shower and a simple breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast, actually turned out to arrive early. The church was grand and the ceremony was small and informal and very sweet. The real party was a reception at the home of Mooney's brother and sister-in-law, who put on a wonderful spread for about 30 people, including various-aged children. I discovered that marshmallows are a local favorite. I also discovered that Gateau Diane is absolutely delicious!
It was late in the day by the time we left the party. We went out for a little walk around Dublin: along the canal where we found a bronze likeness of the poet Kavanagh, through another local park with some disturbing bronze sculptures I will not try to explain, into the city center and to Wagamama's for dinner. This Asian-fusion fast-healthy-food joint is apparently in the US as well, though I had never heard of it. (I loved it!) After, pub again, where I got away with just a wee half-pint of Guinness and we were off home to watch Slumdog Millionaire.
Sunday, 29 March: Hiking, Market, Exploring around Dublin
We got up early enough to be on our way in the morning to climb Sugarloaf Peak. Good views! And after working up our appetites, in to Avoca for scones and tea (yum!). It's a funny little spot, very cute, with a little shop and a sort of lunch-counter style restaurant, but with a homey, comfortable feel and very pretty landscaping. They put out a couple of nice cookbooks which I see in local bookshops all around and I will likely drag home with me by the end of this visit. It was busy, apparently popular with both tourists and the after-church Sunday crowd.
Then down to Dunleary for the Farmer's Market and a walk down the Pier. Just the things for a Sunday afternoon. I was also introduced to another local favorite: the “99”. It is a soft-serve ice cream cone with a Cadbury Flake stuck in. It cost 2 Euro. I still have not ascertained why it is called a “99”, but whatever. It was fun to have. (Although I really had been too well-fed at this point...)
At the market, I met Vince, who runs the California Bakery, or something like that. Born Irish but having lived in CA for many decades, he and his wife returned to bake fresh muffins and granola– not common here – among other delights. There were several ethnic food booths, including Lebanese, and one large produce seller. It was not all too different from a US farmer's market, especially like those on the East coast I have seen. A little less fine produce, but a good variety of tasty things.
From there we had a drive in the countryside and stopped along the road at a little German graveyard. There was a hostel nearby where Mooney had stayed as a scout, and there had been news that the owners of the property had been arrested for murder when a few bodies of solo travelers turned up... ah, the peaceful isolation of the countryside!
We returned home relatively early and had an evening in, complete with television.
Monday, 30 March: On a train to Ballina
I was overwhelmed by the generous hospitality of my hosts in Dublin, and I am looking forward to having them visit California to return the favor. If Irish hospitality were not famous, it certainly should be! Mooney got up extra early in the morning to deliver me to the train station where I got a ticket for 15 Euro – a good deal apparently, to Ballina.
On the train, I sat across from a lovely woman named Ann Murphy. It was fun to discover little coincidences together. She is Irish born but has lived in California for many years and is out to visit family around the country. She shared her lunch with me, since I had forgotten to bring along anything. We chatted the whole way to Manulla Junction where I changed to a smaller train to Ballina (Beal an Atha). The trains are very smooth and tidy and cute and far more pleasant than Amtrak, I must confess. And apparently with good special rates.
I was met at the station by Beryl, who I had come to WWOOF with, and the taxi driver Tommy O'Boyle. Beryl is from Berkeley and only maintains the farm here about ¾ of the year. She utilizes the taxi to get in and out of town – it is relatively inexpensive compared to maintaining a vehicle, and Tommy is a sweet fellow who knows everything and everyone, so it is easy to keep up on local news when you see him a few times a week.
We came out to get settled in and it was a lovely afternoon so I was ready to get into the earth. After meeting the two kitties and two donkeys and having a walking tour of the few acres and local paths, I spent a while chasing nettle runners out of the soil. The evening light was gorgeous and the company of birds and insects was very pleasant indeed.
We went into town to see if we could find some traditional music in one of the local pubs, but nothing was on, so we just came back. I think I must have done something wrong along the way because I woke in the middle of the night to lose my dinner... I was awfully sick to my stomach, but slept well into the next day after that little episode.
Tuesday, 31 March: A quiet day in the garden
Taking it easy with my stomach after the previous night. Rain in the morning so we started in the garden in the afternoon. Planted some root seeds and put potatoes in the ground. More nettle weeding. Met the neighbor, Eddie, who came round with the tractor to borrow a couple barrels of water for power-washing the house (they ran out – no, I don't understand it either). He stayed for tea and did not particularly like the spelt-fruit loaf that Beryl had gotten from one of the local producers for me. I like it, though :) In exchange for the water, I guess, he took care of a few projects around the place requiring a chain saw.
Wednesday, 01 April: The Refugee Garden
After a morning of transplanting daffodils to the front lane (they are in ridiculous abundance all over the island), Beryl and I headed into town for a little exploring and grocery shopping. We stopped in to a little health-food eatery for a smoothie and spent a while browsing the bookshop.
Beryl is the head gardener for the community garden serving a population of refugees from Burma from the Kuran ethnic group. It is located at the Bishop's quarter's of the boys' high school. She gardens there Wed and Fri afternoons, so I accompanied her to help today. There were about 6 others there, and I chatted mostly with Tishue and Jogay while weeding paths and doing bed prep. I was visited by on of the teensy little robins while I kneeled on the path, pulling weds. The cheeky thing tested me out and hoped around behind me and pecked at my shoe, then dashed off. It was a precious moment.
We had a couple relaxed hours back at home before Beryl's gospel choir rehearsal. I went to listen – it was a lively group of about 30 or more people, complete with a drum, keyboard and guitar. And solos! Impressive ones, in fact. After, we tried again a local pub for traditional music, but the musicians had no audience, because everyone was watching a soccer game tonight – Italy vs. Ireland. Guess it takes precedence here, sports. Back home and to get my blog ready to put online! But the internet was being tentative (argh!) and it would have to wait for the morrow.
Lex returned late the night before from Seattle and Emily and I went to pick him up at the airport in Baltimore... another in a series of short-sleep nights. Since Simeon had been visiting since I had finished the Ag Science Policy Internship, there had been a lot of running around, exploring DC, just being together with friends... So anyway, by the time I got to this day, there was just a little packing left to do and a few chores. Lex and Emily came home to take me to Dulles around 5:30pm – just in time for rush-hour traffic. It took us ages to get through DC – which was fine by me because it gave us those few more moments in parting. Coming and going is easier all the time, but parting is always so damned painful.
Friday 27 March: Arriving Day
The plane trip was brief – about 5.5 hours – and they kept the lights on and lots of activity around the cabin – I wasn't sleepy, found it hard to rest, and only got about an hour. I was stuck in the middle of the plane and could not see out the windows, so it was all a little disorienting to suddenly be in Dublin. Customs and bag claim was quite easy to pass through. I had not spoken with or seen (only exchanged occasional emails) my friend Mooney since we shared a few hours on a bus in New Zealand about 6 years ago and wondered how I expected to recognize him.... Well, luckily he was waiting for me and found me quickly enough (after only asking one other person if she were me) and we were off to explore. I was wide awake by this time and ready to run out into the world. It was about 8:30am local time – again, perfect for rush hour, so we had a chance to catch up while stalled in traffic. We took an alternate route South of Dublin and out towards Bray. I think. It is hard to recall all the place names now...
Mooney took me to 'the best bakery' around for a cup of coffee and a delicious apple strudel. It perked us up for a walk in a little valley outside the city where there had recently been a great controversy over a proposed road-widening and a pile of activists went to live in the trees for a year in protest. Eventually, they reached a compromise and the road was widened, but with supports to prevent erosion. It was a nice little trail...
From there, we went on to the sea. After a little walk through a holiday park and along the beach, I tucked into a side-of-the-road pub to use the loo where the local men who were gathered in the middle of the afternoon really stared a bit too silently at us. We decided to be on our way back to Dublin.
I left Mooney to rest and went out to wander Dublin a bit on my own. Spent some time watching other tourists in St. Stephen's Green (a charming little park in the city center... there are many gated parks like this around the city, all nicely maintained) and walked up and down a few of the main shopping avenues. Took delight in finding little reminders of home. Generally just wanted to see the scene. It feels like a teensy little place, with such low buildings and a quaint feel – but busy busy busy. I like it, anyway.
Mooney's lovely fiance, Winnie, joined us around 6:30pm and we three went out for dinner and then to the pub. (There are a slough of both just a short walk up the Ranelagh Road from their flat... Dublin is composed of a series of little villages all joined together by sprawl.) We went to “Cafe, Bar and Deli” and I had a delicious salad. At the pub: Winnie had spoken highly of the pear cider, which is apparently a popular drink, so we each had a bottle – and suddenly another showed up! I was quite finished after one, but now I was expected to have another – and they were huge bottles! I got through about half, and there was talk of a third round, but I was definitely done. Mooney and Winnie lamented my poor soul, and how hard I would have it in the countryside pubs if I didn't get my alcohol tolerance up now. Eventually they relented and took me home for a long night's sleep. I had my very own cozy air-mattress in the front room, and I only remember waking up the next day after the others... surprised?
Saturday, 28 March: The Christening
No, really, it is not some obscure reference. We were to be at the church by noon for the Christening of Mooney's niece, Abigail. We got up rather late in the morning and were in just a bit of a rush, but after a shower and a simple breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast, actually turned out to arrive early. The church was grand and the ceremony was small and informal and very sweet. The real party was a reception at the home of Mooney's brother and sister-in-law, who put on a wonderful spread for about 30 people, including various-aged children. I discovered that marshmallows are a local favorite. I also discovered that Gateau Diane is absolutely delicious!
It was late in the day by the time we left the party. We went out for a little walk around Dublin: along the canal where we found a bronze likeness of the poet Kavanagh, through another local park with some disturbing bronze sculptures I will not try to explain, into the city center and to Wagamama's for dinner. This Asian-fusion fast-healthy-food joint is apparently in the US as well, though I had never heard of it. (I loved it!) After, pub again, where I got away with just a wee half-pint of Guinness and we were off home to watch Slumdog Millionaire.
Sunday, 29 March: Hiking, Market, Exploring around Dublin
We got up early enough to be on our way in the morning to climb Sugarloaf Peak. Good views! And after working up our appetites, in to Avoca for scones and tea (yum!). It's a funny little spot, very cute, with a little shop and a sort of lunch-counter style restaurant, but with a homey, comfortable feel and very pretty landscaping. They put out a couple of nice cookbooks which I see in local bookshops all around and I will likely drag home with me by the end of this visit. It was busy, apparently popular with both tourists and the after-church Sunday crowd.
Then down to Dunleary for the Farmer's Market and a walk down the Pier. Just the things for a Sunday afternoon. I was also introduced to another local favorite: the “99”. It is a soft-serve ice cream cone with a Cadbury Flake stuck in. It cost 2 Euro. I still have not ascertained why it is called a “99”, but whatever. It was fun to have. (Although I really had been too well-fed at this point...)
At the market, I met Vince, who runs the California Bakery, or something like that. Born Irish but having lived in CA for many decades, he and his wife returned to bake fresh muffins and granola– not common here – among other delights. There were several ethnic food booths, including Lebanese, and one large produce seller. It was not all too different from a US farmer's market, especially like those on the East coast I have seen. A little less fine produce, but a good variety of tasty things.
From there we had a drive in the countryside and stopped along the road at a little German graveyard. There was a hostel nearby where Mooney had stayed as a scout, and there had been news that the owners of the property had been arrested for murder when a few bodies of solo travelers turned up... ah, the peaceful isolation of the countryside!
We returned home relatively early and had an evening in, complete with television.
Monday, 30 March: On a train to Ballina
I was overwhelmed by the generous hospitality of my hosts in Dublin, and I am looking forward to having them visit California to return the favor. If Irish hospitality were not famous, it certainly should be! Mooney got up extra early in the morning to deliver me to the train station where I got a ticket for 15 Euro – a good deal apparently, to Ballina.
On the train, I sat across from a lovely woman named Ann Murphy. It was fun to discover little coincidences together. She is Irish born but has lived in California for many years and is out to visit family around the country. She shared her lunch with me, since I had forgotten to bring along anything. We chatted the whole way to Manulla Junction where I changed to a smaller train to Ballina (Beal an Atha). The trains are very smooth and tidy and cute and far more pleasant than Amtrak, I must confess. And apparently with good special rates.
I was met at the station by Beryl, who I had come to WWOOF with, and the taxi driver Tommy O'Boyle. Beryl is from Berkeley and only maintains the farm here about ¾ of the year. She utilizes the taxi to get in and out of town – it is relatively inexpensive compared to maintaining a vehicle, and Tommy is a sweet fellow who knows everything and everyone, so it is easy to keep up on local news when you see him a few times a week.
We came out to get settled in and it was a lovely afternoon so I was ready to get into the earth. After meeting the two kitties and two donkeys and having a walking tour of the few acres and local paths, I spent a while chasing nettle runners out of the soil. The evening light was gorgeous and the company of birds and insects was very pleasant indeed.
We went into town to see if we could find some traditional music in one of the local pubs, but nothing was on, so we just came back. I think I must have done something wrong along the way because I woke in the middle of the night to lose my dinner... I was awfully sick to my stomach, but slept well into the next day after that little episode.
Tuesday, 31 March: A quiet day in the garden
Taking it easy with my stomach after the previous night. Rain in the morning so we started in the garden in the afternoon. Planted some root seeds and put potatoes in the ground. More nettle weeding. Met the neighbor, Eddie, who came round with the tractor to borrow a couple barrels of water for power-washing the house (they ran out – no, I don't understand it either). He stayed for tea and did not particularly like the spelt-fruit loaf that Beryl had gotten from one of the local producers for me. I like it, though :) In exchange for the water, I guess, he took care of a few projects around the place requiring a chain saw.
Wednesday, 01 April: The Refugee Garden
After a morning of transplanting daffodils to the front lane (they are in ridiculous abundance all over the island), Beryl and I headed into town for a little exploring and grocery shopping. We stopped in to a little health-food eatery for a smoothie and spent a while browsing the bookshop.
Beryl is the head gardener for the community garden serving a population of refugees from Burma from the Kuran ethnic group. It is located at the Bishop's quarter's of the boys' high school. She gardens there Wed and Fri afternoons, so I accompanied her to help today. There were about 6 others there, and I chatted mostly with Tishue and Jogay while weeding paths and doing bed prep. I was visited by on of the teensy little robins while I kneeled on the path, pulling weds. The cheeky thing tested me out and hoped around behind me and pecked at my shoe, then dashed off. It was a precious moment.
We had a couple relaxed hours back at home before Beryl's gospel choir rehearsal. I went to listen – it was a lively group of about 30 or more people, complete with a drum, keyboard and guitar. And solos! Impressive ones, in fact. After, we tried again a local pub for traditional music, but the musicians had no audience, because everyone was watching a soccer game tonight – Italy vs. Ireland. Guess it takes precedence here, sports. Back home and to get my blog ready to put online! But the internet was being tentative (argh!) and it would have to wait for the morrow.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)