Tour of Burren and the Cliffs of Moher

First off, I am so far behind on these posts. I quite apologize.

So a long, long time ago on in a country called Ireland a beautiful young maiden took a bus tour through the area of Burren and the Cliffs of Moher.

The bus tour was quite a nice way to cover a lot of ground in 1 day, plus the weather was dreary and no condition for walking about for an extended period of time. The trip was made amusing due to our cheerfully corny driver-guide. He shared such facts as...

• the word honey moon comes from the old belief that a young couple trying to get pregnant would drink mead, a sweet fermented honey "wine," for a full moon cycle and then 9 months later they would have an addition to the family.

• Along the coast between Galway and the Cliffs of Moher is where the British comedy "Father Ted" was filmed.

• Castles back in the day were actually a pinkish color due to a plaster material that covered the stone. The material has since worn away and thus we now think of castles as gray building, but really Barbie's dream castle is more accurate.
  

The bus dropped us off at a farm in the Burren country, for a wet walk in nature. Burren, an Irish word for stony place, is correctly named. The country side is littered with limestone. However, against my initial thoughts the stone is actually fairly helpful to the farmers. It acts as a very effective irrigation system and provides a seemingly endless supply for fence building. Although, God blessed this land with a wonderful natural irrigation I was soaked. We had been provided with rain gear (pants and coat) before our walk, but my feet were left vulnerable to the slow, persistent drizzle.

Back on the bus we drove into increasingly think fog, but our optimistic driver kept reassuring that it may break as we drive the Cliffs of Moher. Unfortunately his optimism did not prevail over Mother Nature. I could not see the cliffs, but rather an endless abyss of fog. The view was quite terrifying, but apparently when visible the cliffs are spectacular. On the ride home we stopped for a photo opportunity at lesser cliffs. I am going to use photoshop to make them look awesome. Almost out of time. Dang it. I will try to write soon, but don't hold your breathe.

Aron Islands

Hopefully Jen's face is smiling.

The Aron Islands are 3 small islands off the coast of Ireland. It was a 45 minute bus ride from Galway and then a 30ish minute ferry ride (from hell). The boat had every one going ughhhhhh and a lot of people saw their breakfast for a second time. For 28 of the 30 minutes the only thing I thought was- breathe breathe breathe. But the turbulent ride was well worth it. I hired (rented) a bike for the day and set off to explore the forts (dating before Christ) and really old churches on the main island. At my first stop, a tower, I met up with another solo rider, Chris. He is from Australia and just finished getting his Master's degree in architecture. We spent the rest of the day, exploring and at times taking the less traveled way. I put it that way because you can't get lost on an island that is only a meter long. The islands are almost magical though, because everything is so old and quiant. I was fortunate enough to choose a day that was sunny for all but 5 minutes. So we rode from about 11am to 5pm. The island also has a small seal colony, which we watched as they lounged around. It also boasts that on the island is the world's smallest church. It was small, but I cannot believe it to be the smallest. Chris commented that a place in Scotland made the exact same claim about a different church. The fort is built along frightfully high cliffs that drop straight into the sea. Even getting near the edge made me tremble; the thought of falling to my death was too scary for me to risk getting an award winning photo. The land is divided into fairly small fields. The fields were orginally larger, but if a man had 2 sons his land would be split in 2 by the building of a new stone wall. The ferry ride back was much much better. Instead of getting sea sick, I fell asleep.
That night Crystal, Derval (an Irish woman who we roomed with), Annie (a 58 year old woman from Norway staying in our room) and I headed down to the docks for more live music and then a drink at the pub. In the summer it does not get dark until around 10 or 10:30pm, so it is difficult for me to judge the time and seems to all the sudden be midnight.

Donegal and 1st Day in Galway

After staying at Maeve's parent's I was given a tour by Maeve and Nial of the walls of Derry, which are like everything quite old. The walls of Derry helped protect them from seige for 105 days before relief was able to break through. Unfortunately, the same protection kept out food supplies and many people died of hunger related causes. Nial gave a secondary commentary about places that were significant in Maeve's childhood- like her bus stop.

Donegal, which is next to County Derry, is part of the Republic of Ireland even though it is in the North. Just after entering the Republic we stop at a fort (will interest name of fort here after I look it up in my notes). The ruins are suspected to be around the time of Christ if not before. There is just a small inner circle left now, but according to the sign the scars of larger rings can be seen from above. After a tour of the Donegal country side we took a ferry across the water to head back to Nial and Maeve's house in Lisburn (just outside of Belfast). Nial made dinner eggs and soda bread with tea. I also rejoiced in at the site of my long lost suitecase! All my belongings were on board, except my alarm clock has not been found yet.

The next morning (Monday) Maeve dropped me off at the bus station to catch a to Galway. There were two bus changes along the way and so I made friends with and elderly lady, by moving her bag for her. She looked out for me and told me her story of spending her life as a pharamist and raising 7 children in a tiny tiny town in Ireland. I also sat next to a man of about 60 or 70 years old and he gave me the history of the area I was driving through. Apparently has a horse fair each year that at one point was the second largest horse fair in the world.

Upon arriving in Galway. I stepped of the bus and tried to find out my location. I had a good map there were just no street signs. I saw two other people looking confused as well and then found out they were looking for the same hostel. It turned out to just be 2 blocks away, but it took all three of us to figure it out. Once checked in at the hostel I set out to explore and get a sense of the city. I had the greatest unplanned timing. The World Ocean Race had just finished 9 months at sea, so Galway as the port city had lots of festivities going on. Later that night Crystal (my Aussie roommate) and I set out for dinner and lots of live music. I danced for a good portion of the night to various African bands; the night's themes of was the spirit of Africa. So that was yesterday. I am almost caught up, but also out of internet time.

Hope all is well with each of you!

Dad and Mom thank you so very much for this trip. It is a blast!

Coastal Drive and Derry

On Saturday Nial took me up to the Giants Causeway. This is the most meraculous natural formation of hexagonal rocks. There is no understanding of why they form this way, but whatever the reason in resulted in a natural wonder that people flock to see. Although you have to walk with great care since many of the stones are below the water during high tide. Nial and I witness some very "macho" fellows nearly fall to a dreadful fate. These geometrical stones are surrounded by the most intimidating cliffs. They are large and a clear drop off into the ocean. They are a stark reminder of how small one really is.
Maeve's parents live in Derry (also know as Londonderry, a renaming done by the English). Nial and I drove the scenic route which was a beautiful drive on a narrow road through tiny quiant villages. We experience two traffic jams. The first was due to a bicycle race and had nearly everyone of a few small towns out to watch. The second was the more amusing one. We encountered sheep being moved from one field to another via the road. Two farmers slowed us as we watched a third and a dog heard a large number of sheep and lambs up a steep hill. The lambs were so sweet looking as they bounding around, only pushed in the right direction by the dog.
We then picked up Maeve from the Derry bus station and headed to her parent's home. Her family has a really nice home and were very welcoming. They had met my parents a few summers back so I was glad to finally meet them as well. After a good nights sleep, I started Sunday with some wonderful news. My luggage had been found and I would soon be reunited with my belongings.

Time is almost out so I will have to save Sunday for the next slot of time. I am now in Galway and I will try to catch-up with the blog tomorrow.

Hello Belfast!

Yesterday, I spent about 5 hours at the British Museum off of Bloomsbury. I saw the Rosetta Stone as promised to someone. I have honestly forgotten who that someone is, but I kept the promise which I suppose is what counts. I also saw a body that was like 5000 years old. Yes, it was mummified, but not in the way you are probably thinking. This body was of an Egyptian man, but he was buried before the elaborate process of mummification of the pharaohs came about. The extreme heat and lack of moisture in the desert sand in which he was buried, immediately dried him up and preserved him. He was discovered, but some poor unsuspecting soul- what a shock that would be! The museum contains a wealth of knowledge, but the acquiring of these artifacts is of questionable moral. I saw the massive stone reliefs that were removed from the Pantheon and are still a point of on and off again arguments between the British government and Greek government, but obviously the British still have the upper hand.

After having a light supper in a small park I intended to sleep. I was exhausted, but apparently I did not wear myself out enough. I lay in bed at 10pm (5pm Virginia time) unable to sleep. Needless to say I was feeling it when I had to wake up at 4am this morning to head to Hethrow. My taxi driver this morning was Turkish and liked to work nights because he does not like traffic. I thought I might suggest a career change, but I did not. I also found out he does not like big cities nor the suburbs that are spread out. I concluded he liked compact small cities or towns, with no suburbs. Unsolicited he also provided his opinion on American gun control and driving laws. He has never been to America, so I decided it was best just to give him some "you make a good point" and "hmmm." Although in his favor he was one of the more pleasant and clean cut taxi drivers available at 4:20am.
I fell asleep with in 2 minutes of take off and did not wake until the landing. I had a whole row to myself, so it was pretty much 1st class. I once again found my navigating skills to be above par and was at Nial's office after a short bus ride. Public transit on this side of the Atlantic is really quite amazing. Nial was his usual self- very sweet and much more planned than me. I started the day with a visit to the Belfast visitor's center, which was nice. They offer lots of services for traveler's in my similar position such as luggage watch (oh wait I don't currently have luggage). Anyways, I took Nial and my dad's advice to take a black cab tour. It is incredible how segregated the city still is between the Catholics and the Protestants. Christie, you and I would sadly not be friends if we lived here. People are identified by neighborhood or children by school. A person may very well be atheist, but would be a Catholic or Protestant atheist. The murals were quite... shocking. Not because of the content directly, but because a history hatred of 900 years is still affecting everyday life. My guide was quite friendly, but his accent was so thick, I relied on context is several situations. I was glad to see by the air freshener in his card he was a fan of the soccer team Chelsea (Spencer had given me some talking points for this exact situation). Although, I only had to mention it before he was able to carry the conversation himself. After the taxi tour I got a bit of lunch and explored St. Anne's Cathedral, a WWII museum, the ship yard where THE Titanic was crafted (a great point of pride in Belfast I have gathered. Every local has made sure I have been informed) a spring market and now here writing this post wishing you all the best as I head off to meet Nial.

Alive and Kicking- just dirty

HI!

I am in London and I am quite proud of myself for several reasons:

1. I am alive. I am on my own right now, so I know that many of you were worried.This may be a simple victory, but without it all others would not matter.

2. I arranged for my lost luggage to meet me at Nial and Maeve's tomorrow evening. Last night we had to switch planes due to brake issues. The delay was about 3 hours, but I am was able to watch a good chick flick during the wait. However, my suitcase apparently missed the memo about the change in planes and did not wheel over to the new plane. Air Canada was helpful in sorting through the confusion and my bag will be deliver tomorrow. Until then I have gotten mini bits to tied me over. I can assure you I will be happy to wear a different outfit after 3 days in this one.

3. I navigated the Underground/tube on my own and I did not have to back track. I still manage to mess up the Blacksburg Transit, so I thought I would be doomed. The maps are helpful and Lonely Planet is incredible. So I conquered the Tube on several times. For people like my family, Christy Bell and Jason who have seen me get incredibly lost, you will understand my immense sense of victory.

4. I have set up a pay as you go cell phone (after discovering it was less than paying for phone cards). This morning after sorting through the bag troubles I sought out a place to sit and figure out the day's needs. I was greatly pleased to step off the train and find a familiar sight- Starbucks. On my way in I noticed an Orange store (cell phone service that is also available in the Dominican Republic). I ordered a mug of coffee, pulled out my Lonely Planet and reviewed the maps. After establishing a sense of where I was and the location of the hostel. I decided I should consider communication as well. After some math and then double checking I discovered that a pay-as-you-go-phone was the best option. The man in the Orange store was helpful and I felt a bit more empowered with a phone at hand.

5. I made it to the hostel which was again navigating on my own. My choice in hostel was made using my right hand man, Mr. Lonely Planet. I chose to stay at Arran House based on good reviews, budget and proximity to the British museums. It, however, it a bit of the hike from Hethrow. Using my maps I fairly easily found the hostel and was please to find that there was room in the inn. I was able to leave my carry-on belongings in the room and head out to explore.

All and all it has been a successful day. The baggage is slightly inconvenient, but I won't have to worry about transporting it to Nial and Maeve's house. Plus, being able to handle a slight hiccup just was affirmation that I am capable of exploring the world.

Hope all is well with each of you. Cheers!

Cameron

New Region of the World

I will be leaving on May 20th to visit the Great Britain, Ireland and several other countries in Europe. My trip is more of a flexible itinerary so each post should be a surprise. I will try to upload photos for you all to see along the way.