But winter graciously bowed out on the Irish stage as three American explorers dirty-ed their feet in the rich Irish soil.
Our adventure was extraordinary. 10 days, 1,000 kilometers, 500 photos, and countless laughs later, a heart saturated with the mixed emotions of joy and sadness left Ireland with only the vivid imagery on one's mind that is known as memories.
Excerpts from my journal: Days 1 and 2 (March 18th and 19th)
"I am falling in love with Ireland and its fierce people. The day I flew out from Gatwick Airport, I took the train from Victoria Station. Walking up the stairs from the tube into the bright atrium took me back 12 years and 2 feet lower to a time when a little girl was first experiencing this city that she now loves so much.
When we visited London when I was young, we stayed in a suburb called Red Hill in a Bed and Breakfast named the Ashley House with its very own ghost named Albert who lived in the painting at the top of the stairs. Every day we would commute an hour into the city and our train took us to Victoria where we'd ride the escalator up to the food court for a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice and then we'd ride back down the escalator for a pain chocolat (chocolate croissant) from the bakery stand and a pack of rolos from the convenience store before heading out to adventure.
It was funny how I still knew exactly where everything was. The bakery had changed names but was still there selling pain chocolat (so of course I got one for memory's sake.) The fresh OJ place had been replaced by a Bagel Factory. I ate my packed dinner while I watched the people carry on with their daily routines.
I accidentally jumped on the Gatwick Express train rather than the normal Southern line, so I ended up paying 18 pounds rather than 11. Oh well, now I know better.
At the airport the man at the Ryanair (the CHEAP Irish airline that prides itself on no customer service) tried to tell me that I hadn't checked my bag and wanted to charge me AGAIN for it. NU UHHH I was not gonna have it.
Sitting at the gate reading I about had a heart attack when all in one swift motion the crowd stood and ran for the door as the boarding announcement was made. Two Irish business men behind me saw how frightened I was and laughed saying, "Run for your seat!" They continued to talk to me, and asked where I was from. When I replied near Chicago, one went, 'Oh Chicago! Half me family lives in Chicago but I've never been. It's always been a dream of mine to show up at me auntie's door one day and say, 'Fancy a spot a tea?' I think she might drop dead.'
After a short one hour flight, I landed expecting to be met by one of my dad's old colleague's wife, Grainne. But, the colleague Noel, who was supposed to be in the Zambia, was also there to greet me! British Airways is going on strike so he had left a day early. It was so nice to have such friendly faces there to greet me and take me home rather than have to find my own way to a hostel late at night.
Noel (pronounced Nole) and Grainne (pronounced Gr-on-yay which means Grace in Gaelic) fed me toast, tea, and lindt chocolate balls and introduced me to Grainne's younger sister, Orla, whwo had just gotten back from Irish dancing. Their home was so wewlcoming and I slept in a DOUBLE bed with down blankets!!! I haven't slept so well in a LONG time.
The next morning Grainne dropped me off at the Mespil Hotel on her way to work so that I could pick up a tour to Newgrange neolithic tomb. I pulled another dumb tourist move.... It's amazing how you can be so experienced in one city and think you'd be able to get it anywhere, and then as soon as you're in a new place you go right back to being a dumb tourist. What I did was walk across the street to Starbucks to get a muffin for breakfast. After eating I still had a good hour to kill, so I walked back to the hotel only to see they were serving breakfast fro 8 euros buffet style. So, I got that too, feeling silly for paying for a muffin when I could have just had a well balanced breakfast. I filled up enough so as to not need lunch, which was good because there wewre not many places I could have gotten some on the tour.
On the bus I met an American girl majoring in costume design at NCSA who was there with her mom. Small world! There was also a Scottish family who was here for the Scotlad vs. Ireland rugby match that is happening this weekend.
Newgrange was stunning. Dating back almost 6,000 years it is older than Stonehenge and the pyramids. The tomb looks like a giant mound of earth with white granite stones framing the entryway.
As you get off the bus that takes you out to the site, you hear a song. The lyrics go like this.....Baa baa
Baa Baa BAAA
BAAAAAAAA
baa baA bAa
baaa
With farms surrounding on all sides, the sheep sang a constant chorus for the wwhole hour we were at the site.
Inside the tomb was very small but so cool and mysterious. How did these people build it? The stones that made up the ceiling had never leaked after thousands of years! Incredible.
The tomb was designed around winter solstice-so that for that one day out of every year the sun would rise to shine through the entrance, illuminating the passage and chamber. The people were astronomers.
In the tour they turned all the lights off and shone a fake winter solstice sun down the passage. Now while it was only pretend, the effect was still strong. I got emotional, feeling the power of the place.
Upon arriving back in Dublin Noel was at the hotel to pick me up. After hearing that Lisa would not be arriving until Saturday, he and Grainne offered for me to stay another night with them and take me out to see Irish dancing and music.
Noel picked me up from the hotel and took me on a short walk down the Grand Canal to a statue of one of Ireland's most famous poets, Patrick Kavanagh. He then took me on a little drive around the city, pointing out famous and obscure landmarks. Noel loves his city (6 generations of his family can be traced back to within 2k of his house!) and his passion was contageous.
He and Grainne drove me out to Howth, a little fishing village on the tip of the peninsula right outside the city. We ate at the Abbey Tavern with its roaring fireplaces and the lovely, homey smell and feeling that go along with.
After dinner, we were taken into the back room to listen to traditional music and see the dancing. The fiddle player was amazing, the songs fun, and the dancers made it look much easier than it was. I had a great time."
Thus ends entry number 1 for Spring break 2010.
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