Well, it's about time to be hittin' the ole' dusty trail again. Came to Ireland for three weeks and stayed for three months...met some great people, and had some great crack (good times), and way too much Guinness. I leave for Dublin in the morning, and then I'll fly out the next day. I have finally sorted through the hundreds and hundreds of photos that have been collecting dust in the memory stick, and got them online. I think they tell the story best, so have a look through if you can. I hope to be able to get online and give some first impressions of Bangkok after I arrive...I have heard that it is pretty overwhelming at first. Long couple of days ahead...I'm excited and uncertain and everything in between. Can't wait to get there!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Achill Island
After a 9 or so hour bus ride, we arrived in Achill Island, a very isolated and beautiful "island" on the west coast of Ireland. I suppose it is called an island for tourist reasons as you could probably walk to the mainland at low tide. The job here is the general running of a backpacker hostel as well as working in the pub. Despite the remote location, there is a steady stream of people from all over coming through the hostel as well as a regular group of locals at the pub...so it has stayed interesting. We are also working with 5 other volunteers from all over.
Climbing mountains: From the hostel here you can see the peak of Schleife More when the top is not obstructed from view by a very ominous looking cloud. It wasn't long before I decided I needed to be up there looking down, so I set off one afternoon with another American and a French guy (who is apparently in much better shape than me) for the top. We decided to go up the steep side along a craggy ridge that ran all the way to the top. Luckily, the entire mountain is covered with peat that naturally forms steps, so the footing was easier than it looked from the bottom. About two hours and several rest breaks later, (except for our french mountain goat friend) we were at the top. To greet us there was what must have been a 50 mph wind pulling bits of cloud down out of the sky along the cliffs to the ocean below. It felt as though we were in a wind tunnel. We sat down behind an unnatural pile of stones at the very top to get out of the wind, but not before adding one more stone to the peak out of respect, as is the tradition.
Homeward bound: After more than 6 months of traveling together, the day has sadly come for Krista and I to part ways. On Tuesday we went together to Dublin for her to catch her flight to Chicago. As I headed back to Achill alone, I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to go it alone for a while. Admittedly, we weren't sure before hand what it would be like to spend almost 24 hours a day together for 6 months, but it couldn't have turned out better. Having someone to share in the experiences, the excitement, and the difficulties has been really rewarding. I will miss her very much and hope it isn't long before we can meet up down under!
The Big Leap: The travel plan was pretty well mapped out up until now...and as of yesterday I didn't really know what I was going to do next. Airfare prices are on the rise and my Irish visa is expiring in two weeks, so the time has come to put the pen to the map once again, and I think this next move is going to be a bit more of a shock than before. The plan so far is to fly into Bangkok, Thailand and travel overland through Laos and into Vietnam. After several cups of coffee and some rare quite in the early morning hours here, I have laid out the bare bones of a three or four week trek: From Bangkok to the islands of southern Thailand...then north to Chang Mai, crossing the border into Laos to follow the Mekong river south, east into Vietnam, and south along the coast to Saigon where my friend Dylan is living. I am both exited and nervous and have no idea what to expect...but that's the best part!
Climbing mountains: From the hostel here you can see the peak of Schleife More when the top is not obstructed from view by a very ominous looking cloud. It wasn't long before I decided I needed to be up there looking down, so I set off one afternoon with another American and a French guy (who is apparently in much better shape than me) for the top. We decided to go up the steep side along a craggy ridge that ran all the way to the top. Luckily, the entire mountain is covered with peat that naturally forms steps, so the footing was easier than it looked from the bottom. About two hours and several rest breaks later, (except for our french mountain goat friend) we were at the top. To greet us there was what must have been a 50 mph wind pulling bits of cloud down out of the sky along the cliffs to the ocean below. It felt as though we were in a wind tunnel. We sat down behind an unnatural pile of stones at the very top to get out of the wind, but not before adding one more stone to the peak out of respect, as is the tradition.
Homeward bound: After more than 6 months of traveling together, the day has sadly come for Krista and I to part ways. On Tuesday we went together to Dublin for her to catch her flight to Chicago. As I headed back to Achill alone, I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to go it alone for a while. Admittedly, we weren't sure before hand what it would be like to spend almost 24 hours a day together for 6 months, but it couldn't have turned out better. Having someone to share in the experiences, the excitement, and the difficulties has been really rewarding. I will miss her very much and hope it isn't long before we can meet up down under!
The Big Leap: The travel plan was pretty well mapped out up until now...and as of yesterday I didn't really know what I was going to do next. Airfare prices are on the rise and my Irish visa is expiring in two weeks, so the time has come to put the pen to the map once again, and I think this next move is going to be a bit more of a shock than before. The plan so far is to fly into Bangkok, Thailand and travel overland through Laos and into Vietnam. After several cups of coffee and some rare quite in the early morning hours here, I have laid out the bare bones of a three or four week trek: From Bangkok to the islands of southern Thailand...then north to Chang Mai, crossing the border into Laos to follow the Mekong river south, east into Vietnam, and south along the coast to Saigon where my friend Dylan is living. I am both exited and nervous and have no idea what to expect...but that's the best part!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Last Days at the Garden...
Upon completing the bike trip, we returned to the garden where we had been previously to find it busy and excited. The opening day was only a few days out...this is what we had been preparing for during our entire stay. Worked two long days, but got the place looking good and ready to open. Although a little wet
(standard and expected in Ireland) it went well and there were plenty of people in attendance, including some high ranking public officials...so that was interesting. We watched on for a while and then took a good long nap.
This next part is pretty exciting: That evening, we took a walk (after waking up from the nap). This was to be just an ordinary walk, which is how it started, and then...ABANDONED CASTLE!!! Hidden from view by the trees, but no more than a mile from where we had been for almost two months on the only road we hadn't walked down was an abandoned castle from the 16th century, in great shape considering, completely un-touristed and forgotten about. Can you imagine the adventure oozing from such a place? Sure there was a "Danger, Do Not Enter!" sign, but as you know, those can often be wrong, so we went at it and it was very impressive. Staircases, a murder hole, fireplaces, storerooms all there. Pictures on the photo page. Awesome is all I can say, I only wish I had found it sooner!
Didn't get too many photos of the garden because they had so many. If you want to see what it looked like, check out this Video
Meanwhile, in my inbox, an email lie in waiting. It was an invite from a hostel on the west coast who needed some helpers pronto to get ready for their biggest weekend of the year, and then to stay on for a couple of weeks afterward. So, as we have been in one spot for a good while and it's not good to keep opportunity waiting, we packed up, said our goodbyes, and set off right after the garden opening. Thanks soooo much to everyone who made our stay so much fun and took us out again and again...we got to do and see so much while here!
Onward !
(standard and expected in Ireland) it went well and there were plenty of people in attendance, including some high ranking public officials...so that was interesting. We watched on for a while and then took a good long nap.
This next part is pretty exciting: That evening, we took a walk (after waking up from the nap). This was to be just an ordinary walk, which is how it started, and then...ABANDONED CASTLE!!! Hidden from view by the trees, but no more than a mile from where we had been for almost two months on the only road we hadn't walked down was an abandoned castle from the 16th century, in great shape considering, completely un-touristed and forgotten about. Can you imagine the adventure oozing from such a place? Sure there was a "Danger, Do Not Enter!" sign, but as you know, those can often be wrong, so we went at it and it was very impressive. Staircases, a murder hole, fireplaces, storerooms all there. Pictures on the photo page. Awesome is all I can say, I only wish I had found it sooner!
Didn't get too many photos of the garden because they had so many. If you want to see what it looked like, check out this Video
Meanwhile, in my inbox, an email lie in waiting. It was an invite from a hostel on the west coast who needed some helpers pronto to get ready for their biggest weekend of the year, and then to stay on for a couple of weeks afterward. So, as we have been in one spot for a good while and it's not good to keep opportunity waiting, we packed up, said our goodbyes, and set off right after the garden opening. Thanks soooo much to everyone who made our stay so much fun and took us out again and again...we got to do and see so much while here!
Onward !
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
All Photos Posted !!!
They got internet installed while we were away, so I have uploaded all the backlogged photos! I managed to do titles and descriptions up to Pompeii, but it is almost 2am so I'll have to finish the rest later. Hope you enjoy!
TRIP PHOTOS
TRIP PHOTOS
Day 17
Hi All,
Well, the long and short of it is this: We sat in the tent in Killarney for another three days waiting for the rain to stop and went into a cafe for some internet. We pulled up the weather and it was predicted to blow and pour for another four days. Now, the rugged, perservering thing to do would have been to pull on the rain gear, pack up the wet tent, and weather the storm. The sensible thing to do, on the other hand, would be to say, "everything is wet, this sucks...lets throw it all on a bus and go back to a warm bed, a hot meal, and a dryer". I'll pause a minute and give you a chance to place your bets..
... ... . ... .. ... ......... . . ...
SO we're back at the garden at the HelpX...a fun, trying, rewarding, and very interesting bike trip under our slightly looser belts! About 1,000 km biked (I'll have to double check that), 2 weeks spent, about 20 pounds lost (between both of us), and plenty seen!
Well, the long and short of it is this: We sat in the tent in Killarney for another three days waiting for the rain to stop and went into a cafe for some internet. We pulled up the weather and it was predicted to blow and pour for another four days. Now, the rugged, perservering thing to do would have been to pull on the rain gear, pack up the wet tent, and weather the storm. The sensible thing to do, on the other hand, would be to say, "everything is wet, this sucks...lets throw it all on a bus and go back to a warm bed, a hot meal, and a dryer". I'll pause a minute and give you a chance to place your bets..
... ... . ... .. ... ......... . . ...
SO we're back at the garden at the HelpX...a fun, trying, rewarding, and very interesting bike trip under our slightly looser belts! About 1,000 km biked (I'll have to double check that), 2 weeks spent, about 20 pounds lost (between both of us), and plenty seen!
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