A YEAR IN MY LIFE ( or 3 )

DAMN VOLCANO

2010-04-22T04:13:00.001-07:00

THE GIFT OF THE GAB (or kissing the blarney stone)

2010-04-15T00:04:00.000-07:00

This is the last post that i will be doing on this particular blog site. A year in my life that turned into 3 and got extended to 4 has come to an end..... i will be flying home on Saturday! I am ending this chapter in my life the same way i started it, on the spur of the moment. I quit my job, packed up all my belongings and booked a flight for home....all within a week! I am leaving this country with no visa (expired on the 9th of April) just as i entered it.....with no visa!

Since i wasn't flying home until the 17th of April and having finished everything and moved out of my apartment on the 30th of March, i decided to do a little more exploring of Ireland. So with my Irishman in tow, we decided to explore his neck of the woods! Co. Cork and Co. Tipperary.....what better way than with your own personal tour guide!

First stop: The Blarney Stone. They say that if you kiss the Blarney Stone, you will be blessed with the gift of the gab!!! My friends laughed at this as they said that i did not need it, oh well. The actual stone is on the top of Blarney Castle and the only way you can reach is is by basically hanging upside down and craning your neck! It's a long drop down if you miss.

Next on our slow tour was the English Market in Cork city. It's the best market i have seen in Ireland!! We picked up lots of goodies to take back to our hotel as dinner was not till 8:45. Back at our hotel we dived in and devoured cheese, pate, chorizo, olives and sundried tomatoes. Being Good Friday, no alcohol is served or bought anywhere in Ireland and i was mad that i had not thought sooner and brought a bottle with us. There were signs posted all over the hotel stating this but to our surprise.......you could order a drink with your meal! Guess signs were for legal reasons.

The next day found us on the very wind swept Rock of Cashel. Most people search the whole area for the "Rock". What they don't realize is that the castle is actually built on the "Rock". It's more of a monastery that was finally abandoned do to the very harsh weather conditions. Yup, it was windy and cold......just glad i had not packed away my down jacket as i think i wore it for most of the trip!

We drove on to Mitchelstown Caves. Very cool subterranean caves with some of the Europe's best stalagmites and stalactites. No photography allowed i'm sad to say..........but they do hold the odd concert in here and the acoustics are amazing. We did an impromptu round robin song that sounded pretty good.

That night we stayed in an old lodge in the Glen of Aherlow at the base of the Galtee Mountains. What a beautiful view from our room........they were covered in snow and with the sun shining on them......incredible. With Brendan growing up in this area, he pointed out lots of interesting things along the way. After breakfast the next day, it was off to his home town of Cahir and Easter dinner with his Mom and Dad, brother, sister in-law and a gaggle of kids. Fun and alot of laughs with a trip to the park with the 2 youngest ones.......the twins weren't interested in joining us.

Our final day (easter monday) was spent walking the grounds of Cahir Castle. Built in the 13th century for the Butler family.....the last surviving member died in 1961, the castle then became part of the state and major restorations took place. The Butler family got it's name because a butler who worked for the king made it big and changed his last name to Butler! Hahahaha. Turns out alot of names were conceived in this way.......it all depended on the job you did! As a teenager, Brendan once played here in a concert with his Clarinet!

Not far from the castle is the Swiss Cottage, built in the 1800's by the family. Some say it is where the men of the house kept their mistresses but it was actually a hunting and fishing getaway from the everyday life of running a Castle. We entered the same way the servants did back then.......through an underground tunnel that led to the kitchens. That way, the guests never had to be annoyed by comings and goings of the lower class staff!

This was such a great way to wind up my time here in Ireland........a wonderful slow journey through an area of Ireland that i had yet to explore with the best tour guide you could have.

So, it is a bitter sweet goodbye for me, leaving all my friends behind. It has been an incredible journey, one that i will always remember and one that i will never regret. But something tells me that i will be back!

Kissing the Blarney Stone!

my little lepricon

Brendan

Rock Of Cashel

Galtee Mountains

A Walk in the Park

Meagan

Jack

Cahir Castle

The End

Berlin

2009-06-09T10:18:00.000-07:00

It was a quick city trip before my real holiday in August. Again i went with my friend Karen, a real go getter for which i am eternally grateful! Our flight was at 6am which meant getting up at 2:30am to get to the airport for 4am. Unfortunately, i had been up till all hours the night before as i had a friend in town from Canada. 2 hours sleep and i was raring to go...............not!

I have always wanted to go to Berlin for very personal reasons and............... shoe shopping. I didn't get the shoes but will order them on-line as i couldn't decide which ones to get. As for the other, it was well fulfilled. The day didn't start off great as it was very misty and drizzly, so photos were difficult. We did most of the historical sites on on the first day and some were a surprise. I was a basket case by 9pm and we still hadn't eaten. Had the best steak of my life at 11pm! Sorry, no pictures. Crawled into bed at 12:30 sans makeup and slept till 9am! For those that know me, that is unheard of.

The second day was way more mellow.............sun, beer, wine, sight seeing and just general things, with dinner at 9 with a Doner Kebab, drinks in the lounge and off to bed. We had to get up early for flight home.

Some of you might recognize the Hotel Adlon, where Michael Jackson held one of his children upside down over a balcony. There was none of that going on but there was a huge amount of police outside when we were there, unfortunately, just a political figure that we did not know!
Drinks on the River Spree and seeing the sights from the TV Tower, The Brandenburger Gates and of course the Berlin Wall were highlights. We also saw the last remaining check point called Check Point Charlie which segregated the American Quarter from the the others of Berlin. The Brandenburg Gates had been heavily bombed during the war but have now been fully restored. It is so sad what the German people had to go through, right up till 1989 when the wall came down.

Now it is a city of contrasts! It is a leader (3rd in the world) of artistic design, architecture and arts. So much was destroyed that it is now more modern than historic.
But the history lies in the people, their dedication to preserving the past and not letting us forget. Memorials and tributes are everywhere. Please go and see this most amazing city, they have come along way!

Jewish Holocaust Memorial

Sony Center

Berlin Wall

Check Point Charlie

Stuff

More of the Berlin Wall

The most amazing picture ever!

Hitler's Sister?

The Underground

Outside the Parliament Buildings

The Reichstag

View from Conservatory of The Reichstag

Inside the conservatory

Brandenburger Gates

Alexandersplatz

Drinks on the terrace of the Hotel Adlon

(really bad picture of me)

Robyn at the end of a very long day

The End

Dingle, Dolphins, The Ring of Kerry and the Clarkson's visit to Ireland

2009-04-13T08:27:00.000-07:00

It's hard to imagine that a year ago, my sister Heidi and i made plans for her and her family to come and visit. That year went by so fast! They arrived on Friday March 6th very tired but very excited! I hadn't seen my sis or my nieces and brother-in-law in 15 very long months, it was like a dream that they were here.

We had to take a bus and a taxi to get to my place as my little VW Polo would not have fit the 5 of us and all their luggage, we tumbled in and they made themselves at home. Within minutes it was like we had never been apart. Sure, the girls have grown alot and are now young women but to me they were just the same.

The next morning i took Bud and the girls out for breakfast and they just sat there staring into space. When i asked what was wrong, they just shook their heads and said they couldn't believe they were here and the accents were so strange. I just laughed, i've been here so long i don't even notice the accent anymore! The next few days were spent sight seeing, trying to find Enya's castle and Bono's home (of U2 fame) in Dalkey, enjoying coffee at Starbucks in Malehide and watching the wind whip up the sand at Bull Island-it was even too windy for the kite surfers to be out. We experienced hail, snow and rain (all in one day) and toured through castles.

Since they had come all this way, they had to go to Paris! It gave me a much needed break, cleaned the house from top to bottom and got ready for our trip to Dingle and the Ring of Kerry. Since Paris was their trip, you won't see any of those pictures here. Maybe Jaycee will put those on her blogsite http://jphotography777.blogspot.com/ Check it out! She is amazing!

I rented us a cottage in Dingle which is in County Kerry on the South west coast of Ireland. It was a long drive with all 5 of us squished in my car and our luggage, but with many stops for stretching and pee breaks, we made it in one piece. The weather gods were with us the whole time, by the end of our visit, we were walking around in our t-shirts. We decided to "do" the Ring of Kerry the next day, a 197 km ring of ancient history, making stops along the way. We scrambled through an old tumbling down castle and walked along the tops of Ring Forts! We viewed the Unesco World Heritage site of the Skelig rocks from some pretty awe inspiring cliffs and toured through old thatched roofed cottages.

If you think you can do the Ring in one day, don't!!!! We drove the last 75km in the dark on some pretty scary, narrow, windy roads with shear drop offs to Killarney lake! Actually, i'm glad it was dark as i don't think i would have wanted to see where we could have ended up! We made it back at 9:30pm, me so bugged eyed, i couldn't see straight and we all headed straight to bed.

Dingle is a very funky and colorful little village and the drive around the Dingle Peninsula the next day was breath taking. We made frequent stops on narrow cliff roads to take pictures of the ocean and baby lambs. At one stop we were rewarded with the birth of a baby lamb and mommy cleaning it and encouraging it to stand! Definitely the high light of our trip! St. Patricks Day was spent on a boat trip in Dingle Bay and getting to see Fungi, the resident dolphin. Fungi has been a resident in the waters there since 1986 when he made his first appearance, he plays there every day and you can guarantee a siting of him! He loves to chase the boat and jump around for you, but all i ever got was his fin in my pics!

Back on land, we watched the St. Paddy's day parade and then headed back to Dublin. I went to work and the gang had a few days on their own before heading back to Vancouver. It was a sad good bye but i must say, i haven't laughed that much in 3 years, my stomach hurt all the time! The Clarkson's like to play word games and i think Heidi won the prize with her " i've got sheep for brains"

The arrival

Jaycee

Madeleine

Bud

Heidi

Enya's Castle ?

Tinsel watching and waiting

Bud's first Guiness in Ireland

Skelig Rocks

The colorful sheep of Kerry!

On Ventry Beach, Dingle

Sand Art

Momma and baby

Dingle Bay

Fungi's fin!

The End

Random

2009-02-28T01:12:00.001-08:00

Tunisia

2009-01-18T02:08:00.000-08:00

I left a very cold Dublin on December 20th for what i hoped to be warm sunny days, lying on the beach in Tunisia. The sky was blue and the sun shone but it never got above 19 degrees! For those of you who don't know where Tunisia is, it is on the northern tip of North Africa. To the west lies Algeria and to the south is Lybia. Until i booked this trip, i had never heard of Tunisia. Tanzania yes but not Tunisia. I had intended to go to Morocco, i'm glad i changed my plans.

Tunisia is a very poor country and extremely dirty but it makes up for it by it's stunning, rugged landscapes, it's beautiful lush oasis, the Mediterranean sea and it's absolutely gorgeous men! Who would have thought i'd be 4 wheel driving in the Atlas mountains and camel trekking in the Sahara Dessert, watching the sun set over the sand dunes and then watching it rise over the salt flats. I also attended a traditional Tunisian dinner and watched Tunisian and Zulu dancers and had my picture taken with a "real Zulu Chief" (maybe not but he was cute!)

Being a Muslim country, i was not expecting anything for Christmas but our hotel put on a Gala dinner on Christmas Eve. The food was good and they put on great entertainment. Yours truly even took the photo that they used for their menu. Christmas day was spent lounging by the pool. Every day we spent an hour walking on the beach after breakfast, the Mediterranean was right outside our door! Then it was relaxing in a sheltered place to catch some rays before heading out for the day. I think this was actually the first holiday i have taken where i actually lost weight by the time i got home.

It was hard to get back on that plane to cold and wet Dublin. I am looking forward to my next warm spot in April to Greece!

Roman Coliseum in El Jem

Moo Moo and Rawdha and us

Entrance to Berber Dwelling

Looking into the courtyard

Tunisian beer

Mohammad, my guide

my camel

sunset in the Sahara

sunrise over the salt flats

dessert rose mined in the salt flats

Les Grande Cascade oasis

boy in date tree

fresh dates

Sunset at prayer time in Kairouan

Christmas Eve

Port El Kanaoui

Catching rays our last day

The End

Kinsale

2009-01-04T10:32:00.000-08:00

My boyfriend Darryl came for a much awaited visit in October. (You can spy some pics of him from my Vancouver trip last December!) I wasn't able to take alot of time off but we did spend a very memorable time in Kinsale in County Cork. We both fell in love with this sleepy little fishing village. My favorite village in Ireland by far! We arrived during the annual Food Festival and boy did we eat well. We ate dinner one night in a place called Jola's. I've eaten in some pretty amazing places and i have to say this was by far the best. The ambiance, food, champagne and of course the company made it the most perfect evening ever!

We spent our days just wondering around. These are my snaps of this most enchanting place.

Enjoy

Charles Fort

Mom's Trip of a Life Time

2009-01-04T04:06:00.000-08:00

My mom finally made it to the shores of the Emerald Ilse this September! It was only the second time she had seen me in 2 1/2years and we had a great time. Mom was here for 3 weeks and we made the most of it. Our number 1 priority was to go to Donegal up on the northwest coast of Ireland. Mom has (and me) family up there that she had never met and this is where her Great Grandfather was from. We met up with Billy and Francis (mom's second cousins?) and saw the old homestead where they used to live. Billy definitely looks like a Morrow. He and mom could be brother and sister. We had an awesome time driving around the very barren and rugged coast, seeing the old Methodist Church where her Great Grandfather was married, traipsing around an old over grown estate and enjoying our B&B Ard na Bretha. I had my 43rd birthday up there! On our leisurely drive back to Dublin, we stopped in Belleek to tour the Belleek Museum and purchase a few things.

Back in Dublin, we did all the touristy things that i love to show my guests. We went agate hunting in Bray, beach combing on Bull island, lunching at Powers Court Estate and Howth Harbour, spent time in the Vale of Avoca (where Ballykissangel was filmed) and bought throws at the Avoca Hand Weavers Mill. We had dinner one night at Johnny Fox's pub, high up in the Dublin mountains. The Kilmainham Gaol is a must see for anyone visiting Ireland. It shows the history of the famine, the coffin ships to Australia and the 1916 uprising.

Mom had to fend for herself for a few days while i went back to work at the end of her visit. She was very nervous to take a bus into town (i don't think she has ever taken public transport) but on her first day on her own, she was bored! Next thing i know, she is calling me from somewhere in Trinity Collage. We met at a coffee shop around the corner from my work, talked and laughed and headed home. We spent her last day at Phoenix Park and Farmleigh Estate where we had a nice walk and a snack by the lake. I saw her off early the following morning at the airport where i think we both shed a few tears!

Methodist Church in Donegal

Old grave site in Donegal Town

Donegal Castle

Donegal Bay at Billy's property

Billy's puppies

Billy and Mom standing in the old barn

The old homestead

My Birthday!

Donegal Bay

Scenes from the coast of Donegal

Billy, Mom Theresa, Me & Frances outside our B&B

Belleck through the ages

old grave stone in Glendelough

Beach combing on Bull Island

Howth Harbour

Powers Court Estate

Agate hunting in Bray

Kilmainham Gaol

Mom getting beheaded!

I love you mom, bye

Amazing Violinists

2009-01-04T01:07:00.000-08:00

This summer i had the pleasure of having two very amazing violinists stay with me for a month and a half! I met Agnes and Mateo 2 years ago when they were here in Dublin, busking on Grafton Street. They are both music students in Poland and when they finish this year, they will have their Master's. At the moment, they are finishing up a 5 month stay in Brussels at a very prestigious music school. They have just informed me that they might stay on for another two years there. We always kept in touch, wanting to meet up again, so this summer was the perfect opportunity. They stayed with me and continued to busk on Grafton street. They made the newspaper a few times, paper and on-line, were asked if they wanted to record a CD and even got asked to play at a wedding!

Me, Agnes and Mateo 2 years ago!

Busking on Grafton in front of Brown Thomas

Relaxing in the backyard. And this is supposed to be July?!?!

Hiking up in the mountains in Glendolough

Mateo's violin case

Sometimes in the evenings, Agnes and Mateo would play in my living room or when friends were over. My neighbors loved this and would open their windows to hear them. When they were here 2 years ago, we had a party in the back yard and i was told that when they played, my neighbor grabbed a glass of wine and sat in her back yard listening! She was thrilled that they were back again this summer.

Agnes and Mateo had never had lobster, so as a treat (they paid, i cooked) we went off to Howth to pick up lobster and Sea Bass. The fish monger handed Mateo the live lobster in a plastic bag. There was no way he was going to sit in the car with them on his lap so they went in the boot with their violins! Then in the bathtub until it was time to get cooking. Tinsel kept checking them out. We had a very fun evening but Agnes wouldn't eat the lobster!

Mateo peeking at the lobster

Ah......cooked

Sea Bass

It was a pretty cold and wet summer and the staff at Pasta Fresca were very kind to them, letting them sit out of the rain for hours drinking coffee on the house and the occasional meal! So to say thank you, they played there on their last night and we got free pizzas!

I miss them alot and hopefully one day they will get to Vancouver and i am trying to fit in a trip to see them in either Poland or Brussels

The End

Under the Tuscan Sun

2008-08-25T06:14:00.000-07:00

July 24th found me landing in Pisa, Italy at 11:30 in the evening. I didn't have a hotel room booked as i thought i would just sleep in the airport for a few hours, but it was so small that i got information to find me a room. 10 minutes later and i was sound asleep! Was up early, had breakfast and headed off to see the leaning tower before i had to catch the train to Florence and meet Diana. You can now go up in the tower, so i bought my ticket and headed up. So amazing to be inside this tower that started it's origins in the 1100's and wasn't actually finished til the 1600's. Nobody seems to know why it took so long. It's all made of white marble and the steps are worn on either side, depending on witch way the tower is leaning when you walk around it.

I met Diana at our B&B in Florence, we had a quite dinner and headed to bed. In the morning we got a taxi to the airport to pick up our rental car. I got the lady to set the airport as Home on my GPS and when we got into the car and turned it on, Tommy had become Tina. Somewhere between Ireland and Italy my GPS had a sex change!!! It took me an hour to find my way out of the airport and onto the autostrada, after passing Ikea 3 times i made it! It was very nerve racking with all these cars coming at you-4 lanes wide and no lines. Yikes!!! Diana had lost all faith in Tina by this time. I was terrified that this was how the whole driving trip would be. But it got easier as the days went by. Our first stop was Arezzo, on our way to our first agriturismo, Il Rigo

Il Rigo

Il Rigo has been in the same family since the 1600's and i think it was built in the 1400's as a hospital. 10 years ago, the owners traded cattle for humans and opened as a working farm for guests. The wife is a chef and gives cooking lessons, they own another farm and a restaurant in another village. At last count, there are 25 cats and 2 dogs.

Cheese in Pienza

Back at Il Rigo, watching the storm

lunch somewhere

Room with a view

Diana and i take cooking lessons

Rabbit!

The day we went to Sienna was probably the hottest! 41 degrees! We really didn't do much here because of the heat except eat lunch in an air conditioned restaurant and see the Domo. They say it rivals the one in Florence and i think they are right. All this black and white marble, it was every where. You couldn't use a flash inside so the pics aren't that great. But you get the idea. Next stop-Radda in Chianti and our second agrituismo called Podre Terreno

outside the Domo

Il Campo-famous for pony racing

Having a coffee in Volpaia

Gina and the baby

One town i had to go to in Chianti was Volterra, it is know for it's alabaster mines. Diana didn't want to go, it was going to be a quick in and out then on to a different town. Well, we both fell in love with it and stayed the day. Yes, i bought a beautiful alabaster bowl. We also visited a Palazo, with an original family decendent still living there.

Alabaster work studio

Back at Podre Terreno

Dinner with the family and guests

Olive oil and wine tour in Volpaia

Private wine tasting

We didn't discover this little lake til our last day at Podre Terreno. We spent an hour there swimming and laying on the dock. What bliss!

Our trip is almost over, we head back to Florence where we spent two nights in a B&B. Touring the leather markets, eating and seeing the statue of David. It is a thriving, busy city and the food amazing. We also toured the gardens of the Pedi Palace, which had a porcelin museum with some very unusual works of art made from shells and precious metals and stones.

a little tired

So that's it! It was an incredible trip, action packed and one i will never forget. I bought wine in Volpaia in Chianti, leather in Montepulciano, alabaster in Volterra and leather shoes in Florence! Plus a few other things!

Thanks Diana for making this such a wonderful trip and for being an excellent travel companion

THE END

Powerscourt Estate, Co. Wicklow

2008-08-25T04:05:00.000-07:00

Pet cemetery

Bloom 2008

2008-08-25T03:56:00.000-07:00

Cousin Dave

2008-08-25T03:49:00.000-07:00

My cousin Dave and his family were in Ireland this summer and we were able to meet up for dinner one night. I think it had been 9 years since i last saw him but he looks just the same. I gave them a little walking tour after dinner before they headed back to their hotel. They were heading up to Belfast for a few days then off to Rome and Tuscany!

Johnny's Fox's Pub

2008-08-25T03:39:00.000-07:00

This is quite a famous Pub in Dublin. It sits nestled up in the Dublin Mountains and only serves seafood! It is a warren of little rooms with sawdust on the floors. Live music nightly. Maureen and i ended up there after a very cold hike in the mountains.......this seemed like a better idea!

TINSEL

2008-08-25T03:27:00.000-07:00

What? I didn't do anything

Tinsel's first adventure outside

Still Life at Mom's

2008-02-27T08:30:00.001-08:00

Vancouver! First trip home

2008-02-12T20:41:00.000-08:00

I made my first trip home to Vancouver in December. It was a busy time for me, every minute of every day was booked solid! It's a good thing i rented a car as i pulled my suitecase in and out of the boot so many time, i lost count. I tried to devide my time eaqually bewtween all my friends and family but unfortunately some got less than others and i felt so bad about this. I won't bore you with all the details, the pictures speak for themselves.

The Arrival

The Drive to Chilliwack

Girls Night Out!!!

Robyn crashes a christmas party!

And gets a foot massage!

Others join in!

Friends and Family

My Miguel

I leave with more luggage!!

The End

Trees in the fog and moss on my roof

2008-02-11T11:44:00.000-08:00

Arye, Scotland

2008-02-11T11:00:00.000-08:00

I headed off for a weekend to Scotland the begining of november. It's only a 30 minute flight from Dublin and it was a birthday present from my friend Katrina. I stayed in a lovely old hotel called the Old Racecourse Inn in Arye. It is a seaside village and would be beautiful in the summer but it was a cold and windy weekend! At least the colors on the trees were incredible.

The people here were very friendly and a family even gave me a ride back to my hotel after a long day of walking. I didn't realize that on sundays after 5pm the buses stop running! It's a quiet town, which was fine by me. I enjoyed the walks through the woods and on the beach. The town's claim to fame is Robbie Burns. He wrote the words to Auld Lang Syne!

Cottage where Robbie Burns was born

The bed where he was born

Bull Island

2007-10-20T07:39:00.001-07:00

PERIWINKLES, SHEEP & MY SUMMER

2007-08-31T08:54:00.000-07:00

What a summer it has been! It all started with my sister, Heidi, visiting from Vancouver. She had a flight from Vancouver to Gatwick, London. A 3 hour wait then off to Dublin. What she didn't know was that i was meeting her in Gatwick Airport (a little surprise on my part)! It didn't go quite according to plan as my flight was 1 1/2 hours delayed. I was to get in before her and meet her at passport control. Try and find someone in a huge airport! Just over an hour later with my eyes peeled the whole time, i finally found her on the second floor staring at the departure screen. I actually recognized the back of her head! I came around in front of her and said "fancy meeting you here". She just kept looking at me, i thought she didn't know who i was! Heidi finally said "am i in the wrong airport?" She thought that maybe she was at Dublin and didn't know it!! After a few minutes, it was like we had never been apart.

Our flight was over an hour late departing, so that by the time we got back to my place in Dublin, it was just after 1am. We sat and talked til 3:30am and then crashed. I was up at 6am to go to work and when i got home, Heidi was still in bed!! Lucky dog!

Wednesday saw us catching a train to Galway, where we had a great dinner, walk and sleep. Then it was off to one of the Aran Islands. I had booked us a few nights on Inis Meain. It is the middle of The Aran Islands and the least visited. It is a walk on ferry, no vehicles except for the people that live there. It is one of the last true Gaelic communities left in Ireland. There are only 150 residents and they make their living from fishing and tourism. Many have been there for generations. Electricity only arrived in the '70's.

The island is made up of small plots defined by dry rock walls, they are built in away so that the strong winds do not blow them down. Most houses still have the old thatched roofs. All gardening is done organically, fertilized by seaweed picked off the beaches. Shell fish is gathered by hand and every one is friendly! By the next day, we were known locally as "the Canadian girls" Everyone knew who we were. It didn't help that the whole island was trying to fix me up with the local B&B bachelor! I met him the first night and he bought me a drink. Nice man, would love to live on that island, run a B&B, but ......no spark!

Heidi and i spent 3 wonderful days walking, beach combing and eating to much. We tried Periwinkles, visited an old ring fort and made friends with a week old donkey! Then it was back to Galway for an over nighter. Dinner at an awesome fish and chip place and then wondering around the most amazing hotel i have ever seen! The g! Look at the pics. We had a few days back in Dublin and then a friend from Vancouver came over and stayed with us for 4 days. Did alot of exploring around Dublin, Christ Church Cathedral, Duvblina (Viking exhibit) and the hop on hop off tour and one bar-b-que!!!!

Janice left on the Friday morning and we met up with Diana (who arrived the day before) for dinner and drinks. She stayed a great B&B in town for a few days. Heidi, Diana and i did more site seeing. One day was on the DART (skytrain?) to Dalkey where we went to Goat Castle and had a tour by medieval actors. Great show! then we got off in Dun Laoghaire (pronounced Dun Leary) to pick up some lamb pies. What a story that was! It led to an impromptu sing song by both Heidi and Diana and i caught it on video. I hadn't laughed so hard for so long!

Monday was a holiday and the day that Heidi left. So very sad :( Diana then moved into my place for a few days before she jet setted off to Scotland for a week to stay with friends. Thank god! Some time to myself and i needed it. A week later Diana arrived back to my place and then it was a day of rest, shopping, eating, meeting Katrina for her Birthday dinner and drinks in a pub in Temple Bar.

The next two days, Diana and i spent touring around the outer counties of county Dublin. We went and saw an almost 8 thousand year old Temple called Newgrange in County Meath. Built before the pyramids in Egypt and still standing. Discovered in the 1600's. We were able to walk right into the center. Saw a few monasteries and then home and crashed. Next day was off to County Wicklow to see Powers Court Estate, Avoca Hand weavers mill and Glendolough! Back to my place for frenzied packing, eating and in desperate need for sleep. Diana left in the morn for home and i went to work!

My place has been a revolving door for the last month, but i have loved every moment of it! Needed to recoup! So now that i have had a taste of home, i have booked a flight home for a visit in December!!!!!!!!!!!! See you all before Christmas! Cheers

Inis Meain

Big bugs in Galway!

The g! Hotel

Christ Church Cathedrale

Me and friends

A monestary

Newgrange

Paris

2007-07-10T08:30:00.000-07:00

Monday June 25th, had me catching a flight a 6am to Beauvais Airport, Paris France! Thought i was just over tired from the packing and excitement of going to this beautiful city but as the flight wore on, i realized i was very sick!! I still had the excitement when the plane landed and i caught a shuttle bus into the city. I had no idea where i was in this big place and was determined to walk to my hotel. Showing my map, asking directions and 1 hour and 30 minutes later i made it. Along the way, i walked right past the Arc de Triomphe, strolled down the Champs-Elysees, glimpsed the Eiffel Tower. They say that Paris is made for walking but what they fail to say is how big this city really is!

My hotel was in the Opera area, the 9th arrondissements. The city is divided into 22 distinct areas, each with their own flair and amusements. Such as Montmartre, that houses the Sacre Coeur and Moulin Rouge! Unfortunately, my camera died on the 4th day so did not get all these sites captured in photo. The Latin Quarter was neat with it's lively narrow cobbled lanes, lots of cafes and smartly funkily dressed Parisians. The youth here know no bounds when it comes to dressing but they seem to carry it off with style. Saw what i would call a "typical" Parisian woman. She was walking her little poodle, thin as a waif, wearing ridiculously high heels and smoking! I wanted to take a picture so bad. I must learn to be more discreet with my photos.

The first day was spent at the Eiffel Tower. 2 hours queuing and 2 hours exploring all three levels. It really did live up to it's reputation I'm glad to say, maybe it was just me and having wanted to see it all my life! The views are amazing and the photos really don't do it justice. In fact, i think this is the worst set of photos i have ever taken. I think the combination of being sick, dark grey clouds and the wind and the rain didn't help! All of the major monuments have Army men walking around with machine guns. At first it seemed strange, have only seen that in Mexico, but you get used to it after awhile. In fact you couldn't walk two feet with out seeing 5 or 6 police. All nice and always smiling and saying hi!

A cruise down the Seine, seeing the Mona Lisa in the Musee du Louvre, cruising past Notre Dame, visiting Jim Morrison's (the Doors) and Oscar Wilde's grave at the Cimetiere du Pere-Lachaise , walking under the arch of the Arc de Triomphe, seeing the view of the city form Sacre Coeur and having the best dam food at the Relais that i ate all week. If it weren't for my travel buddy, Karen, i probably would have not seen and done all this, all i wanted to do was curl up in my hotel room and sleep til i felt better. Although she was a little to enthusiastic and kept me out to late and wouldn't let me have a mid day rest. Don't think i was in bed before 1am each night! Hence, a week and a bit later, i am still sick and must recover in time for my bevy of friends and family coming to visit me this summer.

Inside the Louvre

Spirals-again!!!

Arc de Triompe

Sacre Coeur

Musee du Louvre

Champs_Elysees

View from Eiffel Tower

Eiffel Tower

Is this where the expression" grabbing the bull by the horns" comes from?

Notre Dame

On the Seine

Cimetiere du Pere-Lachaise

The Metro underground

1st Annual Wheatfield Bar-b-que

2007-06-23T02:47:00.001-07:00

I had a bar-b-que for all the dentists that i work with in Wheatfield prison. Their year contract is over the first week of July and they are all off to bigger and better things. One got accepted into the Perio program, another into Medicine, one is going sailing for a year with her boyfriend. 4 are going into private practice, one of which is going to the States this summer to check out the Endo program in both Boston and Seattle! They picked the dated so that they could all be there. The weekend before was beautiful and then it rained......and rained...........and rained! The night before i realized i would have to make alternative plans when it came to the food. So on the night of, all 11 of us were packed into my tiny living room and all food was cooked indoors. It must have been a great success as the party ended at 1am! The next day, we were all a bit tired at work but all talking about how good it was! I'm going to miss them all!!!!!!

Me cooking

Sheila, Jen & me

Tim, Jen & Regina

Katrina and daughter Anna-Lisa

Niamh & Regina

Rob, Sheila & Jen

Laura & John

Laura, Tim & Jen
Looking a little tired

More tired

Tim, Jen, Regina & Niamh

Katrina

Sheila, Regina & Lamb

Laura & Tim

Roma, Napoli and Pompeii

2007-05-07T06:24:00.000-07:00

Easter Sunday found me touching down at the Ciampina Airport in Rome. One of the most religious cities in the world and i arrived on probably the busiest day of the year! The double decker shuttle bus was packed, people sitting on the stairs and standing in the isles. The first thing that i noticed while entering town was the amount of graffiti. Every where that one could touch was covered. I thought we were just going through a bad part of the city, ha, i was wrong. Even on the nicest streets in the city. Thank god they do have some respect and don't touch the ancient ruins. It is also a very dirty city but you start to over look that as you are marvelling at everything else.

I knew that the B&B was close to the Colosseum, so after i unpacked my bags, i headed out to find it. I was a bit shocked when i got one block and looked down a side street and there it was. I spent the evening just wandering and being it awe. Found a little tattoria on a cobbled side street and had dinner. Next day found me up bright and early to go to the Colosseum. I new it opened at 9am so got there a little before. I couldn't believe the amount of people already there, well over 6-7 hundred I'd say. But once inside, you didn't notice. I rented an electronic tour guide but half the time i realized i was listening to the wrong thing in the wrong place so gave up on that and just wandered. Next was Palatine Hill. Rome consists of 7 hills and there was usually a villa on each one, owned by the most wealthy families. Underground tunnels every where to get servants places without being seen and more than likely for romantic trysts! Even in the tunnels there were frescoes, carvings and bass relief. Wondering the Roman Forum was next!

Went back to my place to put my feet up for a few hours and then it was off again to see the Piazza di Spagna (spanish steps) and the Fontana di Trevi. It was a beautiful evening but some how i picked up a tag-a-long. I guy stopped me for directions to the spanish steps and before i knew it, he was walking with me and kept me company for an hour. Finally shook him and went on my way! Had to rest up as the next day was SHOPPING!

The Vatican was also on my agenda, so Thursday morn i hopped a bus to get there. I was warned that the line ups were long and to not have bare shoulders or knees or you wouldn't get in! And i thought there were a lot of people at the Colosseum. Thousands and thousands, i que in, scanned, searched and padded down to find out that i wasn't in the line up for the Sistine Chapel or museums! All these people were waiting to to the Pope! I didn't stick around, found the other lineup for what i wanted. Started talking to a couple in the line-up from Australia, so stuck with them and before we knew it we snitched in on a private tour of the Sistine chapel etc...what luck. Now that line-up was over an hour long, over a km long and moving very slow! Glad i had the tour guide as it would have been very mind boggling with out one. what am i saying, it was still mind boggling with one. The Sistine was the last place you entered after about 2 hours of other painting and no pictures allowed inside!!! It was like a can of sardines, you just went with the flow and hoped you got out the other end.

Met up later that night for dinner with the couple that i met at the Vatican. We sat beside an older Italian couple and between no Italian or English but a little bit of french all around and charades, we had a great time. They bought us grappa, they cheered when i downed it in one go. It's very strong stuff! They were trying to set me up with their son and wanting to know why at 40 (?) i was not married. This was said in Italian and i swear the whole restaurant turned around and stared at me! I was so embarrassed!

Had an early bus to catch in the morn for Pompeii! This was a splurge for me and i am so glad that i did it! It was a three hour bus ride to Pompeii with a stop in Naples. Once in Pompeii city, we stopped at an outdoor restaurant for lunch under a wisteria that they say was over a 100 years old. Then it was to a Cameo making studio and finally the ruins. It was a bout a 3 hour guided tour and it was fantastic! Hard to imagine that the frescoes were from the 3rd century BC. They are still vivid in color, almost every room in every villa had them. Went to the House of Ill repute, couldn't imagine being in there long with beds carved out of stone and stone pillows! Frescoes were above each room depicting different scenes, almost like a menu! The bakeries were all grouped together and the old grinding stones mills were still there. It is said that 12 loaves of bread were found in one of the brick ovens during excavation. Back on the bus and back to my B&B at 9pm where the owners greeted my with a bottle of champagne! To tired to drink it, hit the hay and zonked out.

Flew home next morning at 10am.

The Colosseum

Vatican City & Museums

Red Marble Bath Tub

Fontana di Trevi

Piazza di Spagna

Palatine Hill

Blood oranges in Pompeii

Bodies uncovered during excavation

Frescoes

Mount Vesuvius

Entrance to Pompeii

Villas

London

2007-04-04T10:58:00.000-07:00

London reminded me of the west end of Vancouver meets old world. What an incredible city! I walked for hours, took in a play and toured some of the royal palace. I know this is alot of photos but it was hard to pick just a few. I spent 4 days in this city and can't wait to go back. Every one said that the English are not very friendly, i thought just the opposite. The city is so international, i felt at home. Dublin almost feels drab and behind the times in comparison. Everyone should take in this world city if they ever have the chance. To actually see all the historical sights that we Canadians always see in the news and history books, well, i can't explain. I actually had a few tears in my eyes on the last day as i was walking through Chelsea. I didn't want to go home to Dublin.

The Royal Carriages

The Gold Carriage-used for the Queen's Coronation and Jubilee's
The Glass Carriage-Princes Di's wedding carriage

The London Eye-the worlds largest Ferris wheel

Self portraits

Tower Bridge

Eros-god of love

The Tower of London

Those spirals again!

Military Arch-where Howard's End was filmed

Pigeons in Trafalgar Square

Harrods Food Hall-i spent over an hour here

China Town

Big Ben Blue

The Mall

Buckingham Palace

Christmas Shopping on Grafton Street

2007-04-04T09:15:00.000-07:00

More scenes in and around Dublin

2007-04-04T08:57:00.000-07:00

Howth Harbour

Local designer showroom

Seals in Howth Harbour

The Apartment

2007-04-04T08:40:00.000-07:00

Just in case any of you were curious as to where i live, here are a few snaps of my place. I moved in June 3rd of last year. My apartment is above a dental surgery, so after the dentist's day is done, i have the whole place to myself. As you can see, i have a very large back and front yards. I bought a bar-b-que last summer, but have only used it a few times. This summer will be different.

View out my bedroom window!

The Antrim Coast

2007-02-09T08:09:00.000-08:00

In early October, i took a road trip with my father and Joyce along the Antrim coast in northern Ireland. We took a bus to Derry, stayed a night and rented a car the next day to spend 4 days at leisure, stopping where we wanted to and staying in B&B's along the way. Seeing as i had already been in Ireland for 6 months, it was decided that i would be the principle driver, since i had the lay of the land and used to "watching" driving on the wrong side of the road. Well, after the first day, you can see why my dad took over! It was still hair raising but we managed. We stopped at some pretty beautiful places as you will see from the photos. Come and take a tour with me as we drive down the Antrim Coast!

OOPS!!!!

Storm's a brewing!

Carrick-a-peed Rope Bridge

The Giant's Causeway

The Giant's Causeway was my main reason for seeing the Antrim Coast! I was not disappointed. The ancients thought that this was made By giants, that it was a bridge to Scotland, as there is the same formation right across the water. It is the only place in the world where these regular, closely packed, hexagonal basalt stone columns exist

Bushmill's Distillery

The oldest working distillery in the world!

Carrickfergus Castle

As you can see, i seemed to have been enthralled with the stone stairway! Oh, and my new man!

Carrickfergus Fishing Village

Dunluce Castle

This place was so beautifully looked after, i could have spent hours here. It was built on a very high, rocky basalt crag. In 1639, part of the castle, including the kitchen, fell into the sea, taking with it 7 servants and the night's dinner with it!

Lopud Island-Croatia

2007-02-05T06:49:00.000-08:00

The beautiful island of Lopud! It is one of 13 islands that make up the Elafiti archipelago. It is known to have one of the best beaches in the area. Sunj beach has white sand that stretches out to the sea. The sand was so hot, i was thankful to get to the water and spend alot of time floating around. I spent 3 glorious days on the this island in the private home of Mario. He is a friend of the family that owns the hostel that i stayed in in Dubrovnik. He rents out a few rooms to make extra money. The people of this island are beautiful in every way but don't have much money. Mario works 3 jobs and is also a volunteer fireman. He is 25 years old and has lived on this island since he was 3 and came to live with his aunt and uncle. He grows his own fruit and veggies and makes his own wine. His uncle built the house and he inherited it a few years ago after he passed away. For 35€ a night, it was more than i could ask for. King size bed and french doors and shutters that opened out onto my own patio. The view was amazing! I had dinner one night in the small village on the water. The sun was setting between the sail boats while i was eating. I didn't want to leave. I will go back one day! The terrace that you see belongs to Mario and i enjoyed many hours in the shade reading and enjoying local wine. By the way, no cars are aloud on this island!

THE WALL-Dubrovnik

2007-02-05T06:12:00.000-08:00

I decided to do "the wall" on the hottest day i was in Croatia. 40 degrees! Dubrovnik is the oldest walled city in Europe. I spent 4 hours and 4 bottles of water enjoying the most spectacular view i have ever seen. There were so many photo ops. The fountain was built in 1438 as part of a water supply system that involved bringing in water from 12 km away! It was built by the main gate to the city to encourage visitors to wash themselves before walking around. It is still used to this day and i enjoyed many bottles of water from it!

STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN

Onofrio Fountain

Croatia-more pics

2007-02-05T05:38:00.000-08:00

The cruise ship is part of the view that i saw one morning from the balcony of the hostel i was staying at. As i sat and had my coffee, i couldn't figure out how it got there in that small space. It is bigger than the bridge in the back ground!

Croatia-Dubrovnik old town

2007-01-28T13:27:00.000-08:00

My first big trip! I went to Croatia in august and instantly fell in love with the place! I stayed in a family run hostel (which was also their home) That was an adventure in itself. The old town of Dubrovnik was beautiful. Here are some of the photos. Once inside, you have no idea how big it really is or what hidden treasures you will find. Like this old monastery with the columns, complete with it's own citrus trees! It also contains the oldest pharmacy in Europe. Got 2 quick pics before i was told no pictures aloud. So glad i got them! The streets are lined with white marble and at night with the lights shining, it is a miracle to see!