Week 13: Critters

Week 13: Critters


March 27, 2010

Today’s adventure took me to Bynum, North Carolina. I took the scenic route there and drove by Jordan Lake. It was a nice sunny day and the trees were blooming. It was a little chilly out which made a nice day for a drive. I saw many bicyclers today is swams. They were everywhere. I took a few back roads and made it to Bynum. As I entered the town, I saw the first critter followed by a sign that read “Critter Country.” I drove through the town and saw critters at more than half of the houses. These critters are chainsaw creations made of logs. The critters looked like dogs, reindeer, giraffes, pigs, and other critters. I want one! They are really neat! I drove through the village in less than two minutes (it’s a small village). I didn’t see where the critters were made though. So I turned around and drove back through town again. I pulled over as I left town, looked at my Gazetteer and decided to start trying these little side roads that looked more like driveways. On the second try I found it, the place that made the critters. This place had gobs of critters that were all shapes and sizes. My favorite has to be the one titled "The North Pole is Melting so Santa Done Got Himself a New Canoe." I just love the southern Santa lingo. A sign out front said that on April 17th there is a critter show at the ball park in town. Yes Bynum has a ball park and a convenience store. I continued down the road and saw critters at all of the houses on this street. Then I turned around and drove past again. What a neat talent this guy has for creating critters. I finished the day off with a walk around a pond with my friend L.

Week 12: My Last Day in Ireland - Guinness Storehouse

March 19, 2010

My last day in Ireland and I only had a few hours before I needed to go to the airport. For today the agenda had 1 item on it, the Guinness Storehouse. It wasn’t far from my hotel and I was down there for the opening at 9:30. The tour was self guided and explained the history of Guinness and brew master Arthur Guinness. Arthur signed a most famous lease ever for 9000 years for the St. James Brewery. See picture below about the famous Guinees yeast, the famous harp, and a picture of the MAN himself. I had a taste of Guinness at 10AM and then it was off to the airport.

When I returned my rental car, I had lost a hub cap. Hertz charged me 15 Euro for a hub cap. This car was a pain in the butt! But off to the airport, I went. It was back to London for the night and then I would fly out in the morning back to the US. When I arrived at the hotel, it appeared as though I forgot to make a reservation. Oops! This was the same hotel I stayed in the night before flying to Dublin. I must have been so excited about going to Ireland that I forgot about coming back. Oh well! I had to pay a bit more for my hotel, but I had a place to sleep.

Thing I umm… Learned? in Ireland:

- After you say anything, doesn’t matter what, it should be followed by “do ya know what I mean” or “don’ cha know”
- Sheep, lots of sheep
- Americans have beautiful, sexy accents – who knew?!

- Don’t drive the rental like a rental

- I was told that Ireland doesn’t have a real military by someone that was in the Irish army

- Rugby is a real sport, American football is for wimps

- Most roads are barely 2 lanes, many are 1 lane
- The country folks think the cities are dumps, I agree
- Old in Irish terms means centuries
- The children grow up in pubs (Irish joke)

- St. Patrick is an excused to get p!ssed (Irish for drunk)

And so ends the greatest adventure ever – Ireland over St. Patrick’s Day! But the memories will live on for an eternity.

Week 11 Day 8: Tramore to Dublin, IE

March 19, 2010

The Beatles had 8 days a week, so why can’t I! I usually start my week on Saturday for my adventure. But, Ireland being the greatest adventure ever, I started it a day early on Friday last week. So here I am, Day 8!

I headed into Waterford to see the crystal museum. It appeared as though it had been closed. They haven’t made Waterford Crystal in Waterford in quite some time; now the museum is gone. Oh well…moving on. I continued north and headed for Glendalough. When I arrived at the visitor’s center, the lady recommended a hike that would offer grand views. First I visited the ruins at Glendalough. There are 2 churches, a tower, and a cemetery. To enter these, there is a beautiful stone gated archway. I strolled around and took lots of pictures. Then I followed the orange arrows for my hike.

I had been driving way too much in the past couple of days. This hike was just what I need to relax and stretch my legs. The hike took about 2 hours. It followed a stream and went past some more ruins. The trail went about half way up the mountain. When I got to the highest point of the trail, it offered some gorgeous scenic views. I could see all of the ruins. Then as I walked a little farther, the lake came into view. A lake lay just beneath two mountains. I continued along the trail and saw some goats. At the bottom of the mountain there was a waterfall, St. Kevin’s Cell ruins, and the trail continued to the lake. It was a spectacular hike and I only saw 2 people the whole time.

Next I was on to Dublin. Traffic in Dublin was busy. I made it to my hotel, checked in, and showered. I was off to find some traditional Irish music if it killed me. The first place was a dead end for music so I walked a little farther down through Temple Bar. The next place I went into was hopping. There was an old guy with a guitar singing away with a little Whiskey in the Jar, Galway Girl, and even some Neil Diamond. He was half traditional. I went in a got a pint a Guinness. I started talking to some Scottish guys. They were in town for the rugby match in full Scottish attire. Yes that’s right – kilts, sporrans, and rugby jerseys. These guys were hilarious! I hung out with them for the night. We wandered down to THE Temper Bar and sang and danced the night away. They even walked me to my taxi at the end of the night. Nice way to end my adventure to Ireland, singing and dancing.

Week 11 Day 7: Cork to Tramore, IE

March 18, 2010

So here I am, on day 7 of my Ireland adventure. I have had six beautiful days thus far in Ireland, meaning no rain and quite a bit of sun. It had to rain at some point and today was the day. It is very gloomy when it rains.

My intention was to head for Kilkenny. As I started up the road, I saw signs for the Rock of Cashel. This had been on my list of things to see earlier but adventures never go as planned. As luck would have it, I was closer to the Rock of Cashel than I thought, so I dropped in. It was windy and raining when I got there. Finally my raincoat would come in handy! The Rock of Cashel is a castle, church, fortress, etc. It has changed many times of the centuries. These ruins had some very detailed stone carvings in the archways. Magnificent! Afterwards, I stopped in the town of Cashel and had the most delicious Guinness and beef stew. It was to die for. It was the best meal I had in Ireland.

From there I continued on to my original destination, Kilkenny. By the time I got there, it was sunny again, awesome! Oh I have been blessed with good weather. Kilkenny was a charming town. I visited the castle and took some illegal pictures. I paid 6 Euro to get in and I wanted to at least take a few pictures. No pictures allowed the sign read. Turn off the flash and shoot from the hip. The grounds were beautiful. I walked around for a time and then wandered the streets of Kilkenny.

I headed for Tramore which was just south of Waterford. I checked into my B&B and then went to try and find some traditional Irish music. Cork is too international and the music last night was all American. Unfortunately everyone must have drunk too much last night and there was no music. But I talked a bit with a nice barkeep, and then headed back to the B&B.

Week 11 Day 6: Kissing the Blarney Stone

March 17, 2010

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!!

I WAS THE FIRST ONE TO KISS THE BLARNEY STONE ON ST. PATRICK'S DAY 2010

NEED I SAY MORE??!!

Week 11 Day 5: Glengariff to Cork, IE

March 16, 2010

I tried some black and white pudding this morning with my breakfast. Yuck! It tasted terrible and the thought of what I was eating grossed me out since I think it is made of blood and left over parts. I had a lovely view of the bay while I ate and the waiter was a nice old guy. He wrote down directions to all of the things I should do today. Excellent!

The first stop of the day was getting my tire fixed or replaced. I drove to Bantry. It had to be replaced as I suspected since it had a huge hole in it. When I pulled into the tire station all of these old guys kept calling my “love.” Too funny! It cost 65 Euro to get a new tire. I told them to give me the cheapest one they had although that didn’t seem very cheap. From there I drove down the coast to Mizen Head. I stopped off at a sign for the beach. I walked a little ways and over the crest of the hill and voila there was the beach. It was a small beach with huge cliffs on each side. Picturesque! I took a few pictures and decided I must at least wade in the water. I took off my shoes and socks, set up the camera timer, and started running. COLD! The water was freezing! I ran back and set up for another shot. This time I found that I was not in the picture. My running aim was off probably because I was getting hypothermia. One last time I ran out into the freezing water. I just had to do it.

I continued down to a small town and ate at the only place there, O’Sullivan’s Bar. I swear in Cork County that every place is called O’Sullivan’s fill in the blank. I had some soup and hot chocolate. The bar keep is heading to Charleston, SC in a few days and he was hoping the weather would be warm and sunny.

I followed the winding roads and stopped for many pictures along the way. In the town of Brandon, I saw the craziest thing. A dog in the middle of the road, a car parked along the side, and a guy heading toward the dog. Wait a minute! That isn’t a dog, it’s a cow! A baby cow was in the middle of the road in town. The guy walked over, picked up that cow, and you’ll never guess what he did. He put it in the trunk of his car and shut the hatch! That poor cow! I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was the craziest thing.

I made it into Cork. Cork has these horrible 3-lane roundabouts with traffic lights. It is most difficult to maneuver especially while driving on the wrong side of the road. From my hotel window I can see the river…splendid!

Week 11 Day 4: Killarney to Glengariff, IE

March 15, 2010

I woke for breakfast at 8AM. Noreen was making pancakes. Pancakes are not the same in Ireland; they were interestingly rubbery and flat. During breakfast Noreen talked about her flowers, how she was a Celtic dancer, her horse and donkey, and how she never had children or married. She encouraged me to find a boyfriend, maybe a nice Irish boy while I was here. Haha! She hugged me again before I left and said “you are a mighty woman.” Noreen was a character, but she grew on me.

I headed for the Lakes of Killarney. My first stop was the Falls of Torc. I now see why the land of the elves on TV looks like it does. This hike was spectacular! All of the trees were covered in green moss. It was straight out of the movies. When I got to the waterfall it was surrounded by more green crawling plants and moss. I was amazed. I took lots of pictures and climbed as close to the falls as I could. After the falls, the trail turned into stairs. This led to a landing that looked out over the lakes.

I continued to drive around the lakes. I stopped constantly to look at the changing views. There were lakes and mountains and streams and rocks all of which were fantastic. At one stop, I felt the urge to yell. I let out a giant “woo-hoo” and listened to it echo in the valley between the mountains. How refreshing! Then all was peaceful again. I was driving slow and thank God. I came around a bend to find an entire herd of 30 sheep running up the road. I stopped the car to watch this hilarious scene. I continued on around the Ring of Kerry, through numerous small towns, and eventually saw signs for the Gap of Dunloe.

This is the point where my adventure seriously turned into an adventure. As I drove up the road, the road got narrower. So narrow in fact that it was impossible to pass a car. I wondered how this would work out. I drove for quite a ways and did not see anyone else. The views and scenery were once again stunning. God had created quite the masterpiece. The Gap of Dunloe road lead between the mountains and followed the banks of several small lakes and streams. Eventually it had to happen…a car. I had to back up to a little pull off so that we could pass each other. As I continued on, this happened more and more often. There was even a point where the rocks were so close to the car that I though I wouldn’t fit.

Then the kicker! As I passed a car, I hit a huge pothole, rock, something. Then I felt the car pull to the left. I busted out laughing for I knew I had a flat. I found this absolutely hysterical. Was I on Candid Camera? I had come down off of the mountain by this point and there were houses. So I pulled into a driveway and got out of the car. I took pictures of my flat and I was still laughing. I changed the flat and headed on my way. Once I was back on a passable road, I called Hertz. The lady was shocked that I had changed my own flat and laughed because she said men call her all the time and don’t know what to do. Then she dropped the ball. I was responsible for the tires. WHAT? Now it wasn’t quite so funny. This brought a whole new meaning to “drive it like it’s a rental”. I would now like to add “but be careful with the tires.”

I made it to Glengariff and to my hotel. Gengariff is a 1 horse but 10 bar town. I checked in and had a fantastic view of the bay from my room. I showered and went to Hawthorn’s for dinner. The place was empty, but the lady friendly enough. I was starting to hear a little different dialect in this part of the country. I had chicken fingers and chips and of course a Guinness. When in Ireland….

Back to the hotel and to bed, but first I had to call mom and dad and laugh about my flat tire. I was over the “I have to pay” part and it was funny again.

Week 11 Day 3: Shannon to Killarney, IE

March 13, 2010

I was the first one up in the morning. I packed my bags except for my day’s clothes and shower stuff. I wasn’t going to shower just yet, since I had a cool event planned this morning. I went down stairs for breakfast. I ate and the others trickled down. I then headed out back to the barn. I was going horseback riding today. Noreen’s daughter got me boots and a helmet and then she saddled George, my horse. George is 8 years old and the gentlest horse they have. There is less chance of me getting injured with a nice horse. Michael, Noreen’s husband, gave me some pointers and put me on the horse. Now I have been horseback riding a time or two at those places where the horses just follow each other around. This was nothing of the sort! It was completely different; George had a mind of his own and I had to figure out how to control him. My tips for the day were: heels down, squeeze the knees, back straight, hands low, look over George’s ears. Got all that? Uhh…Ummm…Sure?! I road around the coral for a bit until Michael felt I had the hang of it. Then we headed across the country side.

This was the highlight of my Ireland Adventure thus far! We rode across the fields and even “herded some cows.” Michael was a great source of knowledge and Irish culture. This farm has been in the family for generations. He told me all about the stone fences. The Irish are very possessive of their land and its property lines. We talked about the Great Potato Famine, the industrial boom when all of the children left and stopped farming, why the sheep have color splotches and he told me what I should go see for the day. By the end I was even comfortable enough with George to run a little bit. It is so much harder than it looks or is with those follower horses! As for the sheep color splotches, I assumed that this was so the farmers knew whose sheep belonged to whom. This may be the case in some areas, Michael told me, but around Shannon it has to do with sheep fertility. This way they can figure out which sheep are pregnant. Interesting.

I showered, packed, and headed for the Cliffs of Moher. The Cliffs were beautiful, but crowded. I walked around the fenced areas, but eventually jumped the fence like everyone else to get a closer look. It was quite spectacular watching the waves crash against these huge stone cliffs. I lay in the grass beside the cliffs taking in the view for quite a while. The sun was shining, it was a beautiful day, and I was relaxing.

I continued to head to Killarney to the Mystical Rose B&B. It was a very nice drive. I took the ferry across the bay from Killimer to Tarbert. This was cool; I’d never been on a car ferry before. The drive into Killarney was beautiful with the sun seting between the mountains. I arrived in Killarney about 7 and met another Noreen that ran the Mystical Rose. She was crazy. I introduced my self and she hugged me and talked my ear off. I got to my room and shower. She then wanted to introduce me to here 93 year old father whom I could not understand. Noreen translated English to English for me. In the kitchen she explained how she caught her kitchen on fire in January. This explained the smokey smell of the house. Noreen’s friend dropped by and I was introduced to Mary. We chatted, or rather I listened for a minute, and then I excused myself to bed.

Week 11 Day 2: Westport to Shannon, IE

March 13, 2010

I slept well last night and awoke to a fantastic breakfast. Margaret told me of the best sites to see between Westport and Shannon. From my breakfast table I could see a mountain. Anyone that knows would know that upon seeing this mountain I would have to go. Margaret told me that was Croagh Patrick. I thought Croagh Patrick was a statue not a mountain. She told me to go to a garriage and get a map. I had no idea what a garriage was (sounds like carriage with a g). I nodded but never stop at whatever this was to get a map. I don’t need a map (famous last words I’m sure).

I drove to Croagh Patrick. It was magnificent. There was even a little snow at the top. The parking lot was full so I parked along the street. Turns out there was a charity hike today; there were tons of people there. I took a short hike to the statue of St. Patrick, Ireland’s patron saint don-cha-know. Fitting of me to visit here since it will be St. Patrick’s Day soon. I took some pictures as usual and did a bit of reading. Apparently St. Patrick spent 40 days and 40 nights on top of this mountain where there is a church. Do you think that was before or after chasing all of the snakes out of Ireland? I would have loved to hike the mountain, but I wasn’t prepared. I started to walk down and then thought better of it. I would just hike up a little ways as suggested by a couple locals that I talked to. I hiked up to a gate where I could see so much more of the bay. There are over 300 islands off of the coast here. I talked to a few more local guys who hoped that I would come back and visit again. I could barely understand the one guy. I just nodded and smiled. Hahaha! I took a couple rocks from the stream that was trailing down the mountain. These must be sacred rocks. I got one for you too mom!

At the bottom of the mountain was a monastery. I stopped off there and looked around. I tripped in the monastery over thin air and skinned my hand. Typical! In this ruin you could actually walk up the spiral stone staircase. The top was gated, but the view was still amazing. I walked back to my car and smelled the lovely cow manure for the 20th time. As I opened the door, it hit me that it was my car that smelled! I had manure all over the side of the car. No wondered I had been smelling cow manure for 2 days.

I continued my drive down the coast through small towns with their brightly colored housed. Some of the roads are barely passable. This is why most people have tiny cars. I meandered through the mountains and the views were breathtaking. As I started to drop into a valley I saw a most glorious site. If anyone has seen the movie Leap Year, this was the scenery from the movie. Mountains on each side and a lake in the middle was the view before my eyes. Fabulous! I drove around the lake and then another lake. I drove slow because of the roads, but also the sheep. They were all over the place and even running down the middle of the road at times.

The next stop was Kylemore Abbey. I didn’t go inside, Margaret told me to just walk around a bit. The abbey sits on the side of a lake. The reflection of the abbey in the lake is majestic! I’m starting to run out of cool words to describe the scenery. Ireland really is a beautiful place. I’m ready to move here. Dad you’ll have to take a boat.

I stopped in Galway for gas and grub. It cost me 56 Euro to fill up my take. Wow! I ate at McSwiggan’s Pub. I had my first Guinness in Ireland. It taste like it does in the US except without the bitter aftertaste. After dinner, I rushed down the road to try and make it to the Cliffs of Moher. The sunset was beautiful town. Red sky at night, sailor’s delight! (The things my father taught me. Hahaha!) By the time I got to the cliffs it was dark. The road here had been so windy with all of these kiss your arse curves. (The things my mother taught me.) Oh well, I try again tomorrow.

I drove to my B&B for night. On the way, I went through a check point. They pulled the car in front of my over, so I didn’t get checked. Thanks goodness! Not that I had drank much (1/2 pint of Guinness over 2 hours ago) but I didn’t want to have to go through the whole passport, why are you here, why are you buy yourself, you look like a runaway teen discussion. When I got to the Carhegal House, Noreen forgot that I had a reservation. No worries, she had a room. I met the other folks in the house, Kelly from Scranton, PA now living in Fort Collins and Michelline (like the tires) from Canada. They invited me out with them.

We headed in to Shannon to find that there was nothing in Shannon. So we drove to Limerick. As we walked around to find a pub with some music we ran into Eddie. Eddie was about 75 and funny. He showed us to a pub and we bought him a drink. Eddie talked so much that you couldn’t get a word in edge wise. The pub was crowded so we stayed for a drink and then went next door. They also had a band. Eddie showed up again and requested a song for us. We danced the night away. The last song of the night was dedicated to the 3 American girls (one of which was Canadian). None of us knew the song. Hahaha! But they had played Sweet Home Alabama. Maybe they thought we were rednecks, all being from north of the Mason Dixon Line.

We had a great night! Andres, Kelly’s husband, was the DD and originally from Mexico. We headed back to the B&B and got lost on the way back. All of these country roads look the same in the dark.

So the joke of the night was: So I was with an American, a Mexican, and a Canadian in Ireland and we walked into this bar and met this Irish guy….

Week 11 Day 1: Ireland!!!!!!!!

March 12, 2010
I slept on the plane over to Dublin. Getting up at 3:30AM is rough! I awoke just in time to see us flying up the coast of Ireland. I was instantly wide awake with excitement. We landed, although it wasn’t the best landing ever, and I collected my things and headed to customs. I received the greatest stamp ever in my passport, IRELAND. I was finally here after years of dreaming of Ireland. I rented my car, complete with GPS. Now I just needed to remember that the steering wheel was on the right side of the car. It doesn’t do me any good to get in the left side. I also need to drive on the left. Let the fun begin!

My first stop of the day was a random slam the breaks and pull over type of stop. I saw a very cool old church called Balrothery. I drove down what I thought was the church road. I ended up in someone’s driveway. A guy was there and told me where I could park. He was very friendly and laughed at me. I’m sure this was due to the whole crazy-tourist-that-can’t-drive-and-is-getting-lost thought that crossed his mind.

Drogheda was my next stop. I found a car park and then a bite to eat. A local ask me if he had heard a Scottish accent. What? That was a terrible pick-up line. I walked around briefly but didn’t like the feel of the town so I left.

Monasterboice is an old ruin of church and tower. Simply breathtaking. I walked through the old cemetery to the church ruins. As I looked around, I heard crows cawing. It reminded me of an eerie movie. I could also smell that sweet, sweet scent of cow manure. Ahhh…the countryside. My GPS did not help me find the next stop. I reviewed my printed directions and headed in what I hoped was the right direction. While driving down the road I spotted a sign and had to take a second look, then turn around and drive past again to take a picture. The sign read “Welcome to Meath, Twinned with Cary, NC, USA. Huh? And here I thought I was escaping from North Carolina.

I had to take a few detours for road work but eventually found my way to Hill of Tara. To get there I had to drive through more cow areas. The smell was everywhere. Hill of Tara is a wide open field with some bumps and hills on it. These are old buried ruins of houses and shops and a fort. A church also sits at Hill of Tara. I strolled through the fields enjoying the day and the sunshine.

I drove on and happened through the town of Trim quite by accident. There was a great castle there and I snapped a few pictures.

I followed signs for Fore Abbey. This would be the highlight of day 1. Fore Abbey consisted of 3 buildings, 2 of which are in ruins. I walked in and around the two churches and took lots of pictures before crossing the road to get to the monastery. The walk to the monastery was lined with a stone wall. It crossed a little creek and I stopped to make a wish. I threw 10 Euro-cents in and made my wish. It looked like the thing to do considering the stream was filled with coins. I could have bought myself dinner if I would have gone fishing in that stream. The monastery was spectacular. I crawled and climbed all over the place, ran threw the fields acting silly, and giggling with the joy of experiencing the greatest adventure ever.

I set off for Westport where I was staying for the night. I dropped by the Tullynally Castle, which was closed, and saw the peat moss bogs on my way. The GPS got me lost and took me to Newport not Westport. I do much better reading a map and finding my own way than using the GPS. I followed signs for Westport and then drove around town for an hour trying to find my B&B. I checked in to the Adare House and was told to go eat at The Helm. I walked to the pub and had some french onion soup and an apple crumble. Back to the room and to bed.