Salutations! And welcome back. I hope everyone is adjusting to springing forward into Spring. We still have a couple more weeks before we change our clocks back. But that isn't stopping Mother Nature. Flowers are blooming and Mother's day is Sunday!
Let's see where did I leave you? Ah yes, we just made it into Dublin. Friday was a busy day for us. We got up early and headed out on a walking tour of Dublin. The tour was free and guide was really good. He took us all around Dublin and showed us some great sites as well as informed us of Irish history and culture. I know a little bit about the history between the Irish and the English so he was great at explaining that as well as sharing what it means to be Irish. Some of the sites we saw included Dublin Castle, the Dublin Cathedral, Trinity College, and the place where U2 was discovered. Bono gets a bad rap (Sorry Ms. O'Connor) in Dublin because he loves himself a little too much. There is a joke that goes around Dublin, according to our tour guide, that goes " What is the difference between God and Bono?" ......................" God doesn't go around Dublin pretending to be Bono." That being said, Bono does give back to the Dublin community quite a bit. What I didn't know is that he owns all the cafes, hotels, and restaurant/bars around the area where U2 first played. As if he doesn't need any more money....
Our tour guide told us how the Irish live by the motto "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story." There is one story that he shared with us that I'd like to share with you. In 1999, The city wanted to do something really special for the Millennium New Year's. They installed a clock in the Liffey River, the river that cuts Dublin in half, that would countdown to the year 2000. To operate the clock, they installed a power box on the rail of their most famous bridge nearby. The new year came and went and the clock and power box was removed. By removing the box, it left a rough spot that was an eye sore on the rail. To cover this up, a plaque was installed honoring a Father who fought in one of the many Irish revolutions and was killed by his horse and cart falling into the river below the bridge. Everyone read of this great fallen hero and began to hold vigils to honor and celebrate him. Oddly enough, as the father become more popular, people began to look into the life of this fallen hero. It was then that they soon realized that there was no record of this heroic Father at all. The government inquired and found out that they didn't put the plaque up, rather it was put up as a joke by some local teenagers. So instead of removing the plaque, they left it because it had become a tourist spot by visitors. I thought it was really funny and is a perfect example of " Never let the truth get in the way of a good story."
Let's see where did I leave you? Ah yes, we just made it into Dublin. Friday was a busy day for us. We got up early and headed out on a walking tour of Dublin. The tour was free and guide was really good. He took us all around Dublin and showed us some great sites as well as informed us of Irish history and culture. I know a little bit about the history between the Irish and the English so he was great at explaining that as well as sharing what it means to be Irish. Some of the sites we saw included Dublin Castle, the Dublin Cathedral, Trinity College, and the place where U2 was discovered. Bono gets a bad rap (Sorry Ms. O'Connor) in Dublin because he loves himself a little too much. There is a joke that goes around Dublin, according to our tour guide, that goes " What is the difference between God and Bono?" ......................" God doesn't go around Dublin pretending to be Bono." That being said, Bono does give back to the Dublin community quite a bit. What I didn't know is that he owns all the cafes, hotels, and restaurant/bars around the area where U2 first played. As if he doesn't need any more money....
Our tour guide told us how the Irish live by the motto "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story." There is one story that he shared with us that I'd like to share with you. In 1999, The city wanted to do something really special for the Millennium New Year's. They installed a clock in the Liffey River, the river that cuts Dublin in half, that would countdown to the year 2000. To operate the clock, they installed a power box on the rail of their most famous bridge nearby. The new year came and went and the clock and power box was removed. By removing the box, it left a rough spot that was an eye sore on the rail. To cover this up, a plaque was installed honoring a Father who fought in one of the many Irish revolutions and was killed by his horse and cart falling into the river below the bridge. Everyone read of this great fallen hero and began to hold vigils to honor and celebrate him. Oddly enough, as the father become more popular, people began to look into the life of this fallen hero. It was then that they soon realized that there was no record of this heroic Father at all. The government inquired and found out that they didn't put the plaque up, rather it was put up as a joke by some local teenagers. So instead of removing the plaque, they left it because it had become a tourist spot by visitors. I thought it was really funny and is a perfect example of " Never let the truth get in the way of a good story."
After the tour, Halley and I headed back to Trinity college. They had an exhibit on The Book of Kells. The Book of Kells is an illuminated manuscript that contains the 4 Gospels written in Latin around 800 AD. The exhibit showed how and why these books were written and the importance of the survival of The Book of Kells. Many of these gospel books were destroyed during the viking raids. It was really cool to see how a book like this was made such as how to create the colors, constructing the book and the symbols laced throughout the book. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take any pictures of The Book of Kells. Included in the exhibit was the Trinity Library. This is the library that was the inspiration for the Jedi Archives used in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. Lucas took pictures of the website and pretty much digitized the library exactly the way it was. We were allowed to take pictures and they had a small exhibit on mythology in children's books.
The evening was spent at an amazing restaurant. We had the best food I think I'd ever had in a restaurant. From there we headed over to a traditional Irish pub for a drink, hang out and watch the Rugby tournament on TV. Rugby is like American Football without rules. You want to kick the ball now, you can kick the ball. Feel like running backwards towards your own goal? Go ahead. Decide to pass it to any player? Why not.
The evening was spent at an amazing restaurant. We had the best food I think I'd ever had in a restaurant. From there we headed over to a traditional Irish pub for a drink, hang out and watch the Rugby tournament on TV. Rugby is like American Football without rules. You want to kick the ball now, you can kick the ball. Feel like running backwards towards your own goal? Go ahead. Decide to pass it to any player? Why not.
Saturday started off a bit rocky for us. We were supposed to go on our rescheduled trip to Glendalough National Park. The park has been used in several movies including Braveheart and P.S. I love you. It's a beautiful part of Ireland and Halley and I were very excited to go. Things didn't turn out so well. The tour company guaranteed we'd be back in time to catch our bus to the airport. The driver felt differently and would not let us on the bus. So we called, complained and we got our money back. This left us very upset and we scrambled to see if we can get to the park on our own. After several stops at different visitor centers we found a local bus that drove us out to the northern most part of the park in a village called Enniskerry. In Enniskerry, we hiked along country roads to Ireland's biggest waterfall. It was about a 6 KM walk so roughly 4 miles. It definitely was a long and winding road there. We went up hills, down hills, over bridges, around steep bends and turns. The countryside was absolutely beautiful and we stopped along the way taking in the views.
The waterfall was worth the long and winding road there. The pictures we took do not do the waterfall justice. It was very steep. The cliffs were very steep. At some parts I'm positive it was a straight 90 degree climb. There were rocks near the waterfall so we were able to get ourselves almost right under the falls. The park was littered with Redwood trees like the ones in California. The day turned out to be great and I really enjoyed it. It was a more authentic hike than what we would have gotten with the bus tour.
The waterfall was worth the long and winding road there. The pictures we took do not do the waterfall justice. It was very steep. The cliffs were very steep. At some parts I'm positive it was a straight 90 degree climb. There were rocks near the waterfall so we were able to get ourselves almost right under the falls. The park was littered with Redwood trees like the ones in California. The day turned out to be great and I really enjoyed it. It was a more authentic hike than what we would have gotten with the bus tour.
We made it back in time for our flight back to London. Sunday was our last day on our 6 day extravaganza. We got up early and headed towards the Tower Bridge. The Tower Bridge has a exhibit where you can go up to the top and walk across the bridge with glass panel flooring. The exhibit also includes the history of the bridge but walking across the glass is the real highlight. It was really cool and I enjoyed learning about the bridge construction. From there, Halley and I headed to a food market. Spitalsfield Market is an outdoor market where vendors try to sell you anything and everything. I had falafel for the first time and holy smokes was that delicious. I want their recipe. Halley had curry which was just as amazing. We were definitely happy with our choice in lunches.
We headed to St. Paul's Cathedral and crossed the millennium bridge to Tate Modern. The Modern Museum of Art, according to the museum, the most visited museum in Europe. It was ..........interesting. As I've said before, modern art is not my thing but I enjoyed it. We attempted to go back to Hyde Park but of course it started raining again and it was getting dark. So we never got to actually see Hyde Park. Instead, we walked to 221B Baker Street to see the house of Sherlock Holmes. On the way, we stopped for dinner in a Chipotle! I didn't even know they had them here. It was very delicious. Baker street was cool to see however it was closed. It was then that we headed back to the train station and caught our train home.
And that ladies and gentlemen, completes our trip!
We headed to St. Paul's Cathedral and crossed the millennium bridge to Tate Modern. The Modern Museum of Art, according to the museum, the most visited museum in Europe. It was ..........interesting. As I've said before, modern art is not my thing but I enjoyed it. We attempted to go back to Hyde Park but of course it started raining again and it was getting dark. So we never got to actually see Hyde Park. Instead, we walked to 221B Baker Street to see the house of Sherlock Holmes. On the way, we stopped for dinner in a Chipotle! I didn't even know they had them here. It was very delicious. Baker street was cool to see however it was closed. It was then that we headed back to the train station and caught our train home.
And that ladies and gentlemen, completes our trip!
Halley stayed in Liverpool until this past Sunday (March 8th). So next week, I'll give you a run down on what we did around here. Some fun stuff is in store!
Trivia! Only 3 people answered and one got it right. Survey says.....Pet Store! Leonard Nimoy was a co-owner of a pet shop for awhile after Star Trek ended because he needed money.
This week's trivia......
Trivia! Only 3 people answered and one got it right. Survey says.....Pet Store! Leonard Nimoy was a co-owner of a pet shop for awhile after Star Trek ended because he needed money.
This week's trivia......
Alright that's it for me. How about you? Before I leave you I have a couple of family birthday shout outs for the month of March. I would like to wish my Uncle Ed, Aunt Mornee, my little cousin Ashton and, of course, my Dad, a very FAB birthday!!!
Later Alligators
Peace & Love,
Mark
Later Alligators
Peace & Love,
Mark