Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Today...
... is my BIRTHDAY! Happy Birthday to meee. It's strange to be so far away from everyone and everything familiar, but I'm getting lots of well-wishes, and I feel the love from afar. My friends here in Ireland are making today a good day as well- more to come on what we actually do, but Paige is cooking me dinner tonight, and last night my closest friends and I went to the Old Oak for midnight when it turned over to my b-day, and they bought me birthday shots! My facebook is blowing up with birthday messages and chats from friends from home, and from Ireland. Don't I feel special : )
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Home?
Just a brief observation, but I've come to realize that I call my apartment here "home". This isn't to say that I've replaced my VT home in my mind- that's just ridiculous. But I never called my dorm or room at MoHo "home"... Maybe it's because I have an actual apartment here, with my own room, bathroom, and kitchen and living room. Or maybe it's because I feel so comfortable and happy here... Dunno. It's just been on my mind, is all. Random thought!
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
One Month!
I have officially been in Cork one month today... in some ways I feel like it's only been a week, but in others, like it's been ages. Life's still quite good, and I'm more than happy here. Home is getting pounded by feet of snow, and it was the unofficial first day of spring here- 50 degrees and sunny! I've got another head cold and cough, which I think is going to become the usual state I'm in, regardless of how often I go out. It's just the dampness. In fact, I wasn't feeling very good yesterday- very stuffed up and coughing horrendously. I went out last night, and woke up feeling so much better! Who knows. I'm still putting off going to register with immigration... here's to not getting deported... and Catherine, friend from childhood, is coming to visit for the next few days! I'm waiting for a phone call from her right now, in fact. Trad session at Rearden's tomorrow should be some good craic. I need to do a post on the music scene here... I'm surprisingly into a few local artists here, and am in the know about where and when there's good music going down. It helps to have musical friends!
The Week of The Old Oak
I missed a week in blogging before I went to Galway, so I'll try to give some quick updates now. I've discovered my newest favorite pub, the Old Oak, and had some good times there since- we went there 4 out of 5 nights last week! Basically, the Old Oak has mostly of older patrons... there's quite a range of ages, really, but most are in their late 20s and early 30s, up to their 40s and 50s, with a few quite old people in their 70s (it was shocking to see a very old man tottering through the bar at 1:30am the other night...) Usually, my friends and I are the youngest people in there, which probably explains why it's always so entertaining to go there.
The first night I went, I was with my friends Skye and Laura. We were supposed to meet up later with friends at An Bróg (which is a much younger, crazier crowd), but since we were all still a bit sick and not really up for a crazy night we wanted a more mellow evening. We were about to leave the Old Oak to grudgingly meet our friends at the Bróg, but as we stepped outside, a 40-something and his younger early-30s friend starting chatting up Laura. Skye and I obliged and stayed and chatted as well. Initial conversations with the Irish usually go like this: "Oh, yer American! Where in America are ye from? Oh, I've never been there, is that near Canada or New York?" Charming, right? Most of the time, I'm out with a friend from Montana, and if they answer first, it's usually just assumed that I'm from Montana as well, which can be a bit annoying. These guys were pretty nice though, as most Irishmen are, and when they invited us back inside for a pint, we couldn't say no (never turn down a free drink!) Turns out, they were having their office Christmas party, because it had been delayed in December by the snow they had here. It was about ten of us sitting in the pub, and one of the guys we met outside, Eoghan (pronounced Owen...) started buying us drinks. After a while, all the girls in the group left, and it was us three and a bunch of older men. They were all very polite and friendly and charming, typical at this point. Skye and I both had horrendous coughs from being sick, and every time we laughed, would launch into a fit of coughing which, after a few pints, was very amusing, leading to a cycle of laughing, coughing, and laughing at coughing, then more coughing... you see where this is going. We eventually all moved back closer to the main bar and music and dance floor, and one of the guys kept dragging me onto the dance floor. We were basically swing dancing, which was really fun- he would just spin me all over the floor. The bar was closing soon, and as I was coming back from the dance floor, Skye cut me off and proclaimed to me that they were all married! This was a bit of a shock, not because any of us actually liked them, but because as polite as they had been, they were flirting, and how strange to go and hang out with young girls when your wife is at home... We said our goodbyes and laughed our way home.
The next time we went to the Old Oak, (the next night, I think...) it was me and a bunch of my girl friends. Paige and I had gone across the river to Sober Lane (a pub- the name is misleading) to meet Donncha and some of his friends for a pint. After being there for a bit, we headed to the Old Oak. We met a few friends there, and suddenly it was decided that we were going to request a song and dance. Note that at this point, NO ONE is dancing, and that the actual dance floor is more like a stage that faces the bar. So one of us requests Don't Stop Believing, and when it comes on, we storm the stage and start rocking out, singing and dancing like crazy people. At one point, I turned around to face the bar, and saw that EVERYONE was watching us!!! We were the night's entertainment, apparently. The DJ loved us and kept playing good songs, and we continued dancing (by ourselves, with everyone watching) for a good while. Eventually, we got a few more people joining us, and wound up leaving to go to the Brog. But that was quite the night!
The next night, we went again. This time it was just me, Paige, and Skye, and we didn't want to do more than sit and chat and have a pint or two. We all get Bulmer's and find a little booth to sit down in. We were sitting in a room that you have to go through to get to the main part of the bar, so it was a prime people watching location. Although it came to be that we were watched more than we watched... that was a confusing sentence. Basically, we sat and chatted, but were looking at all the people walking by. It was an off night, so there really were no younger people, and we laughed at the older women wearing mini dresses and high high heels. The men, though, were checking us out. I would actually say that every other man that walked past us would slow down and look at us all, and smile, or wink, or do something of that nature. Some actually stopped to try to make conversation, or held eye contact more than was natural, or something of that nature. One guy actually did stop, came over to me, held out his hand and shook mine, and said, "I just had to tell you how beautiful you are". He proceeds to look at Skye sitting next to me, and says, "ah, so are ye", and then to Paige, who is looking at me wide-eyed and laughing, he lifts her chin with his hand and says, "ah, gorgeous". Crazy man! His friends then came over and dragged him away, apologizing for his forwardness. We were very amused. It became the joke of the night how much we were getting hit on.
Another night, we happened upon some live music at the Oak. The band, Recoil, was local, and they were really good. They played covers of songs, all of which we knew. After a pint or two, we were in the front row dancing and shout-singing along to every song. And I wonder why I lose my voice... It was a really fun night, though, and ended with us being invited into the private bar-room to hang out with the band, but awkwardly being kicked out my Old Oak management. Guess they didn't want us to drink for free too! That was the night that I truly became obsessed with the song Little Lion Man by Mumford and Sons. It, along with all the other songs, were tons of fun to sing along to.
So that was the week of the Old Oak! Ironically, I haven't really been back there much since then... there is one night we went that has a good story attached to it, though. Some friends and I had gone out to watch our friend Gabriel sing at a 23s club, and decided to go to Old Oak afterward. I had to run back to my flat first, though, so when I came back I was alone. There were two doormen there, both older guys in their 50s probably, and one other guy promoting for the Oak. I have my ID ready, and hand it to one of them. Without a word or even looking at it, he puts it in his back pocket... I'm a little confused at first, but quickly realize he's just messing with me (he probably recognized me from that past week, ha). I proceed to give him a look, and then just stand off to the side and start making small talk about the weather. The promoter asks if I'm a doorman now to, and I make a crack about how my brother was a bouncer, so it must run in the family. They're very amused that I'm responding to their little joke like this, and we probably stood and chatted for a few minutes at least while other people come and go from the pub. Finally, I was getting a little chilly and anxious for a pint, so I asked if I could get my license back. He goes oh what, this? But you gave it to me! I told him I just thought he might want to look at it, but don't look too closely because the picture is terrible (it really is....) this of course prompts him to get it out of his pocket and look at it, laugh, and show it to the other doorman, who also laughs. He hands it back to me, and I bid them adieu and go into the pub. The next few nights, whenever I walk by and one of them is there, I wave, and they wave back. We went back to the Oak a few nights later, and as we're sitting waiting for a not-so-good band to finish and the DJ to start, in walks one of the doormen! He sees me and waves, and later in the night we formally introduce ourselves and chat for a bit. I've made a friend! Last Wednesday, I walked by kind of late at night with Donncha, and Ken was outside the Oak. I of course stopped to chat for a bit, and he gave me a look like 'what are you doing with this guy...' to which I just laughed. Good times.
Love the Old Oak!!!
The first night I went, I was with my friends Skye and Laura. We were supposed to meet up later with friends at An Bróg (which is a much younger, crazier crowd), but since we were all still a bit sick and not really up for a crazy night we wanted a more mellow evening. We were about to leave the Old Oak to grudgingly meet our friends at the Bróg, but as we stepped outside, a 40-something and his younger early-30s friend starting chatting up Laura. Skye and I obliged and stayed and chatted as well. Initial conversations with the Irish usually go like this: "Oh, yer American! Where in America are ye from? Oh, I've never been there, is that near Canada or New York?" Charming, right? Most of the time, I'm out with a friend from Montana, and if they answer first, it's usually just assumed that I'm from Montana as well, which can be a bit annoying. These guys were pretty nice though, as most Irishmen are, and when they invited us back inside for a pint, we couldn't say no (never turn down a free drink!) Turns out, they were having their office Christmas party, because it had been delayed in December by the snow they had here. It was about ten of us sitting in the pub, and one of the guys we met outside, Eoghan (pronounced Owen...) started buying us drinks. After a while, all the girls in the group left, and it was us three and a bunch of older men. They were all very polite and friendly and charming, typical at this point. Skye and I both had horrendous coughs from being sick, and every time we laughed, would launch into a fit of coughing which, after a few pints, was very amusing, leading to a cycle of laughing, coughing, and laughing at coughing, then more coughing... you see where this is going. We eventually all moved back closer to the main bar and music and dance floor, and one of the guys kept dragging me onto the dance floor. We were basically swing dancing, which was really fun- he would just spin me all over the floor. The bar was closing soon, and as I was coming back from the dance floor, Skye cut me off and proclaimed to me that they were all married! This was a bit of a shock, not because any of us actually liked them, but because as polite as they had been, they were flirting, and how strange to go and hang out with young girls when your wife is at home... We said our goodbyes and laughed our way home.
The next time we went to the Old Oak, (the next night, I think...) it was me and a bunch of my girl friends. Paige and I had gone across the river to Sober Lane (a pub- the name is misleading) to meet Donncha and some of his friends for a pint. After being there for a bit, we headed to the Old Oak. We met a few friends there, and suddenly it was decided that we were going to request a song and dance. Note that at this point, NO ONE is dancing, and that the actual dance floor is more like a stage that faces the bar. So one of us requests Don't Stop Believing, and when it comes on, we storm the stage and start rocking out, singing and dancing like crazy people. At one point, I turned around to face the bar, and saw that EVERYONE was watching us!!! We were the night's entertainment, apparently. The DJ loved us and kept playing good songs, and we continued dancing (by ourselves, with everyone watching) for a good while. Eventually, we got a few more people joining us, and wound up leaving to go to the Brog. But that was quite the night!
The next night, we went again. This time it was just me, Paige, and Skye, and we didn't want to do more than sit and chat and have a pint or two. We all get Bulmer's and find a little booth to sit down in. We were sitting in a room that you have to go through to get to the main part of the bar, so it was a prime people watching location. Although it came to be that we were watched more than we watched... that was a confusing sentence. Basically, we sat and chatted, but were looking at all the people walking by. It was an off night, so there really were no younger people, and we laughed at the older women wearing mini dresses and high high heels. The men, though, were checking us out. I would actually say that every other man that walked past us would slow down and look at us all, and smile, or wink, or do something of that nature. Some actually stopped to try to make conversation, or held eye contact more than was natural, or something of that nature. One guy actually did stop, came over to me, held out his hand and shook mine, and said, "I just had to tell you how beautiful you are". He proceeds to look at Skye sitting next to me, and says, "ah, so are ye", and then to Paige, who is looking at me wide-eyed and laughing, he lifts her chin with his hand and says, "ah, gorgeous". Crazy man! His friends then came over and dragged him away, apologizing for his forwardness. We were very amused. It became the joke of the night how much we were getting hit on.
Another night, we happened upon some live music at the Oak. The band, Recoil, was local, and they were really good. They played covers of songs, all of which we knew. After a pint or two, we were in the front row dancing and shout-singing along to every song. And I wonder why I lose my voice... It was a really fun night, though, and ended with us being invited into the private bar-room to hang out with the band, but awkwardly being kicked out my Old Oak management. Guess they didn't want us to drink for free too! That was the night that I truly became obsessed with the song Little Lion Man by Mumford and Sons. It, along with all the other songs, were tons of fun to sing along to.
So that was the week of the Old Oak! Ironically, I haven't really been back there much since then... there is one night we went that has a good story attached to it, though. Some friends and I had gone out to watch our friend Gabriel sing at a 23s club, and decided to go to Old Oak afterward. I had to run back to my flat first, though, so when I came back I was alone. There were two doormen there, both older guys in their 50s probably, and one other guy promoting for the Oak. I have my ID ready, and hand it to one of them. Without a word or even looking at it, he puts it in his back pocket... I'm a little confused at first, but quickly realize he's just messing with me (he probably recognized me from that past week, ha). I proceed to give him a look, and then just stand off to the side and start making small talk about the weather. The promoter asks if I'm a doorman now to, and I make a crack about how my brother was a bouncer, so it must run in the family. They're very amused that I'm responding to their little joke like this, and we probably stood and chatted for a few minutes at least while other people come and go from the pub. Finally, I was getting a little chilly and anxious for a pint, so I asked if I could get my license back. He goes oh what, this? But you gave it to me! I told him I just thought he might want to look at it, but don't look too closely because the picture is terrible (it really is....) this of course prompts him to get it out of his pocket and look at it, laugh, and show it to the other doorman, who also laughs. He hands it back to me, and I bid them adieu and go into the pub. The next few nights, whenever I walk by and one of them is there, I wave, and they wave back. We went back to the Oak a few nights later, and as we're sitting waiting for a not-so-good band to finish and the DJ to start, in walks one of the doormen! He sees me and waves, and later in the night we formally introduce ourselves and chat for a bit. I've made a friend! Last Wednesday, I walked by kind of late at night with Donncha, and Ken was outside the Oak. I of course stopped to chat for a bit, and he gave me a look like 'what are you doing with this guy...' to which I just laughed. Good times.
Love the Old Oak!!!
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Galway Weekend! (a.k.a. the longest post ever)
This past weekend, some friends and I decided we would go to Galway for the weekend! We hopped on a bus at 8:25am on Friday morning (after going out Thursday night, of course) and got to Galway at about 11:45 or so. We walked to our hostel, which was in a really good location downtown, checked in, and then walked around the city for a while. Galway is a very quaint place, full of culture- it's the center of trad music in Ireland. We made our way around, checking out various churches, cathedrals, and other sights along the way. Galway Cathedral is incredibly beautiful- it's massive, with so many stained glass windows and different rooms- very impressive. Minus the gift shop... which just seemed a little ridiculous to me.
The city is very foggy at all times of the day, and incredibly cold... cut to the bone cold. The fog is sort of surreal, seeing vague outlines of buildings in the distance, and it can feel a bit claustrophobic at times. It made me glad that Cork isn't constantly quite so misty. Despite the gray fogginess, the city has a lively feel. There are a lot of buskers (street performers) on the main pedestrianized streets, some of which were quite entertaining. And the pubs! We went first to Tig Cóilí, which is renowned for its two live trad sessions per night, every night of the week. It was a charming little pub, and all of us girls got Irish coffees and listened to some trad. Some of us went to dinner and back to the hostel to get ready to go out, and proceeded to go to King's Head. It was a decent place, though it seemed a bit like a tourist trap. We ran into a Gaelic football and rugby team, which was, er, interesting... Let's just say we didn't stick around that pub for too long. After that we went to Front Door, which was a gigantic maze of a bar. We were a bit exhausted after our day, and headed home a little after midnight.
The hostel we stayed at, Barnacles Quay, was actually pretty nice. It was clean and well equipped, with a nice big kitchen and common room. Paige, Skye, Kaelyn and I stayed in the 12-person room, and Erin, Kelly, and Laura were in a 6-person room. I had the top bunk in the far corner in the picture below.
We only met a few of our roommates, but they were all pretty nice... except when we were woken up by an alarm at 6:30am... there was a 50-something year old man who got up and proceeded to pace around the room, go to the bathroom multiple times, cough a lot, rustle plastic bags loudly, turn on and leave on the lights, and generally wake up and greatly annoy everyone in the room. Also, he was only wearing boxer briefs, and was not under his blanket... very uncomfortable. I wasn't sleeping that well anyway because of the symphony of snoring and coughing of everyone in the room, and the hellish hot temperature. Needless to say, none of us slept well- we figure about 5 hours of light sleeping, which is about what we had all gotten the night before, which led to a very sleepy and silly day. Breakfast was toast, and then we were off to the bus station to get back on a tour bus at 9:45 to go to the CLIFFS OF MOHER!
The tour took us south down through the Burren, which is basically just mountains of solid limestone that's been laboriously cleared in some areas with endless stone walls. It was barren, but beautiful, and we all slept through most of it. The bus ride itself was not too pleasant. the roads are shockingly narrow and bumpy and windy... which led to a constant rocking, swaying, and bouncing. Our bus driver warned us and said he could provide plastic bags to contain any sickness that we may have felt- which we all nearly did.
The central area of the enormous cross-shaped cathedral.
One of many beautiful stained glass windows, with a gigantic organ below.
There was actually an organist playing live while we were looking around.
The city is very foggy at all times of the day, and incredibly cold... cut to the bone cold. The fog is sort of surreal, seeing vague outlines of buildings in the distance, and it can feel a bit claustrophobic at times. It made me glad that Cork isn't constantly quite so misty. Despite the gray fogginess, the city has a lively feel. There are a lot of buskers (street performers) on the main pedestrianized streets, some of which were quite entertaining. And the pubs! We went first to Tig Cóilí, which is renowned for its two live trad sessions per night, every night of the week. It was a charming little pub, and all of us girls got Irish coffees and listened to some trad. Some of us went to dinner and back to the hostel to get ready to go out, and proceeded to go to King's Head. It was a decent place, though it seemed a bit like a tourist trap. We ran into a Gaelic football and rugby team, which was, er, interesting... Let's just say we didn't stick around that pub for too long. After that we went to Front Door, which was a gigantic maze of a bar. We were a bit exhausted after our day, and headed home a little after midnight.
The hostel we stayed at, Barnacles Quay, was actually pretty nice. It was clean and well equipped, with a nice big kitchen and common room. Paige, Skye, Kaelyn and I stayed in the 12-person room, and Erin, Kelly, and Laura were in a 6-person room. I had the top bunk in the far corner in the picture below.
We only met a few of our roommates, but they were all pretty nice... except when we were woken up by an alarm at 6:30am... there was a 50-something year old man who got up and proceeded to pace around the room, go to the bathroom multiple times, cough a lot, rustle plastic bags loudly, turn on and leave on the lights, and generally wake up and greatly annoy everyone in the room. Also, he was only wearing boxer briefs, and was not under his blanket... very uncomfortable. I wasn't sleeping that well anyway because of the symphony of snoring and coughing of everyone in the room, and the hellish hot temperature. Needless to say, none of us slept well- we figure about 5 hours of light sleeping, which is about what we had all gotten the night before, which led to a very sleepy and silly day. Breakfast was toast, and then we were off to the bus station to get back on a tour bus at 9:45 to go to the CLIFFS OF MOHER!
The tour took us south down through the Burren, which is basically just mountains of solid limestone that's been laboriously cleared in some areas with endless stone walls. It was barren, but beautiful, and we all slept through most of it. The bus ride itself was not too pleasant. the roads are shockingly narrow and bumpy and windy... which led to a constant rocking, swaying, and bouncing. Our bus driver warned us and said he could provide plastic bags to contain any sickness that we may have felt- which we all nearly did.
The Burren- and the Atlantic Ocean off to the left!
We continued our windy way to a small village where all 60 of us filed off the bus to get some lunch at a pub. We went on and arrived at the cliffs. The visitors' center was very unique- it's built right into the side of the hill, and it contained some very nice restrooms with waterfall sinks that we availed of... We were very easily amused because of how overtired we were. We walked up a small hill, unable to see the cliffs yet, and then suddenly, BAM, there they are, in all their incredibly glory. There really aren't any words to describe how beautiful it was. Every direction you turn, the view takes your breath away. We were all breathless and giddy with every step we took. We were so lucky with the weather. It had been foggy and freezing in Galway, but here it was sunny, warm, and not even windy. Here are some pictures, but no camera can capture the phenomenal beauty.
Yeah... pictures obviously can't do it justice. It was an amazing sight to behold.
We grudgingly left the Cliffs and headed back on our bouncy bus to Galway, but made 2 more stops on the way- a 5,000 year old megalithic tomb, and the Aillwee Cave. Go here for better pictures than I could get. It was pretty interesting- we went half a kilometer into the cave, and it was a little hairy for claustrophobic me, ducking through small passageways and walking over bridges in the dark... but it was a fun experience, as I'd never been in a cave before.
We climbed back aboard the bus and snoozed our way to Galway. We were all exhausted, but of course wanted to go back out and check out more of the pub and trad music scene. We made ourselves dinner- pasta with carbonara sauce and chicken. While we were cleaning up, we ran into an Australian guy that was staying in our room with us. We were being pretty crazy, doing an assembly line of washing, passing, rinsing, drying, and putting away our dishes, generally having a grand time and laughing a lot. He was a little intimidated, I think, and called us cackling hens, so we proceeded to tease him about not having any friends (even though he did, they came down shortly after). We invited them all out with us, but didn't wind up seeing them until later. As we were pre-gaming in our 12-person room, we started talking to a German guy, Florian (Flo) that was staying there as well. He was a pretty funny guy, and we invited him out with us, and he actually came! Possibly the funniest comments of the night came from him. We were talking about how the Irish girls dress, and he called them "oil tanks in hot pants"... aka fat girls in little clothing. Later, we had a cheers in the pub, and I didn't make eye contact with him- he said that in Germany, if you don't look at a person when you cheers, your children will be gay... needless to say, a very odd but funny guy, and he had us in stitches several times.
We all headed out up the main street, Quay St., where we were approached by a promoter for a club- Coyotes. Yes, like Coyote Ugly, the movie. He stamped our hands and led us to the club, where we got a free shot, and Paige danced on stage with the performer because he was singing country music. It was pretty lame, though, and not what we were looking for, so we didn't stay long. Next stop was Taaffe's, which is also known for having great sessions. However, the pub is tiny, and was totally packed when we got there. We couldn't even move, so even though the music was good, Skye, Erin, Flo and I decided to go somewhere else, and left Kelly and Paige and Kaelyn (who joined us shortly) and went to Quays, which was right across the way from our hostel. This was a very cool place, with multiple levels and bars and lots of character. I could have spent all night just looking at the random things they had on the walls- including a fencing helmet that served as a lampshade. We were walking around looking for a place to stake out when we see the rugby guys from the night before... We grabbed a few pints and retreated to a balcony on the other side of the bar, assuming they wouldn't even recognize us if they did see us (which they didn't). We hung out there and danced for a while, and when we finished our pints, decided to head the The Crane Bar, also well-known for great trad sessions.
The five of us (me, Erin, Skye, Flo, and Kaelyn) walk across the river and ask directions from multiple people before finding the pub... but OH was it worth it. We walk in to see a tiny pub with lots of character, and a session going on with eight musicians. There isn't really any place to sit or stand, so we decide to head upstairs when we spot a staircase. We go up to find another full bar and a different session with eleven musicians playing... We stand and listen for a few minutes and grab a table and order a few pints of Guinness. The music is great- exactly what we were looking for. If you search "session in the crane bar" on youtube, you can get a few videos of basically what we saw last night. You just can't sit still or not have a smile on your face when you are watching a session. We all were high off the music and having a great time sitting and talking, when suddenly, right next to us, a guy starts Irish step dancing wearing tap shoes. He goes all out for an entire song. It was so great to watch! When he stopped, we told him that he basically had just made our night. I also started talking to a drummer that was playing with the group, and he's from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and gave me his band's card so I could find them online. He said they actually have played in VT before, and that I should follow their schedule to see if they're ever in the area. New friends everywhere!
The upstairs session at The Crane. Amazing music!
Irish step dancing!!! This guy was great.
We were just sitting listening to the music when three guys sat down at the table next to us. I strike up a conversation with them, and we talk for an hour or so until last call. Kaelyn and Flo leave, and the guys invite us to go with them to a club, Roisin Dubh, or "the rosh" as the called it. We went there, but once again, it was way too packed to be able to have a good time, so we left again and they took us to another place, Massimo. It was slightly less crowded, so we stayed there and talked some more. The guys were all funny and nice, and it turns out one was from New Hampshire! The other two were from Ireland and Ottawa, Canada. It turns out they all had girlfriends, but they promised to friend us on facebook and let us know if they ever come down to Cork... we'll see if that happens!
We left the club and walked back towards our hostel, running into Kelly and Paige on the way. They had quite a crazy night, but that's an entire other story. We went back to our hostel, and in the stairwell, run into the Aussie and his friends. I'm dead tired at this point- 3:30am- so we all go to bed. I get into bed (after passing the old man in his underwear- gross) and I hear the Aussie come in. There's some bumps and shuffling, and I hear him start talking to someone. I turned over in bed to see a random, fully dressed girl, that wasn't staying in our room, lying on his bed. She's obviously wasted, and he tries to wake her up with a "wake up, princess, wake up, pissed b****". I start laughing at him at this point, as does the Irish guy sleeping in the bunk below me. He eventually gives up and just crawls into bed next to her, but not before he asks her to at least tell him her name- to no avail.
Another sleepless night ensues; we all wake up for good at about 8:30 and go eat breakfast and hang out in the kitchen before checking out at half 10. We walked around the city again, seeing the Spanish Arch and heading out to Claddagh Park and the Atlantic Ocean to walk on the sandy, mussel shell covered beach at low tide. While it was foggy as we headed out to the park, and even thicker fog rolled in when we were out there, to the point that we couldn't see a hundred yards away. We saw the swans that Galway are famous for, swimming around and biting each other in Galway Bay. We went and got coffee and pastries to try to warm up (it was FREEZING- the damp cold just doesn't leave you), before getting nachos at a Tex-Mex restaurant and heading to the bus station to catch our bus at 2:05. On the way back, I finally, after spending 10 hours on buses in the past 48 hours, how to prop up my head with my coat and scarf to get comfortable enough to fully pass out without doing the dreadful head bob and snap. 
Claddagh Park
The Galway swans.
And that brings me pretty much to where I am right now- a bit hungry, and incredibly tired, so please forgive anything in this post that didn't make sense. It took me hours to write, but I'm afraid of how it turned out. Check out my flickr (eventually) for more pictures- I took over 200 just this weekend! But all in all, it was a really fun weekend. I like Galway a lot. It's got a great feel, awesome music scene, interesting history, and gorgeous scenery on the ocean. I still think I like Cork better, though... :)
Quay Street
Friday, January 14, 2011
Hooray, Beer!
No, I haven't drank any Red Stripe here. But I will give you a breakdown of the most common beers on tap in any given pub, with my expertise tasting notes... ha. In no particular order, there's:
Beamish. One word to describe this local Cork beer is DELICIOUS. The actual beer I am referring to is the Beamish stout, the flagship product of Beamish and Crawford Brewing Co., which is now owned by Heineken... It's definitely a very dark beer, has little carbonation, a very creamy and long-lasting head of foam (when poured correctly, but of course it's always poured correctly here. I waited 3 minutes for my pint last night while the bartender was waiting for it to settle properly!). It has a creamy feel and a little smokey taste, and I always get a hint of chocolate... Maybe that's why I like it so! Definitely my favorite beer that I've had here- yes, even better than...
Guinness. Don't get me wrong, I love a good pint of Guinness- I even picked it to be my first drink in Ireland. Maybe it's psychological, but it tastes different (and better) here than what I've had back home. It has that roasted flavor similar to Beamish, and is creamy as well, bitter and tangy, and of course a gorgeous head of foam.
Murphy's. Much like Beamish, Murphy's is another wonderful stout made here in Cork. It's a bit less tangy than the previous two, and is lighter in flavor as well, with a very thick head and zero carbonation. A very good pint indeed.
Carlsberg. It's more of what the average American would expect when they order a beer- it's clear yellow, more bubbly, not a very intense flavor, sort of medium all around- overall, a very easy-drinking beer. And it's Danish, so I feel connected to my best friend who's studying abroad there!
Bulmer's. Not actually a beer, Bulmer's is hard cider. To those who've had a Wood Chuck, it tastes much like that. It's sweet and bubbly and tasty, a nice alternative to a heavier stout. I've seen in Tesco (the main supermarkets here) that there is actually flavored Bulmer's, which I want to try- both berry and pear.
Budweiser. I'm only including this because it's one of the most common beers on tap in a pub, and that's what I said I was going to do. But I'm not giving tasting notes...
Well, all this talk has made me quite thirsty... it's off to a pub with me! Sláinte!!!
A thing of beauty.
Beamish. One word to describe this local Cork beer is DELICIOUS. The actual beer I am referring to is the Beamish stout, the flagship product of Beamish and Crawford Brewing Co., which is now owned by Heineken... It's definitely a very dark beer, has little carbonation, a very creamy and long-lasting head of foam (when poured correctly, but of course it's always poured correctly here. I waited 3 minutes for my pint last night while the bartender was waiting for it to settle properly!). It has a creamy feel and a little smokey taste, and I always get a hint of chocolate... Maybe that's why I like it so! Definitely my favorite beer that I've had here- yes, even better than...
Guinness. Don't get me wrong, I love a good pint of Guinness- I even picked it to be my first drink in Ireland. Maybe it's psychological, but it tastes different (and better) here than what I've had back home. It has that roasted flavor similar to Beamish, and is creamy as well, bitter and tangy, and of course a gorgeous head of foam.
Murphy's. Much like Beamish, Murphy's is another wonderful stout made here in Cork. It's a bit less tangy than the previous two, and is lighter in flavor as well, with a very thick head and zero carbonation. A very good pint indeed.
Carlsberg. It's more of what the average American would expect when they order a beer- it's clear yellow, more bubbly, not a very intense flavor, sort of medium all around- overall, a very easy-drinking beer. And it's Danish, so I feel connected to my best friend who's studying abroad there!
Bulmer's. Not actually a beer, Bulmer's is hard cider. To those who've had a Wood Chuck, it tastes much like that. It's sweet and bubbly and tasty, a nice alternative to a heavier stout. I've seen in Tesco (the main supermarkets here) that there is actually flavored Bulmer's, which I want to try- both berry and pear.
Budweiser. I'm only including this because it's one of the most common beers on tap in a pub, and that's what I said I was going to do. But I'm not giving tasting notes...
Well, all this talk has made me quite thirsty... it's off to a pub with me! Sláinte!!!
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Linguistics
This is a tricky topic to write on. It's tough to encapsulate the Irish accent and slang... but here are a few things that have stood out to me either because of how much they are used, or because it's strange or funny. Some are more obvious and expected, others quite quirky.
adding "so" to the end of sentences
"d" replaces any "t" or "th" sounds- eg. "they" becomes "dey", "the" is "duh"
"ye" instead of "you"
the sidewalk is the "footpath"
quay is pronounced "key"
apartment is "flat", and roommates are "flatmates"
when saying the time, it's not "eight thirty", it's "half eight"
sort of slur words- don't say all the vowels basically
...but enunciate- say each word clearly
things are grand, not great
when you pause when talking, it's "em" not "um"
people actually say bollocks
chips are french fries, crisps are potato chips
talk very fast...
Maybe this is why I have a hard time doing an Irish accent? These are just the few that I can think of right now. If I realize more, I'll add them to the end of future posts.
Oh, and I had another moment today that made me feel Irish- a girl sought me out and gave me a handout for a program for Irish students to travel to the US next summer... in my head, I said, "thanks, I plan to!"
adding "so" to the end of sentences
"d" replaces any "t" or "th" sounds- eg. "they" becomes "dey", "the" is "duh"
"ye" instead of "you"
the sidewalk is the "footpath"
quay is pronounced "key"
apartment is "flat", and roommates are "flatmates"
when saying the time, it's not "eight thirty", it's "half eight"
sort of slur words- don't say all the vowels basically
...but enunciate- say each word clearly
things are grand, not great
when you pause when talking, it's "em" not "um"
people actually say bollocks
chips are french fries, crisps are potato chips
talk very fast...
Maybe this is why I have a hard time doing an Irish accent? These are just the few that I can think of right now. If I realize more, I'll add them to the end of future posts.
Oh, and I had another moment today that made me feel Irish- a girl sought me out and gave me a handout for a program for Irish students to travel to the US next summer... in my head, I said, "thanks, I plan to!"
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)