Now onto Ireland

Our trip to Ireland was motivated by the fact that Mary and Chris (college friends) would be in the midst of a 2 week trip to London and Ireland. We couldn't pass up the chance to catch up with them and see Ireland for a few days.

We met in Cork for the first of our 3 nights thanks to the England Spring Bank Holiday. After our adventurous trip getting to Ireland we started the at the famous Blarney Castle just outside Cork. Here you will find the Blarney Stone that if you kiss may earn you the gift of gab. The problem is you must lie on your back and hang over an opening a few stories above the ground below to kiss the stone. Since I didn't get home with a good shot of the stone I found a good one here that illustrates the challenges of kissing the stone. Its not as dangerous as its seems now that the modern safety rules have been applied. There is a guy to help you down and a guard bars to keep you from falling but the scary effect is still there.

On the castle grounds is a rock close which is a big kids play ground. There were all sorts of trees to climb, caves and tunnels to explore, and bunches of nooks and places to hide. Take a look at this photo of Steph in a neat little hiding place...looks like she is in a rabbit hole. This is Mary posing for a picture after climbing a tree on the grounds. Also see if you can find Steph hiding in the forest. I hit my head on a rock caving without a flash light so I was little gun shy for this part and mainly took pictures. Shame.

After Blarney Castle we stopped at this pub, which if its not Irish I don't know what is, to eat lunch. Then we were off to Kenmare in south west Ireland.

Along the way we stopped off for coffee in the little Irish town of Macroom. This is the only time it rained on us so here is Steph with an umbrella as we walked up to the remains of the castle there. Note that is Murphy's advert painted on the castle wall in the back ground not Guinness. They are rival beers. Oh and here I am with the cannons outside the castle.

Once we arrived in Kenmare, here is a shot of downtown, we checked into the Sheenview B&B and headed out for a night of dinner and Irish music. Believe it or not finding Irish music in Ireland is harder than you would think. We heard John Denver's Country Roads (Country roads, take me home To the place, I be-long, West Virginia, mountain momma Take me home, country roads) multiple times, gees. Plus all of the radio stations played American music! Not cool. Luckily we were able to find a place with locals singing Irish music who even did a Whiskey in the Jar shout out to us Kentuckians! The music is so very entertaining and fun to listen to.

All of our Ireland Day 1 photos are available on Flickr.

The Ring of Beara still to come...

A quick hop over to Ireland...ha!

Getting to Ireland this weekend was our first attempt flying with a low cost airline. We chose Ryanair who has dirt cheap airfare to many places throughout Europe and if you book in advance you can get actually get a 1 pence fare (plus tax of course). Anyway our first destination in Ireland was Cork. When we booked our flights it was much cheaper to book 2 separate flights; one from London to Dublin then another from Dublin to Cork. Our layover time in Dublin was a little over an hour which should be plenty of time, right?

At Gatwick airport we asked to check in for both flights but found out we could only check in for the first flight. I think it went something to the effect of, "You can only check in for the first flight now and you will have to check in for the other flight when you get to Dublin. Since they are separate flights you will have to leave the arrival terminal, go to the departure ticket desk and get your next boarding pass." This also meant that we would have to go through security again. Are you kidding me?

Now we are just hoping that we can do this re-check-in in an hour. Oh, I almost forgot to mention that Ryanair closes the check in desk 40 minutes before the flight. Nice planning on my part...

Once we get in the terminal we see our first flight is delayed. Nice. Needless to say we didn't make the next flight even though we ran through the airport dodging all of the other tourists. The check in for our Cork flight was already closed. You also should know that when using Ryanair if you miss a flight they charge you a hefty fee to switch to another flight and they accept no responsibility for the second missed flight as they are unrelated bookings...ouch. Plus, the next flight to Cork is not for 3 hours...

At this point you need to remember that we are in Ireland and on Ireland time which is slow. Options?...what other options do we have? We found out there was a train in an hour and was the last train of the day. The Dublin airport is on the outskirts of the town and a 45 minute bus ride to the train station. We scrambled to get on the right bus and get to the station.

We caught the train with a few minutes to spare and are home free now, right? About 2 hours into the 3 hour train ride we are awoken (both of us snoozing on the train because we are exhausted) by a woman saying "SMOKE!". Our train car is filled with smoke. Cough.

Turns out it was a small electrical fire and evidently not a problem in Ireland because the train never stopped. They just had us all move over to the next rail car. We finally made it to Cork 3 hours late at midnight. After a short cab ride we crashed for the night at the hotel.

Yikes what a day. More on Ireland later...

Trip to Herne Bay

I wrote this post a week or so ago but never published it...

To start I have to give a big THANK YOU to Rosemary Shilling for taking care of us this weekend in Herne Bay. She was a lovely and gracious host.

On Saturday we started by going to Canterbury Cathedral. It is the Mother Church of the Anglican Communion and has roots all the way back to 597AD. After touring the cathedral and its grounds we did a little sight seeing in the city of Canterbury which was a happening little town. There is an old Roman wall around a big portion of the town including the cathedral.

Here are our Canterbury Pictures

Then we went onto Dover England to see the infamous Dover Castle. The castle is so rich in history its tough to know where to start. From being strengthened in 1066 by William the Conqueror to having its tunnels expanded to play a major role in World War II it is a tremendous place for history. Its keep was the home to Henry II and Henry VIII. We were able to take a tour of the Secret World War II Tunnels that would have been a nightmare during the war but a cool thing to see now.

Here are our Dover Castle Pictures. Due to the tremendous weather we were unable see France from Dover so we will have to go back.

On Sunday the weather was raining, windy and cold so we tried to stay dry while doing sight seeing around Herne Bay so most of it was from the car. Luckily Rosemary made reservations at a pub that was built in 1364 named the Red Lion so we were able to get out of the rain and grab some good ol' English grub. She introduced us to the traditional British Sunday roast dinner which is roast beef covered in gravy served with veggies and yorkshire pudding. It was excellent!

The journey home was a bit of headache because they were doing "planned engineering work" on the rail between Canterbury and London. At one point we had to get off the train onto a bus then back on the train into London. Needless to say it took us forever to get home. Arg we need a car...

Our sea shipment has arrived!

After an unexplained "ship diversion" our shipment from KY has sailed across the Atlantic and arrived in the UK. We shipped it on on March 12th and our delivery is set for 8 o'clock tomorrow morning May 15th. By my count that is 9 weeks. Good thing they estimated 6-8 with an emphasis on 6 only going to the UK.

Now onto European life after the air mattress...

I thought we moved to London

Its always fun going to big cities with small enclaves of different cultures. London is no different. Just around the corner from Leicester Square is London's china town as you can see with Steph in the picture. It was a neat place with lots of restaurants and shops in normal Chinese fashion. We ventured in a lot of them looking for one of Steph's favorites bubble tea but unfortunately couldn't find any.

This week has flown by due to the bank holiday on Monday, May Day. Now its time to start gearing up for the weekend. The weather this past few days has reverted back to normal UK spring weather meaning its been cool, cloudy, and windy with off and on rain. Hopefully it will brighten back up because we have all sorts of things planned for the weekend including a trip over to Canterbury Cathedral and Herne Bay. I don't want to give away too much but we should have some good pictures next week so keep an eye out.

Enjoy the weekend!

Arsenal v Chelsea

After having lunch in London on Sunday we were in the tube stations riding over to Leicester Square. With the Premiership winding down I asked a bloke wearing an Arsenal jersey in passing what time the Arsenal played. He said "four o'clock". It was still an hour before kick off and they were playing a cross town rival Chelsea. As we continued down the escalator towards the train we noticed more and more Arsenal jerseys heading towards the game. I grabbed our London A-Z guide (which I highly recommend) and we were only a few stops away from the stadium. How lucky is this and its Arsenal v Chelsea...

The closer we got to the stadium (Emirates Stadium which opened in 2006) the more and more Arsenal supporters that filled the train. When we hoped off the tube at the Arsenal stop and the train emptied. Everyone was going to the game so we just followed the crowd. Above ground people were everywhere yelling and chanting. The streets were closed off to autos and packed with people. It was a big migration of Arsenal fans towards the stadium. The atmosphere was phenomenal!

Now my attention turned to tickets so I asked another bloke selling merchandise where I could score some tickets. He said "Tickets" with a laugh, "If you could even find tickets they would cost you a minimum of 250 pounds." Needless to say we didn't get into the game but it was well worth the trip.

I did take a few pictures of the stadium but I was so enthralled by the surroundings I didn't get many. However I was able to take short video which I filmed just after kick off outside the stadium that tries to capture the environment inside the stadium. The video isn't all that great but the sound is. Listen to the chanting from where we were standing it was crystal clear. As I was saying the atmosphere was incredible. I will be back!

Oh and we did see the match but from inside a pub. Pints around.

Cheers...

Derby Day

Today is Derby Day 133 in KY but not in the UK. Believe it or not most of the British do not know about nor watch our famous Kentucky Derby. Hard to imagine I know...

Anyway hopefully everyone is out and about at a fabulous Derby party drinking a mint julep or some other good ole Bourbon drink. So after the parties are over and everyone cashes there winning tickets catch us up on all of the day's event. Comments and emails are more than welcome.

My money is on Circular Quay.

One more thing. Tell our Queen E Cheerio for us as she made the trip to Churchill downs to take in the sights. In this article about her trip it briefly mentions an upcoming race in Epsom that the Queen will also attend. I work in Epsom and its just down the road from the office. I go by the track every day.

Yes, Zac is the man in the painting

All of the guesses where correct. The painting does in fact look like my brother Zac. Go figure since it was painted so long ago. I guess he could now be considered famous since his face in history is preserved...

Cheers Zac

The many intricacies of commuting

Allright, we have been commuting now for over a week and we have both had variations in our commutes. Josh carpooled with someone last week which worked out nicely and I only had to go a couple stops on the train to my office. Sounds simple, right? WRONG! There are so many aspects of commuting that are unglamourous, tedious, exhausting, etc! Whew!

Last week on my first day of work, I walked out of the flat in my pretty little Enzo flats (shoes, for those of you of the male persuasion)...and I thought I was thinking ahead! I had already learned that they have these bumps on the ground where the sidewalks meet the roads and at the edges of train platforms, etc. They are killer on your ankles in a pair of heels (already learned that the hard way in March while visiting...nearly lost it a couple times). There are also tons of stairs, "mind the gaps", long walkways, escalators, worn sidewalks....

So, I felt good heading off in my sensible shoes. To make a long story short, after wondering around Gatwick airport, going to the wrong terminal first and then finally finding my way out and after a good 15 minute walk to the office....I had a nice blister developing. At that moment, I realized that all those people wearing suits and tennis shoes (or a casual shoe equivalent) had the right idea. I've been commuting in my tennis shoes since. Lesson #1.

Lesson #2 is that people don't talk. You get on board and put you head into a book or newspaper or fiddle with your mobile phone or Ipod (Lesson #3 - own or bring one of these things). (Although one girl was putting on her makeup!).

Lesson #4. A long commute will replace your daily workout. This week, I have been commuting to central London - takes about an hour door-to-door. But, whew - it can be exhausting (and brutal if you are in the wrong shoes)! Let me try to recreate my commute:

Walk to train station. Through turnstiles. Up stairs. Up stairs. Get on train (Redhill is about the last stop on the way in to London where you can guarantee that you will get a seat!). Get off train (from this point on always assume that I am surrounded on all sides by people - herding cattle will give you a visual). Walk length of about 6 railcars. Walk across platform landing. Through turnstiles. Walk across London Victoria station (a huge place by the way - dodging people as everyone is aggressively moving in all directions). Down stairs. Through turnstiles. Down 3-4 story escalator. Down some halls, up some stairs, down some stairs (you get the point). Get on the Tube (after making yourself a sardine and watching not to get either set of cheeks caught in the closing doors!). Hold on. Sweat. Get off tube. Walk down platform. Walk down halls, up stairs, down stairs (or something like that). Get on another tube line (again - sardine - and that is if you can even get on!). Hold on. Sweat some more. Get off tube. Walk down platform. Walk down halls, up some stairs. Up 3-4 story escalator (don't get caught on the left side or you will be expected to walk UP the escalator...that's the escalator fast lane!). Through turnstiles. Out into the world - hello city streets. (Still herding cattle) Walk down street watching for irregularities in sidewalks and trying not to get hit by a car as the crowd crosses the streets (and this is easier if you really know in which direction to look for oncoming cars!). Ah-ha! Client site! Down alley. Up the lift. Through three sets of doors (who built this building?!) Done.

I have been getting my exercise and this week Josh decided to take the trains to work. Epsom is almost due west of Redhill and the trains generally run north to south to feed London so going side-to-side is more complex. He has the option of going almost all the way to London, switching trains and then heading back out....or he can go west, get off a train and walk about 5-10 minutes to the neighbor train station and catch another train there. Unfortunately, the Epsom station is about a 15 minutes walk from his office. So, Jnoland has been adjusting to the mass transit commuting lifestyle as well.

The bright side - mass transit is awesome! It is fascinating to think that so many people are moving around in the greater London area every day! Kudos to the mass transit system here.

Although they have such a great mass transit system, over 90% of people own a car (rough number I heard somewhere, someone can challenge that if they like). Bikes are also popular and are used in conjunction with taking the trains or bus. We are working on getting a car here...currently only planning to have one.

And although using mass transit can be quite a challenge sometimes...it is nice to be able to sit and relax on your way to and from work (on the trains only...and not on trains any closer to London than we are). I have been reading a great little book Ashley and Ali bought me just before I left. I can't tell you the last time I read a fiction novel! (Admittedly, books I have picked up over the past couple of years have been business books or the like - informative books - crazy, I know).

So, Josh and I are adjusting well to the mass transit commuting culture. Although, we are anxious to get our own wheels! Redhill only has so much to see and do!

On his way home

In honor of my Dad getting to come home early after surgery I am posting a picture of a tuba player from the Royal Band taken at last weekend's activities in London.

Hang in there dad. Soon enough you will be playing at the UK games in the Alumni Band on your blue sousaphone. Go Cats!

You are in our thoughts and prayers.

--Josh

Who is this?

This is a painting by Giovanni Battista MORONI on display at the National Gallery in London painted in the 1560's. As we toured the galleries Saturday I was struck when I walked by this saying "Why does that seem so familiar".

I think it looks like somebody we all know but you have to guess first. Leave a guess in the comments. I will reveal my thoughts in a few days.

The Queen's Birthday Salute

Yesterday was another beautiful day in Redhill and I must say that since we have been here Redhill has had nothing but nice weather. So cheers to Josh and Steph for all of the great the weather...!

Since it was sunny and warm we took the train into London to see the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery perform a 21 gun salute for the Queen's birthday at Hyde Park. The show was only a few minutes in length but was worth it. Once the horses rode in and dropped off the 6 cannons they started the count down and began firing. One after another a few seconds apart they rumbled the center of London. After each shot you could hear the echo throughout London as I am sure all parts of London could hear if not feel the boom.

Unfortunately the pictures I took didn't turn out as I had hoped but I posted them anyway along with a short movie I filmed during the salute. Check it out below.

Royal Cannons Movie Clip

Photos from the day

Bath Pictures

We have returned from Bath and it was a great trip. I will blog in more detail later but the photos have been uploaded and are available here in case anyone wants to take a look.

You can also see the photos via the map if you would like location context while viewing here. What does everyone think of viewing the photos on the map? Has anyone used it yet? Let me know through the comments...

One note however, my free Flickr account has hit a limit and has starting restricting my photos only showing the last 200 photos I have uploaded. This means you may not be able to view the oldest photos. Sorry :(

I am trying to figure out what to do so I can show all my photos without having to pay for extra benefits. I may need to move away from Flickr...not sure yet.

Later....

Off to Baaath

Just a quick post to say we are off to Bath. Google Map of Bath

I have updated our Flickr map where you can browse our photos by location. I think it is a really neat way to look at photos because it gives you a good idea where the photos were taken.

Flickr Map

Hampton Court Palace - wow!

Today, Josh and I went the touristy route and decided to go the Henry the VIII's palace Hampton Court. I have to say it was amazing!

Josh and I went to the Biltmore House in North Carolina in November 2006 (also amazing! You should go.). There were parts of each of these grand homes that were similar but the fact of the sheer AGE of the palace knocks the Biltmore out of the water! This palace got its beginings not long after "Colombus sailed the ocean blue"! To give you a comparsion the Biltmore has 250 rooms while Hampton Court has over 1000. The incredible architectural detail, the carved stone, the carved wood, the gold leafing, the grand scale of every room - it was truly a place fit for royalty. Also odd about it was the architecture...it started out in Tudor styling then as other royalty lived there and built on the sytles changed (baroque) so in the courtyard there is a vast contrast in the type of architecture. But there are all sorts of stories on why there was no architectural continuity and I won't elaborate here - Skype me if you are interested. :)

You can learn more about the historical significance of the Hampton Court palace here.

One of the most impressive parts of the palace was the gardens....gardens on three sides including fields of flowers (currently daffodils), shaped trees and shrubery, water features, arbors, etc! One of the most amusing parts of the garden was the 300 year old garden maze - yes, like you have seen in movies (think Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire). Josh and I got lost in there for a few minutes which was fun! We then explored the acres and acres of finely manicured gardens. Being springtime it was absolutely breaktaking - the colors and variety of flowers were impressive.

Well, I will let the pictures tell you the rest. Hampton Court Pics

Tomorrow, Josh and I are off to Bath (pronounce it like you are saying "moth" but with a "b"). Although, I was told today that Northerners (in England) actually do say Bath like a we say it - like a tub of water. haha!