- USA
- Ireland
- France
- Belgium
- Back in France
- May 30, 2005Mexican Princesses
- May 31, 2005Versaille
- June 1, 2005Last Day in Paris
- June 2, 2005Coast of Marseille
- May 3, 2005Callanques of Marseille
- June 4, 2005Leaving Marseille
- June 5, 2005Busted Ankle
- June 6, 2005Healing in St. Raphael
- June 7, 2005Bongos on the Beach
- June 8, 2005Goodbye, St. Raphael - Hello Cannes
- June 9, 2005Antibes Daytrip
- June 10, 2005Chilling in Cannes
- June 11, 2005To Nice with the Finns
- Monaco
- Switzerland
- Germany
- Austria
- Hungary
- Poland Fun
- June 29, 2005Zakopane
- June 30, 2005Hiking in the Tatry Mountains
- July 1, 2005Trail of Wooden Architecture
- July 2, 2005Krakow Jazz Festival
- July 3, 2005Kazimierz
- July 4, 2005Goral Burger
- July 5, 2005Ciupagi
- July 6, 2005Czestochowa
- July 7, 2005Trainhopping
- July 8, 2005Happy Birthday Mom!!!
- July 9, 2005Happy Birthday Jack
- July 10, 2005Banana Riding
- July 11, 2005First Russian Embassy Visit
- Poland Family
- July 12, 2005Family, at Last
- July 13, 2005Mom's Schoolfriends
- July 14, 2005Muddy Ponds
- July 15, 2005Partying in Poznan
- July 16, 2005A Relaxing Day
- July 17, 2005Sheeshah Bar
- July 18, 2005Five Souvereign Lands
- July 19, 2005The Good News
- July 20, 2005Another Family Function
- July 21, 2005Just Chilling
- July 22, 2005The Best Bike Ever
- July 23, 2005Looking for a Home by the Baltic Sea
- July 24, 2005Copernicus and the Boyscouts
- July 25, 2005Visas are Set to Go
- July 26, 2005Luxury
- July 27, 2005A Day at Work
- Russia
- July 28, 2005Back in St. P Looking for 1UP
- July 29, 2005Peter's Pimpin' Palace and the Neverending Nights
- July 30, 2005Big Bad Moscow
- July 31, 2005Beating Birches
- August 1, 2005Off to Siberia
- August 2, 2005Drinking with the Guards
- August 3, 2005Big, Rolling Trans-Siberian Party
- August 4, 2005Pack up, Only Six Hours Left
- August 5, 2005Irkutsk
- August 6, 2005Swimming in Lake Baikal
- August 7, 2005Drenched
- August 8, 2005Partying with Uzbeks
- August 9, 2005I Love You Omul, I Heart Baikal
- August 10, 2005Pushed out of Russia
- Mongolia
- China
- August 26, 2005Chasing Buses
- August 27, 2005Looking for the Opera
- August 28, 2005Sleeping on a Wall
- August 29, 2005Trying to Find the Opera Once Again
- August 30, 2005Forbidden City and Searching for the Opera
- August 31, 2005The Opera Sucks
- September 1, 2005Hutongs and Strange Food
- September 2, 2005The Peking Ducks Incident
- September 3, 2005Beijing Shopping
- September 4, 2005The Dirt Market and Tiger Penis Vodka
- September 5, 2005Temples, Temples, and More Temples
- September 6, 2005The Amazing Summer Palace
- September 7, 2005Goodbye Asia
- Back in the USA
World Trip
Killarney and Cork
Got up early today to give back my hostel key and went for a walk. It started pouring en route to St. Mary's cathedral (what else is new) and I took the opportunity to go inside and take some photos (as I would not otherwise). It was quite large and was the most impressive church I've seen so far in Ireland. The choir practiced in the background.
When I got out of St. Mary's the sun was shining brightly again, so I headed off in the general direction of the Ross Castle, in the picturesque Killarney National Park. It promptly started raining. Ross Castle was originally built in the 1500's and holds the distinction of being the last castle to be sacked by a British fellow named Cromwell. I think I know why. If Cromwell had to walk three miles from the bus station to the castle in pouring rain, it's clear to see why he would put off Ross for last. Then again, he was probably better funded than me, and would taken a coach directly to the castle with his troops. Who knows.
I am now on a bumpy bus ride from Killarney to Cork, where I am looking forward to kissing the Blarney stone.
Arrived in Cork, and big surprise, it's raining! Found my way to Sheila's Hostel and walked up a big hill, and then up three flights of stairs. Climbing with an extra 6olbs is starting to wear on me. I am considering throwing away some clothes.
When I arrived I met some polish guys and we sat around, drank some beers, and shot the word around for a while. One of the guys, Michal, is from Poznan, which is the city I was born in, so we had an immediate connection.
Later on in the evening I met an Aussie guy named Sean who was also staying in my room and we headed off to see the city. It was one of those unplanned random walks and we ended up on a huge hill, completely off the tourist map. It was starting to rain again so we ducked into a local pub for a pint. The place was filled with old silver haired ladies sitting shoulder to shoulder along the wall, with the rest of the bar filled with older men, all drinking pints on a Sunday evening.
Outside, during a smoke, we started talking to some interesting people and the conversation took off. One fellow whose name escapes me turned out to be first a policeman, then a lawyer, and eventually he admitted to being the head attorney for the Cork police department. He was quite a talker and the conversation flowed well, as did the beer. We ended up talking with a bunch of people at that pub and learned about the pride they have in their local watering hole, the finer points of Irish history, their love of the English, and all the standard taboo subjects of religion, war, politics, and morals. It was a well-spent evening in an authentic Irish pub and there was not one moment of boredom.
The police man attorney fellow was quite good with words and he recounted a story of a famous writer Green, who upon being invited to the Oxford Essays wrote the following essay on the subject of the feast at Canaan:
"The shameful water heard the Lord and blushed."
He won, and to this day it is regarded as the best piece ever to come out of the Oxford Essays.
Editorial note: Looking for a reference to the quote on the net today found nothing. Curious if we were bamboozled into believing a made-up tale. Whatever; it was a well-told tale and kept us entertained.
