Across the pond... and back again.

Erin Go Braugh.. final Irish post...

2006-08-09T13:17:00.000-05:00

The subject says it all. I leave for London and Amsterdam (early) tomorrow morning via Dublin.. So, tonight is my last night in Galway and Ireland.. probably for a while.

Things I will miss:
- "What's the craic?"
- Massimos, Blue Note, and various other West end pubs
- "Are you going out tonight?" "No." 5 minutes and 2 pints later. "Yes."
- "So you play with lasers, huh?"
- D4 - (pronounced dee-fooaarrr) - "Let's ride the Jerry Lee, like."
- "Would you like rice or potatoes with the Chinese sweet 'n sour chicken, laddy?"
- 80s night at the GPO.
- Bulmers.
- Various Swedish ciders.
- Free incoming calls and texts on my mobile.
- Texting more than I ever have in my life.
- Curry chips.
- Garlic chips.
- Curry and Garlic chips.
- Curry and Cheese chips.
- Supermacs (but only at 3AM).
- "Oh, Joey, that old guy just thought you were a rent boy."
- 15 minute tea breaks that last 45.
- Hour lunch breaks that last 2.
- Grand, brilliant, sound, and the like.
- The people.
- Galway.
- Ireland.

-

Out with the flat mates (and the lab) for some final drinks...

Everything looks and feels better after a few pints...

Even if you are leaving a brilliant place.

Slainte, Gallimh! Slainte, Eire! (Forgive me if the Irish is butchered.)

Slightly sullen (but ultimately happy to return to the States),
Joey

Racing Away...

2006-08-04T13:20:00.000-05:00

These past few weeks have been insane for various reasons... Loss in any form makes life much more intense. I have less than two weeks before I return to Florida; I have one more day of work left; and I leave Ireland in less than a week. Nearly three months of living in this little Emerald Isle has been brilliant, grand, great craic, and every other superlative I can think of. I'm not going to go into a long diatribe about how this trip has changed me -- (it has.. and it pretty much goes without saying). Instead, I am going to focus on making the most of my time here. Galway, I will miss you, and you will always hold a special place in my heart. Gainesville, I do miss you, and I'll be back soon. :)

--

Jessica and I enjoying our Bulmers from outside the gates of the Galway Races -- Ireland's equivalent of the Kentucky Derby. All the pomp and circumstance that is associate with horse racing can be seen here..

Despite being too cheap to pay the 25 quid to get into the Races, we had an amazing view of the Races..

Having a few drinks with my Irish mates (Paddy seen here) at Massimos during a Latin Salsa night. (Yes, a Latin Salsa night in Ireland.) Good craic. We enjoyed a nice (actually, not so nice) Galway Hooker microbrewed beer -- slightly fruity but a really bitter after taste.

Watching a late night gig at the famous Roisin Dubh -- tons of local acts go to this place. It is the definition of craic.

--
No more sleeping for the next two weeks.. Cheers! -J

When the Irish go French...

2006-07-27T06:19:00.000-05:00

So, yes, I have been slacking with updates. However, it's hard to keep up when you have accumulated a slept debt of what seems like 2 months. :)

The past week was a definitely blur.. but in a good way. I spent much of the early part of the week preparing for a presentation in Bordeaux, getting more data in the lab, and trying to relax. So here's a bit of a recap of what all went down..

Wednesday: Sleep for approximately 3 hours. Wake up at 1AM on Thursday.

Thursday: 2AM: Catch a night bus for Dublin Airport. 5:30AM: Arrive at Dublin Airport, way too early and tired. (Some secondary school kids had finished their leaving certifications and were going on holidays to Amsterdam -- needless to say, the generally peaceful and quiet bus ride was anything but.) I sat around the airport for God knows how long until I finally boarded my plane bound for Amsterdam. 2pm: Arrive at the Amsterdam airport. 4:30PM: Finally leave the Amsterdam airport bound for Bordeaux nearly 45 minutes late. (At this point, I am running solely on RedBull.) 6PM: Arrive in a very very hot (in excess of 105F) Bordeaux. Ahhh.. heat.. how I've missed such temperatures. I met up with some other folks presenting their research and toured around the city, having an apertif along the way before some dinner. Experienced plenty of Bordeaux wine.. only 3 hours into the trip. Got to sleep around 3am.

Friday: 8AM: Wake up. Put on my dress clothes.. and sandals. (Gotta rep the Floridian lifestyle!) Gave 20 minute research presentation to many more people than I expected, including the head of the National Science Foundation (Europe Divison) and the US Consul in Bordeaux. Promptly headed to lunch, toured the University of Bordeaux for a bit, and then headed out to the beach. (YES!)

The beach in Bordeaux was absolutely savage -- the waves were incredibly powerful (forcing most of us to wade around in the rather shallow parts). Nonetheless, it was great to finally be at a proper beach, with proper temperatures, with proper waves. (Sorry, Ireland, but Salthill near Galway Bay does not count.) We had a fantastic 3 course dinner with calamari, oysters, some random fish, plenty of Bordeaux wine, and melt-in-your-mouth dessert. And just as we all thought the night was over (at about 11pm), we all headed over to the port side of the beach and waded around in the water for a bit. Now this may not seem all that spectacular if it were not for the bioluminescent algae in the water. It was dark outside, yet whenever you moved around in the water, the algae started to fluoresce, creating an eerie glow around your body. Definitely class. Of course, the night didn't end until around 4AM.

Saturday: More beach. Beach shennanigans. Fantastic. And, as per usual, plenty of Bordeaux wine. (And horrible French beer.) The night never ended, as I took a shower at 3:30AM, and caught a taxi to the Bordeaux airport at 4AM for my 6AM flight back to Dublin. (Definitely, not class.)

Sunday: Got back to Ireland at around 10AM. 4 hour bus ride back to Galway. By this point, I was pretty much running on empty. So what do I do? No sleeping -- 'You can sleep when you are dead.' I headed out to watch the big parade as part of the Galway Arts Festival. Finally slept at 12AM.

This week: Finally, somewhat chill. However, my time here in Eire is growing to a close. So, I expect my sleep deficit will grow even more. And you know what? I'm perfectly fine with that. :)

Cheers! -J

Victoire Square in Bordeaux

The Harbor as seen from this giant lighthouse in Bordeaux.

Random fish and barely cooked meat for lunch in Bordeaux.

Beach shennanigans in Bordeaux with the other research folks.

More beach in Bordeaux...

This was time.. I was Irish...

2006-07-16T04:28:00.000-05:00

This past week was a blur (literally and figuratively). I decided to be Irish for a week. So, for a twenty-something, that means going out every night.. even if you have work at 9AM. I only made it for three days and nights.. but I feel that's an "accomplishment" in itself!

If there ever was a time to go out in Galway.. it's in the month of July.. between the Galway Film Fleadh (which has movies showing all the friggin time.. even in Eyre Square!), Galway Arts Festival, Project 06, and The Galway Races -- there is little downtime to be a normal, functioning nine-to-fiver.

So a quick recap of this week(nights):
Tuesday - Went out to The Kings Head with some lads for a few pints.. and good local, rockish (but not trad) music. Good craic, indeed. A few pints turned into more than a few (aye.. I should have realized this).. and I didn't get home till about 03:00, only to go to work at 09:00. Class.

Wednesday - Pre-party at some workmates' flat. 80's music night at the GPO. While I still stand by my original comment that Irish people can't dance, anyone can dance to 80's music. And the Irish were dancing to 80's music. A lot. I feel like they played more of Madonna and Whitney Houston than I would ever care to listen to, but after a few pints.. you know.. they aren't so bad! Towards the end of the night, amidst a bunch of sloppy Irish folk, the DJ played U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday" -- pretty much everyone in the club sang the lyrics.. very loudly.. ahhh.. Eire. Afterwards, my group headed to Eddie Rocket's, the Irish version of Johnny Rockets for some Garlic, Bacon, and Cheese fries -- I thought Steak 'N Shake had incredibly non-nutritious food, but apparently I hadn't seen the half of it. Got back at 3:30AM -- the sun was starting to come up in the distance.

Thursday - Preparty at the workmates' house again.. for a much longer time. Headed out to Karma. 6eu cover -- ugh. Interesting interior, but not worth the 6eu. I guess we had too many pints before we got to the club to realize that we paid for another 80's night -- ahh.. oh well. Still had a good time. Once again, the Irish love their Madonna. And U2. Mmm.. Supermac's at 3:00AM. Got back at 4:00AM.

Friday - Nothing! I said screw being Irish.. I needed to sleep. So, I saw Superman Returns at the OmniPlex and promptly went to bed.. glorious!

Saturday - Gorgeous day! 80 degrees. No clouds in the sky.. light breeze. That's nearly a first! I brought my laptop, sunscreen, and sandals with me as I headed down towards Galway Bay to "lay out" with half of Galway and do a bit of work. Much needed respite (and as they say here.. detox) from being Irish. The weather made me feel like I was back in Florida, and, for nearly the first time, I felt a slight tinge of homesickness. Ay.. only one more month here. Insane.

This week is going to be hectic -- between new lab equipment, presentations, and packing, I am going to be crazy busy. Thursday, I head to Bordeaux, France for a little weekend research conference (and wine tasting).

I hear the weather is supposed to hold out here for a few days.. which will be grand.

Cheers from this side of the Atlantic! -J

Croagh Patrick.. you old fool..

2006-07-12T11:46:00.000-05:00

This past weekend I met up with Megan in Galway, and we climbed Croagh Patrick. Correction: Croagh Patrick owned us.

So, to give a brief overview, Croagh Patrick is a holy site in Ireland. Apparently St. Patrick climbed up the mountain about umpteen hundred years ago, stayed on the top of the mountain for about 40 days and 40 nights, and eventually came down. At the end of each July, nearly 40000 people flock to this site -- the highest mountain in Ireland -- to climb up the mountain. (The real hardcore ones go barefoot!)

So, after about a 2.5 hour busride from Galway to Westport (which ultimately was only about 60km away), Megan and I were taking a taxi out to Croagh Patrick. The weather was horrible. Let me repeat -- horrible. Wind, rain, and the like. Oh, and did I mention it was about 50F outside? Can't forget that. Nonetheless, Megan and I continued to brave Croagh Patrick.

There are three legs of the Croagh Patrick journey -- all of which have deceiving looking distances. We started the first leg uphill, which was set at a healthy 20 degree incline -- definitely worked the legs. The rain was just pissing on us, and our clothes and backpacks started to get relatively damp. Nonetheless, it wasn't too bad.. We stopped and took a couple pictures of the view from the first leg of the journey up.

Seems nice enough, right? Not too bad, is what we thought.. so after a quick little respite which included some cookies and apples, Megan and I continued up. We should have taken the fact that white clouds covered the top of the mountain as an omenous sign, but being the crazy Americans that we are, we paid it no attention.

We go to the second leg of the mountain -- nearly flat and right at the cloud line. It really was gorgeous, despite the rain.. and the hurricane force winds. I wouldn't consider myself a skinny guy, but Megan is tiny, and we were both nearly blown off the mountain about 50 times. At this stage, the rain was just pouring and hitting us in the face like bullets -- so intense! We walked for about another 15 minutes on this second part of the mountain, carefully watching our step so as not to fall off the mountain.

At that point, Megan and I were pretty much the only ones left on the mountain. Everyone had turned around because the weather was just disgusting. But we were soaked through and through, so we kept going -- it wouldn't have mattered if we walked down -- everything was wet. So we made it to the third stage -- the uphill battle. We couldn't really take any pictures because the only dry article in my backpack was my camera in its case, and we didn't want the electronics to die.. so you'll have to take my word on it.

The cloud cover was insane -- I felt like I was living in a cloud. I could barely see more than 10 feet in front or behind me, which probably wasn't safe, considering we were going up a really steep incline. (See below for a photo that was taken by someone else on a nice day during the last leg of the journey.)

So, finally, after another 30 minutes upwards, taking two steps forward and falling 5 steps back because of the rain and rock slippage, Megan and I made it to the top. There was a small little church... that was locked. And that was it up there. No view -- just clouds and rain. We found a tiny alcove, had a few cookies, and high-tailed our SOAKED bodies down the mountain once again. 1.5 hours up. 1.5 hours down. And then a nice, long, freezing bus ride back to Galway.

Nevertheless, I would do it all over again. The feeling of actually climbing Croagh Patrick was incredible -- something I'd like to try again. (Maybe on a better day this time?)

So, Croagh Patrick, we may have climbed you.. but you certainly kicked our arses.

Cheers! -J

Baile Átha Cliath and July Fourth abroad...

2006-07-05T03:30:00.000-05:00

This past weekend, I headed to Dublin to finally check out the most talked about city in Ireland and to meet up with Lee and Alli! During 3.5 hour CityLink bus from Galway, I felt like I was in the backwoods until about 20 minutes before the city centre stop. Dublin is one of the few places in Eire that has roads larger than two-laners and employ more stoplights than roundabouts (a novel idea in Ireland!). The city is divided through the center by the (polluted) River Liffey, which really is only pretty at night when you can't see the sickening green tint in the water. The first thing I noticed as I got off the bus was how much more 'cosmopolitan' (I know.. overused phrase.. but deal with it) Dublin was from the rest of homogenized Ireland -- Indians, Japanese, Chinese, Africans, Eastern Europeans, South Americans, Australians (well, they are pretty much everyone, regardless), and, yes, Americans. People were everywhere -- it was fantastic! Despite the oddly placed Heineken clock in a seemingly Guinness town, I rather liked Dublin -- even at the warnings of my Galwegian flatmates.

I pretty much just walked around the city throughout the weekend; once again, the weather was brilliant. I actually was able to wear shorts and not carry an umbrella -- wooooaahhhhh; I haven't been able do that in a while. Saw Trinity, St. Pat's, Temple Bar, the Dublin Spire (aka 'Stiffey by the Liffey'), St. Stephen's Green, and lots of random pubs and whatnot. Lee and I met up with Alli on Saturday afternoon to watch a bit of World Cup (i.e. Portgual beating England -- I am one round away from winning 25eu in the office pool!) and have a few pints of Bulmers and Kopparbergs Swedish Cider -- so good! The rest of the trip to Dublin was relaxing time; didn't do a whole lot except grab a pint and an occasional Bailey's ice cream scoop from Supermac's.

The bus ride back to Galway was rather long.. and a bit toasty. But all the while, still okay. While grabbing dinner back in Galway, Lee and I were approached by a completely and utterly intoxicated grubby middle aged woman who looked like she had fallen down about 50 times, based on the scrapes and scabs on her face. She kept handing us money and mumbling something -- finally, I figured out that she was kicked out of the pub next door for being too intoxicated and wanted us to buy her another drink. (Yeah right!) To no avail, she asked every single person she came in contact with (including people sitting in their cars!) to buy her a drink with the 'fiver'. Later on that evening, we headed out to the Living Room with the flatmates and a few other friends for some Sunday evening celebrating -- free wine and all. Good times, good times.

Monday -- after work, headed out to the Cinema to see The Wind That Shakes the Barley, an incredibly intense and well-made film (best film at the Cannes film festival this year!) about Irish independence from Britain in the 1920s. (Kind of appropriate for July 4th!) Like I said -- very intense -- not a 'feel good' kind of movie - especially the bitter tasting ending. I'm not sure if it will make it out to the States, but it is a must-see film if you can get your hands on it.

And finally, Tuesday, July 4th. Nothing was really different in good ol' Galway. Save the tacky American flags hung up in the University's canteen and 'Burgers and Fries' lunch menu (notice the usage of 'fries' and not 'chips'), Independence Day was nothing more than July 4th. That made me slightly disappointed -- it would have been nice to see some middle-aged suburbanite standing outside by the grill with a beer in hand wearing a gaudy American flag t-shirt. Ahh, the little things that are actually pretty trivial are the things you miss the most...

Happy 5th of July, now!

Slainte! -J

Quick pre-weekend update..

2006-06-30T03:59:00.000-05:00

This week has been brilliant! On Wednesday, I went on a "Corporate Day Out". Now imagine this scene -- a group of late 20-somethings, middle(and old)-aged Physics professors -- nearly all hungover from the previous night's escapades for a colleague leaving -- taking a bus an hour outside of Galway to Pallas Karting - "Europe's Largest Karting Center". Now imagine these same, semi-professionals in racing jumpsuits and helmets (I'll post pictures after this weekend) trying to beat each other in a rather competitive mini-Gran Prix style competition. And that's the corporate day out -- good craic, in all. And ultimately, I didn't have to do any work on Wednesday!

I'm heading to Dublin this afternoon and meeting up with Lee (and possibly Allison?).. I'm rather excited about it.. however, the Galwegians tell me that because I like Galway, I won't like Dublin. Bummer. I guess we'll see.

And to keep up with Justin, I have posted my travel map as well.. Blue is for places I've stayed & lived for more than 2 weeks; green is for places I have visited; yellow is for places I will visit by the end of the summer.

[Update: the page was acting weird -- here is a link to the map: http://www.quikmaps.com/show/3707.]

Cheers! -J

Aran Islands!

2006-06-26T14:19:00.000-05:00

So, last week ended slightly earlier than I thought, which was good.. Lee arrived on Friday (severely jet-lagged), so we just chilled on Friday evening..

Saturday morning, we headed out to the Aran Islands via bus and boat. The weather was kinda crappy at first, but eventually cleared up (and both of us got sunburned!)... We landed on the island of Inis Mor (pronounced: Inish More) and walked (uphill) to our hostel.. Mind you.. there is one major road on this entire island, and it is about as wide as the entrance to a house, yet all the locals find it necessary to speed like demons and nearly clip you as you walk (and bike) around. ;)

However, despite some harrowing near-misses with cars, the island was supremely quiet -- utterly calm and so relaxing. We rented some bikes, and road around the entire island -- the views were brilliant.. and the weather was gorgeous. I couldn't have asked for anything more!

We had an amazing dinner at our (posh) hostel -- the Manistir House -- which consisted of three courses of mouth-watering food -- from home-made vegetable soup to freshly-caught smoked salmon to an organic pesto sauce. So friggin good. And to top it off, there was dessert -- an incredible concoction of chocolate and espresso ice cream with a shot of Bailey's in it. The eight person tables at the restaurant made for some great conversation and dinner mates for about 3-4 hours -- all with the view of the sun setting over the island and into the Atlantic Ocean.

All in all, an incredible weekend!

Cheers! -J

The view from my flat one afternoon...

The sheer cliffs at Dun Aengus on Inis Mor, Aran Islands, County Galway

Repping the UFL on the Aran Islands...

The sun setting over the Atlantic (at 11pm).

Biking around Inis Mor.

No news, eh?

2006-06-22T07:53:00.000-05:00

This week has been relatively quiet... not much to report.. I've start to work with some cool stuff in the lab -- but I won't bore anyone with details about that. ;)

I've grown quite attached to my little bohemian coffee shop called Java's in the city centre... It is run by a bunch of French people. Horrible service, pretty good coffee and tea, cheap prices, and a really chill atmosphere. I've met some interesting people there.. I met a 'professional' busker - Michael -- he plays the guitar and sings along Shop Street. In Java's, he was playing some Coldplay on the piano and singing.. just for the heck of it. Michael has been busking for about four or five years now, and even has a degree in Sound Engineering.. he plans to become a pop singer once he gets a bit more money (Ahh, pop music.) and set up his own recording studio.. He's only 18, which was really surprising.. but really motivated -- one of the first truly motivated people I have met here. (Even if he is busking..) Good conversation, good tea, good times.

The weather has, once again, return to its normal Irish self. Rain. Cold. Rain. Grey sky. Sun for 15 seconds. Rain. Cold. Wind. Ad infinitum.

Aran Islands and company this weekend (and next!) -- it should be grand.

Cheers! -J

Another Weekend in Galway..

2006-06-18T11:56:00.000-05:00

So the original plan was to leave on Friday afternoon and head to Letterkenny for a Road Rally... unfortunately, my Irish friends realized they didn't have enough money to do this... oops.

Friday evening, I went to Galway's Town Hall Theatre and saw the (nearly one-man) show called 'Come Good Rain' - a story about George Seremba, an Idi Amin survivor in Uganda -- a really powerful show, even if I couldn't quite understand him at times.

Saturday, I met up with Rebecca (whom I met in Killarney) and walked around the city and Saturday market for a bit.. I got some delicious hummus and smelled more cheese than I care to. I got my first Irish haircut! (I know it's nothing that extraordinary.. and ultimately, my hair still looks the same.. but ya know.. first haircut out of the country has to count for something.)

Rebecca and I were walking into Eyre Square when I heard my name being called.. I turn around, and it was Steph and a few others from UF. Very very random! I showed them around for the rest of the day.. went into the main Cathedral for the first time.. lit a candle for my grandma (which I said I would do for a while)... and took them all the way out to Salthill.. nice walking..

Afterwards, Steph, her roommate, Rebecca, and I went back to my flat, watched a bit o' the World Cup, ate some cheap frozen pizza from Dunne's, and headed over to a party at my friend Paddy's flat.. class! Four hours and many drinks (yes, I know I know.. I watched out this time) later, we left the party because we were all exhausted (even though at 1:30AM, the Irish folks beckoned with us.. 'but we haven't even started taking shots yet!'.. yikes.. definitely our time to leave. ;) )

Today (Sunday) has been uneventful.. ate some of that delicious hummus.. saw the DaVinci code.. and that's about it.. Another week of 'work' is about to start..

Cheers. -J
(P.S. apparently, I am an honorary Irish person to my Irish friends.. awesome!... err.. grand!)

Bbbbbbbulmers.

2006-06-15T15:14:00.000-05:00

In light of events recently, I probably shouldn't have gone out... nonetheless, I did. And I had a really good time.. until after the night was through.

I went to a local hotel bar to watch the World Cup match of Germany versus Poland (go Poland!).. Ultimately, Poland lost to Germany in the last 2 minutes of the 90 minute game (1-0, Germany). Damn. I started out the night with some delicious Bulmer's Cider.. ahh so good. The Irish lads proceeded to teach me and Ottawa Joe the 'proper' use of Irish slang.. from various areas of Ireland. Jaysus, Mary, and Joseph. That's class.

And I quickly learned the Irish system for drinking in groups - each person in a group buys a round.. and keeps going until everyone has purchased a round. I should have realized that would result in a very sloppy Gator.

Quite a few rounds later, the group decides to buy one more drink -- and this time, not Bulmer's.. but Guinness. Lesson of the evening: Never drink multiple rounds of Bulmer's and then switch to Guinness.

So, needless to say, a very sloppy Gator left the hotel and walked home. Made it home fine. Went to sleep. And then hugged the porcelain throne about 8 times throughout the night and into the afternoon today. Oh, it was grand. Grand, indeed.

However, I am fine now. And no more 'grand shennanigans' for this Gator any time soon.

-J
P.S. My mom is fine. I am fine. Thank you for your thoughts and words.

Hear you me...

2006-06-14T03:12:00.000-05:00

It's one thing to mourn the loss of a loved one... it's another thing to mourn the loss of someone you considered a parent from across the Atlantic.

My grandma lived to be 90 years old. She lived through two World Wars, the Great Depression, the first Man on the Moon, and the new Millenium. She received her Last Rites as a Catholic three times -- two times before I was even born. She raised two children, saw her entire family and husband pass away years ago, beat breast cancer at age 85, and watched all of her children and grandchildren do something she never did -- go to college.

The past few months had been rough... she went from working in the yard everyday, to using a wheelchair, to adult daycare, to 24-hour Hospice care... to now. My grandma died at home while holding on to her favorite stuffed animal LuLu with my Mother and the incredible Hospice staff -- one of whom sang her a beautiful hymn after she was gone.. (I can't help but cry as I think of this).

It still hasn't completely sunk in (and I'm not sure it will until I fly back at the end of the summer), but I am slightly relieved. For the past few months, my grandma had been in excruciating pain.. her vital signs were fine and all the doctors could do was give her morphine -- lots of it. For the past few days, my mom had told me that my grandma looked like she was at peace. For the first time in a while, she wasn't screaming out.. she had a slight smile on her face and slept peacefully (unless you count her snoring).

Even as her faculties disappeared, my grandma was still a fiery old woman. Before I left for Ireland, I played (5 billion games of) Scrabble with her.. she told me she had learned a new word that would let her win the game. 'What word is that, Grandma?'... 'Bullshit, Joey. The word is bullshit.'

I lived with my grandma for more than 18 years. She was a parent to me, and I already miss her terribly. My grandma's death was not unexpected, but it certainly isn't any less emotionally draining. It will take time, I know, to heal. But in the mean time -- I love you, Grandma. Never forget that.

Requiescat In Pace

Madeline (Miller) Raftery
January 30th, 1916 - June 13th, 2006

-----

'Hear You Me' by Jimmy Eat World

There's no one in town I know
You gave us some place to go.
I never said thank you for that.
I thought I might get one more chance.
What would you think of me now,
so lucky, so strong, so proud?
I never said thank you for that,
now I'll never have a chance.

May angels lead you in.
Hear you me my friends.
On sleepless roads the sleepless go.

May angels lead you in.

-J

La Vie Boheme

2006-06-12T07:58:00.000-05:00

Saturday was spent being a hippy by day and partier by night...

I walked into the city centre of Galway and had lunch at an 'organic food' place called Food 4 Thought. Good food. Slow service. Interesting mix of people. Slightly overpriced. (But, then, again, I feel like most of the food here is.) Afterwards, I walked around a bit.. and had (fair trade) coffee at Amnesty International's Galway store.. I sat there for most of the afternoon and read a book.. It was really relaxing, and the coffee price was not bad... so I give it a B+/borderline A. ;)

Later on the afternoon, I met up with some people from my lab at the Spud House for (more) coffee (and smoothies).. this place serves really good potatoes (as the name might imply).. I had a grand berry smoothie.. Headed back to the flat after that and bummed around for an hour or two..

Then I headed over with Hilton, Edel, and the rest of the GMIT gang to one of their flats, where the partying ensued.. at 7pm.. After about four hours of the drink and no less than four playings of Germany's Texas Lightning, we took a cab to Central Park (known locally as CP's). Now, the queue was out the door and along the street.. and the cover was 10eu (plus 1.50eu coat check).. so I was expecting something incredible.. Alas, the only things truly incredible about CP's were the drink prices - close to 5eu for a pint of Heino (or as my Galwegian friends refer to it, 'piss water'). Granted, CP's was a nice place.. but I was hoping to dance or something -- but most everyone stands around a bar area and drinks.. so I was relegated to a back area with some friends drinking a cheaper bottle of Bulmer's.. good company, bad prices, mediocre location. An odd mix of music, too -- everything from U2 (somewhat expected), to the usual Euro dance smash hits, to Weezer, to the Beyonce. I think they played a bit of Kanye as well, but no hardcore booty music ;)

At half past 2, CP's closed down. And the lights came on, much to the dismay of the over-inebriated crowd, who looked even more ridiculous in their Uggz, short mini-skirts (and slightly longer shirts.. someone call Cake!), and spray-on tans ;) I saw no fewer than five drunken skirmeshes break out, while the Garda turned a blind eye and let the CP bouncers handle everything (hey.. I can't really blame the Garda.. a huge mob of blitzed 20-somethings and only two cops). Amidst a large amount of stumbling, yelling, and singing, half of Galway converged on SuperMac's near Eyre square to satisfy their drunken muchie cravings..

By the time all was through, it was about half past three.. and we all parted.. I walked home.. and what do I see? That's right.. light started forming at the horizon -- the sun was getting ready to come up at quarter to four. Insane (but brilliant)!

Sunday was uneventful.. and the aerial (read: outdoor television antenna) was blown off the roof of my flat the other day, so the two channels of TV (RTE1 & RTE2) that we did have are not visible anymore. Ahh.. class. ;)

Good times all around... possibly heading to a Road Rally in Letterkenny this weekend.. more details to follow...

Cheers! -J

A few things I've learned in Ireland...

2006-06-09T03:24:00.000-05:00

- Many people insert a paranthetical 'like' at the end of a sentence.. Example: 'That's the craic, like.'
- Telly anchors pronounce the letter 'R' as 'Or'.. Example: 'Welcome to (o)RTE news.'
- No one ever gives the exact time.. it is always 'half past', 'quarter after', 'quarter till'.
- Instead of saying 'That man is walking along the street'.. many will say 'Your man is walking along the street.'
- Ice cubes are not that big here -- and when someone has them, they are a commodity. I went to a coffee shop in the city centre yesterday, asked for an 'iced chai'.. so they put in the freezer after they made it. I kid you not.
- Tea breaks are a standard part of the work day.
- 'Rape' is legally called 'unlawful carnal knowledge'.
- The 'standard' work week is 37.5 hours -- not forty.
- You are much more likely to see someone texting on a mobile than talking on a mobile.
- Unless the temperature is over 25 degrees celsius (about 77 F) for more than 3 days, sandals and shorts are dead give away that you are American.
- Many people roll their own cigarettes here.
- Sunscreen is expensive.
- Drunk Galwegians enjoy impersonating residents of Dublin's D4 district. (This link is actually pretty funny, too.)
- A pint of Guinness is often cheaper than a pint of Bulmer's.
- While Galway may be one of Europe's 'fastest growing cities', its population only increases by about 7000 people per year.
- When the temperature increases above 25C, you are bound to find every third person eating an ice cream cone.

More to come later on, I'm sure, like. ;)

Cheers! -J

June Bank Holiday Weekend..

2006-06-08T03:47:00.000-05:00

So.. it's Thursday now.. where the hell did the time go?

So last Friday evening, I saw my flatmate Elaine do a gig at Foxes -- basically a bunch of 60+ year olds drinking overpriced Guinness and Bulmers... still, despite the awkward crowd, Elaine has a beautiful voice..

Saturday morning, I woke up really early to catch a bus to Killarney with Ottawa Joe.. ahh.. Bus Eireann... how I love thee slightly overcrowded and never on-time busses. ;) After a brief bus change in Limerick, we were almost in Killarney.. until loads of traffic delayed us by about 45 minutes.. I guess that's what happens when the most heavily travelled routes are only 2-laners.

We finally arrived in Killarney at about 1pm.. and it was sweltering -- the Irish didn't know what to do. I saw more sun-burned Irish people in an hour than I have in my entire life. Joe and I checked into Neptunes Hostel -- this uber-friendly hostel that I highly recommend if anyone ever makes it to Killarney.. Right away -- before we had even checked in fully -- we met Rebecca (a soon-to-be-med school student from North Carolina) and Michiel (an au-pair in Limerick originally from Austria).. they joined our Killarney crew for ths next two days. .

Killarney. was. gorgeous. Beautiful mountains. Green fields. Pristine lakes. And fantastic weather (but that was all of Ireland this past weekend). We saw everything from Ross Castle.. to Muckross Lake.. to St. Mary's cathedral.. and the Torc waterfall. We biked around Muckross Lake on a seemingly perfect day -- I couldn't have asked for anything better..

Despite some a few whack-jobs living in the hostel -- everyone was grand. The hostel felt more like a UN convention -- sitting at the pub table next to me were two German females on holiday, an Aussie chick named Tonya working at a hospital in Dublin, a group from Montana, an older guy from France, younger guy from Italy, and au pairs from Slovakia and Austria. Good craic. Good craic. Definitely a relaxing weekend.

On Monday, I took an early bus from Killarney to Limerick to check out Ireland's third largest city.. Limerick is also known as 'Stab City' because of its.. ahem.. high crime rate. Maybe it was the Bank Holiday weekend.. but the city was kind of dead (no pun intended). I stopped in the Hunt Museum and looked around for a bit.. I was the only person in the entire museum -- crazy. The staff and security was really friendly -- they even gave me some free food because they were bored! An interesting Museum.. but not sure it was worth the 5 euro to get in.. I finally ate some lunch..and took an over-filled bus back to Galway.. and then crashed..

This week has been relatively uneventful.. besides the lab, I have played some soccer with some mates from the lab.. which has been surprisingly fun. (And, yes, they do call it soccer in Ireland.. football refers to Gaelic football -- the game which inspired American football)... I'm not sure what my plans are this weekend.. but we'll see.

Beautiful Killarney...

In front of St. Mary's Cathedral in Killarney...

Biking around Muckross Lake...

The Torc Waterfall...

The leftovers of the Redbull Flugtag in the Shannon River overlooking Limerick...

Cheers! -J

Salthill and Sufjan

2006-06-02T08:39:00.000-05:00

After labbing it all day yesterday.. I went home.. at some dinner.. did some laundry.. and hung my laundry out to dry... (alas, no dryer).

While it was still light out, I decided to walk down to Salthill -- a somewhat tacky waterfront area that offers incredible views of Galway Bay and the Aran islands..

The picture taken above was at nearly 10pm -- crazy isn't it? The weather was gorgeous.. definite class.. I just walked along the 'Prom' -- the promenade along Galway Bay -- with about half the population of Galway. Apparently, the 'in' thing to do in the twilight hours is walk along the Prom.. no bother, anyways -- I had my earbuds in and listened to Sufjan for the entirety.. it was glorious..

I feel sort of jipped today -- apparently everyone except for 5 of us in the lab took the day off -- to make it a 4 day weekend instead of 3. So, I'm twiddling my thumbs right now.. as all the others are taking a short holiday -- an extra day I could have easily had.. oh well. :) Off to Killarney tomorrow morning... until then.. I'll leave you with a few pictures.. (the rest of mine are in my facebook album)..

NUIG Quad.. when it is sunny..

Eyre Square.. at night..

Hilton, I, and James at The Living Room last Wednesday...

Cathedral of Our Lady Assumed into Heaven...

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! -J

Storm... And Storms..

2006-06-01T08:45:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, I went to the GIGANTIC (sense the sarcasm) 11-screen 'Omniplex Cinema' complex to see X-Men 3 with some folks from the lab... decent movie.. and I only had to pay 5Eu -- now that's class! I feel really lucky that everything is within walking distance -- it certainly saves on bus and cab fare. The weather has still been holding up the past few days.. it has been, as I have said before.. gorgeous. And the sun doesn't completely set until about 11:15PM -- a total mindscrew... and I've heard the days just get longer during the summer.. I guess I forget how far north Ireland is located..

So, today, is the start of the 2006 Hurricane season.. which seems really far removed at the moment -- considering the weather here. Nonetheless.. I was kinda surprised when (during my random internet surfing while labbing) I found out that Ireland was hit by Hurricane Charley in 1996 -- not a tremendous amount of damage.. but definitely not something to which this area is accustomed.

Killarney this weekend during Ireland's June Bank Holiday.. excited about that..

Back to the lab. -J

Sunny skies and creepy old men..

2006-05-31T07:43:00.000-05:00

So.. Monday night.. I did nothing.. and it was fantastic. I walked outside a bit because the weather was GORGEOUS -- blue skies everywhere. I found this amazing point near my flat where you can see nearly all of Galway.. the mountains.. and Galway Bay... perfect.

Tuesday.. eh.. labbed it. Fixed dinner.. and then I decided it would be a great idea to walk down to Eyre Square to use the free WiFi. Nice weather -- couldn't really complain. I find myself a quiet little park bench, pull out my laptop, and start trying to connect. No go. Damn computer. Just as I'm about to put my laptop away.. some creepy old guy (who happened to be a post-doc at the University) approached me and proceeded to hit on me.. all while I must have had the most uncomfortable expression on my face. It was awkward -- let me tell you. Especially when he tried to give me his mobile number. Finally, I found an out and made my escape.. rushing away from this minger as fast as possible... yikes -- no more sunset Eyre Square relaxing for me anymore.

So I come to find out this morning over coffee with the lab that the place where I happened to sit down used to be around the area where the 'rent boys' -- that's right.. the male prostitutes -- used to strut their stuff. Very very very awkward. And, yes, I was quite the laughing stock of the NCLA this morning beacause of it... Ahh.. the things you learn very quickly...

Back to labbing.. -J

Second week.. settling in...

2006-05-29T11:03:00.000-05:00

Sunday (21.05.2006): It was effing freezing and raining all day. It was nearly freezing outside -- I kid you not -- it was about 4 C -- not something a Florida boy is used to. Nonetheless, I dragged my cold ass and ate lunch at the small little mall near Eyre square. Later on the evening, I walked to the house where I will be living for the next few months.. It is really nice -- but cold. I'll move in on Monday evening.

Monday (22.05.2006): I woke up for the last time at a BnB (for a while anyways), had a big ol' Irish breakfast, stored my luggage with the ridiculously friendly owner until after the lab.. and walked to the University. Labbed it for a while. Had tea and scones with the grads & post-docs & secretary (she is a firecracker.. brilliant!). Labbed. Ate lunch. Labbed. Walked back to the BnB to collect my luggage and whatnot.. and the owner drove me to my new place -- way too nice! He gave me a bunch of business cards 'in case any of my friends decide to visit Galway'. ;) Dropped my stuff off in my new room -- a huge room, actually.. and it has internet! Crazy! Went to the store with Elaine (my new flatmate and the owner's daughter). Elaine just graduated from NUIG with a degree in Psych.. going to grad school somewhere in the UK (possibly Cambridge).. and is working at a DIY store -- go figure. She is also the singer in a few bands -- one of which is playing in Cambridge in June -- eh, Justin? I bought overpriced sheets & pillows and average priced groceries at the Dunnes store.. where I found out that each grocery bag costs 0.15eu.. So basically, everyone brings backpacks and giant bags to the markets to carry their goods home.. But I guess I should expect such things.. considering the Mayor of Galway is a member of Ireland's Green Party. :) Watched a movie with the GMIT folk.. and then went to bed.. The weather is still freezing -- I guess I better get used to it, eh?

Tuesday: Woke up.. tried to figure out the damn electric shower. The water was freezing! That is.. until I found the cord hanging from the ceiling used to turn on the (scalding) hot water. Labbed it - the usual. Ate some crappy vegetarian food at the canteen that makes Gator Dining look like the Melting Pot -- despite it's quality, I get these strange cravings for it now. I think they put drugs in it. Came home.. ate a light dinner of curry noodles -- basically ramen noodles... I really need to work on this eating well thing here.. went with the flatmate Elaine to a house party -- lots of fun, my clothes & jacket smell like cigarettes -- ugh.

Wednesday: Woke up. Had a brilliant shower (now that I know how to use it!). Labbed it. Came home.. ate dinner.. used the internet.. oh wait -- it was cancelled. The people who lived in the flat before me cancelled it -- even after I offered to pay for the next three months service -- in cash! So, I called NTL.. and they won't activate the internet for 3 months.. looks like I will be internetless for a while, except in the lab. Damn you, NTL! Showered.. and then met up with the GMIT folks to hit up some Galwegian (that's right.. that's the adjectivial form of Galway)pubs. Pictures will be posted when I can.. went to The Goal Post -- a seemingly hole in the wall place from the outside, but Swamp-esque on the inside -- everyone was college-aged.. except for the occasional 60-something who was drunk beyond belief. We then walked over to The Living Room -- a swank, college-aged pub that seemed to have everyone and their mother in it.. good times! Ah.. Guinness.

Thursday: Labbed it. Chill night.. went running and cooked some spaghetti. Went to bed early.

Friday: More lab. What do you expect during the day? Made plans with my friend Joe from Ottawa University to visit Killarney during the bank holiday weekend -- sweet! Twiddled my thumbs at home. Finally texted some folks in the lab and met up at the Blue Note for a few pints; the Blue Note was definitely a hole-in-the-wall kinda place.. but played decent music.. with a trendy/emo/hipster kinda scene. Walked home by the Corrib river at around midnight.. it was gorgeous!

Saturday: Slept late! Walked to Eyre Square to watch the opening festivities and whatnot.. lots of local bands and young dance troupes (some of whom, I'm sad to say.. were actually quite awful). Nonetheless, it was great people watching.. ate lunch at Supermac's (100% Irish!).. then met up with some friends for coffee in the afternoon. Went home.. started doing laundry.. and then putting my clothes to dry outside -- never done the the line-dry thing before.. (even today -- Monday -- some of my clothes are still wet.. grr). Took a shower.. and met up with the GMIT folk for a pint.. then went out to GPO.. we tried going to CP (Central Park).. but the queue was nearly 0.5km long -- wasn't worth it. GPO.. ahh.. good times.. but the Irish.. are not the best pop-music dancers. Still.. good times were had.. and at about 2am.. I met up with a few other friends and went to an after-party.. got home at about 4:30AM.. and the sun had started rising -- such a weird feeling. Slept.

Sunday: Did nothing.. except go to Dunne's and purchase groceries. And pork -- the cheapest meat you can buy here. Fixed a delicious dinner of BBQ pork, rice, fresh bell peppers, and corn. Watched RTE - one of two channels that are onthe TV now that the internet/cable has been shut off. Went to sleep and slept gloriously.

Monday: Labbed it. And here ya are now. I'm about to go home and eat.. not sure about this evening's plans. I'll try to update more often.. and finally get my damn pictures up! The weather -- while still cold -- has improved dramatically -- no disgusting rainstorms like before (knock on wood).

Until next time.. cheers! -J

Week #1 in review!

2006-05-21T05:43:00.000-05:00

Tuesday: My plane touches down at Shannon airport at about 7:30AM. Oy. I had been awake for such a long time before that. I am the last person to get through customs because they were acting weird about me staying for 3 months -- nonetheless, it all worked out. By 8:30AM, I was travelling by bus from Shannon to Galway.. really pretty countryside -- and one of the few times it hasn't been raining -- see below for the view outside my bus.

After on the bus for an hour and a half, I arrived in the Galway city centre -- with a shit ton of stuff to drag around to the university. I was determined to walk to the university with all the luggage, but after visiting the tourist info center for directions, decided it would just be best to get a cab. Got a cab at Eyre Square (the main park/square area in the city) for about 5eu -- not too bad -- and went to the National University of Ireland - Galway (NUIG), where my professor -- a really nice guy -- was waiting. He took me to the bed and breakfast where I would be staying until I found a place to live for the rest of the summer.. I need to post some pictures of that place. I crashed for a couple of hours -- I was really exhausted.. and then walked around the university and city a bit. I met some random NUIG & GMIT students while walking around -- so they promise to show me around a bit some other time. Below are a couple pictures of the main quad at NUIG -- it's gorgeous (even though it had started to rain!).

Once I get some time, I'll post some pictures of the city.. so after walking around a bit, I got some cheap chinese food next to my BnB and went to bed -- what a glorious 14 hours of sleep that was.

Wednesday: Woke up at about 8am.. had a HUGE Irish breakfast with eggs, sausage, bacon (rashers), toast, and pudding. Now, pudding in Ireland is not the same as in the states -- think small sausage patty with a softer texture -- not my most favorite food in the world, but it was still an experience. The BnB staff are extremely friendly (as are everyone else I've encountered). Then went over the university to start doing some lab work -- got my desk, computer, and started working away. I grabbed some cheap lunch at the university's cafeteria, where everyone seems to eat.. and worked until about 5 or 5:30PM. Shortly after, I met up with some of those people -- Hilton, Edel, and some others -- I met in the city, and they drove me around the entire city - brilliant!

Thursday: Woke up. Had pancakes at the BnB -- I could get used to this! Went in to the lab, worked till about 10:30AM and had coffee with the grad students in the lab -- it was refreshing to finally talk with all of em in a social -- and not academic -- environment. I did lab work for most of the day was picked up by Edel and Hilton to go to a EuroVision party their friends were having. Now, mind you, I'm not much of an American Idol fan -- but American Idol makes EuroVision look like 'shite' (as they say here). EuroVision was really amusing to watch -- but man -- I don't know what some of these countries were thinking.

Friday: More lab work. More coffee. Met up with Joe -- a really chill, Canadian student doing some summer work in the Physics department as well -- and went over to the Campus Bar. Watched students and Professors alike get slammed -- quite amusing. Moved to a different BnB because the other one was booked for the weekend! Visited the place I am going to be living -- nice house with interesting (but cool) flatmates -- I will met up with the tenant on Sunday to give payment and whatnot. Basically just chilled on Friday not because I was extremely tired and nearly fell asleep at 7pm. Oy.

Saturday: Woke up early. Had a great Irish breakfast once again. It was actually sunny outside! Holy crap! I grabbed my backpack, coat, and camera and ran out of the door. It was definitely a gorgeous day. I made my way over to the city centre and Eyre Square and walked around the Swamp and Claddagh (the area right around Galway Bay) -- so pretty! I will post pictures once I transfer them to my computer. I've decided that Galway is a really amazing city -- extremely student friendly, very pedestrian, and slightly froofy without being pretentious -- what a great combination. Met up for lunch and coffee with some more people I met randomly around the city during the week. Walked around Eyre Square (which was packed with French and German tourists today), topped up my mobile, and read a little bit outside. Hung out with Hilton, Edel, and the gang to watch the Rugby finals -- Munster (from Limerick) versus Biarritz (in France). Munster one! Madness ensued -- brilliant!

Sunday: Really rainy and really cold. It's about noon it's friggin freezing outside. I'm going to go buy some gloves.. but decided to stop by the lab to check my e-mail. Going to grab some lunch in a bit. Till next time!

-J

The rain.. the rain!

2006-05-18T05:56:00.000-05:00

I made it to Galway! I don't have a ton of time to post right now, but I made it safely... Ireland is a) green b) rainy c) cold d) extremely friendly.

I'll post more, once I find a place to stay permanently for the next 3 months.. I have some really great pictures to share. -J

Bon voyage...

2006-05-15T09:49:00.000-05:00

So here goes nothing... My flight leaves Orlando at 2:25PM, arrive in Atlanta a short while later.. wait around.. then leave for Shannon, Ireland at 6:50PM.. arrive at Shannon International Airport at 7:20AM Tuesday morning.

Let the adventure begin! -J

Prepping for the trip...

2006-04-30T22:23:00.000-05:00

Finals week...

Countdown to the Emerald Isle...
Monday, May 1st - GRE
Tuesday, May 2nd - Final #1
Wednesday, May 3rd - Final #2
Thursday, May 4th - a bit of a respite.
Friday, May 5th - Final #3.
...
Monday, May 15th - Leave for Ireland.
... once there... who knows?

But I'm sure ready than ever to get over there. -J