521 lines
38 KiB
HTML
521 lines
38 KiB
HTML
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tabtitle: Ireland Log
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title: A Log of My Travels in Ireland
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topics: other
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pub: "2015-01-01"
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short_desc: "Once upon a time, I traveled to Ireland. It was quite the
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experience. Me, my 3 friends Suf, Chris and Cary, Scion, shenanigans,
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Guiness, whiskey, and Thunderstruck."
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---
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<h2 class="ireland">Day 1: 07/27/10</h2>
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<span style="font-style:italic">Melon... <span style="font-weight:bold">*scatter*</span></span>
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<p>Today is travel day! Heading out right now towards JFK, then a 5 hour
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lay-over there, then finally taking off towards the Emerald Isle! I'm both
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excited and anxious, but surprisingly calm. I think it's to the point where
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I'm ready to get things moving.</p><p>This flight will be rather uneventful:
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short 55 minute hop to JFK. I'm looking forward to the longer flight. The
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time will give me opportunity to read, relax and think... something I
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haven't done enough of in the past week.</p>
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<h2 class="ireland">Day 2: 07/28/10</h2>
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<span style="font-style:italic">Left is safe!"</span>
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<p>Today we finally arrived in Ireland, first in Dublin and then Shannon. The
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trip over was a bit of a challenge: a lack of sleep combined with an
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atmosphere trying to promote one, all wrapped in the situation of no
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comfortable way to actually get sleep helped to contribute to me not
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sleeping more than 30 minutes tops. On the plus side, I did get to watch
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Dorian Grey and Percy Jackson on the way over. Also, they served a very
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delicious beef stew for dinner; I was pleasantly surprised.</p><p>Upon
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arrival, we immediately set out to retrieve our luggage, which arrived
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mostly unmolested. Then, as we proceeded out of the terminal, we finally
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found our 4th member, Suf, waiting eagerly for our arrival; he had arrived a
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day earlier, and had many a story to share about his adventures in Limerick
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(our eventual destination for the day). We got our car, forgot our GPS,
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recovered our GPS, and began driving toward Limerick from Shannon Airport.
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We quickly discovered that, given our American driving-habits, we thought
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every car driving on the "wrong side of the road" was going to kill us. I
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think twice we all panicked for fear of our lives. But, once we adjusted (or
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at least, once Suf did... Cary is still a bit iffy) the drive was relatively
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quick and painless. We arrived not more than 30 minutes later in Limerick,
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and made for the City Center to explore on foot the many shops and eateries
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that the city had to offer, as well as pay a visit to "The Bitter End" Pub,
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where Suf had visited on the previous night. We explored for a bit, had
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lunch at The Bitter End, visited a shop so Cary could purchase a couple
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shilelagh (spelling), wander to a tourist booth for information and, with
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said acquired directions, made for our first B&B of the trip: Coonagh Lodge.
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We relaxed and napped a bit at the Lodge, enough to recouperate for a voyage
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back to Limerick, and made for some dinner and adventure. We explored
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around, eventually stopping in at a place called "Wokking" for some
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authentic Irish Chinese food, which turned out to be very tasty and filling.
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We then explored for a pub, stopping at "Charlie St. George's" pub for a
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quick pint and some people-watching. Then, we explored a bit more, and wound
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up back at The Bitter End to enjoy an evening cup of tea and some relaxing
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time. After this, we made back to the B&B, where I discovered that my power
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brick likes to make a weird noise as it charges my laptop. I account it to
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the different voltage, and pray that it doesn't explode and kill us
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all.</p><p>Of most important note, Suf decided to enlighten us with some of
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his arab cab driving slang, most notable of which is "Why for you fuck my
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road?" An important question, to be sure, and one to be answered in the days
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to come. A very steady lean into this adventure, which I prefer to the
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alternative "kick-in-the-door" style. Hopefully I can figure out some way to
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get my computer to connect to WPA2 connections so I can have internet more
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readily. At least for tonight, I probably won't get back on (unfortunate
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news for my KoL desires. Too many adventures will be wasted after I waste
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the NS... Oh well...)</p>
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<h2 class="ireland">Day 3: 07/29/10</h2>
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<span style="font-style:italic">"Ya know, you keep that shirt on much longer,
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you gonna get jungle rot" - Biff McBodyspray</span>
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<p>Today was our first big travel day. We left Limerick around 11:00 am and made
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for Galway. Along the way we stopped in at the Cliffs of Moher, and then
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continued on to our destination in Kinvara.</p><p>The Cliffs of Moher are
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quite the site to see. Set along the Atlantic Ocean is a couple-mile stretch
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of sheer cliffs, topped with walkways and occasional watch towers, or at
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least ruins of them. We walked the Cliffs for about an hour, just exploring
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the different angles and particulars of the cliffs themselves: the numerous
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outcroppings, the way the waves would collide with the rock, the caves and
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small inlets that the water had born away. All these details helped to
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complete one heck of a view! I also enjoyed the visitor center, which was
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built into the hillsides near the cliffs.</p><p>After the cliffs, we make
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our way to Kinvara. We stop briefly at the Burren, a barren area of rocks
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and not much else. Once we arrive, we check into our B&B and decide to hold
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off on Galway until tomorrow night. This leaves us with plenty of time to
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explore Kinvara proper. We relax for a bit and make to town for some dinner
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and adventures. We decided to stop in at an Italian place called 'The Full
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Tide Inn', and while waiting for our food, had quite the heated
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philosophical discussion. It really put into perspective for me just how
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unprepared I am to defend my own view/the Stoic view of topics. After
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dinner, we walked out to Dunguaire Castle, which was unfortunately closed,
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but we still were able to explore the surrounding grounds. We learned a bit
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of background from a fellow tourist, and then made our way back into town to
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buy a few snacks before heading back to our B&B. That night, despite our
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best laid plans, we weren't able to get to Scion. However, luckily for me,
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the internet access at the B&B was unprotected and therefore I could hop
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onto KoL and finish up my ascension! I bought the trophie available to me
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(the one regarding food recipies) and clammered through the astral gash to
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return once more to my life of adventuring. I ascended as a Sauceror,
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holding onto Pastamancy so I can really start to rack up the bonus
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adventures from my cooking. A few adventures gone, I manage to get to level
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2 the first day, and am very excited to really get this sauce boiling.</p>
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<h2 class="ireland">Day 4: 07/30/10</h2>
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<span style="font-style:italic">"Be-buh-buh-day, be-buh-buh-day, E-DAY-OH, E-DAY-OH, THAT'S OK!"</span>
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<p>Holy crap, today seemed like an entire month's worth of exploration and
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adventure. After a delicious traditional Irish breakfast, we made for
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Galway.</p><p>In Galway we parked and set out for our busiest and most fun
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day yet. I can tell you now that my feet are none to happy about the amount
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of walking we achieved, but if nothing else this is a good reminder to
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properly prepare next time: make sure my shoes are comfortable enough to
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walk around in almost constantly. So, we park and make towards the city
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center. Galway is situated along the coast of Galway Bay (go figure...) and
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has a river running through the center of town. We head down the busy
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pedestrian walkway and hit up a few shops. Chris, Suf and Cary all check out
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a couple tattoo parlours, and me being less interested make for some good
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people watching and relax a bit. We continue our walk through the busy
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crowds, and eventually make our way to the river. Exploring it for a bit,
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Cary and I decide to stop off at a river-side restaurant called 'Mustard',
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where I get one of the most delicious pulled-pork sandwiches I've ever
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enjoyed. Afterwards, we met back up with Chris and Suf, and walked out
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towards the bay a bit. As we voyaged further away from the city, we met with
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a couple of fellow travelers, and discovered a great bar to stop at in town,
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known as 'E Brun' or 'The Bridge.' At the bar we met Bill, a local of
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Galway, who told us of many great sites and happenings around town. An
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important detail of our stay in Galway is that the Galway Races were going
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on. Evidently, they're a big deal.</p><p>So, after our stop in the pub and a
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delicious Guiness, we make to explore and find 'The Crane,' where Shela's
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son will be playing live music later in the evening. We find it, and gather
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from another local (and rather attractive) girl the location of a couple of
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good niteclube. After finding the Crane we decide to hunt our a place to
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eat, and eventually wander back to 'Kelly's', which helps to bring back
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nostalgic memories of Geneseo and our own Kelly's. We enjoy a deliciously
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filling meal there, compliments of Chris, and find out that later in the
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evening we can enjoy Crane for some authentic (and rather good) Irish jazz
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(which sounds not much different from any other type of jazz...). Thus far,
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although I've been able to explain our day in only a few short paragraphs,
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we've experienced to us what has felt like a lifetime worth of exploration.
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But, the fun is only just about to start.</p><p>10:20pm, and we just left
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The Crane Bar to head back to the B&B for some kick-ass Scion action. Along
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the way, we overhear a few clubs, but nothing really catches our ear until
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we get to Kelly's. We can hear the beats from outside, we can feel our feet
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aching but wanting to join in, so we head upstairs and find (!!!)... a bunch
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of people standing around as a DJ mixes. What a let down! Well, Suf wouldn't
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have any of this, and neither would the rest of us, so after settling into
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our comfortable corner, Suf finally finds a song that he'll groove to. And
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groove he does. Following quickly in suite, we join him on the floor and
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find ourselves almost alone dancing. The 4 American tourists are the only
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ones dancing in the Irish Niteclub. Almost poetic, mostly pathetic. Well,
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this quickly changes, as more people flock to the dance floor after seeing
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our amazing example. And by no means am I exaggerating! We literally started
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the dance party at a niteclub. We groove it and move it for a good couple of
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hours before we take off for new adventures. After a bit of exploring, and a
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lot of drunk people, we decide to split up: Chris and Suf head back to
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Kelly's for some more dancing, Cary wanders the street talking to people,
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and I, the lamest of the group, head back to the car to call it a night.
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Before long, we all reconvene, load up the GPS and make our way back to the
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B&B. This night has been legendary, and no degree of detailed description
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can truly capture just how epic the night was.</p><p>Simply put: Galway was
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unforgetable.</p>
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<h2 class="ireland">Day 5: 07/31/10</h2>
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<span style="font-style:italic">"Where are we heading again? Ballerina?" "BALLINA!"</span>
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<p>After the unbelievable adventure of Galway, we head out for our next stop in
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Northwest Ireland: Ballina.</p><p>We set off after saying goodbye to our
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thus-far favorite B&B and host Shiela, and head north. As we're driving, we
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spot a few turn offs and decide to stop at one of them to explore a bit of
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the countryside. We find our way onto a mountain, scale the smaller hills
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leading up to it, and eventually make our way back to the car to continue
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walking. As we're driving, we happen across one of the more epic scenes of
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our voyage: the carved out "seat" of a mountain, which we refer to
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afterwards as 'The God Seat.' Surely, the scene of epic Scion games to
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come.</p><p>As we continue along our voyage, we stop off at Kylemore Abbey,
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the most stunning scene I've seen in my life thus far. Imagine a white and
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grey castle, then make it less war-oriented and more beautiful, then set it
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on a gorgeous lake, at the base of a very impressive mountain. That's
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Kylemore Abbey. We park and explore a bit, and I get several good pictures.
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Further, I manage to spot a statue of something half way up the mountain,
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made of white stone. Whoever made this statue certainly had a lot of
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determination!</p><p>We leave the Abbey and finish our journey to our B&B
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for the evening. We relax, settle in, and finally get to playing some Scion.
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Cary volunteered to run first, so we play through the first half of his one
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shot: saving a 'shie' from an Irish scion and his giant lackies. My
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character, a defensive tank named Derrick Nasher, does quite well. We finish
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up the session, spend our exp (making us even more boss), and crash for a
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relatively early night.</p><p>This B&B also has an encrypted internet, so at
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first I'm out of luck. However, on a whim I try out the Chromium build I
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brought along (thanks Hexxeh!!), and manage to easily set up a connection
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through that! I can't upload any files or pictures very well, but I can
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still play some KoL and post a few updates to my social sites. Also, Google
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Voice has proven to be a godsend! Being able to text from a website has been
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my primary means of keeping in contact with the family back at home.</p>
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<h2 class="ireland">Day 6: 08/01/10</h2>
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<span style="font-style:italic">"...just chillax..." "Woah... I never expected
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to hear 'chillax' outside of the states!" -A conversation between Kim and
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Chris</span>
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<p>Day 2 of our stay in Ballina. We eat an early breakfast and make for Killary
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Adventure for some archery!</p><p>We arrive in Killary around noon, and
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enjoy an hour of arching with our instructor Kim and another instructor
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named Dugal. I managed to shoot 2 bullseyes! It's amazing that if you
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actually hold the weapon properly and keep proper form, you can actually aim
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with it. Never would have thought otherwise... (/sarcasm). We joked, tried
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out some trick shooting, played a HORSE-style game, and all-in-all came out
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of the adventure feeling really great. Plus, we all got some wicked "battle
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wounds" from the bow on our forearms.</p><p>After the archery, we decide to
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head to Westport, on advice from Kim, for some shopping and to get lunch. We
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immediately (perhaps fatefully) stumble upon a place called 'The Asgard' and
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decide that there's no better place to eat in town than here. I enjoy some
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Bangers and Mash - Asgard Style - and feel the wonderful feeling of fulness
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once more. This trip has been a wonderful venture in delicious foods. The
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traditional Irish breakfast (Egg, real bacon, sausages, black and white
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pudding, half a tomatoe, toast, tea and juice) is so filling that most of
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the time we feel no need to eat before dinner. Today, though, was a glaring
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exception; that, and we had a different breakfast of pancakes and poached
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eggs. After the Bangers and Mash, we split up: I head off to explore the
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riverway and the port, while the others go shopping. I manage to snap quite
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a few nice pictures, and figure out some more features on the camera, before
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we meet back up and head back to Ballina, and then onwards to Enniscrone,
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the birthplace of Cary's ancestors, the Grimes.</p><p>We arrive in
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Enniscrone around 4:00 in the afternoon, to a beautiful sunny day and warm
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weather. Enniscrone in a beach town, so we split up once again, with me
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heading out towards the beach and the others once more hitting up the shops.
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I walk along the Atlantic Ocean, soaking in the waves and the rays, and
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eventually make my way back to the car to relax for a bit. We head back to
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the B&B, rest for a bit, and decide that heading back to Enniscrone for some
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delicious, authentic Irish-Chinese food would be best. And best it was: we
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discovered the awesomness and addictivness that is puffed-rice prawn crisps.
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Dinner was good, too.</p><p>We head back to the B&B and finish up Cary's
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session of Scion. Chris set his crab-tank relic for self-destruct and took
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care of all the giants for us, while I managed to manipulate our crazy Irish
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scion friend Brian that he forgot how to fight, which led to his untimely
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demise (or at least him falling unconscious...). We saved the 'shie',
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secured the relic protected inside it, and got Brian's birthrights for
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ourselves. A success, and a good start to our Scion adventures yet to come.
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Cary hands the GM torch over to Chris, and we begin his session tonight: we
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get tasked by Brigid (one of the Tuatha) to help out one of her daughters.
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We manage to find her just in time for the night to expire, and so we call
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it there. In KoL, I've managed to get to level 4, half-way towards 5, before
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I call it a night. I haven't yet played all my available turns, but I'm
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making decent progress. With a bit more practice I can probably get getting
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to level 6 a 2-day process, which will help to speed through the slower part
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of the game.</p>
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<h2 class="ireland">Day 7: 08/02/10</h2>
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<span style="font-style:italic">"Worst. Bank. Holiday. Ever."</span>
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<p>After a restful evening, and another delicious breakfast of pancakes and
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poached eggs, we enjoy a quick chat with John, our host, before heading off
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on our "driving day from hell." Our course will take us through the middle
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of Ireland, stopping off at Athlone to see the oldest bar in Ireland (and
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perhaps the world) and eventually into Tipperary for the evening</p><p>Our
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first stop of the day is in Athlone, a city smack-dab in the middle of
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Ireland. The drive to Athlone was a bit long, but still strikingly
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beautiful. It seems like Ireland, despite it's rather small size, is still
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host to some of the most grandiouse and beautiful scenes I've ever seen. We
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arrive in Athlone around noon, and wander around a bit. Suf, Cary and I all
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stop in at 'The Snug' for a quick pint, before we take off across the bridge
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in the middle of town to hit up some shopping. We stop off in Athlone Castle
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along the way for some great pictures, and run into Chris, who had wandered
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off to find some shops, after we cross the bridge. Chris and I decide to
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backtrack to the Castle, then wander around before we head back to Sean's.
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Sean's is the oldest bar in Ireland, dating back towards 900AD, and quite
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possible the oldest bar in the world. Obviously, I enjoy a pint of Guiness
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before we head back to the car and continue along our day's
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journey.</p><p>We decide to stop off at Clanmocnoise Abbey, a ruined abbey
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just south of Athlone, before heading out to Tipperary. The sites there are
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truely amazing, and the ruined Abbey is quite cool as well. The conservation
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attempts have, thus far, done a good job of maintaining what was
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salvageable, but the Abbey itself is beyond repair. After some cool
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pictures, we continue on our way to Tipperary.</p><p>We finally arrive at
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our destination for the evening. Tipperary is a small town, with a good
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amount of shops and a very comfortable atmosphere. Unfortunately, and
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unknown to us, due to the Bank Holiday most of the food shops are closed. We
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settle for a fast-food place called "American Stars" and apologize to our
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digestive tracks before heading back to our B&B for some Scion
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action.</p><p>Scion has us defending Nikki from a couple of Fenrir, which we
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succeed in doing, and then finding out our target was, in fact, a
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doppleganger. We discover this a bit too late, though, and end our session
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assaulting 'The God Seat' and a Norse Scion, who claims that "the ginger
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bitch has got to go." Well, Derrick'll be damned if he let's a potential
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future employer die that easily. The stage is set as both Derrick and the
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Norse Scion enter their Collosus Armor, Cary's Scion enters his Warpspasm,
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and Suf's Scion prepares to make pincushins out of the Frost Giants. After
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Scion comes KoL, which sees my progression to level 5 and acquisition of
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Advanced Sausecrafting. I adventure for a bit more, before fatigue wins and
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I succumb to sleep.</p>
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<h2 class="ireland">Day 8: 08/03/10</h2>
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<span style="font-style:italic">"There any bars... excuse me... pubs around
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here?" "Welcome to Ireland, lad!" - A conversation between me and a
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bouncer</span>
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<p>Today we headed back to the Rock of Cashel to get a great tour around the
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castle grounds. I took lots of pictures, bought a few things for myself and
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a great sweater for my mom, fall down a few steps while wandering the castle
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grounds (resulting in a beautiful leg-bruise to match my archery-provided
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battle wound on my forearm), and we wrap up Tipperary and head to
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Cork.</p><p>We arrive in Cork and are immediately thrust into the
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realization that Cork is quite the large, industrial city. After a bit of
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confusion finding our way to our B&B for the night, we decide to take some
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naps to recover some energy and mana, and head out to find dinner and some
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nighttime entertainment. On the generocity of our very funny and cheery
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innkeep, we head to a place called Zak's, and are pleasantly surprised in
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the meal; I had a delicious Irish-beef burger, some awesome garlic bread,
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and a Murphy's to wash it all down (Murphy's is brewed in Cork; Guiness is
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not very welcomed here). We finish dinner, and head out to find some clubs
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for the night.</p><p>We start our evening off wandering the neighborhood
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around Zak's. We find a place, rather populated and playing somewhat good
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music, but quickly discover it's overpopulated with Binfo for the night. We
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pass this pub, and ask the bouncer for any suggestions, and get pointed
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towards a place called "Sober Lane." Ignoring the odd name, we head off in
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the appropriate direction and run into a metal pub along the way, so I
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insist we stop in and enjoy a drink. We get a pint, enjoy the music, and
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move on. 'Sober Lane' turns out to be a much younger-oriented pub, which
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doesn't dissappoint us, but it really pulls through when Chris discovers the
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dart board in the back corner. We quickly take it over, playing darts until
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the pub closes (oddly early, for our expectations), and Chris and I head out
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to relax outside. Cary and Suf, being the charmers that they are, end up
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chatting it with two girls local to the area, who invite all of us back to a
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place called 'Cruscien Lar' (which we all continually misunderstand as
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crusifixion). We follow them through the streets of Cork, and eventually
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wind up at the closed pub. They hit the secret side enterence, and convince
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the owner and co. to let us in.</p><p> Cruscien Lar (which I'm sure I'm
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spelling wrong), ended up being the undeniable high point of Cork. Once we
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got a bit more comfortable and began chatting with everyone, we really ended
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up enjoying ourselves! And then, we met Alan. Alan is a veritable world
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travelling musician. He has been pretty much everywhere, including state
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side, with his band 'The Jordans' and he had many tales to share with us. He
|
|
mentioned that the prices for alcohol (and women (...and drugs)) were best
|
|
in Slovakia, that you'll never see anything more beautiful than the
|
|
Southeastern Asian countries, and that Russia really isn't that bad a place.
|
|
Really a lot of what we talked about fell into those topics, and it was a
|
|
conversation which I enjoyed thoroughly. Alan taught me that being a world
|
|
traveller doesn't take gobs of money and resources. All it takes is a desire
|
|
to explore, and a willingness to step outside your comfortable little
|
|
box.</p><p>Throughout the night we talked with Alan, and his friends Marie
|
|
and Ger (the girls which Cary and Suf connected with), about not only their
|
|
travels, but also their taste in music (which was gloriously
|
|
metal-oriented), their careers, their adventures and their aspirations. As
|
|
the night wound down, we all said our farewells, and left through the side
|
|
door. Our night was almost at an end! As we wandered back to the B&B, we
|
|
stumbled across a rather rowdy bunch, and Suf, being the social butterfly
|
|
that he is, decided to hop on board. We eventually were introduced to
|
|
Nollagh and her friends, who were travelling in our direction to a supposed
|
|
party. Considering we're still young, as was the night, we tagged along and
|
|
were eager to arrive at another Irish party. Sadly, the party was a bit of a
|
|
bust, and seeing as we were so close to home, we decided to just call it a
|
|
night. An awesome night, almost so much to as to rival our crazy adventures
|
|
in Galway.</p>
|
|
|
|
<h2 class="ireland">Day 9: 08/04/10</h2>
|
|
<span style="font-style:italic">"My father's name is Merry Merry Mack!"</span>
|
|
<p> After a rather enjoyable rest, we departed from Cork on our way to our final
|
|
"big city" stop: Killarney. Killarney has a very homey feel about it. There
|
|
are plenty of tourist shops, plenty of sites and sounds to experience, and
|
|
the night life is absolutely amazing, but more on that in a bit.</p><p>We
|
|
arrived at our B&B to find that the owner had stepped out for a bit, so we
|
|
decided to just park and wander into town. We quickly found some great
|
|
shops, restaurants, pubs, and other such attractions. Chris and I wandered
|
|
around a few places, and I ended up finding a few good gifts for the family:
|
|
a corkscrew and wine stopper for dad, both made of pewter; and a hat for
|
|
Eric, which I think will suit him quite nicely. After a bit more wandering,
|
|
we headed back to the B&B to relax and recover before we hit the
|
|
town.</p><p>I think the most memorable part of Killarney for me was all the
|
|
festivities going on at night in the city. Almost every pub had live music,
|
|
there were people out walking and having a great time. There were lights,
|
|
and food, and music, and drinks... it just felt like a fun place to be! We
|
|
started our night wandering around a bit, and found ourselves at an outside
|
|
banquet of sorts, with life music. Suf and I, exemplifying our boistrious
|
|
nature, led the singing of the chorus (see the quote), and made our mark
|
|
early in the Killarney perspective. After our job was done there, we found
|
|
our way to a pub called 'Scruffy's', near an amazing hotel. The band playing
|
|
there had some great traditional music as well, which we joined in on. Had a
|
|
pint, made some friends, moved on down the road to our final destination for
|
|
the evening: McSorley's. McSorley's is appropriately named because my feet
|
|
at the end of the night were very McSore. To say the least, McSorely's is
|
|
about 50% enough to keep me in Ireland. The drinks were great, the
|
|
atmosphere was amazing, and, the best part of all, the music was fantastic.
|
|
This particular evening we were treated to a performance by a ground called
|
|
"Zoot Allures", a cover band. They played an AMAZING set, with so many great
|
|
songs, and such great energy, that it made me really wish American clubs
|
|
would pull their heads out of their asses and actually play good music.
|
|
Anyways, amazing music was played, several videos were filmed,
|
|
more-than-several beverages were consumed, and at the end of the night, the
|
|
lead singer from the group gave me a great, big bear hug. Naturally, I
|
|
returned the favor.</p><p>Well, Zoot Allures wasn't the end of the night for
|
|
us, as McSorely's has a secret back room dance club, so we obviously had to
|
|
make use of that. We danced for a good while, then Chris, Cary and I decided
|
|
to take off and get back to the B&B to sleep. We left a window open for Suf.
|
|
Once again, to say the least, Killarney is absolutely amazing!</p>
|
|
|
|
<h2 class="ireland">Day 10: 08/05/10</h2>
|
|
<span style="font-style:italic">The room fell silent, as the man lowered his
|
|
microphone to the crowd. A single bewildered bystander asked, "Yeah?" The
|
|
man only nodded, a knowning nod. The bystander tipped his head back, and
|
|
breathed deep the pub air, and finally, as the tension grew to an unberable
|
|
level, cried out: "THUNDERSTRUCK!!!"</span>
|
|
<p>I thought the first night was amazing. Holy crap this town just keeps getting
|
|
better and better!</p><p>So, day 2. After some great, great sleep (which, of
|
|
the 4 of us, I'm the only one to wake up in time for breakfast), I clean
|
|
myself up and head to town. Yesterday I had seen an "internet cafe," and
|
|
figured it would be similar to what we call internet cafes in America (I was
|
|
wrong), so I made my way there to get my KoL fix, and check up on the tubes.
|
|
Well, the internet cafe was a pay-per-use computer room, so I threw my cash
|
|
at the front desk and got a couple hours of hardcore internet access. KoL
|
|
Update: beat the boss bat, the Goblin King, and the first part of my Nemesis
|
|
quest. Not bad, I guess, but I think it's safe to say that juggling an
|
|
acension with travelling abroad is a bit difficult, unless you know what
|
|
you're doing. I don't, for the most part.</p><p>After lunch at a (surprise!)
|
|
Chinese food place, we decided to take the afternoon off and head back to
|
|
the B&B to play some more Scion, before McSorley's opened up again. We did
|
|
some great stuff, saved the freckled Scion, then I made the decision to let
|
|
her die (which ended up coinciding with some major character development, so
|
|
that's nice), and then Cary's character died defending her. So, all in all,
|
|
we failed our mission, but succeeded at Scion. Huh.</p><p>Anyways,
|
|
McSorley's opened up shortly after the game, so we hit up dinner (more
|
|
Chinese), and I spent some time wandering around getting pictures of the
|
|
pubs we had visited. It's funny: my dad complimented me on all the pictures
|
|
of the beautiful scenary and what not, but he asked a very important
|
|
questions: where are all the pubs?? So I tried to rectify that our last
|
|
night in Killarney, snapping a picture of a few placed before winding my way
|
|
back to McSorley's for the evening. Round 2... FIGHT!</p><p>The cover band
|
|
at McSorley's tonight was not as good as the other band, which is the
|
|
equivalent as saying that the 200000 Candle-Power flashlight isn't as bright
|
|
as the 300000 Candle-power one: they're both way brighter (or, awesomer in
|
|
this case) than the required flashlight (or, typical American cover band, in
|
|
this case). Tonight's show was by Revenge, who paid tribute to some of the
|
|
older songs, including quite a bit of ACDC. We rocked out hard core, really
|
|
supporting the band out front by dancing and singing along. Then the moment
|
|
happened, the moment that Chris has claimed is the most epic moment of the
|
|
trip. The quote says it all, but in short: the band was playing
|
|
Thunderstruck by ACDC, and the lead singer lowered the mic to me to scream
|
|
"THUNDERSTRUCK!!" into, and it was amazing timing. I do have to say,
|
|
sometimes my timing is spectacular. Anyways, that memory will stick with me
|
|
forever, and I think with Chris, Suf and Cary as well, so I consider this
|
|
night an unbelievable success.</p><p>Once more, we invaded the back room,
|
|
only this time we stayed until close. We danced our way into another dance
|
|
party, because evidently we're all Lords of the Dance, and met some new
|
|
friends: May, a French girl there with friends. We danced with them, we
|
|
danced with total strangers, and we danced until we couldn't dance any more!
|
|
I literally understood what it meant to be out of mana that night. I had
|
|
barely the energy to return home, before I just passed out on my
|
|
bed.</p><p>Killarney is the city I would most enjoy in Ireland. Of all the
|
|
places we've gone, it's the city which feels the most alive. It has the
|
|
loudest pulse, the brightest flash, the sweetest music; it's the type of
|
|
environment I want to live in. While I don't think Ireland is quite the
|
|
island for me, if I did decide to live here, Killarney would be my final
|
|
destination.</p>
|
|
|
|
<h2 class="ireland">Day 11: 08/06/10</h2>
|
|
<span style="font-style:italic">"Wow, this place is nice. I don't think we belong here."</span>
|
|
<p>Today we all are taking a bit of a down day. After the past 2 nights, I'm
|
|
exhausted, and ready to just sit around a do nothing for a bit. Well,
|
|
conveniently Cary is getting his tattoo today, so I got my wish. We check
|
|
out of our B&B, pack up the car, park in town and go exploring a bit more.
|
|
After I stop at the Tourist Information, I learn of a free Wi-Fi pub nearby,
|
|
and relax there for a couple of hours, enjoying some tea and playing some
|
|
KoL. I don't really achieve anything of any worth in game, and Suf, Cary and
|
|
Chris show up just in time for us to work on our Scion characters a bit and
|
|
head to dinner. We go to the Chinese food place we hit up last night for
|
|
lunch, and then Cary must depart for his tattoo. Chris, Suf and I all decide
|
|
to wander back into the pub for a bit, where I finish up my KoL for the day,
|
|
enjoy some more Scion, check the email, and generally just chillax.</p><p>We
|
|
leave Killarney around 5:30 and arrive at our second-to-last destination,
|
|
Ballyseede Castle Hotel. Since we have nothing to do until later, we settle
|
|
in, relax for a bit and get to playing some more Scion. That's right: WE
|
|
ROLEPLAYED IN A CASTLE.</p><p>After the session, we split up: Cary, Suf and
|
|
Chris all head back to Killarney (a whopping 15 minute drive) to hit up
|
|
McSorley's again, and I lame out and take the night off. Whilst waiting for
|
|
sleep to drift in, I enjoy some good ol' American past-time and watch a bit
|
|
o' telly: 'Analyze That' was on. I watched 'Analyze That' in a castle. Today
|
|
is just full of achievements!</p>
|
|
|
|
<h2 class="ireland">Day 12: 08/07/10</h2>
|
|
<span style="font-style:italic">"Ma'am? A quick question. We named the dogs:
|
|
this one is named Roger the Mighty, and this one is named George the Stout.
|
|
How close were we?"</span>
|
|
<p>After a wonderful night's rest in the castle, we pack up our things, enjoy a
|
|
delicious breakfast, explore the castle grounds a bit more, and head off to
|
|
our final B&B, just outside of Shannon.</p><p>As we approached our
|
|
destination, we decided to stop by Limerick for lunch/dinner and just
|
|
explore our initial landing grounds one last time. We wander to 'The Bitter
|
|
End', take some pictures, and find our way to a Chinese food place (big
|
|
surprise) and an outdoor pub. Since we couldn't decide on which one to go
|
|
to, I suggested we go to both. This decision was met with much happiness.
|
|
After we finished our Chinese food (quite delicious), we headed next door,
|
|
and was met with delicious desserts and beautiful women. Our waitress let
|
|
slip it was her birthday, so in true, boistrious American style, we sang her
|
|
'Happy Birthday!' (Hope it was a good one, Sam!). Apparently she got in
|
|
trouble for that... Oops...</p><p>Anyways, we hit up our B&B to drop stuff
|
|
off, and repack our bags for tomorrow's trip, and finish up our Scion
|
|
campaign. We hopped out to 'Durty Nelly's' for a quick dinner (and sadly,
|
|
our waitress Una already had her birthday a month ago) of traditional Fish
|
|
and Chips, then back to the B&B to finish up our night rolling the dice.
|
|
With the campaign finished, we hit the hay in preparation for tomorrow's
|
|
voyage. Hopefully none of my loot get's wrecked!</p>
|
|
|
|
<h2 class="ireland">Day 13: 08/08/10</h2>
|
|
<span style="font-style:italic">"Do I really have to be the asshole to say that
|
|
we travelled back in time in that hot tub?" - Hot Tub Time Machine</span>
|
|
<p> And just as quickly as it began, our whirlwind tour comes to an end. We left
|
|
the B&B early this morning to get to the airport, returned the car without a
|
|
fuss, checked in our baggage, shuffled through customs and passport checks,
|
|
and eventually found our way to the gate. The airport in Shannon has free
|
|
Wi-Fi, which is epic, so I whiddle away at my turn-count in KoL, achieving
|
|
little but still enjoying the game. Shoot off a text to mom letting her know
|
|
things are on time, and eventually board my first of three flights for the
|
|
day.</p><p>The flight is rather uneventful. We're seated next to a kid
|
|
flying back from a wedding, so it was fun to chat with him for a bit. Then,
|
|
onto the free movies: Iron Man 2 (pretty boss), Hot Tub Time Machine
|
|
(really, quite the unknown comedy. Hilarious!) and Repo Men (meh, not really
|
|
my bowl of soup...) round out the trip. We land soundly in JFK, disembark,
|
|
and find our next flight delayed, so Chris, Suf and I, after bidding
|
|
farewell to Cary at the Terminal, head to 'NYC Sports Grill', right outside
|
|
our arrival gate from the beginning of the voyage, and enjoy some good ol'
|
|
fashion American burgers before our flight to Boston.</p><p>The flight to
|
|
Boston is painless, despite the Logan Airport's best attempt at being the
|
|
worst air port ever (I just really don't like it). We land safe and sound
|
|
back home, and I eagerly make my way to baggage claim to make sure
|
|
everything is safe there. I get my bags (w00t), find everything in one piece
|
|
and accounted for (w00t x2), and bid Chris and Lindsay farewell as my
|
|
parents drive up in the van.</p><p>Thus, our voyage ends. A successful first
|
|
trip overseas, and a more-or-less successful first attempt at travel
|
|
blogging too. Methinks I'll have to try this again sometime. Farewell, and
|
|
as they say on the Emerald Isle: CHEERS!</p>
|