The Invitation
- Oriah
It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.
It doesn’t interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon...
I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow
if you have been opened by life’s betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.
I want to know if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.
I want to know if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations of being human.
It doesn’t interest me if the story you are telling me is true.
I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not prettyevery day.
And if you can source your own life from its presence.
I want to know if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,“Yes.”
It doesn’t interest me
to know where you live or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.
It doesn’t interest me who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the centre of the fire
with meand not shrink back.
It doesn’t interest me where or what or with whomyou have studied.
I want to know what sustains you
from the insidewhen all else falls away.
I want to know if you can be alone with yourself
and if you truly like the company you keep
in the empty moments.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
There and Back Again
I am back home in Canada! I have lots to say, so let's get started.......
Two and a half weeks ago, my brother came to visit me in Dublin for 2 days. I gave him a quick tour of Dublin on his first day and we went to Glendalough on the second. Glendalough is supposed to be one of the prettiest places in Ireland, though I was not really impressed as it reminded me of Canada. Colin, Francois and I, took the bus there and did a 8km hike in which we saw ruins, a lake, a waterfall and bascially, lots of nature. This was also my last day in Ireland so I went to say goodbye to my adopted Irish family at work.
The next morning, Tuesday, June 24, Colin and I took an early flight from Dublin to Luton Airport in London. We were flying with Ryanair and were restricted to only 15kg each, after which, it's 15 Euros per kg over!! I was at 19kg even after I had already donated almost all my clothes to charity. So what did I do, I put on some more clothes (they weigh your luggage but not you!), stuffed my carry on to the max and carried one of my textbooks in my hand as reading material...in the end, I got it down to the alotted 15kg. After arriving in Luton, we took the train to Trina and Brian's place in Twickenham. The transportation is highway robbery in London....18 Pounds for a day pass from Luton...that's over 40CAD!!!! After dropping our things off at their place, I took Colin on a tour of London.
The next day, we woke up early to stand in line for tickets to Wimbledon. Each morning they sell about 6000 tickets to the event. They even had tickets for centre court and court 1 but those went to those who had camped out to get the tickets. We arrived around half 7 (7:30am) and were 3100 and 3101 in line. While we were in line, the CBC, a Canadian television channel, spotted the Canadian flag on my brother's backpack and asked us if we would do an interview for them. So, they followed us with a camera for 15minutes in our line and asked us various questions about the Canadian tennis players and our thoughts on Canada. I wonder if they ever aired that here?? We went to watch our boy Dancevic who unfortunatey lost his match. We then wandered the outside courts and watch some of the practice sessions. I saw James Blake, Andy Murry, Danella Huntakova, Aiy Suguyani and others that I can't remember right now.
On Tursday, June 26, Colin and I parted ways. He went to Rome and I went to my chiropractic conference in Rimini. Italy was hot, hot, hot! About 35 degrees and fairly humid. When I left Ireland, it was 12 degrees and raining! Rimini is a beach town and reminded be of the boardwalk in Atlantic City or Wasaga Beach...kinda sleezy. I didn't even get to the beach because of the long hours of the seminar. The seminar was inspiring and it was a great opportunity to network with European Chiropractors. I even ran into Heather who was 1 year below me at CMCC. She had just moved to the Netherlands and will be pracitcing there for the next two years...good luck Heather! On the Friday of the seminar, we all took a bus to a medevil castle in Garada, 1 hr outside of Rimini. It was a beautiful night with music and Italian food and drink. On Saturday evening, I left Rimini after the conference and went to Florence.
On Sunday morning, I wandered the streets of the pretty city of Florence while waiting to meet up with Colin. Florence was pretty small so I saw most of it within 3 hrs. There were 2 places I really wanted to see so I waited for Colin to see those but in the meantime, I went to the Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral, Piazze della Signeria, Santa Croce church, Ponte Vecchio, Pitti Palace, Santo Spirito church, Santa Maria Novella church, Medici Chpels, San Lorenzo Street market, etc. At half 12 (12:30pm), I went to pick up my brother form the train station. Since I saw him in London, Colin had travelled to Rome and Venice. We had a yummy pizza for lunch and went to climb the steps of the dome of the cathedral but it was close because it was a sunday! boo!! Next, we went to the Academy gallery to see Michelangelo's David. We waited outside in the sun for 1 hr to see the statue. It was bigger than I had imagined but I'm still not sure it was worth the wait...since I had already seen what I wanted to see in Florence, we decided to leave and go to Piza.
Once at Piza, we walked 45mins across town to see the leaning tower of Piza. Colin paid 15Euros to climb the tower but I was knackered and was content writing postcards and taking pictures of him while I waited. We then went back to the train station and caught a train to Cinque Terre. Cinque Terre is 5 villiages by the sea surrounded by moutains. It's a beautiful place...in fact, all of Italy blew my mind (excpet Rimini, of course). We stayed in Monterosso as it is the biggest of the 5 villages. The villages are connected by a trail though the moutains and by train. Colin had blisters and did not want to hike so we opted to rent a kayak instead. We kayaked through 3 of the cities before turning back! The view was amazing! We also took the train to the neighbouring city before packing up again and heading for Nice.
We took a 5hr train from Cinque Terre to Ventimilia, which is the edge of Italy. By then, it was 11pm at night and we had not booked accomodations in Nice. We were going to stay in Ventimilia but ran into 2 backpacking Amercans who had checked the hotel prices and said they were two expensive. We then all boarded the last train and got into Nice around 1am. The train ride to Nice was georgous at night. The next morning, I was on a mission for a pain au chocolait and find I did! We decided to take a train to Monte Carlo (20 mins away) before hitting the beaches in Nice.
Monaco is classy and you can definately tell that the residents are loaded!! We walked along the pire and there are yachts parked everywhere....huge yachts! And the cars that we saw!!! Since, we were both F1 fans, we found the famous hairpin and tunnel that belong to the yearly Monaco Grand Prix and took pictures there. We also went to the pebble beach. I am not a fan of this pebble beach business. It hurts your feet sooo much just getting to the water. The water is nice and cool but the pebbles...grrrrr.....we then returned to Nice and eplored the city a bit.
The next day, Thursday, we took a 2 hr train to Marseille. After helping me find my hostel, Colin left to catch a flight to Amsterdam and I explored Marseille. I met a couple Canadians and hung out with them for a few days. In Marseille, we visited the Vieux Port and the Notre Dame de la Guard. I was not overly impressed with Marseille. It was dirty and some of the people were pretty sketchy. I guess it doesn't help that the hostel was located in a bad part of town. One of the Canadians was almost robbed getting from the train station to the hostel which is only 50m apart!! My favourite part of Marseille would have to be the Notra Dame de la Guard, which is located on a great big hill. The view from above was magnificent and made the long climb worth it.
My flight from Marseille aiport was at 6:25am so I decided to sleep at the airport as there was no bus servie at 4am. Needless to say, I did not sleep much curled up on a hard metal chair. I was happy that I was not the only one to do this. I arrived in Eindhoven, Netherlands on Friday morning and took a train to Amsterdam. It was my 3rd time here so I had already seen most of the city by then. I had to go back only because my flight from from Amsterdam to Toronto. I relaxed for 2 days in Amsterdam and flew back to Toronto on Sunday. It's very disorienting to fly at 2pm in Amseterdam, be in a plane for 8 hours and arrive at 4pm in Toronto. I must say that KLM has a great in-flight food service. I was full the entire flight! And, when I asked for a vegetarian meal, they gave me 5 choices!!!! They even made me a special vegetarian snack! Irene met me at the airport and I was home!
I stayed in Toronto for 2 days and now am in Ottawa. I'll b heading back to Toronto at the end of the week to start m job hunt!
Wow, that took a while to write.....anyways, thanks for following my story the past year. To those I met in Ireland, thank you for the great adventures and memories. To my adopted family at Back to Health, you guys are great. Thanks for always looking out for me. To la clique francais et fanfan, merci pour toutes les races! Fanfan, you are awesome! To my old friends from Canada, see you soon!
Two and a half weeks ago, my brother came to visit me in Dublin for 2 days. I gave him a quick tour of Dublin on his first day and we went to Glendalough on the second. Glendalough is supposed to be one of the prettiest places in Ireland, though I was not really impressed as it reminded me of Canada. Colin, Francois and I, took the bus there and did a 8km hike in which we saw ruins, a lake, a waterfall and bascially, lots of nature. This was also my last day in Ireland so I went to say goodbye to my adopted Irish family at work.
The next morning, Tuesday, June 24, Colin and I took an early flight from Dublin to Luton Airport in London. We were flying with Ryanair and were restricted to only 15kg each, after which, it's 15 Euros per kg over!! I was at 19kg even after I had already donated almost all my clothes to charity. So what did I do, I put on some more clothes (they weigh your luggage but not you!), stuffed my carry on to the max and carried one of my textbooks in my hand as reading material...in the end, I got it down to the alotted 15kg. After arriving in Luton, we took the train to Trina and Brian's place in Twickenham. The transportation is highway robbery in London....18 Pounds for a day pass from Luton...that's over 40CAD!!!! After dropping our things off at their place, I took Colin on a tour of London.
The next day, we woke up early to stand in line for tickets to Wimbledon. Each morning they sell about 6000 tickets to the event. They even had tickets for centre court and court 1 but those went to those who had camped out to get the tickets. We arrived around half 7 (7:30am) and were 3100 and 3101 in line. While we were in line, the CBC, a Canadian television channel, spotted the Canadian flag on my brother's backpack and asked us if we would do an interview for them. So, they followed us with a camera for 15minutes in our line and asked us various questions about the Canadian tennis players and our thoughts on Canada. I wonder if they ever aired that here?? We went to watch our boy Dancevic who unfortunatey lost his match. We then wandered the outside courts and watch some of the practice sessions. I saw James Blake, Andy Murry, Danella Huntakova, Aiy Suguyani and others that I can't remember right now.
On Tursday, June 26, Colin and I parted ways. He went to Rome and I went to my chiropractic conference in Rimini. Italy was hot, hot, hot! About 35 degrees and fairly humid. When I left Ireland, it was 12 degrees and raining! Rimini is a beach town and reminded be of the boardwalk in Atlantic City or Wasaga Beach...kinda sleezy. I didn't even get to the beach because of the long hours of the seminar. The seminar was inspiring and it was a great opportunity to network with European Chiropractors. I even ran into Heather who was 1 year below me at CMCC. She had just moved to the Netherlands and will be pracitcing there for the next two years...good luck Heather! On the Friday of the seminar, we all took a bus to a medevil castle in Garada, 1 hr outside of Rimini. It was a beautiful night with music and Italian food and drink. On Saturday evening, I left Rimini after the conference and went to Florence.
On Sunday morning, I wandered the streets of the pretty city of Florence while waiting to meet up with Colin. Florence was pretty small so I saw most of it within 3 hrs. There were 2 places I really wanted to see so I waited for Colin to see those but in the meantime, I went to the Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral, Piazze della Signeria, Santa Croce church, Ponte Vecchio, Pitti Palace, Santo Spirito church, Santa Maria Novella church, Medici Chpels, San Lorenzo Street market, etc. At half 12 (12:30pm), I went to pick up my brother form the train station. Since I saw him in London, Colin had travelled to Rome and Venice. We had a yummy pizza for lunch and went to climb the steps of the dome of the cathedral but it was close because it was a sunday! boo!! Next, we went to the Academy gallery to see Michelangelo's David. We waited outside in the sun for 1 hr to see the statue. It was bigger than I had imagined but I'm still not sure it was worth the wait...since I had already seen what I wanted to see in Florence, we decided to leave and go to Piza.
Once at Piza, we walked 45mins across town to see the leaning tower of Piza. Colin paid 15Euros to climb the tower but I was knackered and was content writing postcards and taking pictures of him while I waited. We then went back to the train station and caught a train to Cinque Terre. Cinque Terre is 5 villiages by the sea surrounded by moutains. It's a beautiful place...in fact, all of Italy blew my mind (excpet Rimini, of course). We stayed in Monterosso as it is the biggest of the 5 villages. The villages are connected by a trail though the moutains and by train. Colin had blisters and did not want to hike so we opted to rent a kayak instead. We kayaked through 3 of the cities before turning back! The view was amazing! We also took the train to the neighbouring city before packing up again and heading for Nice.
We took a 5hr train from Cinque Terre to Ventimilia, which is the edge of Italy. By then, it was 11pm at night and we had not booked accomodations in Nice. We were going to stay in Ventimilia but ran into 2 backpacking Amercans who had checked the hotel prices and said they were two expensive. We then all boarded the last train and got into Nice around 1am. The train ride to Nice was georgous at night. The next morning, I was on a mission for a pain au chocolait and find I did! We decided to take a train to Monte Carlo (20 mins away) before hitting the beaches in Nice.
Monaco is classy and you can definately tell that the residents are loaded!! We walked along the pire and there are yachts parked everywhere....huge yachts! And the cars that we saw!!! Since, we were both F1 fans, we found the famous hairpin and tunnel that belong to the yearly Monaco Grand Prix and took pictures there. We also went to the pebble beach. I am not a fan of this pebble beach business. It hurts your feet sooo much just getting to the water. The water is nice and cool but the pebbles...grrrrr.....we then returned to Nice and eplored the city a bit.
The next day, Thursday, we took a 2 hr train to Marseille. After helping me find my hostel, Colin left to catch a flight to Amsterdam and I explored Marseille. I met a couple Canadians and hung out with them for a few days. In Marseille, we visited the Vieux Port and the Notre Dame de la Guard. I was not overly impressed with Marseille. It was dirty and some of the people were pretty sketchy. I guess it doesn't help that the hostel was located in a bad part of town. One of the Canadians was almost robbed getting from the train station to the hostel which is only 50m apart!! My favourite part of Marseille would have to be the Notra Dame de la Guard, which is located on a great big hill. The view from above was magnificent and made the long climb worth it.
My flight from Marseille aiport was at 6:25am so I decided to sleep at the airport as there was no bus servie at 4am. Needless to say, I did not sleep much curled up on a hard metal chair. I was happy that I was not the only one to do this. I arrived in Eindhoven, Netherlands on Friday morning and took a train to Amsterdam. It was my 3rd time here so I had already seen most of the city by then. I had to go back only because my flight from from Amsterdam to Toronto. I relaxed for 2 days in Amsterdam and flew back to Toronto on Sunday. It's very disorienting to fly at 2pm in Amseterdam, be in a plane for 8 hours and arrive at 4pm in Toronto. I must say that KLM has a great in-flight food service. I was full the entire flight! And, when I asked for a vegetarian meal, they gave me 5 choices!!!! They even made me a special vegetarian snack! Irene met me at the airport and I was home!
I stayed in Toronto for 2 days and now am in Ottawa. I'll b heading back to Toronto at the end of the week to start m job hunt!
Wow, that took a while to write.....anyways, thanks for following my story the past year. To those I met in Ireland, thank you for the great adventures and memories. To my adopted family at Back to Health, you guys are great. Thanks for always looking out for me. To la clique francais et fanfan, merci pour toutes les races! Fanfan, you are awesome! To my old friends from Canada, see you soon!
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Un chien qui parle francais- A dog who speaks French!
I met my friend Francois through a language exchange website in Dublin and I have been working on my French skills and Francois, his English skills for the past 4 months. This past weekend, Francois invited me to his home in Tours, France so that I could experience the 'real France' because according to him, Paris is not France.
I woke up at 3:30am (it would have been earlier if it weren't for my kind housemate Ciran who gave us a ride) on Saturday, picked up Francois from his flat and off we went to catch our 6:25am plane. We flew to Beauvais airport which is just outside Paris, took a taxi from the airport to the train station and took the train into Paris. From there, we took the Paris Metro (Subway) to another train station and caught the TGV (a very fast train) to Tours....we arrived in Tours at 2:45pm and were greeted by Francois's mom, sister and the love of his love, his dog Uria.
From there, we drove to Francois's hometown Savionnaire (sp??) which is 15mins outside Tours. Francois lives in the middle of nowhere in what we would call a 'country home'. They have a nice and peaceful house complete with a pond (with fish and wild ducks), well, pool, wine cellor and veggie garden, all of which Francois and his father built.
After getting the grand tour of the house, his mom made us Crepes...mmmmmm....and thus began the over-stuffing of my stomach over the next few days.
Saturday evening, Francois had a dinner party where 15 of his friends came over. I was surprised that I was able to understand most of what was said and even able to express myself in French, though, some things will forever remain, lost in translation.
We had a HUGE dinner...I stopped counting after 4 courses and I tasted the many different wines from the region. The French sure do love their wine! All his friends also had wine cellors so everyone that arrived also brought wine with them. Around 1am, I could no longer keep my eyes open and headed off to bed. A special Thank you to Valerie, Francois's sister, who allowed me to crash in her room.
The next morning, we woke up to real French bread...oh my gosh, you have never tasted real bread until you taste French bread....croissants...mmmm....real croissants, more crepes and pain au chocolat.
Sunday afternoon, Francois helped his father in their workshop while I talked to Valerie. Valerie and I got along really well because we're the same age and she's a dietician and everyone knows that I love talking about food! I also took a look at Francois's mom's neck as she woke up with neck pain, showed Valerie some exercises and read the x-rays of Francois's dad...lol....a chiro's work is never done.
After another filling lunch of wine and French food, Francois and Valerie took me to Amboise chateau royal. There, we had a guided tour of the chateua en francais. There were people in the tour that were Quebecois, woohoo Canada! The tour guide proceeded to explain some of the history of France and talked about the various rooms and such of the chateau....I started to to tune out as it's difficult enough in English to follow the kings and queens and their kids, nevermind in French. The most interesting thing about the chateau is that it's the resting place of Leonardo de Vinci! He was invited to live in the chateau by Francois the 1st and lived there the last 3 years of his life.
After our chateau visit, we went to Charlie's (one of Francois's best friend's) house. This place was definately in the middle of no where. You can't even see the next closest neighbours!
Monday morning, Francois took me on a guided tour of Tours. We walked around the old and new parts of the town and of couse, ate some more....another pain au chocolat...mmmm.....we even bought some baguettes....typical French!! Then we went for a drive along the countryside and along the river. It reminded me alot of parts of Canada. Lots of green space. Even the driving was great as they drive on the same side of the road as in Canada, unlike Ireland, where I think i'm constantly going to be run over.
In the afternoon, we went to see the second love of his life, his yellow car, at his parent's office. We caught our train around 5pm and began the journey back in reverse....train, subway, train, taxi, plane, taxi..bed!
I had a great trip, ate loads of food and had the real French experience. Thank you to Francois, his sister, his parents and friends who were super welcoming and patient with my charades games when I didn't know the words in French. C'etait impeccable!
Now, it's back to the grind and time to plan my final trip before I go home to Canada....will of course, keep you all up to date. See you soon!
I woke up at 3:30am (it would have been earlier if it weren't for my kind housemate Ciran who gave us a ride) on Saturday, picked up Francois from his flat and off we went to catch our 6:25am plane. We flew to Beauvais airport which is just outside Paris, took a taxi from the airport to the train station and took the train into Paris. From there, we took the Paris Metro (Subway) to another train station and caught the TGV (a very fast train) to Tours....we arrived in Tours at 2:45pm and were greeted by Francois's mom, sister and the love of his love, his dog Uria.
From there, we drove to Francois's hometown Savionnaire (sp??) which is 15mins outside Tours. Francois lives in the middle of nowhere in what we would call a 'country home'. They have a nice and peaceful house complete with a pond (with fish and wild ducks), well, pool, wine cellor and veggie garden, all of which Francois and his father built.
After getting the grand tour of the house, his mom made us Crepes...mmmmmm....and thus began the over-stuffing of my stomach over the next few days.
Saturday evening, Francois had a dinner party where 15 of his friends came over. I was surprised that I was able to understand most of what was said and even able to express myself in French, though, some things will forever remain, lost in translation.
We had a HUGE dinner...I stopped counting after 4 courses and I tasted the many different wines from the region. The French sure do love their wine! All his friends also had wine cellors so everyone that arrived also brought wine with them. Around 1am, I could no longer keep my eyes open and headed off to bed. A special Thank you to Valerie, Francois's sister, who allowed me to crash in her room.
The next morning, we woke up to real French bread...oh my gosh, you have never tasted real bread until you taste French bread....croissants...mmmm....real croissants, more crepes and pain au chocolat.
Sunday afternoon, Francois helped his father in their workshop while I talked to Valerie. Valerie and I got along really well because we're the same age and she's a dietician and everyone knows that I love talking about food! I also took a look at Francois's mom's neck as she woke up with neck pain, showed Valerie some exercises and read the x-rays of Francois's dad...lol....a chiro's work is never done.
After another filling lunch of wine and French food, Francois and Valerie took me to Amboise chateau royal. There, we had a guided tour of the chateua en francais. There were people in the tour that were Quebecois, woohoo Canada! The tour guide proceeded to explain some of the history of France and talked about the various rooms and such of the chateau....I started to to tune out as it's difficult enough in English to follow the kings and queens and their kids, nevermind in French. The most interesting thing about the chateau is that it's the resting place of Leonardo de Vinci! He was invited to live in the chateau by Francois the 1st and lived there the last 3 years of his life.
After our chateau visit, we went to Charlie's (one of Francois's best friend's) house. This place was definately in the middle of no where. You can't even see the next closest neighbours!
Monday morning, Francois took me on a guided tour of Tours. We walked around the old and new parts of the town and of couse, ate some more....another pain au chocolat...mmmm.....we even bought some baguettes....typical French!! Then we went for a drive along the countryside and along the river. It reminded me alot of parts of Canada. Lots of green space. Even the driving was great as they drive on the same side of the road as in Canada, unlike Ireland, where I think i'm constantly going to be run over.
In the afternoon, we went to see the second love of his life, his yellow car, at his parent's office. We caught our train around 5pm and began the journey back in reverse....train, subway, train, taxi, plane, taxi..bed!
I had a great trip, ate loads of food and had the real French experience. Thank you to Francois, his sister, his parents and friends who were super welcoming and patient with my charades games when I didn't know the words in French. C'etait impeccable!
Now, it's back to the grind and time to plan my final trip before I go home to Canada....will of course, keep you all up to date. See you soon!
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
My Chiro. family in London
About 1 month ago, I decided to take a trip to London as I had promissed Trina and Brian that I would visit them before I went back to Canada. Since, my best friend Irene, happened to have an 8hr stop over in London this past weekend, I decided go.
I took an afternoon flight and arrived in London Gatwick Airport around 5:30pm. I hopped on a bus that was supposed to bring me into Central London, however, since Trina and Bri live in Greater London, I decided that I would be smart and more efficient with my time...so I got off the bus early and hopped on a train.
After asking for directions, I got onto a train and settled in. A few stops into the journey, I had a feeling that I wasn't heading the right way. The conductor finally came by and I was going in the opposite direction by about 15 miles (merde)!! The train station attendant had given me the wrong directions! (ca me fait chier)!! I got off the next stop and was in the middle of no where and the next train was in 45mins!! 3 trains later, and 3 hours later, I finally arrived in Twickenham.
Trina and Bri live in a beautiful spacious flat with a guest bedroom...no couch for me! Trina and Nicole (another chiropractor, 1 year ahead of us at CMCC) picked me up from the train station. For dinner, we had Mexican night and Bri made an amazing veggie bean dip for me! We pigged out on food, and chatted about chiropractic and such.
The next day was unusually beautiful in London....27 degrees and sunny!! We took advantage of the sun and went for a walk in and around Richmond park. After lunch, I went to meet Taco (another former classmate of mine) and we sat on a park bench for a few hours catching up and enjoying the sun. Trina and Bri then came to pick me up and along with Nicole, we went for drinks and munchies. Kudos to Trina for spotting the 2 for 1 sign that was almost impossible to see!!
Monday, I said goodbye to Trina and Bri and went to Heathrow to meet Irene. Irene is volunteering for the next month in Kenya and had 8 hrs to kill between flights. It was so nice to see my best friend again! We ate lunch, talked and wandered around central London. The time passed quickly and I was soon back at the airport. This was an easy goodbye as I knew that I would be seeing her soon.
Thank you to Trina and Brian for their hospitality! It was great catching up! Nicole, it was nice to meet you. To Taco, it was great seeing you again and thanks for the advice...a la prochain....and to Irene, have fun and I'll see you soon.
Next trip...this weekend! Woohoo! I'm going to Tours, France!
I took an afternoon flight and arrived in London Gatwick Airport around 5:30pm. I hopped on a bus that was supposed to bring me into Central London, however, since Trina and Bri live in Greater London, I decided that I would be smart and more efficient with my time...so I got off the bus early and hopped on a train.
After asking for directions, I got onto a train and settled in. A few stops into the journey, I had a feeling that I wasn't heading the right way. The conductor finally came by and I was going in the opposite direction by about 15 miles (merde)!! The train station attendant had given me the wrong directions! (ca me fait chier)!! I got off the next stop and was in the middle of no where and the next train was in 45mins!! 3 trains later, and 3 hours later, I finally arrived in Twickenham.
Trina and Bri live in a beautiful spacious flat with a guest bedroom...no couch for me! Trina and Nicole (another chiropractor, 1 year ahead of us at CMCC) picked me up from the train station. For dinner, we had Mexican night and Bri made an amazing veggie bean dip for me! We pigged out on food, and chatted about chiropractic and such.
The next day was unusually beautiful in London....27 degrees and sunny!! We took advantage of the sun and went for a walk in and around Richmond park. After lunch, I went to meet Taco (another former classmate of mine) and we sat on a park bench for a few hours catching up and enjoying the sun. Trina and Bri then came to pick me up and along with Nicole, we went for drinks and munchies. Kudos to Trina for spotting the 2 for 1 sign that was almost impossible to see!!
Monday, I said goodbye to Trina and Bri and went to Heathrow to meet Irene. Irene is volunteering for the next month in Kenya and had 8 hrs to kill between flights. It was so nice to see my best friend again! We ate lunch, talked and wandered around central London. The time passed quickly and I was soon back at the airport. This was an easy goodbye as I knew that I would be seeing her soon.
Thank you to Trina and Brian for their hospitality! It was great catching up! Nicole, it was nice to meet you. To Taco, it was great seeing you again and thanks for the advice...a la prochain....and to Irene, have fun and I'll see you soon.
Next trip...this weekend! Woohoo! I'm going to Tours, France!
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
They may take away our lives, but they'll never take our freedom!
They may take away our lives, but they'll never take our freedom!
I figured that a Braveheart quote was a good way to start off this post about my Scotland trip....
So, I left Dublin on Saturday morning and after a short half hour plane ride, I ended up in Glasgow, Scotland. I took the train from the airport into the city centre. The first thing you notice about Scotland is the rolling hills and the many golf courses around. Once in the city centre, I began to explore. Glasgow is well known for it's shopping so I took a quick trip around the shopping district. What I soon noticed was that Glasgow is much cheaper than Dublin, even with the conversion rate between the Sterling and the Euro. Oh yeah, also the Scotish accent can be quite difficult to understand, especially when older people talk, but I like the accent, none the less.
Next, I wandered around George Square and headed east to the cathedral and the Necropolis which were the two sites that I wanted to see here. Glasgow is a small city and it's easy to get around by foot. Another thing to note is that Scotish people do loads more exercise than the Irish. The towns are full of little hills everywhere and people are always running or biking. Ok, back to the necropolis. I walked up to the top where you can get a nice view of the city. By the time I got to the top of the Necropolis, my backpack was starting to get really heavy, so I decided to go and drop off my stuff at the hostel. After dropping my stuff off, I wandered the city some more.
I went back to the hostel for dinner after stopping off at a health food shop and ran into two French girls from Dublin. Scotland is very vegetarian/vegan friendly, so I was able to find food easily. After dinner, I went with them to see a movie because Glasgow was voted the City of Culture in I don't remember what year. The movie theatre was HUGE seating close to 400 people and it was at least 6 floors high!!
The next day, I woke up bright and early and took a bus to Edinburgh, which is only 1 hour away. Edinburgh is absolutely georgous!!! There is a picture moment everwhere you turn. If you have a chance, you must visit Edinburgh. I was super impressed. From almost anywhere in the city, you can see the famous Edinburgh Castle situated on top of a hill.
The first thing I did was walk up Calton Hill. From here, I got a great view of both the old and new town. Next, I walked to the old town and found myself on the Royal Mile. At one end of the Royal Mile is Holyrood which contains the Palace of Holyroodhouse which is the Queen's official Scottish home. I took pictures from outside as I didn't want to pay to get in. Next, I went in the opposite direction to Edinburgh Castle. Normally, it's 11 pounds to get into the castle, that's around 25$...crazy!! however, this weekend was 'Visit the Castle for Free' which happens once a year. The line was super long but I didn't mind. The first section was the scene of executions and mutilations for centuries, nice huh? There was also a tiny chapel which is the oldest building in Edinburgh and was super small.
After the castle, I was getting tired of my bag again and went in search of a hostel as I had not yet booked one. I found a hostel for 13 pounds near the castle. The hostels in Scotland are more than Dublin and Belfast but everything else was cheaper. After dropping my stuff off, I wandered into the new town and took a stroll in the West Princes Street Gardens. Edinburgh was colder than Dublin but with the sun, it was ok. Next I walked around the National Gallery of Scotland and went back to the hostel. I met loads of Aussie's and Americans in this hostel.
Monday was my last day in Scotland and I woke up sick. I had a cold, a stabbing headache, aches all over and the chills. But since it was my last day, I decided to give it all I had. I went to Holyrood Park with a French guy that I met at the hostel and we climbed to the top of this stupid hill. It was not a good idea since I was sick but the view was worth it. It took us about 1.5 hours to get up and back down. The climb killed me. It also made my headache even worse and made my body ached even more from the climb. I left Edinburgh in the afternoon and headed back to Glasgow. I tried to wander the city some more but was just too tired. Around 5pm, I took the train back to the airport. My plane didn't leave until 9:45pm but I just couldn't go anymore. I waited in the airport and then caught my flight back to Dublin and jumped straight into my bed.
ok, gotta get to work now. Am feeling a bit better today, however the headache is still here and I need to be adjusted because my back is hurting from carrying my backpack. Overall, my trip was fun though it was a lonely travelling alone at times. Until the next trip....
I figured that a Braveheart quote was a good way to start off this post about my Scotland trip....
So, I left Dublin on Saturday morning and after a short half hour plane ride, I ended up in Glasgow, Scotland. I took the train from the airport into the city centre. The first thing you notice about Scotland is the rolling hills and the many golf courses around. Once in the city centre, I began to explore. Glasgow is well known for it's shopping so I took a quick trip around the shopping district. What I soon noticed was that Glasgow is much cheaper than Dublin, even with the conversion rate between the Sterling and the Euro. Oh yeah, also the Scotish accent can be quite difficult to understand, especially when older people talk, but I like the accent, none the less.
Next, I wandered around George Square and headed east to the cathedral and the Necropolis which were the two sites that I wanted to see here. Glasgow is a small city and it's easy to get around by foot. Another thing to note is that Scotish people do loads more exercise than the Irish. The towns are full of little hills everywhere and people are always running or biking. Ok, back to the necropolis. I walked up to the top where you can get a nice view of the city. By the time I got to the top of the Necropolis, my backpack was starting to get really heavy, so I decided to go and drop off my stuff at the hostel. After dropping my stuff off, I wandered the city some more.
I went back to the hostel for dinner after stopping off at a health food shop and ran into two French girls from Dublin. Scotland is very vegetarian/vegan friendly, so I was able to find food easily. After dinner, I went with them to see a movie because Glasgow was voted the City of Culture in I don't remember what year. The movie theatre was HUGE seating close to 400 people and it was at least 6 floors high!!
The next day, I woke up bright and early and took a bus to Edinburgh, which is only 1 hour away. Edinburgh is absolutely georgous!!! There is a picture moment everwhere you turn. If you have a chance, you must visit Edinburgh. I was super impressed. From almost anywhere in the city, you can see the famous Edinburgh Castle situated on top of a hill.
The first thing I did was walk up Calton Hill. From here, I got a great view of both the old and new town. Next, I walked to the old town and found myself on the Royal Mile. At one end of the Royal Mile is Holyrood which contains the Palace of Holyroodhouse which is the Queen's official Scottish home. I took pictures from outside as I didn't want to pay to get in. Next, I went in the opposite direction to Edinburgh Castle. Normally, it's 11 pounds to get into the castle, that's around 25$...crazy!! however, this weekend was 'Visit the Castle for Free' which happens once a year. The line was super long but I didn't mind. The first section was the scene of executions and mutilations for centuries, nice huh? There was also a tiny chapel which is the oldest building in Edinburgh and was super small.
After the castle, I was getting tired of my bag again and went in search of a hostel as I had not yet booked one. I found a hostel for 13 pounds near the castle. The hostels in Scotland are more than Dublin and Belfast but everything else was cheaper. After dropping my stuff off, I wandered into the new town and took a stroll in the West Princes Street Gardens. Edinburgh was colder than Dublin but with the sun, it was ok. Next I walked around the National Gallery of Scotland and went back to the hostel. I met loads of Aussie's and Americans in this hostel.
Monday was my last day in Scotland and I woke up sick. I had a cold, a stabbing headache, aches all over and the chills. But since it was my last day, I decided to give it all I had. I went to Holyrood Park with a French guy that I met at the hostel and we climbed to the top of this stupid hill. It was not a good idea since I was sick but the view was worth it. It took us about 1.5 hours to get up and back down. The climb killed me. It also made my headache even worse and made my body ached even more from the climb. I left Edinburgh in the afternoon and headed back to Glasgow. I tried to wander the city some more but was just too tired. Around 5pm, I took the train back to the airport. My plane didn't leave until 9:45pm but I just couldn't go anymore. I waited in the airport and then caught my flight back to Dublin and jumped straight into my bed.
ok, gotta get to work now. Am feeling a bit better today, however the headache is still here and I need to be adjusted because my back is hurting from carrying my backpack. Overall, my trip was fun though it was a lonely travelling alone at times. Until the next trip....
Friday, March 14, 2008
To move or not to move...that is the question
So it's been a while eh? That's because I haven't gone anywhere recently!! I hope to plan my next trip for either the end of March or the beginning of April.
Anywho, here's the story...at the beginning of Feb, my landlord decided that she wanted to raise the rent by 35Euros a month which is an extra 53$ a month. I decided that that was too 'dear' (to quote the Irish), so I moved out. I moved just down the street into a cheaper house but this time, I had to share with the landlady and another flatmate. The landlady is in her mid-40's and lives alone with her two dogs. She can be a bit nosy and eccentric at times but overall, we get along 'grand'.
Last Sunday, the day after my birthday, she came home one night and the fireplace was on. She asked me who had turned it on and I told her Ciaran (the other flatmate) had. She then said that she had told Ciaran before not to turn on the fireplace because it was expensive. 5 minutes later, she comes into the living room and suddenly says 'this isn't working out for me', you two have 1 month's notice......crazy lady! I wasn't even sure what had happened because she offered no further explanation. On top of that, that was the day that rent was due and I had paid her that morning! So I spent the early part of this week looking for a new place to live. I wanted to leave ASAP...who wants to live in a place where someone else doesn't want you there??
Anyways, I had found another flat that was further away from work and the gym, however, it was full of people my age. They seemed fun and they offered me a room there. The rent was more expensive though. I texted them to accept their offer.
Yesterday night, my landlord said that she had to talk to me again. She then proceeded to APOLOGISE for acting the way she had. She said that she over-reacted and she really wanted us to stay....wow....and it was all because Ciaran had turned on the fire place! The funny thing is, he offered to pay her extra for turning it on before...
So for now, I am staying put as I have no wish to move again...however, I will be ready to leave at a moment's notice.
Also, thank you all for the birthday wishes last week!!! I had a really good time. I went out to dinner with Anne, another chiropractor that works with me, and we went to the Hairy Lemon for drinks after. I then went to a house party because it was another friend's (Francois) birthday. We felt like dancing so we headed back into town with an international contingency (French, Spanish, Swiss, Aussies and me of course) and danced the night away.
Gotta go, patients here. Ciao ciao.
Anywho, here's the story...at the beginning of Feb, my landlord decided that she wanted to raise the rent by 35Euros a month which is an extra 53$ a month. I decided that that was too 'dear' (to quote the Irish), so I moved out. I moved just down the street into a cheaper house but this time, I had to share with the landlady and another flatmate. The landlady is in her mid-40's and lives alone with her two dogs. She can be a bit nosy and eccentric at times but overall, we get along 'grand'.
Last Sunday, the day after my birthday, she came home one night and the fireplace was on. She asked me who had turned it on and I told her Ciaran (the other flatmate) had. She then said that she had told Ciaran before not to turn on the fireplace because it was expensive. 5 minutes later, she comes into the living room and suddenly says 'this isn't working out for me', you two have 1 month's notice......crazy lady! I wasn't even sure what had happened because she offered no further explanation. On top of that, that was the day that rent was due and I had paid her that morning! So I spent the early part of this week looking for a new place to live. I wanted to leave ASAP...who wants to live in a place where someone else doesn't want you there??
Anyways, I had found another flat that was further away from work and the gym, however, it was full of people my age. They seemed fun and they offered me a room there. The rent was more expensive though. I texted them to accept their offer.
Yesterday night, my landlord said that she had to talk to me again. She then proceeded to APOLOGISE for acting the way she had. She said that she over-reacted and she really wanted us to stay....wow....and it was all because Ciaran had turned on the fire place! The funny thing is, he offered to pay her extra for turning it on before...
So for now, I am staying put as I have no wish to move again...however, I will be ready to leave at a moment's notice.
Also, thank you all for the birthday wishes last week!!! I had a really good time. I went out to dinner with Anne, another chiropractor that works with me, and we went to the Hairy Lemon for drinks after. I then went to a house party because it was another friend's (Francois) birthday. We felt like dancing so we headed back into town with an international contingency (French, Spanish, Swiss, Aussies and me of course) and danced the night away.
Gotta go, patients here. Ciao ciao.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Two Canadians in Paris
Mmmmmmmm, pain au chocolat, croissants, Mont Blanc, crepes avec Nutella, baguettes and more...is what I ate for breakfast in Paris!! My stomach is still trying to recover from these culinary delights.
Last weekend I flew to Paris to visit Erika who is studying French there. Last month, I saw Erika on MSN and I asked her how Korea was (she had gone there from Toronto to teach English) and to my surprise, she had finished her contract and was now in France.
I flew to Beauvais airport just outside Paris with Ryanair for 70 Euro, taxes inc and Erika met me at the bus stop in Paris and we started our adventure. We first went to Basilique du Sacre Coeur. It was beautiful and located on the top of a hill overlooking Paris. We then wandered around the cobble stoned streets, watched the many artists and painters and ate crepes.
We saw so many attractions that I cannot possibly remember the order in which we saw them. Here is a list of what we saw throughtout the weekend: Funiculaire de Montmartre, Theatre de la Madeleine, Opera, Palais de Chaillot, Champs-Elysees and l'arc de Triomph, Jardin des Tulleries, the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, la Pyramide, Chatelet les Halles, St Michel Notre Dame, Ile St-Louis, Bastille, Montparnasse, Champ de Mars tour Eiffel, Tour Eiffel, Hotel des Innvalides, Moulin Rouge....lets say we were really really tired from walking each day that I was there! Good thing there were lots of yummy treats to keep our sugar levels soaring!
The highlight of the trip was the Mont Blanc dessert which we bought from Angelina's right beside le Louvre (ummm, twice). The brown chestnut cream is sweet and dense, yet tenderly supported by whipped cream in the middle, and the combination adds a sense of lightness to the intensity of the chestnut cream. Underneath all the cream is a strong meringue layer that gives the two soft layers a distinct personality and texture....mmmmm....it was the best dessert i've ever tasted!!!
Another highlight for me was the Eiffel Tower. They covered the first level of the Eiffel Tour with snow and had free snowshoes that you could borrow....so I got to snowshoe around the Eiffel Tour while looking out onto the city of Paris!!!
Supprisingly, Paris was actually cheaper than Dublin for eating out. We had 3 course dinners for 10 Euro...oh god....the food I ate....
Thanks to Erika's great hospitatily, I had an AMAZING time in Paris and would love to go back! Paris is really as good as they say it is! Maybe I should move there next.......will add pictures later! Bonne journee!
Last weekend I flew to Paris to visit Erika who is studying French there. Last month, I saw Erika on MSN and I asked her how Korea was (she had gone there from Toronto to teach English) and to my surprise, she had finished her contract and was now in France.
I flew to Beauvais airport just outside Paris with Ryanair for 70 Euro, taxes inc and Erika met me at the bus stop in Paris and we started our adventure. We first went to Basilique du Sacre Coeur. It was beautiful and located on the top of a hill overlooking Paris. We then wandered around the cobble stoned streets, watched the many artists and painters and ate crepes.
We saw so many attractions that I cannot possibly remember the order in which we saw them. Here is a list of what we saw throughtout the weekend: Funiculaire de Montmartre, Theatre de la Madeleine, Opera, Palais de Chaillot, Champs-Elysees and l'arc de Triomph, Jardin des Tulleries, the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, la Pyramide, Chatelet les Halles, St Michel Notre Dame, Ile St-Louis, Bastille, Montparnasse, Champ de Mars tour Eiffel, Tour Eiffel, Hotel des Innvalides, Moulin Rouge....lets say we were really really tired from walking each day that I was there! Good thing there were lots of yummy treats to keep our sugar levels soaring!
The highlight of the trip was the Mont Blanc dessert which we bought from Angelina's right beside le Louvre (ummm, twice). The brown chestnut cream is sweet and dense, yet tenderly supported by whipped cream in the middle, and the combination adds a sense of lightness to the intensity of the chestnut cream. Underneath all the cream is a strong meringue layer that gives the two soft layers a distinct personality and texture....mmmmm....it was the best dessert i've ever tasted!!!
Another highlight for me was the Eiffel Tower. They covered the first level of the Eiffel Tour with snow and had free snowshoes that you could borrow....so I got to snowshoe around the Eiffel Tour while looking out onto the city of Paris!!!
Supprisingly, Paris was actually cheaper than Dublin for eating out. We had 3 course dinners for 10 Euro...oh god....the food I ate....
Thanks to Erika's great hospitatily, I had an AMAZING time in Paris and would love to go back! Paris is really as good as they say it is! Maybe I should move there next.......will add pictures later! Bonne journee!
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
I took the heat for granted and now it's gone away....
You never know what you have until it's gone.....I am reminded of that saying as I sit here at home in the cold. During the night, our heating system broke down and the cold came in. As I usually sleep with two blankets, only my nose was cold when I woke up. I went to the gym and when I came back, the house was freezing.
Thank god I took a shower while I was at the gym. I came home to find my poor roommate screaming in the shower because he had just woken up and had not realised that the heating wasn't working......poor guy. He went from bass to soprano in 1 second flat.
When I called the gas company, they informed us that the soonest they could send someone would be on friday, today is wednesday. I guess that I will have another couple of days to use my imagination....i am in tropical paradise.....ahhhh......take me back to the beach in Tel Aviv when I was there in August....
I am thankful for my heating system and I promise to appreciate it more.....can someone please send the repair guy now?? Please?? Brrrr.......
Thank god I took a shower while I was at the gym. I came home to find my poor roommate screaming in the shower because he had just woken up and had not realised that the heating wasn't working......poor guy. He went from bass to soprano in 1 second flat.
When I called the gas company, they informed us that the soonest they could send someone would be on friday, today is wednesday. I guess that I will have another couple of days to use my imagination....i am in tropical paradise.....ahhhh......take me back to the beach in Tel Aviv when I was there in August....
I am thankful for my heating system and I promise to appreciate it more.....can someone please send the repair guy now?? Please?? Brrrr.......
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Christmas and New Year's in Cork, Ireland
Happy Christmas everyone! In Ireland, they don't say Merry Christmas like we do in Canada, they say Happy instead. No idea why. There is also no Boxing day, it's called St. Stephen's Day and it is a holiday like Christmas is. There aren't any boxing day sales here until the day after boxing day.
This was my first Christmas away from home and the first green Christmas that I can remember. Since I have no family in Dublin, I decided to pay a visit to my adopted Canadian Family in Cork. There are a bunch of us that were not able to make it home this year. I went to Cork on Christmas Eve and arrived in time for a Swedish dinner. One of Su and Ryan's roommates, Elin, is Swedish and her parents were there so they cooked a huge Christmas dinner. mmmmmm, Swedish meetballs.....even better than the ones Ikea makes!!! For the next 4 days I watched a marathon of movies. They are all mixed up on my head. Also, I went for a walk on Christmas day and the town was deserted. It was eerie....
I went back to Dublin for Friday, Sat and Sun because I had to work and yesterday morning, I took the bus back to Cork for Su's New Year's Party. I am really tired of taking the 4.5 hour bus ride from Dublin to Cork. It will be a while before I go back there again. The train would be nicer but it is 6times more expensive.
Su's party was good, we had a huge dinner for 13 people. Our friend Sebastien, from France cooked. Sooooooo yummy! Then of course, we celebrate New Years. Weird thing here is that there are no fireworks set up in the city like in Ottawa or Toronto. There is no place where everyone meets for the countdown. Apparently, Scotland is the place to be for new years....will have to make it out there one day. The good thing was that we had about 6 Canadians at the party no one missed home.
Wishing everyone all the best for 2008. Bonne annee et bonne sante!
Ok, tired, off to bed. Ciao ciao.
This was my first Christmas away from home and the first green Christmas that I can remember. Since I have no family in Dublin, I decided to pay a visit to my adopted Canadian Family in Cork. There are a bunch of us that were not able to make it home this year. I went to Cork on Christmas Eve and arrived in time for a Swedish dinner. One of Su and Ryan's roommates, Elin, is Swedish and her parents were there so they cooked a huge Christmas dinner. mmmmmm, Swedish meetballs.....even better than the ones Ikea makes!!! For the next 4 days I watched a marathon of movies. They are all mixed up on my head. Also, I went for a walk on Christmas day and the town was deserted. It was eerie....
I went back to Dublin for Friday, Sat and Sun because I had to work and yesterday morning, I took the bus back to Cork for Su's New Year's Party. I am really tired of taking the 4.5 hour bus ride from Dublin to Cork. It will be a while before I go back there again. The train would be nicer but it is 6times more expensive.
Su's party was good, we had a huge dinner for 13 people. Our friend Sebastien, from France cooked. Sooooooo yummy! Then of course, we celebrate New Years. Weird thing here is that there are no fireworks set up in the city like in Ottawa or Toronto. There is no place where everyone meets for the countdown. Apparently, Scotland is the place to be for new years....will have to make it out there one day. The good thing was that we had about 6 Canadians at the party no one missed home.
Wishing everyone all the best for 2008. Bonne annee et bonne sante!
Ok, tired, off to bed. Ciao ciao.
Monday, December 17, 2007
2 week notice @ Starbucks
Last friday, I gave my two weeks notice to Starbucks. Instead, I got a new job working at the Great Outdoors which is like Canada's Mountain Equipment Co-op. The new place pays 1€ more per hour and I don't have to make coffee for anyone!
That's the only new thing that is going on. I will be working 3 jobs for the next couple weeks while I try to quit Starbucks so I won't have much time to spend money which is a good thing! For Christmas, I have decided to go down to Cork to visit Su and Ryan. At least I will have some Canadians to spend Christmas with. They tell me that they have a tree and stockings and everything. We are just missing the snow. Speaking of snow, my mom told me there was a huge snowstorm in Ontario......i'm liking the 10 degrees it is over here.
My bike has been a great addition to my life. It now only takes me 10 minutes to get to work!
That's the only new thing that is going on. I will be working 3 jobs for the next couple weeks while I try to quit Starbucks so I won't have much time to spend money which is a good thing! For Christmas, I have decided to go down to Cork to visit Su and Ryan. At least I will have some Canadians to spend Christmas with. They tell me that they have a tree and stockings and everything. We are just missing the snow. Speaking of snow, my mom told me there was a huge snowstorm in Ontario......i'm liking the 10 degrees it is over here.
My bike has been a great addition to my life. It now only takes me 10 minutes to get to work!
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Biking in the Mean Streets of Dublin
I bought a used bike today for 75Euros from a little old lady. I decided to ride my new used bike home and got lost. After 1 hour of biking here and there and almost getting killed 10 times, I finally found my way back home.
I have no idea how to ride of bike in Dublin. I am still not used to riding on the other side of the road and the bike lanes here are totally random. There will be a bike path and then it will suddenly disappear then reappear a few blocks later. Also, the drivers here are crazy. They feel they have the right of way and will run down a pedestrian if need be.
Halfway back, I decided I was going to stay off the road and ride on the sideway. I also need to get a lock, a helmet and a light for riding in the dark as it gets dark after 4:30pm.
Ok, short entry this time as I am hungry. Ciao.
I have no idea how to ride of bike in Dublin. I am still not used to riding on the other side of the road and the bike lanes here are totally random. There will be a bike path and then it will suddenly disappear then reappear a few blocks later. Also, the drivers here are crazy. They feel they have the right of way and will run down a pedestrian if need be.
Halfway back, I decided I was going to stay off the road and ride on the sideway. I also need to get a lock, a helmet and a light for riding in the dark as it gets dark after 4:30pm.
Ok, short entry this time as I am hungry. Ciao.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Hotel Taco
This past weekend I payed my first visit to London, England. My plane left at 6:25am from Dublin and arrived 1 hour later at Standstead airport. There is a reason for the early flights being cheap...no one in their right mind should take one. I had to wake up at 3:30am to catch my flight! That seems like a time more suitable to going to bed rather than waking up.
When I arrived at Stanstead, I had to take a bus for another hour to get to central London. This cost me 15 Pounds return, which is over 30$ CAD. London is bloody expensive. It's a little bit more than Dublin. For a 1 way ticket on the Tube (Subway) it is 4 pounds, that is 8CAD! For a 1 way subway ride!! The buses are 2Pounds...that's more than 4$!
After arriving downtown I wasted no time exploring. I walked to Buckingham Palace to say hi to the Queen. I also saw the Roayl Guards with the big black fuzzy hats. I've always wanted to see one of them. Next, I strolled through St. james Park and watched swans swimming around. I then made my way to Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. The buildings in London are amazing. Everywhere I turned, there was something that caused me to stop and stare.
After lunch, I went to see the London Eye (friggin 20Pounds to go on so I skipped that. it's a big ferris wheel that they built for 2000 and you can see a nice view of London), walked along the Thames River, saw Cleopatra's Needle, the Roayl Courts of Justice and St. Paul's Cathedral.
It started to get dark around 4pm so I saw the National Gallery and Nelson's Column all light up. I next wandered around randomly and found myself in some cool shopping districts. I wish I had money to shop in London...but alas, I am not rich...yet!!!
Around 8pm, I took the subway to meet Taco. Taco was a classmate of mine for the past 4 years at CMCC and he is now doing his Master's in London. For those that don't know him, he's a little crazy...but you would have to be to go back to school after CMCC...jk.....anyways, Taco was a great host. He cooked dinner for me and showed me places that I could visit the next day in London. He knows London pretty well and also provided me with some history of the places I would see. My neck and shoulders were sore from carrying my stupid backpack around all day and so I got treatment too! Taco's roomate had an extra mattress and sleeping bag so I got some much needed sleep. I'm so glad that I did not have to stay in a hostel! Hotel Taco gets 2 thumbs up and I recommend the place to anyone...though, the neighbourhood is a little bit "dodgey", but if you are lucky like me and got bus service, i.e. got picked up from the bus station, it's all good.
I woke the next morning to start my sightseeing adventures again. This time I went to the Horse Guard where I met horses that are like the Royal Guards that just stand there and do not move. I also got my picture taken with one of the guards. After that, I went to the Admirality Arch, back to Trafalgar Square to the Telecome Tower and finally to the British Museum. I had a day pass for the tube on Sunday so I just randomly hopped on and off to different places.
The British Museum was huge! I only got there towards the end of the day so I only saw the Egyptian and Roman stuff. It's nice to see all those things but funny at the same time because they really belong in Egypt and Rome. When I was in Egypt, I saw the pyramids and temples but they were empty. In the British Museum, I saw all the things that were supposed to be in those same temples and pyramids.
I took the bus back to Standstead airport at some insane hour and slept at the airport until my 6am flight to Dublin. At first, I wasn't sure about spending the night in the airport so I was going to just stay up all night but when I got there, there were already lots and lots of people doing the same thing as I, so, I laided down on my coat and napped for a few hours before my flight. By the time I got into my bed in Dublin, it was 9:30am. Good thing I didn't have any patients booked this morning!
Ok, now to decide where to go for Christmas...any suggestions?
When I arrived at Stanstead, I had to take a bus for another hour to get to central London. This cost me 15 Pounds return, which is over 30$ CAD. London is bloody expensive. It's a little bit more than Dublin. For a 1 way ticket on the Tube (Subway) it is 4 pounds, that is 8CAD! For a 1 way subway ride!! The buses are 2Pounds...that's more than 4$!
After arriving downtown I wasted no time exploring. I walked to Buckingham Palace to say hi to the Queen. I also saw the Roayl Guards with the big black fuzzy hats. I've always wanted to see one of them. Next, I strolled through St. james Park and watched swans swimming around. I then made my way to Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. The buildings in London are amazing. Everywhere I turned, there was something that caused me to stop and stare.
After lunch, I went to see the London Eye (friggin 20Pounds to go on so I skipped that. it's a big ferris wheel that they built for 2000 and you can see a nice view of London), walked along the Thames River, saw Cleopatra's Needle, the Roayl Courts of Justice and St. Paul's Cathedral.
It started to get dark around 4pm so I saw the National Gallery and Nelson's Column all light up. I next wandered around randomly and found myself in some cool shopping districts. I wish I had money to shop in London...but alas, I am not rich...yet!!!
Around 8pm, I took the subway to meet Taco. Taco was a classmate of mine for the past 4 years at CMCC and he is now doing his Master's in London. For those that don't know him, he's a little crazy...but you would have to be to go back to school after CMCC...jk.....anyways, Taco was a great host. He cooked dinner for me and showed me places that I could visit the next day in London. He knows London pretty well and also provided me with some history of the places I would see. My neck and shoulders were sore from carrying my stupid backpack around all day and so I got treatment too! Taco's roomate had an extra mattress and sleeping bag so I got some much needed sleep. I'm so glad that I did not have to stay in a hostel! Hotel Taco gets 2 thumbs up and I recommend the place to anyone...though, the neighbourhood is a little bit "dodgey", but if you are lucky like me and got bus service, i.e. got picked up from the bus station, it's all good.
I woke the next morning to start my sightseeing adventures again. This time I went to the Horse Guard where I met horses that are like the Royal Guards that just stand there and do not move. I also got my picture taken with one of the guards. After that, I went to the Admirality Arch, back to Trafalgar Square to the Telecome Tower and finally to the British Museum. I had a day pass for the tube on Sunday so I just randomly hopped on and off to different places.
The British Museum was huge! I only got there towards the end of the day so I only saw the Egyptian and Roman stuff. It's nice to see all those things but funny at the same time because they really belong in Egypt and Rome. When I was in Egypt, I saw the pyramids and temples but they were empty. In the British Museum, I saw all the things that were supposed to be in those same temples and pyramids.
I took the bus back to Standstead airport at some insane hour and slept at the airport until my 6am flight to Dublin. At first, I wasn't sure about spending the night in the airport so I was going to just stay up all night but when I got there, there were already lots and lots of people doing the same thing as I, so, I laided down on my coat and napped for a few hours before my flight. By the time I got into my bed in Dublin, it was 9:30am. Good thing I didn't have any patients booked this morning!
Ok, now to decide where to go for Christmas...any suggestions?
Monday, November 19, 2007
Tall Non-fat No-Whip Extra-Hot Hot Chocolate
What does that title mean?...yep....that's right, I'm back part time at Starbucks again. I never thought that I would have to make another frappachino again in my life but I was wrong. It's starting to pick up at the clinic but it's still rather slow so i've decided to get a part time job on top of the chiropractic one. Since I worked at Starbucks during school, it was easy to go back. I know the job and the scheduling is flexible. I work at the clinic 3-4 times a week and I'll be at Starbucks for 2 times a week.
I worked my frist shift yesterday. The dress code is black or beige pants with a back or while collared shirt with black shoes. I had not had time to get black shoes yet so I showed up with my white ones on. I had planned on going during my break because the Starbucks is right in town....however, I ended up going a little earlier then I expected. When I got to work, the supervisor told me to go and buy new shoes cause he wouldn't let me work until I had them.....lol. Normally, I would have been pissed but I was happy cause I got to go shopping! I came back half an hour with my cheap black shoes and started work. He wasn't too pleased with me until he found out that I used to work for Starbucks and that he could put me on bar right away. When he found that out, he actually said "Ok, I am happy again".
I woke up late this morning and missed my morning workout but I only had one patient this morning and I don't work again until 6pm so I can go to the gym now. I guess I really needed to sleep. Ok, off to the gym.
I worked my frist shift yesterday. The dress code is black or beige pants with a back or while collared shirt with black shoes. I had not had time to get black shoes yet so I showed up with my white ones on. I had planned on going during my break because the Starbucks is right in town....however, I ended up going a little earlier then I expected. When I got to work, the supervisor told me to go and buy new shoes cause he wouldn't let me work until I had them.....lol. Normally, I would have been pissed but I was happy cause I got to go shopping! I came back half an hour with my cheap black shoes and started work. He wasn't too pleased with me until he found out that I used to work for Starbucks and that he could put me on bar right away. When he found that out, he actually said "Ok, I am happy again".
I woke up late this morning and missed my morning workout but I only had one patient this morning and I don't work again until 6pm so I can go to the gym now. I guess I really needed to sleep. Ok, off to the gym.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Belfast and the Giant's Causeway
This past weekend, I was in Belfast. My friend Ryan and I took a 2.5hr bus ride from Dublin to get there. Belfast is much smaller than I thought it would be and much cheaper than Dublin too. I thought that Belfast would be more expensive with the sterling but it only cost 6.50£ for a bed in the hostel.
We arrived on saturday and spent the day wandering around the city. City hall is interesting because just in front of it is a big ferris wheel. I wanted to go on but it was 6£ which I felt was a little steep. After city hall, we wandered to Lagan Weir and Lookout. Here there is a statue of a giant ceramic salmon covered with tiles that tells the history of Belfast.
Belfast is also the city that gave birth to the Titanic so we walked around to where it first set sail. After dinner, we decided we wanted to stay for the night and had to call up hostels since we didn't book in advance. After checking into a cheap hostel, we went back out to wander and explore some more of the town.
The next morning, we woke early and went on a tour to see the Giant's Causeway. This place was AMAZING. Please look at the pictures as my words cannot do it justice. It is one of Northern Ireland's main attractions. The Giant's Causeway is a vast expance of regular, close packed, hexagonal stone columns. In olden times, they thought that Giant's had built this place. From here, you can see the shores of Scotland and it was said that there was a Giant from Ireland who wanted to battle the Giant from Scotland and they created the causeway to get from Ireland to Scotland. There are 2 walks and we decided to take the cliff-top path to the chimney tops.
With our tour, we also saw the 16th century Dunseveruc Castle from the outside and the spectacular White Park Bay which has wide, sweeping sandy beaches. We were supposed to walk across the famous Carrick a Rede Rope Bridge but it was closed down for the winter. It is a 20m long, 1m wide bridge of wire rope that spans the chasm between the sea cliffs and a little island.
We arrived back into Belfast around 6pm and then had to catch another bus back to Dublin. All I can say is, look at the pictures!!
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
The Things Your Patient Say...
So I went into clinic today and my patient says "I feel worse now then I did when I came in last time and I think it's your fault". Lol, gotta love when you hear that! But, alas, it is part of the profession. I then proceeded to to ask the patient what happened since I last saw them...."well, after you last fixed my back, I felt much better, so I went for a run." So I say, "didn't I advise you to take it easy for the first few days because you just recently injured your back?", patient answers "yes, but it felt better and now it feels worse"....urgh...really now, how is it my fault that you went out and ran 5km after injuring your back??
So after 1 week in Cork, Carla, my classmate from CMCC has come back to Dublin. She decided that she liked Dublin better than Cork and this was the place she needed to be right now. Yay! Also, Ryan got a job in Dublin so he's back here as well. It's nice to have people that know you around. Carla and I met downtown yesterday and ended up chatting for hours over tea....and she had only been gone for 5 days!
It's great to be back in da gym and eating well. I definately see a change in my energy levels. I decided to detox again so i'm staying clear of junk food. However, to make it a little easier, I have built in 1 cheat meal a week. It's much easier to stick to a regime if you know you can eat whatever you want for at least 1 meal. Hope this keeps up!
So after 1 week in Cork, Carla, my classmate from CMCC has come back to Dublin. She decided that she liked Dublin better than Cork and this was the place she needed to be right now. Yay! Also, Ryan got a job in Dublin so he's back here as well. It's nice to have people that know you around. Carla and I met downtown yesterday and ended up chatting for hours over tea....and she had only been gone for 5 days!
It's great to be back in da gym and eating well. I definately see a change in my energy levels. I decided to detox again so i'm staying clear of junk food. However, to make it a little easier, I have built in 1 cheat meal a week. It's much easier to stick to a regime if you know you can eat whatever you want for at least 1 meal. Hope this keeps up!
Saturday, November 3, 2007
The Journey of the Heavy Suitcase
On Wednesday, I went to meet my friend Brian at the airport b/c he had a stopover in Dublin before he met up with his wife, Trina, in London. Since Brian was in Ottawa, I asked him to bring me some of my medical equipement i.e. reflex hammer, bp cuff, etc. What I got was, all my medical equipment, my speeder board (used for adjustments) and 5 textbooks in a huge suitcase! I had no idea I was going to get all that stuff. The suitcase was also not one of the regular square suitcases that you could pull it by the top with the handle on wheels. It was one of those hard cover ones where the handle doesn't extend out too far and you pull/drag it by the side so you have to lift half of it to make use of the wheels. Let's just say that the suitcase was really really heavy.
After meeting Brian, I dragged the suitcase out of the airport and on to the public bus. I'm glad that the bus dropped me off close to work. When I reached my stop, I struggled to get the suitcase off the bus and brought it to work. One thing I forgot to mention, I could only drag the suitcase with my right arm b/c if I used my left, the suitcase ends up hitting against my leg. I got the suitcase to the back room of the office, narrowly avoiding hitting the walls. To be honest, I actually hit one of them, but no one was there to see me.
After work, I had to get my suitcase home. It's normally a 20min. walk but this trip took me 40 mins! I started with my right arm but got really tired after about 10mins so I switched to my left. After several bruises to my leg, I switched to pulling it with both hands but walking backwards. After nearly killing myself on the uneven sidewalks (a trademark of Ireland), I turned back around and tried pulling again with my right arm. When that got sore again, I decided to take a break and sit on my suitcase for a while and rest. After my rest, I continued again...I went b/w my right arm, left arm w/ bruises and rest until I got home. Why did I not take a taxi you ask? None had come by! I even contemplated hitchiking it back home....but i sucked it up and kept on pulling. I think I used every swear word in every language I knew on my walk home! But in the end, I did make it home.
On another note, I'm going to London on Nov 24! I found return tickets on Ryanair from Dublin to Stansted for 18 Euro including all the taxes! The only thing is, I have to catch the flight at 6am and somehow get from Standstead Airport to London, but that shouldn't be so hard. Yay, London!
After meeting Brian, I dragged the suitcase out of the airport and on to the public bus. I'm glad that the bus dropped me off close to work. When I reached my stop, I struggled to get the suitcase off the bus and brought it to work. One thing I forgot to mention, I could only drag the suitcase with my right arm b/c if I used my left, the suitcase ends up hitting against my leg. I got the suitcase to the back room of the office, narrowly avoiding hitting the walls. To be honest, I actually hit one of them, but no one was there to see me.
After work, I had to get my suitcase home. It's normally a 20min. walk but this trip took me 40 mins! I started with my right arm but got really tired after about 10mins so I switched to my left. After several bruises to my leg, I switched to pulling it with both hands but walking backwards. After nearly killing myself on the uneven sidewalks (a trademark of Ireland), I turned back around and tried pulling again with my right arm. When that got sore again, I decided to take a break and sit on my suitcase for a while and rest. After my rest, I continued again...I went b/w my right arm, left arm w/ bruises and rest until I got home. Why did I not take a taxi you ask? None had come by! I even contemplated hitchiking it back home....but i sucked it up and kept on pulling. I think I used every swear word in every language I knew on my walk home! But in the end, I did make it home.
On another note, I'm going to London on Nov 24! I found return tickets on Ryanair from Dublin to Stansted for 18 Euro including all the taxes! The only thing is, I have to catch the flight at 6am and somehow get from Standstead Airport to London, but that shouldn't be so hard. Yay, London!
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Visitors in Dublin
I have had the pleasure of hosting 3 visitors this week. On Monday and Tuesday, Jai was here from Toronto and Ryan was here from Cork. Ry came to Dublin cause he had 2 interviews and also to meet one of his best friends, Jai. Jai had left Toronto at the beginning of October and has travelled to London, Scottland and now he's in Ireland. I had Tuesday off so I went sightseeing with Jai. We first went on a tour of Dublin Castle. It was not as exciting as it sounds. Dublin Castle used to be a castle but is now an administrative building. We saw the various rooms of the building including throne rooms and halls. The best part of tour was when we went underground to see what was left of the orginal castle. There is a river that runs under the building which used to allow vikings and others to bring their boats up to the castle. The walls of the castle were all smooth so that people could not climb up the side to attack. They also used to pour goose fat down the walls to make it even more slippery to climb....mmmmmm, goose fat! We also walked around St. Stephen Green which is a park here and Trinity College where the ancient book of kells is kept. We didn't feel it was necessary to pay 12 Euro to see a book, no matter how old it is!
On Friday, Carla, a classmate of mine, arrived in Dublin from Toronto. We had panini's for lunch and I took her on a tour of Temple Bar at night. We went to 3 different bars and Carla had a pint in each of them. At the thrid bar, we ran into my Italian friends and partied with them for a bit.
On Saturday, Carla and I did some more wandering around town going down random alleys and stumbling into food markets and such. Carla, being the party animal she is, wanted to go out again so we met up with her cousin's roomate downtown. Petra, said that there was a nice bar that she liked....turns out, it was Temple Bar, in Temple Bar. So, for the second time in as many nights, we went to Temple Bar. I stayed for a couple hours and then went home early......i'm such a party pooper. Carla is here until Tuesday when she heads for Cork so I have no idea what else she wants to do. It's also a bank holiday weekend here in that Republic of Ireland so everyone has Monday off!
Ciao for now.
On Friday, Carla, a classmate of mine, arrived in Dublin from Toronto. We had panini's for lunch and I took her on a tour of Temple Bar at night. We went to 3 different bars and Carla had a pint in each of them. At the thrid bar, we ran into my Italian friends and partied with them for a bit.
On Saturday, Carla and I did some more wandering around town going down random alleys and stumbling into food markets and such. Carla, being the party animal she is, wanted to go out again so we met up with her cousin's roomate downtown. Petra, said that there was a nice bar that she liked....turns out, it was Temple Bar, in Temple Bar. So, for the second time in as many nights, we went to Temple Bar. I stayed for a couple hours and then went home early......i'm such a party pooper. Carla is here until Tuesday when she heads for Cork so I have no idea what else she wants to do. It's also a bank holiday weekend here in that Republic of Ireland so everyone has Monday off!
Ciao for now.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Hockey Night in Canada at Temple Bar
On Saturday, I found a place to live in Ireland so I went out with my crazy Italian friends to celebrate. We decided to go to Temple Bar and it was rocking. The rugby world cup finals had just been played and the British lost, which makes the Irish very happy. We went to an 2 level Irish bar that was packed. We left around 12am and since there were so many of us, we waited outside for everyone. In the bar next door, there was a tv and guess what was playing on it? Hockey Night in Canada!!!!! On top of that, it was an Ottawa Senators home game at the Scotiabank Centre. Here I am, all the way in Ireland, in Temple Bar and I got to see my hometown on tv! Ah, the memories.
I moved into my new diggs yesterday. It is a 3 bedroom house that I share with an Italian and an Irish guy. So far, both seem nice, helpful and easy to get along with. Only time will tell. I can also walk to work in 15 minutes so the location is ideal and it takes about 25mins to walk downtown. Yay! I am out of the hostel!
I moved into my new diggs yesterday. It is a 3 bedroom house that I share with an Italian and an Irish guy. So far, both seem nice, helpful and easy to get along with. Only time will tell. I can also walk to work in 15 minutes so the location is ideal and it takes about 25mins to walk downtown. Yay! I am out of the hostel!
Friday, October 19, 2007
Hostel Life
Hostelling is full of ups and downs. If I was on vacation, being in a hostel would be loads of craic (fun), however, if you like sleeping, hostelling can suck. On Monday night, I was in an 8 person room and it was nice an quite until 3am. At 3am, 3 LOUD German people came into the room, turned on all the lights and began talking. Urgh.
On Tuesday morning, I packed up all my stuff, dragged it down 3 flights of stairs and then disappeared to do some observations at the chiropractic clinic. When I came back, I was placed in a new room and I dragged my stuff back up another 4 flights of stairs. Again, I was placed in an 8 person room. I spoke with a German guy for a bit, then went off to bed. This room was much better. People were actually trying to be quite when they came back. The lights stayed off and I actually got some sleep.
On Wednesday morning, I packed my stuff up again and prepared to changed rooms. This time, I was placed in a 6 person room with some CRAZY italians. They were lots of fun. I ended up going out to Temple Bar with them for a drink. It was interesing b/c they could barely speak english and I spoke zero Italian, but they were great.
On Thrusday, I had to change hostels because there were no beds left. So, I packed up my stuff and moved down the street to another hostel. This hostel was terrible. It was like a maze and there were 6 flights of stairs to go up and down. Thankfully, someone who was watching me drag my suitcase up 2 flights of stairs, decided that he would bring it up the rest of the way. This time, I shared a room with 20 people. While I didn't like the actually look of the hostel, the people in it were really nice. I met a few French people and j'ai parle en francais, which as always fun for me. As you can imagine, sleeping in a room with 20 other people is quite difficult. I probably woke up about 100 times. Also, unlike the other hostels that I have stayed in, this one doesn't provide blankets. So, I got an extra sheet with sleep in but it was still cold. Yay for my fav Lulu Lemon sweater that kept me kinda warm. This morning, I went back to my old hostel and I am booked in there until wednesday.
I have been glued to daft, which is Ireland's housing website. I've seen 5 place so far but it is really expensive to find housing and very difficult. Each place that I visit, 15 people are already waiting there. I'll keep my fingers crossed that I find a place soon! I now appreciate all the things I used to have.....like running hot water....or a shower that stays on for more than 15 seconds!
On Tuesday morning, I packed up all my stuff, dragged it down 3 flights of stairs and then disappeared to do some observations at the chiropractic clinic. When I came back, I was placed in a new room and I dragged my stuff back up another 4 flights of stairs. Again, I was placed in an 8 person room. I spoke with a German guy for a bit, then went off to bed. This room was much better. People were actually trying to be quite when they came back. The lights stayed off and I actually got some sleep.
On Wednesday morning, I packed my stuff up again and prepared to changed rooms. This time, I was placed in a 6 person room with some CRAZY italians. They were lots of fun. I ended up going out to Temple Bar with them for a drink. It was interesing b/c they could barely speak english and I spoke zero Italian, but they were great.
On Thrusday, I had to change hostels because there were no beds left. So, I packed up my stuff and moved down the street to another hostel. This hostel was terrible. It was like a maze and there were 6 flights of stairs to go up and down. Thankfully, someone who was watching me drag my suitcase up 2 flights of stairs, decided that he would bring it up the rest of the way. This time, I shared a room with 20 people. While I didn't like the actually look of the hostel, the people in it were really nice. I met a few French people and j'ai parle en francais, which as always fun for me. As you can imagine, sleeping in a room with 20 other people is quite difficult. I probably woke up about 100 times. Also, unlike the other hostels that I have stayed in, this one doesn't provide blankets. So, I got an extra sheet with sleep in but it was still cold. Yay for my fav Lulu Lemon sweater that kept me kinda warm. This morning, I went back to my old hostel and I am booked in there until wednesday.
I have been glued to daft, which is Ireland's housing website. I've seen 5 place so far but it is really expensive to find housing and very difficult. Each place that I visit, 15 people are already waiting there. I'll keep my fingers crossed that I find a place soon! I now appreciate all the things I used to have.....like running hot water....or a shower that stays on for more than 15 seconds!
Monday, October 15, 2007
Kinsale
After all the mess with the association, I decided to get out of town for the day. Since Ryan had the day off, he came along with me. Kinsale is about 1 hr away from Cork by bus but this was one of the longest hours I've ever spent on a bus. Firstly, the roads in Ireland are built so poorly that two cars going in the opposite direction cannot travel on the same road! You would have thought that when they built roads, traffic would flow two ways....anyways, so when the bus is going straight and another car comes along in the other direction, either the bus or the other car will have to pull over to the side of the road so the other can pass. On top of that, the roads are constructed poorly, so after about 15 minutes on the bus I was ready to throw up. If I did not have my trusty homeopathy remedy on me, I definately would have. Instead, I settled on nausea and looking green by the time I got off the bus. Even Ryan, who doesn't get motion sickness, was having difficulty with the bus.
The town of Kinsale is very small. It has about 2 main roads. We arrived in the afternoon and rented a bike. The bike shop was really nice because it closed at 5:30pm but told us that we could keep the bikes as long as we wanted and to chain them up when we got back and throw the keys into their mailbox.
Ryan and I were on a mission to see the coast, so we headed as south as we could get. Kinsale is a harbour town and it also had bike paths and walking trails. We biked for about 2km to Charles Fort. This place was really cool. It was bascially a fort in a shape of a star with lots of holes in it from the cannons that had attacked it previously. We skipped the tour and spent time playing amoung the ruins. After the fort, we hopped back on our bikes and continued towards the coast. After another few km, we ran out of trail. By the way, the trail was really hilly, and we rode up and down and up and down pretty much the entire way. When we ran out of trail there was a huge hill which of course, we decided to climb. At the top, we were told that we were on private property. The lady told us that the trail had ended and that there was no road to the coast....however, it turns out that she owned the wheat fields that were near where we were biking and you could see the ocean from there. She was kind enough to let us go trekking into her fields. So, we got off our bikes, and walked through 3 wheat fields to finally reach the coast!!! What a sight. It was so quite there because Ry and I were the only ones. You could hear the waves hitting the rocks below. I'm not quite sure how long we stayed on the edge of the cliff but it started to get dark. We ended up riding back through the trails in the dark, and of course, me being a scardy cat, I did not like that much.
To emphasize the smallness of Kinsale, when we were walking up yet another big hill in the dark, a guy asked us if we were ok and needed help. Turns out, he was the guy who rented us the bikes! Crazy! We dicided that we wanted to bike back so we did not take his help. At the top of the hill we saw an amazing view of the city at night with all its lights. When we got back to the town, we decided to reward ourselves by eating Indian food. It's nothing like Toronto and it's more expensive here, but it was Indian none the less.
The bus ride back home was even worse then on the way there. The driver was driving Formula 1 style and we ended up getting back in 1/2 an hour.......I was again a nice shade of green. So, that was my adventure out.
Today is Monday and I just moved to Dublin. I took a 5 hr bus ride and now i'm in hostel again. Getting hungry so I'm going to eat. No word yet from the Chiro Assocaition but i'm going in to shadow the other chiro tonight.
The town of Kinsale is very small. It has about 2 main roads. We arrived in the afternoon and rented a bike. The bike shop was really nice because it closed at 5:30pm but told us that we could keep the bikes as long as we wanted and to chain them up when we got back and throw the keys into their mailbox.
Ryan and I were on a mission to see the coast, so we headed as south as we could get. Kinsale is a harbour town and it also had bike paths and walking trails. We biked for about 2km to Charles Fort. This place was really cool. It was bascially a fort in a shape of a star with lots of holes in it from the cannons that had attacked it previously. We skipped the tour and spent time playing amoung the ruins. After the fort, we hopped back on our bikes and continued towards the coast. After another few km, we ran out of trail. By the way, the trail was really hilly, and we rode up and down and up and down pretty much the entire way. When we ran out of trail there was a huge hill which of course, we decided to climb. At the top, we were told that we were on private property. The lady told us that the trail had ended and that there was no road to the coast....however, it turns out that she owned the wheat fields that were near where we were biking and you could see the ocean from there. She was kind enough to let us go trekking into her fields. So, we got off our bikes, and walked through 3 wheat fields to finally reach the coast!!! What a sight. It was so quite there because Ry and I were the only ones. You could hear the waves hitting the rocks below. I'm not quite sure how long we stayed on the edge of the cliff but it started to get dark. We ended up riding back through the trails in the dark, and of course, me being a scardy cat, I did not like that much.
To emphasize the smallness of Kinsale, when we were walking up yet another big hill in the dark, a guy asked us if we were ok and needed help. Turns out, he was the guy who rented us the bikes! Crazy! We dicided that we wanted to bike back so we did not take his help. At the top of the hill we saw an amazing view of the city at night with all its lights. When we got back to the town, we decided to reward ourselves by eating Indian food. It's nothing like Toronto and it's more expensive here, but it was Indian none the less.
The bus ride back home was even worse then on the way there. The driver was driving Formula 1 style and we ended up getting back in 1/2 an hour.......I was again a nice shade of green. So, that was my adventure out.
Today is Monday and I just moved to Dublin. I took a 5 hr bus ride and now i'm in hostel again. Getting hungry so I'm going to eat. No word yet from the Chiro Assocaition but i'm going in to shadow the other chiro tonight.
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