Passport has arrived...now the planning begins!

Well as promised (and not that the government often follows through with promises), my passport has finally arrived. Now the planning begins. We really don't have any ideas where we're traveling, but rest assure, we'll let you all know as soon as we know. More later....

Aloha,
Dave

Passport - well its' about time!

January 10,2008

Well....I can finally say that I'm going to be able to travel OUT OF THE COUNTRY with my lovely wife. I was able to have some unanticipated days off from work (long story) and so I took the opportunity to fill out the U.S. State Department paperwork and went to the UNC-Wilmington campus student services center. Let me tell you...UNCW is the ticket to ride when it comes to getting your passport...no lines, no problems. I should have it in 4 to 6 weeks. Anyhow...hope everyone is doing well and we'll be traveling soon. Aloha and much love to our ohana and friends. Mahalo.
Dave

In Retrospect.....

Well, I have been back home now for about 2 weeks, and everyday I think about my trip. You can never appreciate the US enough until you travel abroad. I am thankful for so many things in my life that I take for granted.
Some things are big things, like having a car and a house that is affordable, but some things are little things, like continuous sheets of toilet paper, ice, sweet tea, and unlimited free refills.

Traveling fills us with experiences and memories like no other activity. I am an ordinary gal and through this blog and the others that come, I hope I can show you that the world is a small place- you are only limited by your fears and expectations.

Open your mind and get out there.

Much love and till the next time,
Mitzi

Beer and Whiskey...Oh My!

If any of you are beer drinkers, you are bound to know that Dublin is home to Guinness beer. Walk in to any pub in Dublin and you will see pints of Guinness all around the bar. For 4.10 Euro, a pint can be yours. Or, you can tour the factory yourself and see how the brew is made.
On Sunday, my last day in Ireland, Rob and I decided to tour the city. We rode the sightseeing tour bus and saw all the sights of Dublin. We visited the Book of Kells, the oldest version of the Bible and the oldest book in Ireland.
We toured the Guinness factory which was awesome! At the end of the tour you ended up on the 9th story in a glass bar and got a free pint of Guinness to enjoy.
After the Guinness tour, we went to the Jameson Whiskey distillery for a tour. This tour was also fantastic as we learned the differences between Scottish, Irish, and American Whiskey. Of course there was a free sample....I had one of my favorite libations, Jameson and Ginger Ale in a pint glass....yum!
That night Angie and I met Rob in the Temple Bar District( a really hip and cool area of town with lots of bars, galleries, shops, etc) for a nice dinner. We ate authentic Italian and it was fantastic. We laughed and drank and ate Gelato until almost midnight when we had to say our goodbyes and get on the bus for our hotel.
Rob was staying an extra day and was going to the Blarney Stone but Angie and I were leaving to come back to the US in the morning.
We were sad, but happy that we had made this voyage across the pond and doubted it would be our last.

The Cliffs of Moher in Ireland

Rob and I decided to visit the Cliffs of Moher while Angie went to kiss the Blarney Stone. There are so many things to do in Ireland and because time was tight, I wanted to see the Cliffs of Moher. Several people had told me how beautiful they were but to tell you the truth I never imagined they would be as spectacular as they were.
This was another long tour- about 12 hours that started on a train and ended on a train with a bus tour in between. Saturday morning Rob and I rode the train with Angie and Georgia together until we got to Limerick. There we parted ways and we got on a bus. We toured Limerick and saw the building relating to Angela's Ashes. Limerick was a cute town; I wish we could have seen more of it.
Out of Limerick we headed West to the Atlantic Ocean towards Galway and the Cliffs of Moher. Along the way we stopped in a seaside town called Doolin. We ate at a pub that's been around since the 1800's and I had the best fish and chips I had on the entire trip. They were 14.95 Euro so it was about $18.00 but it was great with homemade tartar sauce. I make a big deal out of tartar sauce because normally you get it out of little packets, like ketchup. Tartar sauce is really only big with Americans- but it was tasty!
After lunch we headed up to the Cliffs of Moher. It was sunny but very windy- I mean hurricane force winds in excess of 75 miles per hour. You had to be very careful and stay on all the footpaths lest you end up over the side of the cliffs. Last year 25 people fell off the cliffs and this year 4 have to date. I have attached a picture to show you the beauty of the cliffs.
After the cliffs, we went to the Burren, a limestone outcropping all along the Atlantic coast of Ireland. Early settlers settled here because the grass grows 11 months out of the year. Another mystery of the Burren is that 3 types of flowers that are non-native to Ireland grow side by side here.
After the Burren we went to Galway where we were to catch the train back to Dublin. Galway is a lovely city with a university and a very youthful vibe. Rob and I ducked in to a pub and had some Irish Coffee, walked around some and then bought some sandwiches and snacks for the 3 hour train ride back to Dublin.
This tour was 99.00 Euro or about $140.00 and was worth every penny. Remember that trains and buses often offer a less expensive way to see the countryside than renting a car.
Next post, Beer and Whiskey... oh my!

The rest of the story

As Paul Harvey tells us, there is always the rest of the story. So to, is the rest of the story of my fantastic trip to Scotland and Ireland.
On Friday May 18th, my brother Rob and I decided to purchase DART(Dublin Area Transit) passes for the day (about 7.50 Euro) and ride from one end of the tracks to the other- Howth, a small seaside town is north of Dublin and Bray is south of Dublin and is where all the locals visit the beach.
Howth was quaint with lots of fresh seafood markets and seafood restaurants. The people were very friendly and we had a scone and a latte at a little cafe by the sea. We then walked up the hills and in to the town where the locals transact their business. I purchased stamps at the post and we walked back down and to the train station. We wanted to come back there that night for dinner but doubted we would have time.
The trip to Bray was about 45 minutes and it was not nearly as quaint as Howth. It reminds me more of the beach towns we have here in Wilmington. Beautiful beaches but little else. On the ride down to Bray we had decided that we would try to find Dalkey Castle- Dalkey was a stop off the DART so on the way back from Bray we got off at the Dalkey station.
Dalkey is a must see if you are in Dublin. Like Stirling in Scotland, Dalkey really personifies Ireland, the people, and the cuisine. The streets were clean and lined with various shops and bookstores- there was even a little pet store!
We found the Dalkey Castle- it was small and is being used for town administration but in the great hall of the castle was a wonderful farmer's market. We purchased cheese, bread, salami, and some cookies before heading off to find some lunch.
We ducked in to a cafe to have lunch and boy were we in for a treat. The bakery made fresh quiche and it was fantastic- along with the fresh salads they gave us as a side. They also told us that Dalkey is where all the famous people live- including Bono himself! We were less than 300 yards from his house-
You must see Dalkey!

Irish Eyes Are Smilin'

Thursday was a travel day from Edinburgh to Dublin. I was actually sad to say goodbye to a country and a city I have fallen in love with. Our flight on RyanAir took off at 8 so we had to get up early for the airport.
The flight from EDI to Dublin is only about 50 minutes and it was pleasant. They are doing major construction in Dublin airport so allow some extra time if you are flying to and from there. Immigration was quick and we were soon in the city. My brother Rob was flying over around 3.
Our city guide Mary took us for a walk around this big city. It is very metropolitan and has some great shopping. I haven't actually been sightseeing yet so I will tell you about that soon.
We ate at an Italian restaurant in the Temple Bar area, the oldest area of Dublin with lots of pubs and galleries.
After dinner, I met up with my brother Rob and we went to drink at Farrington's. Nick and Peter were our bartenders and Shea was the singer. He dedicated "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash to us...I am not sure what the Irish think of us. We had about 3 pints each. It's so funny how they play only American music in scotland and Ireland. It's rare to hear anything else.
After the entire bar sang Brown Eyed girl, I staggered out in to the night to catch my number 7 bus back to my hotel by the sea.
Tommorow- a DART lesson and trips by the sea...oh yeah and Bono from U2!

Much love...have you bought your tickets yet? Get out there and travel.

Mitzi

Nessie

On Wednesday Rob, Angie, and I went on a 12 hour tour to Loch Ness. It was a guided coach tour. There were only 12 of us(a benefit of going right before the tourist season hits). Our guide was Niall Stewart and he came dressed in a full kilt. Scots are proud of their heritage and take every opportunity to wear their colors.
Our first stop was to visit Hamish, a 14 year old highland cow. Yes folks, I am writing about a big fuzzy cow. He was adorable and for .20 pence you could feed him a grab bag of carrots and potatoes....where can I get a job like that?
Highland cows are very special and are only found in the highlands of Scotland. They typically have hair in their eyes and of course I got plenty of pics of Hamish.
We continued on through many little towns and travelled through the Glencoe area where the Campbell clan murdered the MacDonald clan because they could not swear allegiance to the King. We listened to cool Scottish music that told us of the tales of Scotland.
Scots have many tales and legends, and none bigger than the Loch Ness Monster. Do you believe?
Well, let me tell you that the specialists have investigated and there are not enough fish nor plants in the water for as big as the Loch is. Something is eating the plants and fish.....is it Nessie?
We took a one hour cruise from Urquart Castle on the banks of the Loch to just below Inverness and we saw no sign of Nessie, but I felt she was there.
Robert the Bruce also burned Urquart Castle- do ya'll see a pattern here? Yes, Robert burned all the castles in Scotland to keep them from ever being used against the Scots again. Fortunately the kings that followed built them back, except for a few, including Urquart.
The Scottish people and the highlands are extraordinary- there are cute little lambs and sheep dotted along all the hillsides grazing on the wonderfully green grass.
When we arrived at our hotel, we felt content that we had seen some of the prettiest areas of Scotland.

More to come....on to Dublin

The Little Things...

Ok, I know I have promised you a "Nessie" story now for a couple of days but I wanted to take a minute and point out some valuable travel tips for Scotland. It's often the little things you do as a tourist that makes your day as well as the folk who actually work and make a living in the city you are visiting, a little better.
Let's start with transportation- the best way to get around EDI is by bus. You can take the 100 bus from the airport to Waverly station and from there to any hotel. The cost is 5 pounds for a return(that means a round trip to us Americans).
Calculate the number of days you are going to be in town and consider a multi-day pass for the bus. EDI is very hilly and very demanding to tour physically so having a blow on a local bus is a good respit.
If you do take the city bus, remember that there are working stiffs riding so don't be stupid. Have the correct change, know where you are going, and for God's sake, sit by the window or at the back if you have a ways to travel. This will make things easier for everyone.
As for communications, I recommend a GSM phone. You can purchase one on the internet for about $100 bucks.
Always tip your guides if you go on any guided tours. They are not doing this for fun.
Venture out of the city. There are trains every hour to Glasgow, Stirling, and parts beyond. The countryside is lovely and often you can get better deals on the stuff you want to bring home.

Ok- enough tips....now for the "Nessie" post....

Mitzi

Edinburgh Castle

Hi,
I am now in Dublin but need to catch up on my travels in Scotland. On Tuesday (the day we went to Glasgow), we toured Edinburgh castle before leaving for Glasgow. The Castle was gorgeous. It also dates back to the 1100's like Stirling. I think Stirling Castle has much more history than Edinburgh because of all the battles fought at Stirling.
They had repaired the train tracks from Glasgow to Edinburgh so the train ride was smooth home to Waverly Station and then on the bus to the hotel.
The UK has a tremendous transportation system; it seems like you can get anywhere on the bus, train, or light rail.
On Wednesday we went to Loch Ness...I will tell you more about that later!

Remember, the world is small so keep traveling!
Mitzi