The plush green grass and BONJOUR from France!

Sorry for the Delay in blog entry! We tried to post before we left Ireland but we  just did not have the time. Lots of traveling, and we reach you now from Toulouse, France! Also, ther e is not English Spell check on this computer, so sorry for the mistakes.

We have loads to catch you up on, so no time to waste! Last time we wrote we were talking about  leaving the farm and going to Dublin early, which is exactly what we did.


Our time on the farm was really relaxing and Emily and I agree that we would do it again. Maybe in a different place but we enjoyed the mutual exchange of the WWOOF program. County Clare was beautiful and difinetly somewhere we want to return to. But we were ready to be on our way so we hopped on the bus in Ennistymon, then caught the train in Ennis and landed in Dublin by the early afternoon. Our hosts, Mary and Tommy O'Brien picked us up from the Luas and brought us to their home, right outside of the city in a place called Knocklyon.  We chilled out friday night, had pizza and hung with the family. There are three kids, aged 15 (Kevin), 12(Aine) and 9(Ammon) and an exchange student who was 15 from the Cannary Islands.


We took the bus in with Tommy to town on Saturday and entered the crazieness of St. Paddy's Day. We got in around 11 and started our day at the parade, which was hard to see over the thousands of people rocking crazy hats, outfits and loads of green. After that we  just hopped from bar to bar, meeting people and drinking Guinness of course. It was like 4th of July in DC, but much louder, a bit more drinking and rather than a sea of red white and blue, you could see green for miles. We hung around an area called Temple Bar for most of the day. We took a dance break at a place called The Grand Social, which is where Tommy works and there were local DJs playing. The rest of the day had more Guiness, Indian food and chatting with just about everyone we found that spoke English.


We made it back that night and had a good long rest! The next day was Mothers Day in Europe, so we decided, with the daughter, to clean up the house a bit and make dinner! I felt like Mary was my sudo mother for the week, so I felt the need to celebrate! We may have made way too much of it, but we had pasta, chicken and some veg (that lasted us days).


We woke up and went off to hike sugarloaf mountain in county Wicklow about 20 minutes outside of Knocklyon. The family went to set up their summer mobile home while Emily, Kevin and I went to conquer the mountain. It was a bank holiday so there was tons of people and from a far it did not look that hard. But once we started to hike upwards we were having to grab onto rocks to pull up our bodies up. The rough trip up was worth the view because you could see Dublin from up top and over to the water. We took the long way down, where there was a path but not any people. We had gotten a bit lost but we found our way eventually. A little walk on the road, through a neighborhood and we found our way to the town for some tea before heading home.


Our next day in Dublin was spent mostly at the Guinness factory. It may have been the most touristy thing we did in Dublin but well worth it because the storehouse was very well put together, visual and interesting. There were also beer stops on the way, so that kept the tour going for sure. After starting in a room where they go through all the ingredients, you moved up and about into how the creamy stout is made, all of the old and new machines that do it and how technology has influenced the beer. There was a cool exhibit on how the classic wood barrels that the guinness used to be delievered in were made and the massive work that went into to. Near the end there was an area that went through all the famous adertising through the years highlighting all the different symbols and animals that became the face of Guinness. Near the end we entered a room where we could pour our own Guinness! Then we went upstairs to the 7th floor to the Gravity bar to enjoy our beers. People in the city say that it is the best view of Dublin, since it is one of the tallest buildings. We could see all the way to Sugarloaf Mountain, to some of the Irish Isles and the entire city. Had a chat with some folk from London, enhoyed another beer and the view for a while. The Guinness story really is a hero story, in the beer making world at least.

We had a nosh after then walked back into the city center and walked through the Dublin Castle. Unfortunetly most of it has been rebuilt because of different fires and attacts, but it was still a cool monument of history for Dublin. To this day it is still used for government purposes and has facilities for dinners and meetings in it. We chose not to do the 15 euro tour, it looked cool enough from the outside. After that we headed home and had dinner and a movie with the family.

The next day we took the bus into town again but took it past the city center to the Botanic Gardens. The flowers were just coming into bloom, the homes, green houses and fountains on the property were so beautiful. Inside each green house was a different type of climate with all the different vegetation  from that area. Tropical habiscus flowers, bamboo, a cactus room (which was questionable). There was a river that ran through the gardens that had swans and ducks living in them and some beautiful birds as well. Being in all that nature really brings you back down to earth and reminds you how important it is to take care of what is around you and not abuse this earth we will live on.




We stopped in the tea room after to warm up a bit then we walked back into town. We stopped into the famous Trinity College, where all the kids don't wear sweatpants to class and the buildings are older than our country. We stopped into to see The Book of Kells, which are a manuscript of four Gospels of the new testiment written in the 8th century. Most likely on the Isle of Iona to honor St. Columba (but there are at least 3 other major theories of where it was created and its journey to Ireland).

Another museum that was extremely well put together. They wet through the four famous books that make up the Kells and showed examples of other bible type books simular to that time period. They showed how the books were made, from over 145 calf skins and carefully lined with a dull knife before written on. There were four different authors of the book, and although they don't know their names they can be distinguished by their different styles. One used gold, one used fancy letters at the begining of each sentence, one used color to emphasize different letters and the other for the full page art pieces throughout the book. They went through all the synbolism found in the book and how each picture has their very own specific meaning in the new testiment. We finally got to enter the room with the books displayed. In 1953, the manuscrip was split into 4 parts, and every few weeks they turn the page on these books. The detail, pricision and the color were insane and it was hard to believe how old they were. Emily and I had a moment where we tried to imagine the journey of the book through all these years and all the people who helped it get here. Insane in the membraneeee.

After that, we went to The Douglas Hyde Gallery that is attached to the college and saw the exhibit of Howard Finster and onlt about 20 of his message paintings. I will now site and quote The Douglas Howard Art Gallery (2012, Dublin, Ireland, www.douglashydegallery.com)


 "The American artist Howard Finster, believing that he was inspired by God to spread the Gospel, built an extraordinary Paradise Garden in Georgia, and produced tens of thousands of works of art. He first came to prominence in the 1980s, when his work was used on record covers by R.E.M. and Talking Heads. He is now probably the best-known 'outsider' artist of recent times"

That was the best way to describe the artist and I did not want to steal material (I can thank freshman year 301 for that). Look him up and check out his work. He was really talented and I have a feeling a little bit crazy. After that, we met a friend of Emilys at a place called The Porterhouse, one of the only microbreweries we had found in Europe so far. The beer was delish and I got hot wings so I was a happy camper since I have not really seen anything besides the Indian food with hot stuff here. After that we wet onto a place called Diceys where drinks were cheep in the beergarden and there was no shortage of 90s pop music to dance to. Got a cab home late, Emily slept in her jeans and all was gravy. We slept in and made our way to Jonnie Foxes, a famous bar in Dublin up inthe hills. It is hard to explain the very cool decor in this place to check out the website to see for yourself! http://www.jfp.ie/ We explored the place for a bit before sitting down for some stew by a fire inside. We had a great day with Tommy and Mary, who if I cant say enough are the most wonderful company!!

We then went to see THE HUNGER GAMES!!!!! There was no way that Emily and I could resist. We had both read the books in about 5 days and I had actuallly started to have dreams about them before I had finished. Again, we had been AWESOME at using the Dublin bus system and made our way to the movie theater. Of course there were little 13 year olds slurping on their slurpies so Emily and I had to move seats but otherwise it was well worth the 8 euro. I am sort of ready to see it again..or at least re-read the series. Anyways we chilled out that night and had pizza with the kids and started to pack since we had to get into town early to catch the bus the next day.


The O'Brien family was another perfect example of the kindness in Ireland. They really treated us as their own and took us in for the week we were there. All the kids had no problem treating us like siblings, making fun of our use of "awesome" and informing us on everything we needed to know about football. The daughter was also a great baker so we had some yummy desserts while we were there!. They were absolutely lovey and I feel like I have a new family in Ireland. See you in NYC O'Brien family! Thank you for the laughs and the hospitality. I am so happy that Uncle Jeff took  you in 30  years ago Tommy, what a pleasure to meet you guys.


We said our goodbyes in the monring and got the bus into town to get to Athlone. The day was absolutly beautiful! We have been so lucky with the weather and maybe I should not jinx it but we have not had much rain at all, a handful of sunny days and the trip that day felt like the first day of spring.

We took a bus into Athlone and the Big Dawg, Aidan Riley and his mum picked us up. We got back to his house, right off the main drag in the city. The house is really beautiful, with a nice backyard and a view of the country side. His sweet mum made us tea and eggs and we settled in.  We went  to Clonmacnyse, about 20 minutes drive outside of the city. The area sits on the River Shannon, which runs through 12 counties in Ireland, one of which is Westmeath.  The area was really beautiful, with old ruins of a church, momuments of local heros and we even had sunshine. It might have been the first time I did not need my jacket thus far. We played frisbee for a bit before heading home.

A beautiful stew for dinner with homemade brown bread made by his mum. His dad joined us withyummy wine and good conversation.  Then we got into some serious Athlone shinangins. That night some of Aidan’s friends came over for some beers before we went out dancing. Not many more details of the night are important besides the fact that this place was a hidden jem and the dancing was endless.

We woke up, not exactly on our A game so we jut chilled out all day, played bananagrms and laughed a whole lot.  This is why I enjoy Aidans company so much! Lots of laughing and a never ending amount of banter. His mum made us practically an entire thanksgiving dinner with chicken, gravy, mashed potatoes, gravy and all of the fixings! It was perfect. We watched the inbetweeners with Aidos friend (who are also filled with funnies),and I suggest  everyone finds the movie and watches it. It was really really funny! We also had the franchise taste of dominos for dinner. A short rest then early rising for a 9 am bus back into the city  to catch our flight.

The hospitality in Ireland has been prime and we really are grateful for all of our hosts. I know we have not met every person in Ireland, but everyone we have has been super nice. Not to mention the diversity in all the different places we went and the endless, beautiful plush green grass I had been waiting to see (and play frisbee on).  I really enjoyed Ireland and was sad to leave.

We landed safe and manages to make it to our hosts home with the short directions given by Nada (our latter host when we make it to spain).

Our hosts in Toulouse are Nada's son Joey, his roommate and friend since they were 16 Emile. They have a cool apartment only 20 minute walk from the city center covered in their art and cool tapestries. They have ben wonderful company so far and great hosts. Giving us maps of the city and suggestions on where to go and such. We have had nice dinners and afternoons enjoying the sun with a side of cheese and wine.

Our first day here was  relaxed. We just hung out in a park along the river, Garonne and layed out , listened to music, and played around  with the frisbee (not to mention enjoy the 26 degree weather, not exactly sure of the ferenheigt conversion but it is inthe high  70's). We met Emile for lunch to get kebabs and eat on the river. We picked up some french dictionaries and spent some more time working on the blog. We came back, picked up some cheese, bread and wine (a common activity?yes) and sat on the patio for the last bit of sun of the day. Emily and I made dinner and we played music and sang for a bit. I like france.

As we were Sitting by the river, people watching a bit I saw a group of young people drinking wine and socializing. They are all speaking in French, Spanish and English simultaneously and it's really amazing. Our first full few days here have been grand but I feel a bit disconnected from the people because of the language. I wish I had learned a bit more before I came but I also wish there was more of a damand to learn a language as a grew up. I took 3 years of Spanish and I can't remember a thing. I remember a crush I had on a boy in my class and I believe my name was Rosa.

Anyways day number two went better with the French Speaking, witht he book plus an extra study of a podcast i downloaded I was able to order coffee and get around wth a few new words. I walked around the city today on my own. I walked through an art gallery, sat by the river again and wandered town. It is a very cool and compact city with alot of different cultures in the mix. Good food everywhere, cool shops  and cafes.

We have a few more days here before Nada comes through to take us to Barcelona. Emily and I are both happy to be with some people our age and just enjoy exactly where we are, right now.

That is all for now!  Salut!!!


J and

A strange place to be going, Ennistimon!

Reporting in from the farm in Ireland!! I will start where we left off...



Leaving Scotland. For me it was hard to leave. When I got there all my nerves disappeared because I had finally been on my way! But after spending a month in one place I felt settled and it was hard to not feel as if I was about to go home from a holiday. It was also so special to spend that time with Emma, who I have a skype friendship with outside of camp. Keeping in touch with college friends is hard enough, but then to have to deal with an entire ocean between adds a new obstacle. While I was there we talked a lot about life, who we are and who we want to be. She helped me get through some tough stuff that had been hanging on with me, and I am in debt to her for her advice and for her time. So leaving my routine there was tough, but having Emily arrive was perfect timing in realizing our adventure was really just about to begin. Not to mention the three of us had so much fun over the week we spent together in Scotland.



And so we are off!  One last cup of tea and Emma took us to the Edinburgh airport. A quite drive, as Emily and I took in the last bit of Scotland and prepared for our trip to the Emerald Isle. Our flight was a bit delayed, so that gave Emily and I an excuse for beers and writing down all the places we wanted to go in Europe. The list was long but I think we narrowed down exactly what we want for the trip (and that list will be for our eyes only!)



We landed in Shannon airport and took a bus into Ennistimon where the farm we are working on is located. I took the window seat and listening to some DMB while watching the miles of green fields, beautiful old and new homes and old stone "fences" that lined the roads. The trip was at sunset so the sky was bright and I felt mesmerized by the sights. As we pulled into the small town, the bus driver said goodbye and told us "A strange place to be going, Ennistimon!" We had a good laugh and hopped in the car of our hosts. With no idea what to expect we pulled up to a beautiful light blue home in the middle of a massive field. We were greeted by two french boys who are also WWOOFing here and they had made dinner. We had not eaten since our beers this morning to some homemade curry and pork sausage was welcomed.



In the morning, we really got to see the place and it is stunning. The rolling hills and farm land mixed with the bright colored home is picturesque. We have been weeding, gathering eggs and feeding the chickens, cleaning up their poly tunnel and helping around the house. A good amount of cooking has been done as well! My culinary school friends would be proud to know that I broke down two chickens in preparation for our dinner of Poulet Basquaise, and the chickens were fresh from the farm! We are eating well here since then but Emily will write more about this in the food blog, which you should TOTALLY check out. truelifeimafoodie.blogspot.com

Our Farm Home

The farm has cows, donkeys, sheep, chickens, one dog and 3 cats. The cats and dogs don't have collars and they roam the farms all day! They even keep us company while we work, faithfully following us if we get up to dump weeds into the compost or go inside for lunch.



The actual town of Ennistimon is about 3 miles out from the house and is only a few blocks long filled with pubs, local shops and cafes. The best find in the town, as we can tell is Eugenes. This is the pub where Emily and I had our first Guinness in Ireland and I am not sure we could find a better place for it. Eugene himself is the only bar tender and he opened it in 1993 and has worked almost everyday himself. He made us feel at home, surrounded by all the locals and has filled our nights there with good banter and some dirty stories of the 80's and his time spent in London. The bar is decorated with with cards and pictures of everyone who has ever visited the place, and this includes a note from us! I also learned to pour a Guinness from the tap and Eugene said I can come back whenever I want to pour one for myself.  Not to mention, after Emily and I calculated, he has poured over 350,000 Guinness in his bar plus the other 3 taps he has, PLUS the 10 years he owned bars in London. Over a million beers poured and he is sort of my hero. So if you ever go through to see the Cliffs in Ireland, we insist you stop in for a drink. Tell him we sent you.

Our Man, Eugene

The amazing thing about this town is how everyone knows everyone, and all of their business. The cab driver who drove us home from Eugenes is our hosts second cousin and the men at the bar can dictate when their friends will arrive and exactly what they will drink. People talk about "reputations" in the town, loyalty of their family and how their ancestors killed for their land. We don't have this type of community in Columbia, we have our own type which in my case is usually revolved around the Jewish community. It is just a different world out here and I have alot of respect for it. Most people out here also care alot



Anyways we got the bus into Galway last minute over the weekend, not really sure what to expect of the village/town/city (we literally had nice idea what was there). We went to meet up with 3 friends of mine from camp, we had hopes of coffee (or Guinness) to cure our hangovers. We were pleasantly surprised by an energy filled town with lots of shopping, a local market with fresh food and trade, a beautiful view on the water and of course, pints upon pints of Guinness. There was tons of music being played on the streets and town had a homeyness to it. We had a near perfect day, with our local tour guide Aidan taking us around. Michael, Ronnie, Emily, Aidan and I spent the day on Salt Hill walking along the shore, drinking beers and laughing (maybe a little too much). We ended the day at a small pub right in Galway and said our "see your soons!" We hope to visit all of them on our journey. If they are reading this we send them a big "ELLO!"



Emily and I both have discussed how we are laughing a bit harder and smiling a little more on this trip. This was a day where my stomach was hurting from laughing. Perfection.



Sunday we had plans to get a bus to see the great Cliffs of Moher. The walk into town is about 45 minutes so we left an hour before our ETA.  I decided to go the wrong or long way you could say, into the town. Although the walk was nice and it was a great day for it, at the end of the road, we ended up about a little over a mile outside the town with just under 20 minutes to spare. Fore the first time, Emily and I stuck our thumbs out and hoped someone would stop and give us a ride. For whatever reason, Emily and I are not hitchhiking material and we ended up running into town and just making the bus. It made for an adventure and a good laugh but I had not run that fast since spring time frisbee around red square.



When we arrived at the Cliffs there is a man playing the flute to set the mood and then the jaw dropping begins. The fog was just rolling out for effect and the only words coming out of my mouth were "ohhhhh my goodness". The size is breathtaking enough, but the the green of the moss, blue of the ocean and all the white birds hiding in the cliffs really make the view magnificent. We walk past the 'no tresspassing' sign as many others have and walk up the coast of the cliffs and we don't talk much. We pose for a few pictures to appease the parentals but mostly I cant keep my eyes out of my binoculars. I try and imagine how something like this was created or how it formed and I cant come to grips with anything. So we find a cliff that seems sturdy and we sit for a while taking in the ocean air and sit. It is hard to make the cliffs seem less poetic but it really was something to write about. You have to go. Take the two hour walk we did and see them from every angle and you will still never take one picture that truly captures it. We came back to town, stopping into Eugenes for a few pints and a hot fire to warm up, then return to the farm for dinner.

The Cliffs of Moher

This week we have worked hard to clean up some farming spots for the spring, clear a path through the fields and keep up with the chickens. We also planted a bunch of flowers including broccoli and cauliflower which will be planted outside when it gets a little bit warmer.


Our time at the farm will end sooner than we thought though. This weekend we will head to Dublin for St. Paddys day and then stay the rest of the week! One of my uncles good friends has family in Ireland and has offered to kindly to host us. We are pretty excited for the weekend of festivities...



The trip continues to be exactly what Emily and I want and I am grateful for her to be my travel companion. We have both decided that if something is not working then we will move on. This is not a trip where you grit your teeth and wait for the storm to subside. We will move on to greener pastures and I believe Dublin will have them...


Also to add to the excitement, we booked our flights to France! So that will be our official next destination. Here more specifically... http://www.marance.net/

I hope all is well in whatever place you are reading this from. Thank you for all the love...

Out and Out

J&E

Emily Ginsberg FINALLY Posts!

I have finally joined Jacklyn in Scotland and my time here has been nothing less than amazing. I have only been here for 6 days but it feels like I’ve been here for weeks.

My journey across the pond went smoothly besides the minor security issue in DC and leaving my glasses on the plane when I arrived in Glasgow. Because of my excitement, sleeping on the plane and during my layover in Amsterdam was not in my path. I ended up reading an entire book and roaming around the Amsterdam airport. When I finally gathered my bags in Glasgow and headed outside, I was greeted (well more like attacked in a friendly way) by Jackie and Emma. Giddy, we collected my bags, got in the car, and went right to downtown Glasgow.

i thought I would be more exhausted but my adrenaline was pumping from having made it to Scotland and I had a burst of energy. We got some coffee and chatted for a while and then met Emma's friend Ben for dinner at Jamie Oliver's Italian restaurant, called Jamie's. After dinner the four of us wandered to a pub to indulge in some Guiness and Tennents. Later that evening we met more friends, including Emma's good friend Samantha, for drinks at a different pub. After good beer and some good conversation, it was time to head to Dundee. I slept during the 1.5 hour ride home and then another 12 hours when I hit the bed.

On Friday after finally waking from my 12 hour nap, I got to see Emma's neighborhood and the view from her backyard. Her house sits on the Tay river (which leads to the North Sea) and it is beautiful. We enjoyed some hot tea, which I quickly discovered would be a tri-daily activity, and headed out for the day. We stopped to get lunch at a farm that has a restaurant on its grounds. The farm sat on fields of green grass with sheep and highland cows, which are brown cows with long hair and horns. We enjoyed sandwiches, looked around the farms store, and continued on our way to St. Andrews.

Highland cows lounging on a farm near Dundee

St. Andrews, a university town with the oldest university in Scotland, sits right on the North Sea. We walked around the town and saw the remains of the oldest medieval cathedral in Scotland which was constructed in the 12th century. That evening Emma cooked traditional haggis with neeps and tatties (haggis with turnip and mashed potatoes). I was a bit wary but excited to try something new. And it ended up being quite delicious! 

St. Andrews Cathedral

 The next morning we got moving earlier than usual because we had pandas to see! Yes, the zoo in Edinburgh just recently got pandas and it has been so popular we had to get tickets for a specific time weeks in advance. The zoo in Edinburgh is the only zoo in the UK with pandas! Of course with the traffic and parking we were a few minutes late for our "appointment" and ended up running through the zoo, which is by no means flat, to get to the pandas in time. The lady letting in the different tours seemed sympathetic to Jackie's story that we came all the way from the US to see the pandas, and she let us in.

After hiking around the zoo for a few hours we went into downtown Edinburgh to get lunch and do a city bus tour. The bus tour was definitely worth while for us because time was limited in Edinburgh and we were able to see so much more than we would have by just walking. The old stone buildings were breathtaking, as were the Edinburgh castle and the perfectly timed rainbow that appeared over the hills surrounding the city. 

Self-explanatory

Edinburgh City Bus Tour

On Sunday, we explored Dundee while Emma worked and later came home for tea and a nap. For dinner we went into Dundee to have burgers at a restaurant called Ketchup. The food was delicious, and they even make their own ketchup! Afterwards we had drinks at the Dundee Contemporary Arts museum which doubles as a restaurant and bar.

On Monday we were able to sleep in a bit, and then finally got ready to go to Perth. We hiked up Kinnoull hill, home to the Kinnoull tower built in the 18th century as well as a beautiful view of the tay river. When we made it to the top of the hill, we enjoyed a short nap in the sunshine and eventually made our way back down to pick up Samantha and another friend, Craig, from the train station. The five of us went to Gloagburn farm in Perth for tea and scones. We played with the friendly pigs and goats outside and then went into the farm shop for our tea. Craig then suggested a French restaurant for dinner, called Breizh. After being nice and full, we said our goodbyes to Craig and Samantha and headed back to Dundee. We were greeted by Phillip and hot tea and played a few rounds of bananagrams before heading to bed.

Panoramic of the view from the top of Kinnoull Hill

Today we explored Dundee again while Emma worked and then stopped to pick up food for dinner. Tonight Jackie and I decided to cook some of our favorite things for Emma, Phillip and their mum because they have been so kind for hosting us. We made Jackie's famous broccoli casserole, potato latkes, and chicken. Everything was a hit! After dinner we got our bags together because we are leaving for Ireland tomorrow!

So now we are all caught up. Scotland has been more than amazing, as has spending time with Emma and her mum. Everyone here has been so friendly, the scenery so beautiful, and the cities so full of history. I was both nervous and excited before I came, but after being in Scotland for only a few hours, the nervousness faded and now all that's left is the excitement and anticipation of what the future of our trip holds. Tomorrow we finally go to the farm in Ireland and neither of us has any idea what to expect. We found out the other day that there will be other people staying there with us and we cant wait to meet them and start working!

Until next time...