Dublin

Ireland, is one of the best place I have been to, with great scenic sites to visit and a energized capital city I couldn't help but enjoy myself. Just a side note to anyone who plans on travelling, plan ahead so that you can get cheap flights and not have to spend 11 hours just going to your location. Other then that, no complaints from me on the Green Isle. 

Once I finally arrived I slept for an hour and woke up for a day out in the Wicklow Mountains. Up there in the mountains, which are actually not mountains according to the tour guide, but are big enough to be given the name? Confusing I know but it is irrelevant for the enjoyment of the trip. The best part of these mountains is that it was all foggy and rolling landscape, traveling down windy roads along the mountain. We saw an estate tucked down in a small little valley of the mountains, next to the Guinness lake as its called. Primarily because it looks like Guinness with its black water and the sand around its bank. We rolled along and made some other cool scenic sites. One stop was at the two lakes valley, in a small village located in a little valley in the Wicklow mountains. Next to the Lakes was the ruins of one of the oldest monasteries in Ireland. I enjoyed the mountains because the scenery all around was so interesting, and the history of the land. In a way it was very deserted, and quiet up in the mountains. Not much happened there, especially in all the little villages dotted along the mountains. It has an eerie mystical atmosphere to the whole adventure. Our final stop for the day was at the oldest wool mill in Ireland. They called it Avoca, and in the mill they have some of the oldest looms that are still producing hand made products to this day. We had lunch in the small town at a pub called Fitzgeralds and the food was pretty good. It was a good day, and I'm glad I was at able to see the Irish countryside. Unfortunately I didn't catch a leprechaun...

Day two was a day of walking around the fair city of Dublin. Our lovely walking tour guide was Eileen, and she gave the ol' run around of the city. Learned about the "happy" history of the Irish people. If you didn't catch the quotes it is not very pretty. Lots of fighting and rebellions, most which ended in failure sadly. After about half way through the tour we stopped for lunch. Of course this is were I make another side note about food. Here in Dublin I had one of the most amazing pies I have ever had. It was a venison and chorrizo pie, with mash and gravy! Ladies and Gents if you have no idea what I'm talking about, you are sadly missing out on one of the best pieces of Irish and English culture. So many types of pies are offered along with pasties and the assortment of delicacies of baked goods in the U.K. Think about a chicken pot pie, then your close but not good enough. Anyways back to Ireland, and the Dublin experience. Lucky for me the tour was completely free, unfortunately I took a wrong turn at Albuquerque and was able to find my group until the tour was already over. After the tour, our merry band headed off to the hallmark of Dublin city: GUINNESS! Had a nice little tour of the place, at St. James Gate, were it is just one of the plants that produces Guinness for the world. Arthur Guinness was so confident in his product, started in 1759, that he signed a lease on the land for St. James Gate for 9000 years! That is a long time, but so far the past 200 years have shown nothing but growth in the Guinness company and it continues to prosper. 

The last stage of the journey was the night time activities, bringing us up close and personal with the Irish persona. We went out with the Hostel pub crawl, where people from all over the world came together to visit  a few local pubs, listen to the good ol' Irish ballads, and have a few pints if you chose to. It was a fun night with our mob trying to maneuver the cobble stones of the Dublin city. The night ended and we meandered back to our hostel as our adventure came to a final close. We had enjoyed the sights of the Green Isle, the fair city of Dublin, and the culture it has to offer. I hope one day to return to the Green Isle with me lads in tow, and we'll have a rantin good time. 

Thanks for reading until next time Cheers,

Zach

Molly Malone (Cockles & Mussels) with lyrics

My London

My London is a small little pub tucked away next to the river. Where people passing by don't even know it is open. Yet inside there is group playing traditional English music. The pub is not to big, the room smells of age, where ladies young and old play darts. The pub has an air of age not only in its structure but in its atmosphere. Patrons are the locals here, no fancy posh to the pub. It is simple in presentation, and one is happy to sit and sip a drink while they sit and listen to the merry tunes of yesteryear. Go to any other large scale pub and they are all the same, but the small english pub that has nothing to prove that is the diamond in the rough.

Some more of my London is walking just to walk and you'll soon find yourself in some fantastic place in London. It is a city that allows you to get as lost as you want to, and still find your way back home. Find a random street that can only fit one car down. It has a history older then those who walk or live on it. But it is kin to the buildings that still stand along it passageways. It is down these historical byways one can discover London in there own way, and even find places hidden from those who do not know the way. The cobblestones lead you to small squares with pubs or a green patch of grass left to remind us of the past and how good can come of bad. Markets hidden from tourists and known by those who hide them, London in it self is a maze, a labyrinth . If given a lifetime to explore her every ally way or street, one could not fully grasp her entirety and that is what gives my London her magic. A city unplanned, a city of diversity and mystery, a city of history, and if nothing else a city.

London

London is a fantastic city, but England is amazing in all its rich history. Yesterday our group went to a place called Bath. Here in bath they discovered the remnants of an old roman bath. The site was amazing, so much of the structure was still in contact and the main pool was actually still all together. The hot spring that everything was built around was still in use up until the 18th century, but the rest of the facilities had been built upon and forgotten about. It was rediscovered in the 1700s and many things were discovered in the site. Artifacts that help link Roman and Britain culture together in the Roman empire. One of the most amazing things about it was that what was the bath house of Roman times is below ground level, but it was originally ground level. History was literally three dimensional and you had to descend the stairs of the facility to see what once was. The area that was the courtyard was even underground and was dug up so you could see the stones that made the walk way. Another amazing thing was the engineering of the Romans technology. They had lead pipes that ran water all through the bathhouse to the different pools located in different rooms. They even had canals that drained used water out of the bathhouse and into the river, all this was done by gravity as well. 

To be able to actually see physical evidence of the Romans being a part of British history was eye opening. It really takes history to a whole new level in my mind. The Romans were a very real civilization, with technology that was at the top of its time. The Romans were in no way less intelligent then we are today, the times have simply changed and the atmosphere we live in. It made history seem not so distant then I once thought it to be. The site was just breathtaking and I can not describe it and the full impact it had on me completely but it was fantastic and recommend it to anyone who is England or visiting it.

A Day with Shakespeare

The day began bright and early at the time of 6 IN THE MORNING! WHAT THE HECK! YES I GOT UP AT 6AM unfortunately this is true I missed out on the normal routine of sleeping until 12 in the afternoon. Oh well, now to the part where I had a wonderful day in the English countryside.

Barely made it to the bus on time and did not get any coffee :(, no I am not complaining I just enjoy a great cup of coffee like the one that a small little booth outside of our school sells, the company's name is Sacred but no one cares but me and I have no idea why? FOOLS DRINK IT!!! Back on subject, the drive was awesome I enjoyed the green scenery it was a change up from the grey concrete that has formed a massive city called London. Saw a horse some sheep, the usual English countryside stuff. Finally we got the cottage where William Shakespeare's wife grew up, her name is Anne Hathaway. The thing I found most interesting was that houses in the area still have thatched roofs! It has a very country old fashioned feel to it. The cottage was awesome, kinda small but made you feel like you had gone back in time.

Next came his burial site. We went to the church were he was buried along with his wife. The fact that he actually was buried there slightly makes you think, so that one guy who wrote plays I never understood and stuff was real? Haha no I am kidding again as you will notice in this post.

Shakespeare's home town is actually very quaint with a river running through the town, old houses, bricks and all the stuff you might imagine in the English countryside. It is hard to explain, but there was a feeling of the old meets the new. Of course the town is a tourist trap of course with shops to spend money at as well for no real reason. But then in the middle of it all is an old house, the house that Shakespeare would have grown up in. His dad was a glover and made gloves, as well as being a part of an illegal wool operation, he also became mayor of Stratford at one time but then he got caught selling his wool and no more power :(. That is just a little tidbit of Shakespeare's history and there is a lot more if you are interested in his life...try Wikipedia.

Well that's all I have for my trip to Shakespeare's birth place until next time,

Cheers!

P.S

With all sincerity I did enjoy the day had some pasties with friends and a milkshake. The surrounding area was actually very beautiful as I mentioned before, with cottages and green fields. The day was great and I had an amazing time.

Captains Blog #3

Hello to those who follow this page thank you! I am sorry for not being able to post anything recently, but things are very hectic when living in a big place like London. Things are go go go, and when you can rest you do. Well I have learned the ropes pretty well if I do say so myself. I can navigate to the touristy areas no problem, other then that I can get back to school, grocery shop, and all the normal day to day routines.

The grocery aspect I could do a little more work on that is for sure. I am begging to work on cooking more instead of eating out, but I tried making pancakes for dinner and well it was not how I would have liked. They tasted funny, and the first one turned out more like a crepe. By the way they lied on the Taladega Nights, they do not taste like thin pancakes at all. I know because the day before I actually had a crepe, and it was more like some strange tasting tortilla. Sorry to say French but you fail, when it comes to pancakes or anything related AMERICA takes the trophy. To any Frenchmen out there try any place that sells pancakes and you will understand. Or even better try the Wafflehouse, you can have breakfast or desert or both on the same plate! AMAZINGNESS.

If you haven't noticed somethings I miss for sure. I miss PANCAKES, APPLE PIE, REFILLS ON MY SODA, and um idk but there are few other things. I also miss everyone back home fyi so don't think I forgot about you guys back in the heartland ;). This town is huge though as I believe I mentioned in some other post. But since I am to lazy to check, and trying to decide what else to write about, I decided to type what you have just read.

Well, some of you may be wondering what I have been up to recently. Well besides class I have been seeing the sights around London and those in England as well. The first trip I went on was on September 16 to Brighton, a town situated next to the ocean. While in Brighton, had the opportunity to have a tour of the Royal Pavilion. It originally started out as a horse stable and was eventually turned into a palace. It was very splendorous with all it's fancy decorations, and other adornments including chandeliers, giant kitchens, fancy dinning rooms, and the oriental theme of the whole palace made it spectacular. After that we were allowed to meander around the beach, which is all rocks and no sand at all. Had some fish and chips of course by the sea, then walked on the pier for a little bit. Of course I would have loved to see more of the town, but the such a privilege was not available. So off we went on our way back home to the big city of London after a fun day by the sea.

That Wednesday the 21st, we were given a walking tour of the City of London. Now that may sound like it might take a while, but the city of London is actually a small little banking area in the middle of London, and is only a square mile wide. We were shown a street that would have been walked on by the Romans, an told how an  ancient river runs under the road. That is just a little bit of the history the guide gave us. It would take to long to go into further detail on that tour, but it was fun.

That night we went, the Globe Theater and saw the play, Much Ado About Nothing. If ever you get the opportunity to visit the Globe Theater in London, DO IT. The atmosphere that is created can take you back and allow you to imagine a time back in the 16th century. Of course there are lights, but no microphones or much else. It is as historically accurate as it could get to the original theater that Shakespeare himself would have worked in.

I have much more to write upon of my experiences for anyone who is interested, but I will continue to write about my adventures in my next posts until then this is Captain Zachary Davidson singing off.