WARNING: this is a extremely long blog, a cup of tea might be in order.
Its been a little while since i've posted anything, i've spent the last couple of weeks recuperating. when i got to here i was exhausted, i can't get over how much traveling has really taken it out of me.
first things first, i got into London and called my friend Sarah to let her know i was in and made my way to her place in Tooting. i got there a little bit early and so i waited in an internet cafe for a while until Sarah finished work. lucky for me her boss saw how excited she was to hear i was here and let her finish work early. before i knew it, Sarah was knocking people out of the way (i'm not kidding) to give me a hug. it was so nice to see Sarah, i think when i worked it out i hadn't seen her for over a year! so it was really nice to spend a solid week together just chilling out, come to think of it i probably wasn't much fun, i slept most of the time! It was actually really handy having Sarah too, because she's lived here for a while she showed me how to get to places and got me an Oyster card which is the card, that looks a little bit like a credit card, you get to use the public transport system here, its pretty nifty, you put money on it and you touch on and off at stations and it will automatically take the cost of your trip off it, then you just top it up when you run out of money. its so handy having it here in London, its busy all of the time, it would be a nightmare to get around any other way. i was interested to know why they called it 'oyster', you have to admit its a pretty strange name, there were a few reasons it was chosen, the first is supposidly its a metaphor, the shell is the plastic card and the concealed pearl is the money on it. the second reason also at one stage the Thames had oyster beds but also and third is the because of the phrase 'the world is your oyster'. i have to say, i kind of like the name. the tube itself is quite easy to use. something i found a interesting were some of the stations. one of them has Sherlock Holmes tiles through it, another has the side profile of her majesty on some of the tiles and the tunnels that link you between the lines make you feel like your going through a portal, like something from out of space. the carriages on the tube are smaller than i thought too, i thought they might be about the size of a train, not so. but, enough about public transport.
Sarah, myself and sarah's house mate Deanna did a day trip down to Brighton, which is a cute little seaside town. i really liked it, the town wasn't that big and had some nice little houses, shops and small lane ways. the beach had pebbles instead of sand which was strange, because i always associate sand with beaches. there is a really beautiful old pier in Brighton, at the end of it they have rides and stuff which was kinda cool. i liked Brighton, but i think a day trip was enough.
Something nice was i caught up a few people while i was here. Steve, who is a friend sarah and I from Melbourne. Steves been living here for a couple of years now and has even got married. it was great to catch up with him and meet his wife, Jo. its kind of strange me saying that, i can't get it around my head that i've hit that point in my life where some of my friends are getting married or having children. anyway, Steve looked really well, he was telling me he's given up a few of his vices and has taken up gym and swimming, for everyone back home that knows Steve, he's never looked so good!
i also saw Maddie, her boyfriend Mike and her brother Sam. Maddie and Mike arrived a couple of days after i did. they are planning on living and working over here. i caught up with them before i left but i hadn't seen Maddies brother in ages, last time i saw him he was about 16, now he's a man and he was massive! infact he has a better beard than me, and he kept reminded me of it.
Of course it was Christmas, but unfortuately not a white one, infact since i've been here the weather has been amazing, it hasn't rained once, which i think is a bit of a feat for London. Sarah and I did the grocery shopping for christmas. i love the fear in everyones eyes around this kind of year, people that were in Sainsbury's were losing there shit left, right and centre. so of course it was hellish buying stuff, but i think we succeeded in getting in and out in under half and hour! GO US! christmas lunch was brilliant, roast chicken & lamb as well as veggies and mulled wine, and for desert Sarah made chocolate moose, it was topped off by watching the christmas episode of 'the office' and a couple of phone calls from home. i've never eaten so much food the whole time i've been here in europe. it was a really enjoyable day, but probably not for Josh (one of sarah's house mates) he caught the flu and would spend the next 6 days looking like death warmed up, i have seriously never seen anyone look so sick, thank god my immune system held it together. As a bit of a thank you for letting me stay with them, for christmas i brought the house a toasted sandwich maker, lets face it, a share house isn't complete without one, am i right? I brought it from Argos which is pretty crazy, you go in there and choose things from a catalogue and then type in the code of the thing you want then they go out the back and get it, its a bit like a lucky dip! anyway, on boxing day Sarah and her housemates went off to Austria to go skiing for a week, so i pretty much got the place to myself, except for josh who was meant to go with them but got the flu, it did my best to play nurse.
while i was here i did pretty much all the touristy things, i'm going to do this in a list because i think its going to be easier for everyone:
- Buckingham palace, it wasn't was cool as you might think but still crazy to think Queenie lives there, its supposidly the most protected house in the United Kingdom but a few years back some German backpackers jumped the fence thinking that it was Hyde Park and camped over night, the funny part is they only got caught in the morning when they asked how to get out! up the road is the house where Charlie, Camilla and the boys live. CHECK!
- the Royal Albert hall, did you know it takes 4,000 hole in blackburn, lancashire to fill the Albert hall? CHECK!
- Abbey Road, i walked across the zebra crossing, it was so much smaller than i thought it was going to be, i've noticed that a lot since i've been traveling CHECK!
- Paul McCartney's London home, it was down the road from Abbey road, the light was on, but i din't see him, oh by the way, i'm not one of those crazy stalker people that visit the homes of celebrities 10 times a day... i only visted 7 times. kidding! actually considering Paul is one of the richest men alive, his home was quite modest compared to his neighbours, but the area was very nice. CHECK!
- Trafalgar square, something interesting i found out about Trafalgar square was that the statues of lions were actually made from melted down french cannons, and the guy that designed them had never seen a lion so he modelled it on his pet dog! CHECK!
- Oxford Circus, christ! circus is an understatement, i have never seen so many people at once, it was mental, it actually made shopping more of a nightmare, stopping and starting and getting blocked in a crowd wasn't really much fun. funny story, Sarah was doing a bit of shopping in Topshop (good store by the way) and when she went into the change room i just waited for her out the front, this guy came up to me and started chatting to me, when Sarah came out he looked at her and said while pointing at me 'I'm a really big Russell Brand fan, see ya mate have a good christmas' this guy thought i was comedian Russell Brand, Sarah thought it was hilarious. its not the first time i've been told i look like him, i've got it quite a bit, some people even double take. its pretty funny, but i honestly don't see the resemblance.
- Carnaby Street, i kind of knew that carnaby street wasn't was cool as it was in the swinging 60's but i still wanted to check it out, i personally think that the area around Covent Garden was pretty cool and not as busy. CHECK!
- Hyde Park, is was massive but quite nice and there are heaps of little squirels, at the end of it they have Kensington Palace which is where the late Pricess Diana lived. i didn't see all the crazy people that exersise there right to free speech, but i'll see it when i come back. there are a few parks in the area, i think it might have been St James's Park that was originally the royal zoo, the only animals that remain are the Pelicans, and they have been up to some strange behaviour of late, they've been eating PIGEONS! i'm not kidding either (check it out here its not for the faint hearted) CHECK!
- Big Ben, it was big, its called ben, its big ben! its attach to the house of lords and the house of commons. it was pretty cool, i thought the gothic architecture was quite amazing CHECK!
- 10 Downing street, whenever you see it on the TV it looks like anyone can walk down there and see it, this is so far from the truth, i couldn't get over how much security there was, it was so far away from the public, understandable come to think of it!
- Westminster Abbey, where most of the Kings and Queens of England have had there coronations and most are buried here too as well as a few other lucky buggers. it was also the home of the 'stone of destiny' for a while too (see my Edinburgh blog)
- Harrods, i couldn't get over how over the top it was, and the price of clothing was out of control. the food court was pretty impressive, especially the chocolate section. i was there during a sale and i still couldn't come close to buying anything, but its true what they say, 'money doesn't buy taste', i can't say i saw many well dressed people there. CHECK!
- Tower Bridge, probably the coolest of the bridges along the Thames, CHECK!
- Tower of London, i thought was pretty good, the crowds were crazy i had to wait in a line for about half an hour in the cold to see the crown jewels. the place is pretty packed full of history, so many people have lost there heads here and most of them are buried under the church, without there heads. something strange is they keep 6 ravens on the premises at all times because of an old tale that if they leave, the monarchy will fall. something else that was funny is before people had there head cut off they used to do a painting of them, well there was one time they forgot to paint a guy, so they stiched his head back on, threw a scarf around his neck, and quickly painted him before they buried him! The painting is still hanging up in the National Gallery, funnily enough he's not smiling...
- Notting Hill, its where the rich and famous live and also the name of a movie, i saw the book store Hugh Grants character work in, which was kinda cool. portobello road wasn't bad either, they had a few good shops there. CHECK!
- Brick Lane, i think was probably the coolest area, during the day its pretty good, great vintage clothing shops and cool bars, but at night is where it gets fun, Brick lane is known for its currys and people stand out the front practically begging you to come inside, i went into one called 'Aladins' and it boasted that Prince Charles ate there once. i have to say it was pretty good.
- Camden Markets, there are some good vintage shops and other bits and pieces, i thought was ok but i think it would've been better about 10 years ago before everybody found out about it, heres somethig for the trivia bank, supposidly its Amy Winehouse's part of town.
- The Ritz, believe it or not they wouldn't let me go passed the foyer! it was because i didn't realise there was a dress code and i was wearing jeans. it didn't really worry me but it did make me think about class. i understand why they have a dress code, its a nice place and it wouldn't be as nice if joe blow of the street came in for morning tea. but i thought the gentlemens clubs are a big wank, i was talking to someone about it, and supposidly the english are really into find out what class you fall under, really, who gives a shit? if your a idiot your still a idiot if you've got a money in the bank or from a privilaged back ground, the only difference is your a rich idiot.
i checked out both the tate modern and tate britian museums, which were pretty good, but if i had to choose i think the tate in liverpool was better. something that i did like at the tate were the different programs you could get, they guided you to different areas of the collection depending on what mood you were in, heres the name of a couple:
- the i like yellow collection
- the happily depressed collection
- the first date collection
- the rainy day collection
- the i want to be swept off my feet collection
i thought it was a cool idea, especially here in europe where there galleries are generally quite big and you just want to see the main stuff.
something interesting i found out about London is there is a hell of a lot of security cameras, infact there is 1 camera for every 13 Londoners, which is pretty crazy, you couldn't get away with scratching your bum without being caught. it actually reminded me that i heard of a movie that was made entirely out of CCTV footage, becuase (i dunno if this is true or not) after a while it becomes public demain. pretty cool concept for a film i think. speaking of security, its really hard finding a bin to throw your rubbish in, which is a real pain, i can't stand littering, i wonder if mass littering was part of the terrorists plan?
i really liked london, history is just bursting at the seams, but i think its one of those places you probably need to live in to fully grasp it. even though i was here for a little over 2 weeks it wasn't enough, but it won't be my last time here during my trip i'm going to do a few stop-off's here. but the main thing is my batteries are charged again which is great, i really needed a break for a bit, and spend some time with some old friends. just wanted to send a big thanks out to Sarah and her house mates for letting me crash with them for a while i hope i wasn't too much of a pain.
anyway off to Paris again for a few days to see Maddie, Mike and Sam again, then to the South of France! See ya!
Liverpool
My trip to Liverpool didn't start to great. the only bus and ferry that went across to liverpool was at 9pm which meant i got into liverpool about 4am. and its not to easy to get a good sleep on a bus or a ferry but when i finally got into liverpool it was all worth while. its kind of like living in a beatles song, before i knew where i had to go to find my hostel i was walking down Lime street which features in the beatles song 'Maggie Mae'. my hostel is pretty dodgy, there are some pretty strange people here but the old guy that runs it makes up for it. he is really kind and has some great stories. he told me a few about his encounters with the beatles. he saw them play at the cavern and on one occation he was in a battle of the bands with the Quarrymen (which was the beatles name when they first started out). Old Kev even saw Bob Dylan when he played here in the early 60's. its funny though, it seems that everyone here has a story about how they know Lennon and McCartney, your forever seeing plaques saying 'john lennon farted in this room' ok, not really, but you get my point, everybody has there claim to fame and who knows how factual the stories are. it reminds me a little bit of Melbourne, and how everyone knows someone thats 'best mates' with one of the guys from the band Jet.
i was pretty suprised with Liverpool, i had a really working class vision in my head but its not that bad at all. i was really impressed with its arts scene. this year, Liverpool is the European cultural capital and the Tate art museum was amazing, they had a great collection of contempory work with names like Pollock, Warhol, Picasso, Man Ray and even a Dali 'lobster phone' which was pretty cool to see. they had a great exhibition upstairs for kids, where instead of the usual, 'shhh be quiet!', 'don't touch' attitude that most galleries have, this one had music blaring, and you could draw on the walls! it was so good. the kids were having a ball and some of them were really good drawers! i thought i was really refreshing.
there was another part of the exhibition where they had people coming up to people and asking them questions and if a conversation was exchanged you got paid 3 pound. i thought it was interesting and would pay for lunch, so i did it, the lady asked me about the economic crisis, and i was shocked because i like to think i'm reasonably well informed but i felt like an idiot becuase i didn't feel i knew anything, well i knew some, but nothing i felt i could have a conversation about. and that was the point of the piece. to be more informed about the world we live in. incase your wondering, i got my 3 pounds.
the Walker gallery here is quite good also, it had plenty of great work in it, like David Hockney, another self portrait of Rembrandt (man, that guy was so vain wherever i go i find a self portait of him) even a Nolan all the way from Australia!
while i was here i saw a Stuart Sutcliffe retrospective. incase your wonder who he was, he played bass with the beatles before they made it big. he left the band in Hamburg to consentrate on his art, but tragically he suffered a brain hemorrhage and died at the age of 21 and is forver immortalized in Beatles history. his work was quite good. mainly oil on canvas but occationally it was cross media, i get the feeling he was heavily influenced by jackson pollock.
i was pretty impressed with some of there street art too. there was this one kind of campaign this particular artist did where he stenciled facts about society all over liverpool, like 'Most people in society beleive there are smarter than than most people in society, are you one of those people?' they were really brilliant, they really made me question myself. they had had this link underneath them. click here to check it out
i did a Magical Mystery tour (i'm not kidding the bus was painted exactly like the really bus) and it took us to a few main places around Liverpool, like the houses of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo. up the road from Ringos house is the pub that is on the cover of his 1st solo album. we also went to places where ideas for Beatles songs came from like, Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane and they pointed out the bank and barber shop that are mentioned in the song, also the grave where Eleanor Rigby is buried.
i had a wander around around the cavern and had a drink at the Jacaranda which is where the beatles played there first concert. being a beatles fan it was a bit of a dream come true walking around Liverpool seeing all the things i've read and heard about for many years. i could've wipe the smile off my face. i also did the 'beatles story' which is like a museum of beatles stuff and how the story goes. its was pretty good it had a few of there old instruments, costumes and even a couple of Johns glasses.
something i found out that i liked about Paul McCartney was there was an old school that he used to go tohere in Liverpool and it was shut down in 1985, Paul thought this was a real shame so he went to Margert Thatcher, who was the PM at the time and asked her for some money. her reply was whatever he put in, she would match it. so Paul put 15 million of his own money in and after being repaired LIPA was openned 1996 and hads had some students finding musical success i believe bands like The Wombats and the Zutons have studied there. Paul even teaches there sometimes and every year he hands out the diplomas at the graduation.
something i liked was, not far from the cathedrals is an old church that was bombed during the second world war and doesn't have a roof, which is now a open air cinema, its such a great space, i would've loved to watch a movie there but it was way too cold i would've frozen to the pew!
Liverpool is such a cool place its got such a great vibe, with plenty of great bars and heaps going on, however it really relies on the past quite a lot, it would be interesting to see what Liverpool would've been like if the Beatles never happened. what would be here? but then again, what would the world be like with out the beatles? anyway i'm off to London to spend christmas with my good friend Sarah, i think it will be nice to have some company for a while. bye for now.
i was pretty suprised with Liverpool, i had a really working class vision in my head but its not that bad at all. i was really impressed with its arts scene. this year, Liverpool is the European cultural capital and the Tate art museum was amazing, they had a great collection of contempory work with names like Pollock, Warhol, Picasso, Man Ray and even a Dali 'lobster phone' which was pretty cool to see. they had a great exhibition upstairs for kids, where instead of the usual, 'shhh be quiet!', 'don't touch' attitude that most galleries have, this one had music blaring, and you could draw on the walls! it was so good. the kids were having a ball and some of them were really good drawers! i thought i was really refreshing.
there was another part of the exhibition where they had people coming up to people and asking them questions and if a conversation was exchanged you got paid 3 pound. i thought it was interesting and would pay for lunch, so i did it, the lady asked me about the economic crisis, and i was shocked because i like to think i'm reasonably well informed but i felt like an idiot becuase i didn't feel i knew anything, well i knew some, but nothing i felt i could have a conversation about. and that was the point of the piece. to be more informed about the world we live in. incase your wondering, i got my 3 pounds.
the Walker gallery here is quite good also, it had plenty of great work in it, like David Hockney, another self portrait of Rembrandt (man, that guy was so vain wherever i go i find a self portait of him) even a Nolan all the way from Australia!
while i was here i saw a Stuart Sutcliffe retrospective. incase your wonder who he was, he played bass with the beatles before they made it big. he left the band in Hamburg to consentrate on his art, but tragically he suffered a brain hemorrhage and died at the age of 21 and is forver immortalized in Beatles history. his work was quite good. mainly oil on canvas but occationally it was cross media, i get the feeling he was heavily influenced by jackson pollock.
i was pretty impressed with some of there street art too. there was this one kind of campaign this particular artist did where he stenciled facts about society all over liverpool, like 'Most people in society beleive there are smarter than than most people in society, are you one of those people?' they were really brilliant, they really made me question myself. they had had this link underneath them. click here to check it out
i did a Magical Mystery tour (i'm not kidding the bus was painted exactly like the really bus) and it took us to a few main places around Liverpool, like the houses of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo. up the road from Ringos house is the pub that is on the cover of his 1st solo album. we also went to places where ideas for Beatles songs came from like, Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane and they pointed out the bank and barber shop that are mentioned in the song, also the grave where Eleanor Rigby is buried.
i had a wander around around the cavern and had a drink at the Jacaranda which is where the beatles played there first concert. being a beatles fan it was a bit of a dream come true walking around Liverpool seeing all the things i've read and heard about for many years. i could've wipe the smile off my face. i also did the 'beatles story' which is like a museum of beatles stuff and how the story goes. its was pretty good it had a few of there old instruments, costumes and even a couple of Johns glasses.
something i found out that i liked about Paul McCartney was there was an old school that he used to go tohere in Liverpool and it was shut down in 1985, Paul thought this was a real shame so he went to Margert Thatcher, who was the PM at the time and asked her for some money. her reply was whatever he put in, she would match it. so Paul put 15 million of his own money in and after being repaired LIPA was openned 1996 and hads had some students finding musical success i believe bands like The Wombats and the Zutons have studied there. Paul even teaches there sometimes and every year he hands out the diplomas at the graduation.
Since i've been in the UK i've been thinking quite a lot about the english language, hearing it change from place to place and different saying etc. i remember i was speaking to some guys from Newcastle when i was in Belfast and they were saying they you can move just a couple of towns over and people will speak totally different but also have different sayings. but the funny thing is they still write in queens english! people from other countries trying to learn english must have an aweful time trying to figure it all out, hell i have problems. just read my blog, i hardly know the difference between, there, they're and their. but there was something that really hit me while i was here. i was going through the beatles story museum and i had one of those walkmans on that tell you about whats in each room. the commerary was done by Julia Baird who is John Lennon's little sister, anyway she said this. 'hi my name is Julia Baird and John Lennon was my brother' i know thats correct English to say, but the word WAS is the thing that really annoyed me, just because hes dead doesn't stop him from being her brother. don't you think?
i was quite suprised with how beautiful the city is, they have some amazing old buildings right in the centre of the city. actually heres a something in case you are ever on the TV show 'who wants to be a million' and this question pops up 'what street is the only street in the world that at both ends of it have a cathedral?' the answer is Hope Street. a funny fact about them is the prodostant one is the biggest in europe (trust me, its massive!) and was designed by a catholic who also designed the telephone box (theres one inside the church to pay tribute to him. i think its because Dr Who left it behind) and the catholic one at the other end of the street was deigned by a prodostant. crazy!something i liked was, not far from the cathedrals is an old church that was bombed during the second world war and doesn't have a roof, which is now a open air cinema, its such a great space, i would've loved to watch a movie there but it was way too cold i would've frozen to the pew!
Liverpool is such a cool place its got such a great vibe, with plenty of great bars and heaps going on, however it really relies on the past quite a lot, it would be interesting to see what Liverpool would've been like if the Beatles never happened. what would be here? but then again, what would the world be like with out the beatles? anyway i'm off to London to spend christmas with my good friend Sarah, i think it will be nice to have some company for a while. bye for now.
Dublin
let me start by saying i really love Dublin. such a vibrant city with the heaps of history and thing plenty going on. its funny, because a lot of locals form all the other places i've visited in Ireland have all said that Dublin is terrible and that i won't like it, but to be honest its probably been one of my favourite places.
You don't go far without finding something on the number of Authors from Dublin, one of there favourites is Mr. James Joyce who wrote a number of books that are based in Dublin. some of his more famous works are Dubliners, Ulysses, Finnegans Wake and Batman... ok, he didn't really write the last one. he was also a roaring alcoholic and was constantly getting thrown out of bars for being soo drunk. supposedly he would say he was going to bars to get more inspiration for his books about the people of Dublin. yeah, right. i only knew of Joyce becuase i found out that John Lennon wrote a couple of books of short stories ('In his Own Write' and 'A Spaniard in the Works') in the early 60's that play heavily with words and he was compared to Joyce. theres a bit of trivia for ya!
something i found interesting about Ireland is up until recently, if you're an artist you don't get taxed. now if your an artist that earn over something like 2 million a year you get taxed, fair enough, but that pretty much narrows it down to U2 and thats about it, but get this, U2 probably one of the biggest bands in the world have decided to move a lot of there business from Ireland because of this. what dodgy buggers! like they even need the extra cash. Bono has a luxury house not far from here and they have a chain of hotels as well, its not like they're struggling. speaking of Bono, not far from where i'm staying is the shop he got his stage name from a hearing aid store called 'Bonavox' (his original name is Paul Hewson. not very rock star huh) i think its latin for beautiful voice, but i could be wrong.
Dublin has a number of good Art Galleries here, but i think my favourite was the Hugh Lane Gallery. Inside its got Fransis Bacons studio, which was moved from London to Dublin a few years back. i remember seeing a doco on the move a few years back so it was something i really wanted to see. it would've been an huge effort to catalog everything not only becuase they had to move a whole room from a house and reassemble it in a gallery, but because the studio was a pig sty! but its really interesting.
something i found interesting about Ireland is up until recently, if you're an artist you don't get taxed. now if your an artist that earn over something like 2 million a year you get taxed, fair enough, but that pretty much narrows it down to U2 and thats about it, but get this, U2 probably one of the biggest bands in the world have decided to move a lot of there business from Ireland because of this. what dodgy buggers! like they even need the extra cash. Bono has a luxury house not far from here and they have a chain of hotels as well, its not like they're struggling. speaking of Bono, not far from where i'm staying is the shop he got his stage name from a hearing aid store called 'Bonavox' (his original name is Paul Hewson. not very rock star huh) i think its latin for beautiful voice, but i could be wrong.
Dublin has a number of good Art Galleries here, but i think my favourite was the Hugh Lane Gallery. Inside its got Fransis Bacons studio, which was moved from London to Dublin a few years back. i remember seeing a doco on the move a few years back so it was something i really wanted to see. it would've been an huge effort to catalog everything not only becuase they had to move a whole room from a house and reassemble it in a gallery, but because the studio was a pig sty! but its really interesting.
one of the guys that was staying in my room was a photographer from Paris and he was having a exhibition so i went along to that too. it was pretty good. it reminded me of what a great time i had there, i think i might go back if time permits. he was saying the light here in Ireland is perfect for taking photos. i'll have to take his word for it.
one of my favourite movies of last year was 'Once' and it was shot here in Dublin and since i've been here i've seen a couple of places that are in the movie, like the scene where Glen is busking on the street (Graften Street, which is a main shopping strip here, supposedly a lot of big musicians started out busking on that street.) and a guy runs passed and steals his change and runs into the Park (St. Stephens Green). anyway, if you haven't seen the movie, you really should, such a good film, it won an oscar for best soundtrack.
The Temple bar district is really cool. heaps of vintage clothing stores, i got chatting to a guy that worked in one of them about Ryan Adams and how good his first 2 albums were, i think i spoke to him for a good hour or so, nice guy. The Temple bar district, funnily enough has some great bars and not just the tradional ones, some really cool, kooky ones! God i love the kooky ones! i was getting a little sick of the tradional stuff. My friend Marcus who i worked with in Brisbane, originally came from Dublin and he told me to check out a bar called Doyles corner, so i took a couple of the people that were staying in my hostel there. it ended up being a really good night, they have this thing called 'Ruby Sessions' on a tuesday night and get people to play music. some pretty big names have started here, Damien Rice and the Frames are a couple of them. the night we went 4 acts played. a Canadian guy who sung country, a local guy who played guitar and had a string section, 3 guys and a girl that sung folk and the headline act, a guy called Bill Coleman (click here to check out his myspace) people are saying his first album is as good as Damien Rice's debut. let me just say whoa! hold your horses! that is a massive call, the guy was pretty good, but not that good. while we were there one of the girls ordered a Guinness with Ribena. sounds like a strange combo but supposedly its a common drink for the ladies. i tried it, i think it kind of tasted like a turkish delight.
speaking of Guinness, I went to the Guinness factory while i was here, and i wasn't that sure if i was going to like it. but it ended up being pretty good. it was kind of set up like Willy Wonkers factory, but for alcoholics, the factory is designed like a giant pint glass. at the factory you got to see how the beer was made etc and you got taught how to pour your own Guinness, which there is a bit of an artform too. but best of all was the Gravity room up stairs, that has a 360 degree view of Dublin, it was amazing. there were a few interesting things i found out about the Guinness family and the business. Mr Guinness signed a contract to lease the brewery for 9000 years for something like £50 a year. talk about good business! something i like was the company looked after there workers really well, they helped them and there families with health care and housing, how nice is that. so if you got a job at Guinness it was like winning the lottery. something a little obsure i heard about Guinness was at one stage, when people gave blood here they got a pint of Guinness at the end to replenish there body. how good is that, a pint for a pint, sounds fair to me!
one of my favourite movies of last year was 'Once' and it was shot here in Dublin and since i've been here i've seen a couple of places that are in the movie, like the scene where Glen is busking on the street (Graften Street, which is a main shopping strip here, supposedly a lot of big musicians started out busking on that street.) and a guy runs passed and steals his change and runs into the Park (St. Stephens Green). anyway, if you haven't seen the movie, you really should, such a good film, it won an oscar for best soundtrack.
The Temple bar district is really cool. heaps of vintage clothing stores, i got chatting to a guy that worked in one of them about Ryan Adams and how good his first 2 albums were, i think i spoke to him for a good hour or so, nice guy. The Temple bar district, funnily enough has some great bars and not just the tradional ones, some really cool, kooky ones! God i love the kooky ones! i was getting a little sick of the tradional stuff. My friend Marcus who i worked with in Brisbane, originally came from Dublin and he told me to check out a bar called Doyles corner, so i took a couple of the people that were staying in my hostel there. it ended up being a really good night, they have this thing called 'Ruby Sessions' on a tuesday night and get people to play music. some pretty big names have started here, Damien Rice and the Frames are a couple of them. the night we went 4 acts played. a Canadian guy who sung country, a local guy who played guitar and had a string section, 3 guys and a girl that sung folk and the headline act, a guy called Bill Coleman (click here to check out his myspace) people are saying his first album is as good as Damien Rice's debut. let me just say whoa! hold your horses! that is a massive call, the guy was pretty good, but not that good. while we were there one of the girls ordered a Guinness with Ribena. sounds like a strange combo but supposedly its a common drink for the ladies. i tried it, i think it kind of tasted like a turkish delight.
speaking of Guinness, I went to the Guinness factory while i was here, and i wasn't that sure if i was going to like it. but it ended up being pretty good. it was kind of set up like Willy Wonkers factory, but for alcoholics, the factory is designed like a giant pint glass. at the factory you got to see how the beer was made etc and you got taught how to pour your own Guinness, which there is a bit of an artform too. but best of all was the Gravity room up stairs, that has a 360 degree view of Dublin, it was amazing. there were a few interesting things i found out about the Guinness family and the business. Mr Guinness signed a contract to lease the brewery for 9000 years for something like £50 a year. talk about good business! something i like was the company looked after there workers really well, they helped them and there families with health care and housing, how nice is that. so if you got a job at Guinness it was like winning the lottery. something a little obsure i heard about Guinness was at one stage, when people gave blood here they got a pint of Guinness at the end to replenish there body. how good is that, a pint for a pint, sounds fair to me!
I had a walk through Trinity college too, which is beautiful. some realy famous people have studied here Oscar Wilde being one them, by the way i saw where he was born and lived for a while. anyway, back to Trinity college. there is a big bell tower in the middle of the grounds. supposedly when its exam time, its bad luck to walk under it and students try and push there friends under it. the libary here is quite amazing and it holds the book of kells, which probably one of the most important books in Irish history, its a book a few monks made containing the four gospels and the new testement. its pretty old, and looking a bit tattered these days, it was stolen at one stage and was recovered a little bit beaten up and missing a few pages. a bit of a nerdy fact about the libary at Trinity college is a scence in one of the star wars movies was shot there (i feel i should give MYSELF a wedgie for writing that).
i ended up getting along with the staff at the hostel really well and we went out a couple of nights to a few different places. we met an aussie guy at one of the pubs and he was such a wanker, he was a real name dropper and thought he was it-and-a-bit, i could hardly contain the laughter. i really hope that Irish people don't think all Australians are like him. the people at the hostel were such a good crew, one day they took me out to a seaside town called Howth which was really pretty, supposedly the drummer from U2 lives there. something i liked was the seals that swam around the docks! they were massive and so cute they would just sit with there heads under water and watch you then pop there heads up when they thought you had food. i had such a good time at the hostel i considered getting a job there because there was a position available, but the boss was such a tool i could see myself clashing with him quite a bit. who knows, if i need the money i might come back.
i ended up getting along with the staff at the hostel really well and we went out a couple of nights to a few different places. we met an aussie guy at one of the pubs and he was such a wanker, he was a real name dropper and thought he was it-and-a-bit, i could hardly contain the laughter. i really hope that Irish people don't think all Australians are like him. the people at the hostel were such a good crew, one day they took me out to a seaside town called Howth which was really pretty, supposedly the drummer from U2 lives there. something i liked was the seals that swam around the docks! they were massive and so cute they would just sit with there heads under water and watch you then pop there heads up when they thought you had food. i had such a good time at the hostel i considered getting a job there because there was a position available, but the boss was such a tool i could see myself clashing with him quite a bit. who knows, if i need the money i might come back.
Its a bit of a shame i didn't get to see a game of Gaelic football, i was really keen to see a game. but they are finished for the season. bummer! something that i found out that i liked about Gaelic football is its grass roots. none of the players are professional and all the money generated from games goes straight back into the clubs and the community.
Overall i've enjoyed Ireland, it was nice to see the place were Mum's side of the family would've come from. but something that was annoying with it was how expensive it is, i was really shocked, and i wasn't the only one, some people i've met and found that here more expensive than London. oh well, off to Liverpool to catch up with the Fab Four!
Cork
I have to say even though i hate the bus ride itself the scenery is quite nice so i kind of makes us for the smelly people and children crying, well sort of. Cork is a lot bigger than Galway but still not massive. i like the city center, there are parts of it that actually remind me of Melbourne, mainly because the laneways have lots of cafes, restaurants and bars down them. its quite nice just to walk around them and take it all in. something i've found interesting in not only Cork but throughout parts of Ireland are the signs are in both English and in Gaelic. i've heard there are parts where its only in Gaelic, which could make it a little tricky getting around. where i'm staying is in a good central spot across the road from me is a furniture and homeware store, the woman that owns the shop is really nice and we had a good chat about the stuff she stocked, alot of her stuff is from all over the world, not just Ireland. i was looking at a pattern on a chair and i recognized it from somewhere, she told me it was a Florence Broadhurst design, no wonder i knew it, she's Australian (if you haven't heard of Florence i recommend checking her out, her story is amazing and the mystery around her murder is intriguing). The people i'm staying with in the hostels are pretty cool, heaps of Aussies and New Zealanders and they all seem to be looking for jobs here at the moment. whenever i look at the news here, people are being laid of left, right and center. good luck to them, i hope they find something. but best of all on a Friday night they put on a free sausage sizzle. as i was biting into a gourmet sausage i couldn't help but think, 'i'm living the dream'. but it was short lived, i had to share a room with a guy who snored all night long, i didn't get a wink of sleep.
while i was here i went to a church where you could ring the 'bells of Shandon'. because I've never rang bells before, my ringing was rubbish, but kind of cool to do. you can ring them whenever you like which must be heaven for the people that live around the area. the poor buggers have to listen to piss weak bell rings all day long. while your climbing up the bell tower you can see how the old clock works which is quite interesting. the view from the top was really nice, i was lucky because it was pretty clear when i got up there and could see quite far. the old bloke that worked at the church was good value, i had a chat to him for a bit and he showed me how to get to the university, because he said it was worth checking out, and it was. The university is a mix of old and new buildings but is really beautiful, they have a gallery there too, but the work in it wasn't pretty average. while i was there i wandering into some building where they had all these stones on display. i asked the guy what they were and he explained to me that they were Ogham Stones and the markings on them are the first signs of writing in Ireland. they are pretty much lines at different lengths that sometime over lap. they were used to mark out land. supposedly the university has the biggest collection so stumbling across those was an awesome find!
not far from there was the Cork museum and when i got there it was closed for lunch, which i found a little strange, but i went into the cafe to ask when they open again, the girl behind the counter asked me where i was from and she ended up writing me an itinerary of things to do and bars to check out while i'm in Ireland, i didn't have the heart to tell here i probably wasn't going to do it all, but it was very nice of her, and it killed some time until the museum was open.
St Finbarre's Cathedral is quite interesting and you may have noticed from previous blogs i'm much of a fan of religion. anyway, i walked in there and there were some very excited catholics inside that couldn't wait to show me around, i pretty got a guided tour around the place. supposedly this was the site where a monk started his monastery here and where Cork was founded from. there were a couple of churches built here over time but were demolished to make room for this cathedral. the lead lighting was quite interesting, the left side of the building had the old testament and the right and toward the back had new testament. i really respect that kind of work, i think it would take alot of talent to design that stuff. they had a huge pipe organ which had over 1000 pipes in it, which was pretty impressive. something i found a little strange was there was a cannonball hanging from the ceiling. story goes, there is a fort next door, and during a battle one of the original churches got a caught in the cross fire and a cannonball got lodged in the side of the tower.
One day i took the bus out to Blarney to see the castle and of course kiss the stone. as i said in my last blog, i'm a little over castles but i made an exception for this one. i was actually surprised to find that there was more there than just the stone. the Castle is really cool and has a labyrinth of caves under it which were amazing, they came about for people attacking them trying to burrow underneath the castle. the gardens around it were quite pretty too. in them they had a few strange things to explore like 'the wishing steps', 'the witches kitchen', 'druids cave' and 'druids stones' which, as the story goes, is where witches were said to congregate and snakes were involved in there rituals so thats why they St. Patrick got rid of all the snakes in Ireland. but of course you don't go to Blarney and not kiss the stone. the stone is right up the top of the castle and so you have to trek up some pretty small steps to get up there, the view its self is worth it. by kissing the stone your meant to endow the kisser with the gift of the gab (god, like i needed anymore help, i think your born with it if your a Hendrick) you have to lay on your back hold on to some bars behind you so you don't fall then you lean right back and pucker up! i spoke to the guy who worked there (he was a classic) and he said originally you would have to hang from your feet to kiss the stone, but since then then they have taken out part of the wall to access it easier. Blarney is a pretty little town too, when i say little i mean little, only a few streets really. i went to the local pub there and had an Irish stew for lunch, it was really good but so big, i think my stomach has shrunk! i'm a little bit surprised but the lack of potatoes, i thought i might be force fed them but there are hardly in many dishes. in fact the Scots loved them more i think, they were always selling stuffed potatoes or chips of some kind, still its early days.
during my time in Cork a took some time out and did a tour of the Ring of Kerry. i got recomended by a few people at the hostel i was staying at to check it out, the scenery out there is amazing, i'm really glad i went. something i thought was good was the EU (European union) make countries do a certain amount of conservation, here in Ireland they have put a lot of money into there native animals to helped boost numbers. if they don't they don't get funding for things like roads etc. i think its really responsible and a great idea. i stayed the night in a little town called Killarney which is cute. while i was there they had a great little market going on with people playing music in the street, for a few of the songs they got some little kids to do riverdance stuff to the music which was brilliant! they were pretty good considering how young they were.
its funny, since i've been in Ireland theres been plenty in the news about a girl called Katy French, she was an Irish model that died a year ago from a cocaine overdose, which is pretty tragic. they had a memorial for her the other day. but i can't get over how much the media is making her into a martyr, they have double page spreads in newspapers and TV specials like she was Princess Diana, i think its pretty wrong. lets face it, she died because she was doing illegal drugs, but i feel the media seem to gloss over that fact because she's got a pretty face. now don't get me wrong, i think its terrible that someone so young dies, the media just shit me, they make out like some one else shoved a few kilos of coke up her nose, somehow i get the feeling she wasn't a first time user. i don't really know the full story, she may have been a saint.
I'm off to Dublin next, which i think could be really good, even though the locals tell me its 'shite'! more when i get there.
while i was here i went to a church where you could ring the 'bells of Shandon'. because I've never rang bells before, my ringing was rubbish, but kind of cool to do. you can ring them whenever you like which must be heaven for the people that live around the area. the poor buggers have to listen to piss weak bell rings all day long. while your climbing up the bell tower you can see how the old clock works which is quite interesting. the view from the top was really nice, i was lucky because it was pretty clear when i got up there and could see quite far. the old bloke that worked at the church was good value, i had a chat to him for a bit and he showed me how to get to the university, because he said it was worth checking out, and it was. The university is a mix of old and new buildings but is really beautiful, they have a gallery there too, but the work in it wasn't pretty average. while i was there i wandering into some building where they had all these stones on display. i asked the guy what they were and he explained to me that they were Ogham Stones and the markings on them are the first signs of writing in Ireland. they are pretty much lines at different lengths that sometime over lap. they were used to mark out land. supposedly the university has the biggest collection so stumbling across those was an awesome find!
not far from there was the Cork museum and when i got there it was closed for lunch, which i found a little strange, but i went into the cafe to ask when they open again, the girl behind the counter asked me where i was from and she ended up writing me an itinerary of things to do and bars to check out while i'm in Ireland, i didn't have the heart to tell here i probably wasn't going to do it all, but it was very nice of her, and it killed some time until the museum was open.
St Finbarre's Cathedral is quite interesting and you may have noticed from previous blogs i'm much of a fan of religion. anyway, i walked in there and there were some very excited catholics inside that couldn't wait to show me around, i pretty got a guided tour around the place. supposedly this was the site where a monk started his monastery here and where Cork was founded from. there were a couple of churches built here over time but were demolished to make room for this cathedral. the lead lighting was quite interesting, the left side of the building had the old testament and the right and toward the back had new testament. i really respect that kind of work, i think it would take alot of talent to design that stuff. they had a huge pipe organ which had over 1000 pipes in it, which was pretty impressive. something i found a little strange was there was a cannonball hanging from the ceiling. story goes, there is a fort next door, and during a battle one of the original churches got a caught in the cross fire and a cannonball got lodged in the side of the tower.
One day i took the bus out to Blarney to see the castle and of course kiss the stone. as i said in my last blog, i'm a little over castles but i made an exception for this one. i was actually surprised to find that there was more there than just the stone. the Castle is really cool and has a labyrinth of caves under it which were amazing, they came about for people attacking them trying to burrow underneath the castle. the gardens around it were quite pretty too. in them they had a few strange things to explore like 'the wishing steps', 'the witches kitchen', 'druids cave' and 'druids stones' which, as the story goes, is where witches were said to congregate and snakes were involved in there rituals so thats why they St. Patrick got rid of all the snakes in Ireland. but of course you don't go to Blarney and not kiss the stone. the stone is right up the top of the castle and so you have to trek up some pretty small steps to get up there, the view its self is worth it. by kissing the stone your meant to endow the kisser with the gift of the gab (god, like i needed anymore help, i think your born with it if your a Hendrick) you have to lay on your back hold on to some bars behind you so you don't fall then you lean right back and pucker up! i spoke to the guy who worked there (he was a classic) and he said originally you would have to hang from your feet to kiss the stone, but since then then they have taken out part of the wall to access it easier. Blarney is a pretty little town too, when i say little i mean little, only a few streets really. i went to the local pub there and had an Irish stew for lunch, it was really good but so big, i think my stomach has shrunk! i'm a little bit surprised but the lack of potatoes, i thought i might be force fed them but there are hardly in many dishes. in fact the Scots loved them more i think, they were always selling stuffed potatoes or chips of some kind, still its early days.
during my time in Cork a took some time out and did a tour of the Ring of Kerry. i got recomended by a few people at the hostel i was staying at to check it out, the scenery out there is amazing, i'm really glad i went. something i thought was good was the EU (European union) make countries do a certain amount of conservation, here in Ireland they have put a lot of money into there native animals to helped boost numbers. if they don't they don't get funding for things like roads etc. i think its really responsible and a great idea. i stayed the night in a little town called Killarney which is cute. while i was there they had a great little market going on with people playing music in the street, for a few of the songs they got some little kids to do riverdance stuff to the music which was brilliant! they were pretty good considering how young they were.
its funny, since i've been in Ireland theres been plenty in the news about a girl called Katy French, she was an Irish model that died a year ago from a cocaine overdose, which is pretty tragic. they had a memorial for her the other day. but i can't get over how much the media is making her into a martyr, they have double page spreads in newspapers and TV specials like she was Princess Diana, i think its pretty wrong. lets face it, she died because she was doing illegal drugs, but i feel the media seem to gloss over that fact because she's got a pretty face. now don't get me wrong, i think its terrible that someone so young dies, the media just shit me, they make out like some one else shoved a few kilos of coke up her nose, somehow i get the feeling she wasn't a first time user. i don't really know the full story, she may have been a saint.
I'm off to Dublin next, which i think could be really good, even though the locals tell me its 'shite'! more when i get there.
Galway
the bus ride to Galway was a nightmare at the time but kind of funny in hindsight. the signs at the bus station were incorrect so i had to walk around trying to find the bus. when i did i got stuck with a bus driver with a really strange taste in music one minute he'd be listening to the Mary Poppins soundtrack, then it was Opera and then some music hall numbers from the dark ages. but the funny and painful thing was that he sung along the whole way but he was so tone deaf that it didn't even sound like the song. he sounded a little bit like Mr Bean singing. by the end of the 9 hour trip (it took longer because the roads were icy) i was ready to cry!
Galway, wow! this place is easily one of the most beautiful little spots i've ever seen. the first day i was here i just took it easy and sat on the water for a couple of hours. it was such great weather, there was no wind at all and the sun on my face was magic. i think i could've sat there forever, just looking out over the water. speak of water there are heaps of canals that run through the city which are really nice, i've noticed i really like places with water or canals, can't explain why though.
Galway is a really tradional town, there are some really cute little cobblestone streets and lanes full of shops and great little pubs (i thought the pubs in Belfast were cool, these take the cake!) and the vibe in them is electric, there seems to be something going on in them every night of the week, they have plenty of local music being played in them. the perfect place to have a Guinness, mmmmm Guinness, so good! while i was there people in the crowd were yelling out a request called 'Galway Girl', i'd never heard of it before, but everyone in the pub did, they sung it word for word, it was pretty amazing. the singer was quite good too, he started making up funny lyrics to the song and got everyone laughing.
i think the city is prettiest at night, its light up beautifully. some of the buildings here are really cute too, some of the streets here look great with when the house are painted different colours, sometimes just the doors, sometimes the windows, sometime the roof is made of straw, its all good.
I took a trip down to County Clare and saw a bit of the countrys west coast, it was really beautiful, i couldn't get over how rocky it was, the highlight was the Cliffs of Moher, that are roughly 200m high. i walked along most of it, but it was a bit wet and it was muddy, just as i was thinking in my head 'Australian Male falls to his death' i slipped and nearly did fall in, after that i start thinking 'australian male on holiday finds pot of gold' it hasn't happened yet.
another thing i really liked was the different hues of green, they were unbelievable. The stone walls that divided the area were amazing, the way they were constructed looked like they could fall over at any moment because they were just rocks sitting on top of rocks, they didn't have anything holding them together. speaking of rocks, i saw the Poulnabrone Dolmen. they are kind of like stonehenge but only one of them instead of many, its where they would put the dead and animals would come and eat there flesh (yuk!), when theyre done the bodies would be buried. we also saw the Kilfenora high crosses. and a few different castles. i have to say the novelty of castles has started to wear off, oh whats that? a castle... oh look ANOTHER castle. half of them are ruins anyway.
of course its the people in the town that make the place. everyone here is really friendly and have a good sense of humour. I saw some guy in the street who reminded me of Father Jack from the TV show 'Father Ted' he was mumbling stuff and was rather dissheveled i thought at any moment he might yell 'Feck!'. also there is this woman who is staying at the hostel, she reminds me of a cat lady, minus the cats. she always talking to herself and is always cooking toast and the way she makes her coffee, its like shes making some sort of potion. i think shes a bit mental. i thought that if i go to Ireland i might see a leprechaun, so far i've seen 2 midgets, does that count? anyway i'm off to riverdance my way to Cork! watch out Michael Flatley!
Galway, wow! this place is easily one of the most beautiful little spots i've ever seen. the first day i was here i just took it easy and sat on the water for a couple of hours. it was such great weather, there was no wind at all and the sun on my face was magic. i think i could've sat there forever, just looking out over the water. speak of water there are heaps of canals that run through the city which are really nice, i've noticed i really like places with water or canals, can't explain why though.
Galway is a really tradional town, there are some really cute little cobblestone streets and lanes full of shops and great little pubs (i thought the pubs in Belfast were cool, these take the cake!) and the vibe in them is electric, there seems to be something going on in them every night of the week, they have plenty of local music being played in them. the perfect place to have a Guinness, mmmmm Guinness, so good! while i was there people in the crowd were yelling out a request called 'Galway Girl', i'd never heard of it before, but everyone in the pub did, they sung it word for word, it was pretty amazing. the singer was quite good too, he started making up funny lyrics to the song and got everyone laughing.
i think the city is prettiest at night, its light up beautifully. some of the buildings here are really cute too, some of the streets here look great with when the house are painted different colours, sometimes just the doors, sometimes the windows, sometime the roof is made of straw, its all good.
I took a trip down to County Clare and saw a bit of the countrys west coast, it was really beautiful, i couldn't get over how rocky it was, the highlight was the Cliffs of Moher, that are roughly 200m high. i walked along most of it, but it was a bit wet and it was muddy, just as i was thinking in my head 'Australian Male falls to his death' i slipped and nearly did fall in, after that i start thinking 'australian male on holiday finds pot of gold' it hasn't happened yet.
another thing i really liked was the different hues of green, they were unbelievable. The stone walls that divided the area were amazing, the way they were constructed looked like they could fall over at any moment because they were just rocks sitting on top of rocks, they didn't have anything holding them together. speaking of rocks, i saw the Poulnabrone Dolmen. they are kind of like stonehenge but only one of them instead of many, its where they would put the dead and animals would come and eat there flesh (yuk!), when theyre done the bodies would be buried. we also saw the Kilfenora high crosses. and a few different castles. i have to say the novelty of castles has started to wear off, oh whats that? a castle... oh look ANOTHER castle. half of them are ruins anyway.
of course its the people in the town that make the place. everyone here is really friendly and have a good sense of humour. I saw some guy in the street who reminded me of Father Jack from the TV show 'Father Ted' he was mumbling stuff and was rather dissheveled i thought at any moment he might yell 'Feck!'. also there is this woman who is staying at the hostel, she reminds me of a cat lady, minus the cats. she always talking to herself and is always cooking toast and the way she makes her coffee, its like shes making some sort of potion. i think shes a bit mental. i thought that if i go to Ireland i might see a leprechaun, so far i've seen 2 midgets, does that count? anyway i'm off to riverdance my way to Cork! watch out Michael Flatley!
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