More Burren

The Burren means "rocky place"; it is a unique geological area, a lunar landscape. Arctic and Mediterranean flowers bloom side by side here.


You can click on the pictures to see a larger image...








These rock walls are made without mortar. You can hear the wind whistle through them...

After the tour, I made my way to the bus station and said a silent goodbye to Ennis. I felt strangely strong, adjusted to a temporary life of travel in 1 day.

Cliffs of Moher & the Burren

Thanks everyone, for your posts! It is so good to hear from you! My 2nd day I took a tour of the Cliffs of Moher and the Burren. Thankfully, it was a minibus, not one of those behemoth buses. For safety reasons, they are now walling off the cliffs, so people can't go right up to the edge and look over. It was difficult to feel an intimate connection with the area, due to the construction and all the people, but it was surely grand. In the bathroom, woman exclaimed over their hair (it was very windy up there). Tourists in many languages. Many couples.




That evening, I took a bus to Galway.

Please stand by; we are experiencing technical difficulties

This is my first time at an Internet cafe. It's taken me awhile to get even these pictures uploaded. Maybe I will figure out what's causing these problems later; in the meantime, I am going to log off. I can feel euros draining out of me by the minute!

More Ennis

graffiti
view from my hostel window


St. Francis altar, Friary ruins









Old Drumcliff Cemetery











The next day, before my tour of the Cliffs of Moher and the Burren, I walked around some more. Wandered into a chocolate shop. Had a long, delightful conversation with Marcia (Marci-a, not Marsha). She was passionate about chocolate and described cocoa beans from different plantations as having their own flavors, like grapes from different vineyards. She had lived in America, San Diego, for 9 years.

Less disoriented on Tuesday, my 2nd day. Around lunchtime, teenagers in school uniforms roam the street in packs.

Ennis

Ennis is a cute town, but it also feels like real people live and work there; it's not just a tourist vehicle. Observations: narrow sidewalks, unclear crosswalks and traffic flow, blind corners; covered alleys and pedestrian-only streets. Street signs are hard to find and not always present (this was true in London, too). Crossing the street feels like taking my life into my hands!

The woman at the PO seemed to have trouble understanding me, which I found amusing and comforting. The Abbey Hostel seemed to be a microcosm of the town--labrynthine. It was also rustic, but charming. I walked a lot my first day and got drenched in the rain. By 19:20 I had a compendium of complaints, so I took the advice of two different locals and hitched a ride. 4-5 cars passed me before one stopped. A woman was driving, her daughter was in the back seat. The car smelled of fresh baked bread (they were transporting a loaf). I was so grateful to get a ride, I mean, lift. That evening I ate in Cruise's pub (Irish stew with clear, herby broth and an Irish whiskey) and talked for a couple hours with a local retired man. A session (traditional music where anyone can join in) started at "half-9" (9:30).

On the ground and showered

view from the plane

There is a Van Morrison song for many places in Ireland and N. Ireland

Reserved my first night (Monday, Sept 4--Labor Day) in the Ennis Abbey Hostel. Looks nice from the pictures. They have private rooms with several beds (and charge by the bed), but I will be staying in a dorm-type room with 5 beds. Maybe later I will stay in a private room or "splurge" on a B&B, but part of the point of staying in a hostel is to meet people.

I am flying into Shannon, in the west of Ireland. Ennis is just a short ways from there. I don't think I know any Van Morrison songs about Shannon or Ennis. I'm sure many songs will be floating through my head while I am there, though. When I was in California in July I could think of a song for many of the places we passed or visited. For my roommates, there is a movie quote for everything. For me, there is a song.

Miscellaneous Preparations

• Photocopy itinerary and passport for roommates (the passport is in case I'm kidnapped by a cute Irish lad and they need to involve the U.S. Embassy)
• Arrange rendezvous with friends and friends of friends
• Snuggle cat to soothe guilt over leaving her
• Memorize words of travel guru, Rick Steves
• Browse web for information on Irish wildlife
• Plan trip/reconcile self to the relationship between procrastination and spontaneity

My words, with mustard please

It is possible, and even likely, that I said I would never "blog." Maybe there were no witnesses...but I doubt it. However, this seems as good a way as any to communicate to friends and family (and errant internet browsers) while I am on vacation.