Hamburg(ers)

This past weekend we went to Hamburg, Germany. We were there from Saturday to Tuesday, so it was a short trip but definitely still fun. We basically walked around during the day, ate at really cheap places, took daily naps, drank until the sun came up (because I was with Irish people and the bars in Germany just don't close), and gawked at all of the prostitutes (there were so many haha). Hamburg is a really pretty city, filled with a lot of interesting things. For example, there was this hot air balloon that you can 'ride' in and see the city. It's attached to the ground by a long wire and costs €15 to ride it, so possibly not worth it seeing as it was pretty foggy and windy most days we were there. Oh and it was balls cold too (probably not as cold as it is back in Michigan but still).

I didn't take that many photos with my camera because it's such a dinosaur to carry around, but I did take a few.

The boys in the train station. We were bored because we got there about a half hour before the train.

On this street is one of the clubs the Beatles played at.

In one of the clubs, there were black lights everywhere. Killian looks like an angel, do you see it?

Mary, O'Grady, Happy, Elle, Rob and Killian at one of the pubs.

The town hall.

It's actually really great to be home. I forget how stressful it is while traveling, and it's always nice to have a place to come home to. Still haven't found a job though, but the prospects are looking better. Wish me luck.

Crayons Are For Coloring, Not For Eating

These past few days have been a bit random (not unlike the title of this blog post). A lot of things have been happening, and at the same time not much has happened. I've been applying for jobs up the wazoo, but haven't really heard back from anyone yet. Next week I plan on taking the DART into town and stopping at random places, getting off and finding the closest pubs to apply for jobs. I have confidence that I can get a job in the next week or two (and let's not lie, it's a necessity).

Over the past few nights, we've had people over every night. We stay up really late, and obviously since I'm in Ireland, we're drinking for the majority of that time. It's fun though. There's no pressure to drink if you don't want to either though which is definitely nice. We're all here to have a good time.

Last night Mary and I decided to book flights to Hamburg, Germany (a bunch of the crew were heading over already) and will be gone for next weekend. YAY! It's funny though, I really had not planned on going to mainland Europe this time. I wanted to travel all over the ROI and the UK. And now we're going to Germany with future plans to meet up with Roisin (pronounced Rosheen) who's studying in Sweden. The funniest part? My heritage lies in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales, Germany and (you guessed it) Sweden. So in the next few months, I may go to each and every place where I have a genetic tie to... weird. And I didn't even plan it that way. The fates brought me here, and the fates apparently want me to learn about my history. Hah.

I also got some really good news yesterday. My cousin Jamie, whom I haven't seen in about 3 years, booked her flight to come visit me here. I'm really excited and hope that she is too (I mean who wouldn't be though. A trip to Ireland and a visit with me). I also spoke with my mom and I think they're going to be able to make it out as well (everyone cross their fingers for that one).

I'm ready for bed but there's still quite the raucous downstairs. I'm gonna either sleep or go back down to chat. For now, here's some photos for you.

Me and Elle... Uh, testing the strength of the mattress.

Then the mattress moved onto the stairs and turned into a sled.

Me, Elle and Roisin

The dysfunctional family photo: Danny, Meg, O'Grady, Mary, and Happy.

Love Vaccine?

There's this article in the New York Times today about the possible invention of a vaccine against love. This seems strange to me, it's like an anti-fairy tale written by a hermitic feminist. What is the world coming to?! Who would want a world without love?

Personally, I think love is a good thing.

Friends

YAY! See what Michael's up to in his new 'video blog'


I'm starting to miss friends back home so this is nice to see Michael like he's right there with me. Also you really should check out his blog because he has some awesome drawings/watercolors/graphic design works up http://wanderingartist.blogspot.com/

Still searching searching searching for a job. I'm editing my CV (resume) today because... well because I want to make it better. Then tomorrow I'm gonna go back out and try again to find a job. Wish me luck.

Now, back to my tea and crumpets... well no crumpets I guess, but I do have some tea.

No Reservations

You know the show 'No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain'? Well there's this one where he comes to Ireland. Mary (one of the other girls from home living with us here) had seen it and said there was a bit about Howth in there. And there is. Apparently this is one of the best places in the world to get seafood. Partially because you get the seafood that has come right off the boat into the restaurant. There's even a bar connected to the 'Waterside' (a pub we've been going to to watch the football matches) called the 'Fisherman's Bar'. It's called that because it opens at half 7 for the fisherman to come in and drink. So it's filled with a bunch of old, smelly irishmen, and I'm not even over exaggerating. Anyways, to recap, Howth is good for seafood, there's a fresh fish market in the mornings which I plan to go to now knowing that it's really that great, and Anthony Bourdain agrees. Here's some of the show that features my new favorite irish town.





The part about Howth gets chopped up into two pieces, so watch them both.

Dublin?

Nothing all that exciting has been happening as of late. We still have to get to our orientation, then register with the garda, and only then can we start looking for work. Well, we've been looking, just couldn't do anything about it yet. We've been into Dublin a few times over the past couple of days, which has been fun. Mostly we've been going to do business, but yesterday after breakfast, Mary and I walked around St. Stephen's Green, which is right off Grafton Street and then went to the National Gallery. That tuckered us out rather quickly so we headed back to Howth just in time to catch the last of the daylight on the DART (Dublin Area Rapid Train, or something like that). Anywho, obviously I'll get on with something when it gets exciting around here, but for now, here's some more photos...

A building on Grafton Street

A view from St. Stephen's Green

A shamrocky street lamp

Grafton Street at night

O'Connell Street at night

The Christmas Tree of balls on O'Connell Street

S'all for now.

The Bloody Stream? Abrakebabra?

They have places here like 'The Bloody Stream' and 'Abrakebabra'. Here's a little history lesson for all you wondering why the f*ck it's called 'The Bloody Stream'

10th August 1177, during the 2nd Norman Invasion of Ireland, Sir John de Courcy's expedition arrived off Howth. Unable to leave his ship, the command was taken over by Sir Almeric Tristram, said to be a descendant of Sir Tristram, a knight of King Arthur's Round Table. A great battle ensued against the Danes, who were then in occupation on Evora Bridge, over a stream; afterwards known as the Bloody Stream. During the construction of this public house, we found that the Bloody Stream runs directly under these premises. Having fought a constant battle with the stream flooding the bar, we decided to make peace with it, hence the name, The Bloody Stream.


And I even found a Wikipedia page about 'Abrakebabra'

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abrakebabra


Tonight was the first night that we all went out. A bunch of Danny and Justy's friends (Justy also lives in the house with us) took us to 'The Bloody Stream' for drinks, then we all took a taxi out to Portmarnock for Danny's favorite treat, kebabs from 'Abrakebabra'. Basically it was like a night out back home, but much cooler.

Oh and we went into Dublin for a while today, which was fun as well. Didn't do that much, just some business. I think we might be heading back into the city centre tomorrow though.

Next Stop: Craic

Craic (pronounced 'crack'): meaning 'fun or enjoyment'

Today Mary and I walked around Howth to do some exploring. It's not that cold here, I only wore a down vest and was kind of hot after walking for a while. There were a lot of people out down by the water, and a surprising amount of tourists. That made me feel less awkward seeing as I was carrying around a giant camera taking pictures at every turn. It gets dark here pretty early and our schedules are still rather messed up so we weren't out for that long. Probably an hour and a half. We talked with one of the workers at the off license just down the street and so far, everyone has been rather friendly, which is comforting. I can't really wait until we get a chance to explore the towns around here too.

I think in the next few days we're going to go into Dublin, and I'm excited to finally get back there. I was there once last time, and it was only for 3 days, which was definitely not enough time. I may also take the bus out to the west coast soonish to meet up with Gwen and Joe for a fun reunion of sorts in the Burren. As of right now though, I think we're about to watch a movie and hit the hay. To hold you over, here's some photos from today's romp around the city.

The front door of our house

The Cock Tavern

St. Mary's church, the ruins down the way

The Irish Sea

Some of the shops up the street

Oh and Happy New Year! Or Hippo Gnu Deer if you're my brother.