Visit to Ireland

DISCLAIMER: This is the non-MTH portion of the blog. Hey, this is a vacation for me!

I've had a great two days in Ireland. Finally coming to this country, plus the MTH shows this week, will make this the trip of a lifetime.

Today I visited the harbor at Cobr (pronounced Cove, bottom photo). My maternal grandfather left for America from there in 1905, when it was called Queenstown. I'm sure my other three grandparents left from there also, but I don't have details. It is the second biggest natural harbor in the world (Trivia: What's first?)

Having been to Ellis Island in 2004, this kind of completed the set. It was interesting to hear the stories of the emigrants from the viewpoint of the country they left.

It was a good time to debut my new hat, as I figure my grandfather wore one like it when he left.

What I didn't know about Queenstown is that it was the last port of call for Titanic in 1912. They had a feature on Titanic in the museum at Cobr. It told of how the small boats Ireland and America came out alongside Titanic to sell goods and souvenirs before Titanic left. Lots of details. 123 persons boarded Titanic at Queenstown. They had a list here. Seventy-nine died. Overall, another thing I didn't know was how high a percentage of Titanic's load was crew. It was something like 1,300 passengers, 800 crew. I'm sure there will be a revivala of interest in Titanio in three years.

There is a church overlooking the harbor, St. Colman's Cathedral. Its spires were the last thing the emigrants would see as they sailed off. Got some striking pictures of it and visited inside, where I signed a book in memory of my grandfather. He died when I was 4.

Also today, visited Blarney Castle and kissed the Blarney Stone (middle photo). Another surprise for me. I figured it would be a rock inside a room. It's not. It's part of the castle wall. For you to kiss it, the staff puts you on your bad and then turns you virtually upside down.

I spent an hour or so walking the castle grounds. It was a feeling of complete tranquility.

To get to these places, I took a train south about three hours each way.

I'm passing the time reading Dan Brown's new book, The Lost Symbol. Or should I say I read ait. I finished it on the train. Very similar to the The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons. The guy is pretty formulaic. Still a fun book. I must say I figured out the bad guy's secret almost immediately.

Sunday I was on one of those hop-on, hop-off busses in Dublin. Saw St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Guinness Brewery, St. Stephen's Green (top photo) and other places. I hung on as long as I could but I was wasted from the plane ride. I went back to the room around 3 p.m. and slept. I think I'm acclimated now.

They have a giant spire on the main downtown street in Dublin. It reaches about to the moon, but it looks to be only a few feet around, except at the base. It looks like the Washington Monument on the Nutri-System plan. It's a point of reference here when you get loist, especially at night.

I should say how friendly everyone is. People are unfailingly nice. One came up to me as I was reading my map and volunteered help. It's a beautiful country with great people. The city is old and reminds me most sof Boston. And, unlike London, it shuts down early.

I'm trying to get used to the language nuances. Some people I just don't understand. The bus driver on the hop-on bus, the first one I got, talked so fast with his brogue that I couldn't understand what I was looking at. His name, of course, was Paddy. On a later bus, I talked to a woman who said she'd had a driver earlier in the day she couldn't follow. Sure enough -- same guy. Nice guy but what's the point of having a tour guide whom tourists can't follow?

The guy today was great, but he had a habit of saying "are you happy" when we barbarians would say "are you sure?" Maybe they all do.

"Are you happy you've gotten everything off the bus?"

Yes, I'm delighted.

Having major access problems but finally learned WiFi is free in, of all places, McDonald's. The counter girl said I could have only half an hour but I've been typing for 90 minutes. Typing real fast in case they shut me down.

So I'm out of here tomorrow morning and on to London for the homestretch.

Ireland has been a real treat. I hope to return some day.