Ireland: Game of Thrones Tour: Dark Hedges, Carrick-a-rede Bridge, and the Giant’s Causeway
July 30, 2016 It’s just after 9:00 am when our Game of Thrones tour bus pulls away from Town Hall, and already I’m having the best day. After yesterday’s tight schedule and go, go, go feeling, it felt great to wake up, walk the 40 minutes into downtown Belfast, and place my schedule in the hands of our tour guide. …
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Ireland: First impressions of Belfast, Part 3: The Peace Wall
July 27, 2016 Your steps are light and springy as you leave the Crumlin Road Gaol. Your first day in Belfast has gone like clockwork, and now there’s only one stop left: the Peace Wall in west Belfast. It’s a calm, balmy Friday evening as you head south towards Cupar Way. You cross Shankill Road and enter the Shankill neighborhood, …
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Ireland: First Impressions of Belfast, Part 2: Crime & Punishment at the Crumlin Road Gaol
July 27, 2016 You’ve been walking for 30 minutes on this beautiful July afternoon, and already you feel a world away from the heart of Belfast. You’ve definitely entered suburbia. The traffic hurries from place to place, and hair salons, computer repair stores, and betting parlors line the streets alongside gas stations and apartment buildings. When you see the Crumlin …
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Ireland: First Impressions of Belfast, Part 1: Opulence
July 27, 2016 It is a typical overcast Irish morning as you cross the border from the Republic of Ireland into Northern Ireland. The express bus is moderately full but quiet as it speeds along the motorway, the scenery mostly trees and traffic. You’ve been up since early this morning, and with nothing to hold your attention you slide into …
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Ireland: The Wicklow Mountains and Medieval Kilkenny
July 24, 2016 It’s not quite noon as the tour bus pulls away from Glendalough, and already I feel full to the brim. Running on little sleep and an early morning adventure getting to the tour bus, I’d like nothing more than to take a nap as we climb higher into the Wicklow Mountains. But the beauty of the Wicklow …
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Ireland: The Monastery & Twin Lakes of Glendalough
July 24, 2016 The sanctuary stone is cool and rough under my fingers, the ancient paving stones uneven beneath my feet. My fingers follow an ancient ritual: for 1400 years, the stone’s carved cross has provided protection to those who seek it. This is my first visit to Glendalough, one of Ireland’s most important monastic sites, and already the valley’s …
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Ireland: Goat Castle, the Irish Maritime Museum, and an evening sail around Dalkey Island
July 3rd, 2016 It’s 11:15 am on a lazy Sunday morning as my DART train rattles up the Dublin Coast to Dalkey. Yesterday’s sunshine has disappeared, but the grey skies aren’t raining, and that’s good enough for me. My only plan for today is to visit the Dalkey Castle & Heritage Center, and the farmer’s market in Dun Laoghaire. Dalkey …
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Ireland: A Morning at Powerscourt Estate
July 2, 2016 It’s 10:00 am at Powerscourt Estate, and the excitement that has been humming through my body since yesterday afternoon is a low vibration in my fingers. It’s a combination of optimism and sense of “anything can happen,” and even after two years of traveling, I love feeling this way when I start a new adventure. And so …
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A Stroll Through the Irish Countryside
June 23, 2106: Belturbet, Ireland It’s the one-week anniversary of my arrival in Belturbet, and I decide to take a break from exploring Turbet Island to explore the countryside instead. It’s been sunny all afternoon, but it clouds over as I follow the road north into the countryside. Just out of town, I decide to follow the road signs to …
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A Liminal Stopover in Boston
June 13 – 15, 2016 After a long layover in Quito and a delayed flight into Houston, I’m now sitting in first class on my flight to Boston. I no longer know what time it is, or which time zone I’m in. All that exists is the supremely comfy first class seat and a very solicitous flight attendant who serves …
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