Dublin does not disappoint

Dublin, June 29th - July 2nd, 2009

Ireland.

A destination I had looked forward to for at least a year and a half. Initially, I had planned to celebrate my 30th birthday here, in the land famous for the whiskey I love and the red-bearded men I fancy. Instead, I found myself there two weeks after my birthday, meeting my friend Patti from Denver and her son Reed.

I made it to Dublin with relative ease in the afternoon, navigating from the airport to the bus to the hotel smoothly, but having just missed Patti and Reed due to a late flight. Undeterred, I attempted to walk to meet them at the restaurant they were at, but instead, feeling a bit lost, hailed a friendly van-taxi driven by a delightful man. In a few minutes I found them, and after an unsuccessful venture to the Guiness Storehouse, which was closed for the afternoon, young Reed decided to go back to the hotel while Patti and I caught up over a few beers.

Senor with our first brews in Dublin.

It wasn't long before our wandering landed us to the unmistakenly touristy yet enjoyable Quay's Pub with live music played by a duo consisting of some kind of flutist and guitarist, and where my Magic Greek hat seemed to pinpoint me as the Lady Most Likely to be Willing to Dance with the Old Men. Never shying away from an opportunity to dance with old men before, I quickly obliged.

Delightful Irish jig players.

We soon continued on, first landing in a bar/club called Noo Bar that was having a free BBQ and met two brothers who owned a small pub in the area called O'Donoghue's and again we shifted there. We hung for an hour or so, with them telling us to look them up the next day, and knowing well we wouldn't. Dublin in a few hours time had already shown promised charm.

After getting some needed sustenance the next morning:

we headed again to the Guiness Storehouse, which is one of the best beer tours I've been done, which I think to that point in my life consisted of four. It was self-guided, there was an indoor waterfall, and best of all you sip your cold brew at the end of the tour in a window-filled room overlooking the city. It also doesn't hurt to have your beer toppeed off with a foamy four-leaf clover.

Hops on the tour.

The three of us, very contented.

Oh Guinness! You great brew.

This was pretty sweet.

I've been a long fan of the Guiness advertising campaigns, and was most impressed with the display they had of all the marketing tactics over the years that impress on so many of our minds that, yes indeed, life is better with a Guiness.

Later that afternoon, Patti had arranged a short bus tour out of the city where we toured Maldive Castle and admired its beautiful grounds, and had delicious coffee and dessert in the grass. We also drove to one of the richest smaller towns outside of Dublin, Howth, and even got a view of islands? in Dublin Bay where Bono and S'nead o'Connor have residences. This small taste outside of the city was enough for me to envision a trip where I returned, car rented, three weeks of open road before me, and nothing but Ireland to explore.

On the grounds of Maldive castle.

Coffee and castles, in my element.

View of where Bono lives, way over Yonder. I decided not to call on him this time around.

After an early dinner of fish n chips, that night Patti and I attempted to see some live music, and went to a Lonely Planet recommended pub, Hughes Bar, that did indeed have music, but it was more a private practice session, and the bar was so bloody hot that after one pint we were ready to head back in for the night.

The next day I made it to the Jameson distillery though, where I earned my diploma in Jameson tasting. Plus, you know it's going to be an interesting day once you've had your first cocktail before 11. I met Reed and Patti at Wagamama for lunch, and wondered why there isn't one in Denver. We then proceeded to tour the Book of Kells on the beautiful and famed Trinity College campus (but sorry, no photos inside).

Who says I wasn't studying important things in Dublin?

Our final night in Dublin we had a delicious dinner at a tapas place, and an interesting interaction with a passerby who asked if he could have some of our food (we were sitting at an outdoor table), and before we could react, stole food off our plate and ran. The owner spotted this, and brought us some food to replace what was snatched. We wrapped up the night in Temple Bar area again, but this time were not too into the bar, and after watching our favorite street musicians for the third time in three days, turned in.

Think bluegrass/funk/rock/fun.

I'd seen plenty of Dublin in a few days, and my short time there did make me realize I will return to Ireland when I have more time and a chance to get beyond the city limits. I was ready to move on to The Netherlands where I knew the people would be tall and I hadn't been in over 10 years.

Part of the beauty just outside of Dublin.

No worries, if you don't come back to Ireland, he'll cut you.

Elephanta Monkey Fights & Chicken Tikka Street Rolls

Thursday March 26th, Friday March 27th, Saturday March 28h

The next day we had to head back to Mumbai, but unfortunately landed in the thick of rush hour traffic, so making our way to Colaba (downtown Mumbai) took much longer than planned. I got us an AC taxi that was run by an all-female cab service from the airport, but our driver said she knew where to go when she didn’t (a typical Indian thing to do, I have noticed) and also talked the ENTIRE TIME on her mobile. It was when I realized my increasing level of impatience that I had to laugh and think, maybe I did, indeed need two days lying on the beach instead of just one. After all, having the BA (bad attitude) wasn’t going to get us there any faster.

We didn’t make the movie we hoped for that night, but we did go to the famed Leopold’s Café for a great dinner and then walked around the area where India Gate is and the Taj Hotel. We also were approached to be extras in a Bollywood movie shooting the next day, but we already had full plans so passed that up (I still hope to do this while I am here though!)

The next day took us to Elephanta Island in the morning, which is about an hour boat ride from the Gateway of India and is an island full of ancient caves and sculptures of famed Indian Gods, as well as lots of monuments to Shiva (which all are very, very phallic). We chatted up some fellow Americans on the way there (including one from Minnesota), and ended up getting a local guide, Nitin, to show us around the caves which turned out to be worthwhile as he proved to be a skilled photographer as well. We also were able to see several monkeys and even a monkey fight (which yes, I did get on video). This little guy also really liked Sour Cream and Onion chips.

MONKEY FIGHT

He loves Salty Snacks just like me.

Shiva Shrine

OMMMMMMMMMMMMM

I snapped a lot of photos at Elephanta; there are a few below for your viewing pleasure. This includes photos of a hen and her chicks (yes, my fascination and love for animals has yet to wane) as well as a replica of the Eiffel Tower, my second in two weeks. Perhaps Paris is indeed calling me back?

Yes, we had lunch here.

After Elephanta, we hit up Jehangir Art Gallery, did a bit of shopping, than rested for an hour before we headed to see a movie. We had hoped to see a Bollywood flick, but near where we were staying was a new, renowned drama called Videsh (and no Bollywood flick) so we tried it; turns out it was an uplifting film on domestic violence. DOH! I felt terrible about the choice, but Jes, champ that she is, rolled with it. We then headed to Café Modegar where we met up with Harsh and Vinu. Café Modegar is a tourist and seemingly popular locals hot spot, with entertaining murals on the walls, see for yourself:


The night brought us to a place called Henry Thams, where an Indian guy who I think lives in the UK was spinning some crazy music; we had to wait to get in, pay a cover, and once in fight the crowd, but it was hip and urban at its finest. Not the type of place I would likely hit up back in Denver but it was a great time and we got to sit in huge, Alice in Wonderland type chairs!


Once closing time hit, we were pleasantly surprised to find we could stay later and exited through the kitchen around 3:30 a.m. But the fun didn’t end there--as the guys walked us back to the hotel, a restaurant had seemingly sprung up from the earth, and I was privy to what was the closet thing to a burrito I have eaten since my arrival in India. Alas, if only the man who makes those Chicken Tikka Rolls knew he holds the key to my heart with those tasty treats of his.

Saturday was Jes’ last day in India, and we headed to the ‘hood (AKA Sunitha’s) for some great lunch and a (rented) Bollywood flick. We had a whirlwind week and I was sad to see Jes go that night, but more so I was elated she had made the trip! There really is nothing like seeing someone close to you show up in a foreign land; it provides a sense of stability and normalcy that you might not even have realized had been missing, and I am really grateful to her for that. (Plus, we got to party it up!)

Voyage to Delhi

Delhi has been an experience thus far, especially comparing one big city to another. It’s been great fun hanging with my cousin Maria, trying out yet even more new food, and meeting the other 8 people and our guide on our two-week trek that has just begun.

Yesterday was a day of firsts--first time flying solo on an Indian domestic flight (which was delayed for many reasons, one of which was to disembark a woman who was 8 months pregnant, her husband and their toddler); first time eating at an Indian fast-food joint (sub-par, but not so bad); first time being denied entrance to a park because I had a camera; and first time taking the Metro in India. We also had more people begging us for money than normal, but that is to be expected here I guess.

Today I saw two monkeys hanging from wires; toured the Delhi Chandi Chowk area which included a huge spice market; saw the largest Mosque I think in India, ate a samosa from a local jaunt; had hot chai from a street vendor; had the chance to buy Indian fireworks (I passed); toured a Singh temple and saw the biggest pot of stirred lentils I could ever imagine; ate chocolate mousse; Senor had a big day out in Delhi; and we walked 3K to the India Gate, where around 50 high school boys for some reason decided to treat me like paparazzi and swarmed around to take pictures with me; I obliged. Again, must be the tall western white woman thing.

Tomorrow we head to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. Very much looking forward to that, though not so much the 5 a.m. wake up call.

I have much to tell from my weekend stay in Kampshet a smaller city outside of Mumbai about two hours, including riding on a speed boat, meeting a water buffalo at the back of a village home, visiting Ashywyn's dad's organic farm, and eating Chikki--homemade peanut brittle--from a town called Lonavla. But, all that may have to wait for another post.

Leah’s Day Out OR Soft Rock Reigns Supreme

On Wednesday I had my first independent adventure. Being as Mumbai has around 15 million people, few street signs, crazy traffic, and I’m staying about an hour to an hour and a half from the downtown area (depending, again, on traffic) getting around is not nearly as easy as back home.

Thus Wednesday was my first true test of independent navigation. I caught a ride from Sunitha to her college, and from there got a taxi to take me to the downtown area so I could hit up a museum.

The taxis here look like they’re British cars of the 1960s, and only the modern ones have AC. It was fun taking one, minus the times you are actually stopped at a traffic light and people are trying to sell you pirated books, movies, or magazines, or begging…I still have not got used to that. And as I am super western, they especially like to plead with me.

The museum I went to is called the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharah Vastu Sangrahalaya, formerly known as Prince of Wales Museum of Western India. I’m really glad they changed it to something that rolls right off the tongue.

Museum had all sorts of stuff illustrating history of India; perhaps the strangest thing was a vast collection of snuff jars from the famous historical figure, Tata (I forget the full name). My favorite thing though were the hordes of school-age kids who liked to walk by me and yell “Hi!” as loud as they could. I appreciated their zest for practicing English with me.

After I had my fill of the museum and a Greek tourist offered to take my pic (see token touristy photo) I made my way to the famous Leopold’s Café, where I lunched on Kashmiri Naan (Naan with tomatoes, pineapple, and something else mixed in—I still favor garlic naan) and Paneer Tikka Masala (chunks of cottage cheese, but not like U.S. cottage cheese in the masala sauce). This is where I realized India’s affinity for Soft Rock. I was greeted by a Willie Nelson song which was a pleasant surprise (yes, the place caters to tourists) but then Willie was followed by Richard Marx “Right Here Waiting” and the Police “Every Breath You Take” and so on and so forth. (Notice in the food pic the silverware is clean--I eat with my right hand like a "proper Indian!"

I was able to successfully navigate my way back to Sunitha’s college by commandeering another cabbie. Sunitha said upon my return “This must be what it feels like to worry about your kids!”

It is strange to go from knowing everything and feeling so comfortable for so many years to being somewhere where street signs are hard to even find. I leave tomorrow for a two week trip with my cousin Maria starting in Delhi; when I return I will try and learn to read basic Marathi (the local language here in Maharashtra, the state Mumbai is in) so I can figure out what buses to take! Baby steps, baby steps.

Primera dia en Lima

Our one-day stop in Lima proved interesting and tiring. The owner of our hostel sat us down with a map and showed us many fantastic places to go with lots of recommendations--especially for food. This was awesome, plus his name was Frances, but we were all in dire need of naps, so a bit prolonged. The best part was though, that everytime he told us of a new food he would say "You will put it in your mouth, and you will lovvveee it!" (He turned out to be right, too).

I'm finding my Spanish can get us by just fine, and we've learned from guidebooks Laura brought to negotiate a price to our destination BEFORE entering the cab. This didn't stop our first cabbie from trying to rip us off--we had set a price of 6 Solis to get to a restaurant for lunch, and upon arriving, he demanded 15, which I refused to agree too. We were in a bit of a bind, because we only had 10's as our smallest bills. Finally, after me stating several times "Ud. dice NUNCA quince!" He gave me 2 solis change for my 10. He also seemed to be saying that it was a fake 10, but I was like, "Yo recibo del banco esta manana!" haha, anyway, paying 8 for a 6 solis ride did not seem bad after that.

We went to lunch at a place Catia recommended to me as well as our hostel owner. El Bolivariano in Pueblo Libre was fantastico! We had cepiche as well as a lot of other seafood and some potato and yucca that were great, and of course, some pisco sours. After lunch we visited Plaza Mayor and I talked to some policemen because they were everywhere; apparently there had been some protests recently, and we were right by the Palcacio de Gobierno, but I couldn't really understand all they said.

We took a tour in English of la iglesia de San Francisco, which has Catacombs where over 25,000 people are thought to be buried from the Fransiscan era. There were also hundereds of people waiting outside for, from what I could discern from asking a few people, was some kind of workers conference or organizing. We made a quick stop at Plaza St. Martin, then got a cab to an ocean-view park called "Parqe de Amor", yes, the Love Park, which was a wonderful place to stop at around 5:30 (remember it is winter here; the sun sets early). People were hanggliding (or maybe it was paragliding) and the ocean view was spectacular. The park also had a long wall that looked mosaic with several phrases about love painted on it. Of course, there were several people making out, which was cliche but, admittedly, pretty cute all the same. The picture is of a huge statue of two people making out, haha, I love it.

We meandered for awhile, and a bought a stocking hat (tuke for you Canadians) with Apacas (small llamas) on it from an artesan market. We ate at a small Vegetarian restaurant en Miraflores, but I waited to get dessert at a different place on our walk back to the hostel. We had 3 different desserts, and I remember none of the names right now, except one may have been Cimmayo (I am slaughterhing that). We leave for the airport to fly to Arequipa in 30 minutes. I think we are skipping Puno for an extra day there.

Oh and it is Independence Day here on 28 de Julio, so there are flags everywhere; red and white; very fun!