New Look

I would like to start this post off by apologizing to not only my faithful followers but to my blog.  It probably seems like I have forgotten about you both.  No, I have not forgotten, I have simply been very preoccupied.

First news is you may have noticed the new look.  I had a few people tell me that the font of my previous format was difficult to read.  Hopefully this has been improved.  If not, I love hearing feedback.  Let me know if you want to hear about something in particular that I'm experiencing.  Ask me anything.  I love hearing from you all! I thought this theme would be fitting because I do live in Galicia, in which it rains quite a bit.  For example, last week I experienced my first cyclone.  But I haven't really been able to tell the difference in the weather since then (other than less wind) since it has literally been raining for about 8 days straight now.

Next, I know you are probably all dying to hear about my trip to Paris.  The post is still in the works.  I have been crazy busy preparing for our christmas program at school, and came down with a nasty stomach bug over the weekend which left me not in the blogging mood.  Not to worry, I am feeling much better now.  The Christmas Program is tomorrow morning and tomorrow evening I'm homeward bound.  Since I am very excited for the holidays, and to seen many of you, I'm not sure if I will have a chance to blog in the next two weeks.

So, I am going on a blogcation.  (Blog+Vacation?)  The next ten days I hope to devote as much time as possible to friends, family and loved ones.  I am very excited to be home to eat some peanut butter, cheddar cheese, hotdishes, christmas cookies, and so much more.

I hope that this message finds all of you doing the same.  If there is one thing that I have learned while here, it is just how important family is.  No one should ever take that for granted.  And being thousands of miles away, I can say that I appreciate them a lot.  So Merry Christmas everyone.  I hope you all eat tons of great food, decorate some amazing cookies, appreciate all the gifts that you are fortunate enough to have this christmas season and remember to enjoy yourselves. =)

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and see you in 2013!! 

Donón

Beauty can truly be found where you'd least expect it.  I was able to see just another taste of the beauty that Galicia has to offer the other weekend.  Some of my co-workers invited me to go hiking with them on a Sunday, since clearly nothing else is going on on a Sunday.  So I headed across the Ría to Cangas to meet up with Marta, Alberto, Pilar, Rebeca and Romina.  After about a ten minute drive from Cangas we arrive at Monte do facho near the small town of Donón.  We hiked up this windy trail around the side of the mountain until we got to the top.  What a view.  Seriously I could have sat up there for hours.  At the top there is an entire village of celtic ruins spread all over the side of the hill and at the top, a replica has been erected.  We could also see all of Vigo, as well as the Ría de Pontevedra, Las islas cies, and las islas ons.  After our hike we decided to check out a beach that is the closest point of land to las islas cies.  The sun literally started to set while we were on the beach, could that be any more perfect¡?!   Well I´ll just let the pictures speak for themselves.  I was literally so in love with this place, I wish there was other ways to get there other than by car.

The trail to the top.  

Ruinas celtas.  

Las islas Ons.  

Marta, Pilar, Alberto and I 

What a view.  

Sun setting as we hiked down to the beach. 

Beautiful colors. 

And it sets over las islas cies.  

¡Mi favorita! Marta, Romina, y Rebeca.  

London's Calling

Now since my last post you probably think that was the end of my trip.  But it wasn't!? I'm not sure if it was a blessing or a curse, but my flights home from Dublin were somehow switched all around leaving me with a 24 hour layover in London.  While I wasn't really excited about all this waiting, I decided that you of course can see a city in 24 hours!

Luckily I have a friend living in London that I was able to crash at her apt for the night.  I left Bray at 3:30 am, arrived in Dublin at 4:30am, and caught my 6:30am flight to London.  From there I dropped my things off at my friend's place and started my adventure of London.  Since I had had such amazing luck with the free walking tour in Dublin, I decided that I wanted to check out the same thing in London.  The site is http://www.neweuropetours.eu/.  They have walking tours in almost every big city in Europe.

I took the tube (which I am a pro at now) to the city center and met my group.  The walking tour was very interesting.  Essentially I learned that the English have been quite the barbaric group of people.  Between beheadings, burnings at the stake, torture sessions, and hangings they really get a kick out of seeing others suffer.  The tour took me through the standard royal buildings and areas of the city.  We went through a lot of the royal family's history and lineage.  One interesting fact that I didn't know was that the city of London is actually separate from the metropolis of London.  Like Rome, it has its own governing entities and is considered its own ceremonial county. But in all actuality this "city" is located smack dab in the middle of the metropolis of London.

My tour ended in a square by Westminster Abby and the London tower.  Afterwards I made my way around the area, looking at all of the beautiful architecture.  I saw the London Eye, Millenium Bridge, St. Paul's Cathedral, a outdoor christmas market along the river Thames, London Bridge, and the Tower of London.  By this time, my feet had about had it.  I hopped back onto the Tube and made my way to my sofa for the night.

Even though it was only 24 hours in London, I feel like I can honestly say I saw the bulk of the things that there are to see.  Now, looking back on the this little taste of London, I can honestly say, it is just another big city.  For some reason London didn't have a real cultural, unique feel like Dublin did.  It was beautiful, and I learned a lot, but I'm not sure if I would like to go back again.

Now onto the photos:

Big Ben. 

London bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down, London Bridge is falling down, my fair lady! 

The Tube. 

Buckingham Palace. 

The oldest street lamps in London. 

Due to an overload in pictures, I will only be able to put a few up on my posts from now on.  So If you want to check out the bulk of my photos, check out my Facebook page! Cheerio! 

The Luck of the Irish

I can honestly call Ireland one of the most amazing places I have ever visited.  The little bit of this country that I was able to experience is full of vibrant culture and pride in everything they do.  Yes, it rains.  Almost every day.  But honestly, its just rain.  It is pretty common knowledge around the world that Ireland is a rainy country, and because of that, I came prepared.  With a new winter coat, my umbrella and some nice waterproof boots I was ready to face the rain.  And to be perfectly honest, if you are prepared for it, it really doesn't take away from the experience.

     

My trip there started out early.  I spent the night in a hostel in Porto, Portugal and woke up at 4:00am to catch the airport shuttle.  From there I took a flight form Porto to London (Stansted).  I waited the longest 4 hours of my life with no cell phone battery, and from there left for Dublin.   Straightaway after arriving in the town of Bray (Where I have some amazing friends living right now) I got cleaned up and we headed back into Dublin.  I'm not quite sure what it is but Dublin has such an amazing "small town" feel to it.  Just walking down the streets, seeing the pubs painted different colors, and the green trees and flowers at the parks made the town feel so much more unique.  Our first adventure, Temple Bar.

 

My friend Bri's parents were in town for Thanksgiving and so we all decided to go see the Temple Bar Irish Dancing.  I had a nice and filling meal of Goat Cheese Salad, Bangers and Mash, and Cheesecake.  Soon after we enjoyed some pretty cool Irish dancing and some amazing live music.  I think this is one of my favorite parts of Dublin.  While on my trip I didn't have the opportunity (nor did I really care) to go out on the town every night.  But just the pure fact that almost every pub you wander into has live music makes this place so awesome.  After a very nice night of enjoying the live music and dancing we hopped onto the Dart [The train that goes to and from Dublin] and headed home.  After being awake for 20 hours straight, I was pretty tired.  But once I got home I was so glad to still be able to chime in on my family's Thanksgiving celebration back home via Facetime.  It is crazy how technology can make staying in contact so easily.

The next day Bri and Hanna had to go to school (Since it was Friday) so I tagged along with Bri's parents to Powerscourt Gardens and Estates.  This beautiful estate is located only about 10 minutes from Bray in the Irish countryside.  Its just outside a small town called Enniskerry.  I bet almost all of you have heard of the town Enniskerry before, I'll tell you how later! This garden estate was magnificent.  Even though there were fewer flowers and it is fall this place was still a magnificent place to visit.  If you're interested in learning a little History of Powerscourt, Click Here!

The view from the back of the house.  You can see the countryside in the distance! 

Bri's Parents, Michelle and Corey! 

Japanese Gardens

Poswercourt Estate

Pet Cemetery....... 8-|

After a long day of walking around the gardens, Michelle, Cory, and I headed to Enniskerry (About a 5 min walk) and had a nice cup of hot chocolate while waiting for our bus back to Bray.  Once back in Bray we got ready for our Thanksgiving dinner.  Michelle (Bri's Mom) was amazing and brought over ingredients that the girls weren't able to find at the grocery stores in Bray.  Everyone put so much work into making a true Thanksgiving dinner.  That night, some other teachers from the girls' schools came over to experience a true Thanksgiving dinner.  You have no idea how happy I was about this.  I just have to Thank Bri and Hanna for the amazing dinner.  I truly would have been missing home if I didn't get the opportunity to celebrate Thanksgiving.

Almost as good as home .... except no Grandma Edie's Caesar Salad =(

The next day Amanda (Bri's roommate), Bri and I headed into Dublin for the Free City walking tour.  This was, hands down, the best tour I have been on.  I would recommend it 100000 times. The walking tour took us through the city of Dublin, giving us a taste of history, culture, traditions, and what Dublin is like today.  I will give a shout-out to Emer and say you did an amazing job as our tour guide.  I learned more in this 3 hour tour than what i could have ever learned on my own.

Random things I learned on my walking tour:
1. The Irish are very proud of their pubs.  Live music and drinking = Irish pride.
2. The great potato famine of Ireland was actually preventable.  The country actually exported enough potatoes to feed their population 4 times.
3. During the great potato famine, the population of Ireland went from 8 million to 4 million people.  Today the population of Ireland is 4.5 million.
4. St. Patrick was actually first in Ireland as a captured slave from Wales.  After escaping with the help of signs from God, he joined the church in Wales and became a bishop.  He was then told to travel back to Ireland to convert them to Catholicism.  Instead of doing the traditional method, St. Patrick actually decided to go to each ruler of the kingdoms in Ireland.  If he converted the rulers, then the people would convert as well. This method had never been used in spreading religion before.
5. P.S. I Love You was filmed in Dublin and many surrounding areas.
6. The most well preserved viking remains had been uncovered while constructing the new city hall.  Since archeologists came in to carefully uncover these ruins, it delayed the building of the city hall.  The city sued the archeologists for delaying their building and won.  The city bulldozed the historical site.  Now only a few artifacts are on display in the Dublin museum.  There is also a layout of a Viking home set into the sidewalk along the City Hall.
7. Christ Church Cathedral in Ireland was once used as a brothel.
8. Temple Bar district was originally going to be turned into a large bus station.  While planning the construction, the buildings were rented out to shops and pubs.  The streets turned into such a rich cultural area that they cancelled the construction plans.
9. At Trinity College, they have a program that if you pass your exams in all subject areas with a C or higher, you can receive a Masters and PHD degree for free.  But apparently, its not as easy as it sounds.
10. Throughout history the Irish have consistently gone through many recessions and expansions.  Because of this, Emer told us the current economic situation isn't as surprising as what the rest of Europe is making it out to be, because the Irish are used to hard times.
11. The most recent purchase of the Irish government during a expansion of wealth in the country was the Spire in Dublin.
12. Ireland has their own language called Gaelic.
13. And much much more!

And now for some pictures!

The only "castle" part of the Dublin Castle.  

Dubh Linn Gardens - Basically a fancy helicopter pad.  

I know this doesn't look that exciting, but these are the steps filmed in P.S. I Love You.  After the pub scene where she's crying in the street.  

Temple Bar District

The layout of the typical viking home.  Two beds inside, each sleeps about 10 vikings.  Pretty standard. 

Trinity College.  

Trinity College

National Library/ National Museum.  If you have any type of Irish roots you can go into the National Library and they will help you look up your heritage for free! 

After our tour we walked around town and enjoyed the beautiful Christmas lights displayed in the city streets.  We did a little souvenir shopping and Christmas shopping and headed back to the dart to take us home.

Sunday was my last day in Ireland.  It had been a busy couple of days.  The girls decided to take me to a local sight in Bray, Bray Head.  Bray Head is a large mount that is part of the Wicklow Mountain Range.  It separates Bray from its neighboring town of Greystones.  The views were gorgeous.  It was quite the hike to the top, but so worth it.  A local on the way up told us it's so clear we could see not only Wales, but also Northern Ireland from the top.  (Wales the country, not Whales the animals people!)  After taking in this spectacular view, we headed back down the mountain, had a supper of fish and chips and had a relaxing night watching P.S. I Love You.

That, is what we climbed. 

The Ladies of Upper Dargle Road, Bray.  

I did it! 

If you look very closely, you can see Wales! 

The reason I mention this movie is because after watching the movie that night, we realized we had traveled to almost all of the places mentioned in the movie! Enniskerry is where Gerry's family lives, Bray Head is a part of the Wicklow mountains, and Dun Laoghaire is a town we drove through on the Dart.  On our walking tour we also saw a large staircase called the 40 steps.

Overall I have to say Ireland is a country rich of culture.  Every native person I met and talked to were so welcoming and wanted to share a little bit about their Irish upbringings.  And yes, I know...... Erin means "Ireland" in Gaelic, I had about 5 people tell me!

LUGO!

OK! Technical difficulties figured out... for now at least!

Wow. So. So much to tell about Lugo.  This trip was one of the best since I have moved to Spain.  I seriously learned so much, made some good friends, and got to see some amazing things.

A couple weeks ago, a substitute teacher at my school had invited me to his hometown of Lugo for a weekend.  This last weekend I took him up on the offer.  We started the trip out by taking the boat from Vigo to Cangas, where Alberto lives.  From there Lugo was a good 2 hour and 15 minute drive.  The nice part about going to visit someplace with a Spaniard is that you don't have to solely rely on public transportation.  Even though the public transportation is really very convenient compared to that in the US, it seems like a luxury to drive someplace now.

After arriving in Lugo, we went for a drive around town at night.  Alberto showed us the river, La Muralla (The Wall), and the old part of town.  Then we went to meet some of his family and friends.  I was so glad to have my friend Alex with me.  She speaks Spanish very well, and when there is a lull in the conversation, she knows just what to do.  Needless to say, we had an awesome time at this cafeteria getting to know Alberto's girlfriend, friends and brother, Juan.  We hung out, ate some tapas, and played a few practical jokes on each other.  (Alberto told one of his friends that we didn't speak any Castellano [Spanish].  This friend tried so hard to carry on a conversation with us using the very limited English that he knew.  "You, meat, Wisconsin, cows." After a good 30 second recording on a cell phone and lots of laughs, he finally figured out we were all joking.)

The next morning Alberto had so graciously arranged for us to visit a farm in the countryside of Lugo.  Alberto, his sister, sisters friend, Alex and I headed out to the farm.  After a long curvy road and a quick car sickness incident, we had arrived.  The farm was awesome.  It was like a taste of home.  It was a dairy farm of about 150 cows.  They had two locations.  One site that housed their dry cows, young stock and calving cows, and another site with the milking cows.

Dry cow barn

Beautiful countryside! 

This is the main original farm where they keep their young stock, dry cows, and calving cows.  

And this is their second location, where they have all their milking stock.   It is a brand spanking new 1 year old barn. 

Bulk Tanks! 

And on top of it all, a parlor! 

I learned that larger Dairies are very similar to those in the US.  The farm owner was so delighted to show us around and teach us about his business.

After a very scenic drive through the countryside we made our way to the Feria, which is apparently where the BEST Pulpo (octopus) is.  Now I know everyone back home probably reading this is thinking, yuck. Octopus? Really Erin? I'm not kidding you when I say it is seriously AWESOME.  I love Pulpo.  If anyone else comes to visit me, this is going to be part of our itinerary.  The Feria was essentially a traveling market.  People with random tents and campers travel from small town to small town every weekend selling clothing and other products.  We ate outside, under a tarp on a wooden picnic table.  It was raining, cold, and a bit windy, but none of these things dampened the experience.  We first ordered two plates of Pulpo.  It comes out on a wooden platter, the cook sprinkled a bit of paprika on top and doused it with olive oil.  Then everyone passed around a loaf of bread, cracked off a chunk, and used a toothpick to scoop up the pulpo onto the bread.  The meal was nothing fancy or extravagant, but I think it was one of the best experiences because it is something that really happens.  Its not a touristy gimmick.  Everyone there was Galician.  After a nice relaxing meal of pulpo (that lasted 2+ hours) and some intense playing of a game called logoquiz on my phone, we headed on to our next stop.

This is what the Pulpo is cooked in. 

Can you smell it? Yum! 

The finished product! 

I'm not sure if any of you know this, but Lugo is actually an ancient Roman city.  It is the oldest city in Galicia founded in 15 AD.  Because of this, the city has many Roman sites to see.  Our next stop was the Puente Romano (Roman Bridge) and the Termas Romanas (Roman Baths).  The bridge wasn't exceptionally exciting, just a bridge.  They have closed it to all traffic because it had started deteriorating in recent years.  We then walked down to the Roman Baths.  These are located inside a hotel.  The water in these baths is thermal, meaning it is heated from the ground.  The average temperature of this water is 111 degrees F! It is said that this water has healing powers and Romans would travel from far and wide to experience it's power.  Now there is a hotel constructed on top of the baths, and many sick and elderly people travel from all over the world to come bathe in the thermal water.  The rooms were very interesting, and smelled a bit like sulfur.

Roman Bridge

Roman Baths

The lighting was clearly not the greatest.  

The "healing" water.

Next we headed to the Cathedral.  Almost every larger city in Spain has a Cathedral.  It's always a very common place to visit.  The cathedral in Lugo just recently was doing some cleaning on the roof and uncovered an amazing painting the covered the entire ceiling of the Cathedral.  While the lighting inside isn't the best, these are the pictures I was able to get.

Inside the Catedral in Lugo. 

For the rest of the night, we enjoyed the company of some great new friends.  Since everyone we met spoke only Spanish, this was a great weekend of learning and practicing my Spanish.  Its hard to explain but in think by only speaking Spanish for an entire weekend I about doubled my comprehension and fluency skills.

The next day we took it easy.  Slept in a bit, lounged around and ate slowly (as most Spanish people do) and then decided to go for a walk around Lugo.  The weather was wonderfully sunny and Alberto, Pilar, Alex and I wanted to enjoy the fresh air.  This was when I really got to see Lugo for all its beauty.  The Muralla, which encircles the entire old part of town is amazing.  You are also able to walk on the top of the Muralla.  While I could go on talking about all the things I learned about the Muralla, I think I will sum it up with some photos and a link to some great information about the history of La Muralla.

The walk around the top of the Muralla is about 1.5 Miles.  

It is the only Roman wall that is still intact in an entire circle around a city.  

This is the cathedral (Catedral) poking its head above the city.  

This is the outside of the Muralla.