June 16 - Surviving Ireland Without
Alcohol
Happy BLOOMSDAY!!!!
Ireland is for traveling wimps.
Don't feel like roughin' it? Don't want to speak a different language
when you travel? Do
want to travel with the fear of death or mugging at every corner?
Come here.
I was so tired of feeling so comfortable that I set up my tarp in a
park a couple of days
to rough it up a bit.
IRELAND IS NICE
The mountains are nice: not too high, not too low.
The summer weather is nice: not too hot or cold.
The people are nice: not too mean and not too sober.
HOW TO SURVIVE WITHOUT ALCOHOL
It was tough to go to pubs and ask for an OJ. They said, "Don't you
want a Guiness with
that, laddie????"
Nevertheless, I survived and fortunately none of my bus drivers were
drunk at the time.
BLOOMSDAY CENTURY!
So what's Bloomsday? It is a major event in Ireland, especially Dublin.
James Joyce, a Dubliner and Nobel Prize Winner, wrote Ulysses. The
entire book takes
place on June 16, 1904. Today is the 100 Year Anniversary of that
event!
He selected that date because that was the first time he went out on a
date with his
future wife.
Today, I went to see readings and celebrations throughout the city.
James Joyce is a BIG
DEAL here. I'm pretty fortunate to be here during the 100th Bloomsday.
Besides, I took a class on Joyce at Amherst, so I actually like the guy.
NEXT STOP: FINLAND!
...a long a last a love along the riverrun pass eve and adam from
swerve of shore to bend
of bay.....
|
This is a frame I captured from my first
movie in Ireland. I'm
standing on Bachelor Quay in Dublin, wondering if I will be a bachelor
at the end of my five month pilgrimage in Eastern Europe. Thanks to my
receding hairline and new wrinkles, I came out unmarried in the end.
I rented a mountain bike in Dingle Bay and had
an awesome time going up and down Mount Eagle. The sheep sure have
incredible views.
I biked across the Aran Islands, came to this ancient settlement,
considered jumping into the Atlantic Ocean, but then realized that my journal would be quite
short so decided to just take a picture.
On Bloomsday I met three professors (the two on the left are from
Brazil) and a student. They were all experts on the James Joyce. And
they let me tag along so I could feel smart for a day. |
