Eire

On September 17th, 2009 my family and I left for a two-week excursion to Ireland. We were joined at O’Hare Airport in Chicago by the rest of our group — in all, 13 travelers from Indiana and Minnesota.  After a seven hour flight from Chicago we arrived on the Emerald Isle.

Day One saw us traipsing around Dublin. Our first stop was Malahide Castle, a twelfth century fortress nine miles north of the city.

Following a tour of the castle and grounds, we headed to Dublin Bay and Howth Head (the highest point in Dublin). We stopped off at a Martello tower on the coast, which was built in the early nineteenth century to ward off Napoleon’s army. No such forces would ever set foot in Ireland; better to be safe than sorry. Today there are countless such towers dotting the coastlines of the British Isles.

After the first pint of Guinness in a local pub and a small bite to eat, we were exhausted from the jetlag and headed to our hotel in the Dublin suburbs.

Day Two found us wandering around the city again. The first stop was Phoenix Park — the largest park within city bounds in all of Europe — where we visited the Papal Cross. On this site Pope John Paul II came to visit in 1979 and celebrated an open air mass with a faithful crowd of one million. It was the first time a pope had visited the country in hundreds of years (at least, that’s as I remember it) and no pope has been to visit the country since. The president of Ireland also lives in Phoenix Park (in a white house much like our own in the States). There is also the U.S. Embassy and the Dublin Zoo. Fun fact: the famous MGM lion lived in the Dublin Zoo.

After Phoenix Park we went to Kilmainham Gaol which is now a museum. The jail operated from 1796-1924 and housed many political prisoners and key figures in Irish rebellions during the English occupation. After a tour of the jail we headed for the Guinness Storehouse.

If you ever get the chance to visit Dublin, try to make this tour a part of your experience. It is self-guided, and at the top of the building you get a free pint of Guinness and a 360-degree view of the city. Pretty sweet.

Day Three saw us exploring the countryside to the south, as our bus wound its way through the scenic Wicklow Mountains. The first stop was Russborough House. Yet the highpoint of the day was, without a doubt, a visit to Glendalough. Here we explored the sixth century monastery where St. Kevin resided.

Next we drove through the Vale of Avoca, a valley in which two rivers meet and which was described thus by the poet Thomas Moore:

“There is not in the wide world a valley so sweet,
As the vale in whose bosom the bright waters meet;
Oh, the last rays of feeling and life must depart,
Ere the bloom of that valley shall fade from my heart.”

The day ended with a meal in Johnnie Fox’s Pub, which boasts itself as “the highest pub in Ireland.”

On Day Four we visited Trim Castle in County Meath. This place is notable as the site where the sacking of York was filmed in the movie Braveheart.

The next part of our day was spent exploring some of the very oldest places in all of Ireland. First was the Hill of Tara, a group of ritual mounds topped with ancient stone monuments and apparently the seat of the Ard Righ, or High King of Irleand. The view from atop this hill is absolutely spectacular.

Next we visited Newgrange, an ancient passage tomb from the Stone Age which predates the Great Pyramids by 500 years and Stonehenge by 1,000. Over the entryway, there is an opening called the roof box. Every year on the winter solstice, the sun shines through this aperture, cutting a line through the passageway and illuminating the cavernous chamber within. It is incredible to think that human beings could conceive and create such a perfect structure  over 5,000 years ago. We were able to go into the dark tomb and behold the tranquil and deathly silent interior. Amazingly the hollow chamber has not caved in, and is perfectly intact. Many of the gigantic stones are covered with Celtic knots and swirls.

In the evening, our last night in Dublin, we visited the Temple Bar district, a touristy part of downtown Dublin that is filled with pubs and restaurants.

Day Five saw us leaving eastern Ireland and heading along the southern coastline. After a brief stop in Waterford (home of the famous crystal) we made our way to Blarney Castle. Yes, I did indeed kiss the stone. It is a fairly frightening experience. The stone is at the very top of the castle, you must lean out over a gaping hole and two men hold you so you don’t fall hundreds of feet to your death. Yikes.

On Day Six, we split off from the main part of our group and explored the city of Cork. It is the second-largest city after Dublin; and I must say, aside from an old jail and a vast covered market, I didn’t find anything particularly remarkable about the place.

The next day was spent exploring the gorgeous Ring of Kerry, a vast area in south-west Ireland. Highlights of this trip included Dingle Bay, the towns of Cahirciveen and Sneem, and the beautiful Moll’s Gap. We also passed through parts of Killarney National Park. See the pictures below to get an idea of the beauty. The day was also significant for other reasons…it was 9/24/2009…Arthur Guinness Day, celebrating the 250th anniversary of the greatest beer ever created. All thirteen of us made sure to raise a pint in a local pub at 17:59 (or 5:59pm, note the time matching the date 1759) to mark the occasion.

Day Eight found us making our way to Galway on the west coast. Passing through Killaloe in County Clare we crossed the River Shannon and arrived on the outskirts of Galway city, where we would stay in the Oranmore Lodge. That evening saw us traipsing around Galway’s Shop Street for pints and music.

The next day was probably a personal highpoint in terms of scenic views. On a day of misty and ethereal beauty, we went deep into the heart of Connemara, a land of intense green, brown and rusty orange colors. We stopped at the beautiful Kylemore Abbey, which sits on the edge of a serene lake in the mountains. We also visited the small town of Leenane, where The Field starring Richard Harris and Sean Bean was filmed. Other stops included the famous bridge from the movie The Quiet Man starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara.

Day Ten included more rugged countryside. First we visited Dunguaire Castle in Kinvara. But the highlight of the day was our time spent in a region known as The Burren.

The Cliffs of Moher are among the most famous tourist sites in the country. These gorgeous heights drop straight into the Atlantic Ocean. As there are no guard rails, people have been known to fall to their deaths in the past. Wouldn’t you know it? My camera decided to stop working just before we arrived at the cliffs. But if you want to see photos, click on the link and scroll to the bottom. The picture above shows much smaller cliffs compared to Moher (pronounced like the word mower with a subtle “h” sound in between). Later that same day we briefly visited the Poulnabrone Portal Tomb which is another very ancient megalithic passage tomb. That evening, back in downtown Galway we saw some great musical entertainment in a large pub called The King’s Head.

Our last full day in Ireland was spent heading back to Dublin. We visited Trinity College and took a tour to see The Book of Kells, the beautiful illuminated gospels which date back to the ninth century. Our last visit was Dublin Castle. It is a bit more modern than the other castles we saw, so there is not much to tell. Next day, we flew home.

Thus, a very brief account of our time in Ireland. There is much more to say, though it has been a couple months since the trip and I don’t want to bore anyone with needless details. We were blessed with uncommonly beautiful weather–it only rained one day! I hope someday you can make it as well.

Erin Go Bragh!

Film music vs. Classical music

Well it’s been a little while since my last post. We’ve moved from April to August; I could say life has been busy, but to be honest I simply haven’t had anything worthy to write about. Sometimes I forget about BtNG. Then someone leaves a comment and reminds me that it still exists.

This here post is one I’ve been brewing on for a while. It’s nothing original. Many people have remarked in the past about how some themes from movie scores sound very similar to others from older classical pieces.

1) The first example is of course the most notorious:

JAWS theme, by John Williams

Bright Week

“Let us charge into the good fight with joy and love without being afraid of our enemies. Though unseen themselves, they can look at the face of our soul, and if they see it altered by fear, they take up arms against us all the more fiercely. For the cunning creatures have observed that we are scared. So let us take up arms against them courageously. No one will fight with a resolute fighter.”

–St. John Climacus

I love the Pacers…again.

I’ve noticed something peculiar lately. I find myself highly interested in the outcome of Pacers games. This has not been the case for several years . . . not since the fatal night of that ignoble brawl. Any Pacers fan will agree that the team began its long downward spiral at that moment. Reggie Miller retired the next year, and they’ve never been the same.

But things are starting to change.