Sunday, May 16, 2010

The long road home

Wow! I can't believe I've been home in Minnesota for 3 days. Quite a whirlwind.

My mom and I didn't have internet the last couple days of our trip, but it wouldn't have mattered much anyway since we packed our days full of exploring.

After we left Bunratty on Tuesday, we drove through Cashel, visited the "Rock of Cashel", and eventually ended up in the town of Kilkenny. Kilkenny is, in my opinion, a perfect sized town to visit and/or live in or close to. It was small enough to become familiar with quickly, but large enough to be able to find new quirks about it. Twas the right size town where you may walk out on the streets and know a few faces, or you may not happen to run into anyone that day. During our stay, we visited the Kilkenny castle, which was strange as it was COMPLETELY finished and decorated with similar pieces to what would have been there in its day. I suppose the only castles I've toured in Ireland are ruins, so I wasn't really expecting something so grand. Anyway, as my mother said it was interesting to think that people had such luxurious living environments on the East side of the island after seeing so many wee thatched roof cottages and ancient famine villages in the west. Yay England.

We stayed at a nice hotel in the heart of Kilkenny called the "Pembroke Hotel". 72 Euro a night for a gorgeous, modern, clean, room with breakfast included. We decided we'd definitely stay there again if the opportunity presented itself. The rest of the time, we walked around town, explored, and eventually settled down for a lovely dinner at an Italian restaurant. The night in Kilkenny ended with the absolute loveliest Irish coffees either of us have ever had.

Our last day of the "roadtrip", we took a scenic drive from Kilkenny through the Wicklow Mountains. Thanks to our best friend the GPS, we navigated our way through the quaint town of Avoca, spent loads of time in the famous woolen mill there, visited the ancient glacial valley and medieval monastic city of Glendalough, which means "glen of two lakes".





and at last were in awe of the ruggedness of the Sally Gap. Mom enjoyed it quite a bit, I daresay:



We THOUGHT we were just a few minutes from the hotel for our last night when we exited the Sally Gap to see Dublin sprawled beneath us, but we're going to go ahead and blame Conor Mcgrath for typing in "Swords Street" into the GPS rather than "Swords Road". You'd think we would have learned by the end to double check where Ms. Brit Posh was taking us, but we didn't this time. Hence, we spent about three hours winding our way through Dublin, getting frustrated, almost getting into accidents, and wanting to cry when we arrived at Swords Street and realized how far away from our hotel we actually were. At least it's funny now...it wasn't so much at the time. Despite that blip, it turned out to be one of my favourite days of the trip. Also aided by the fact a wee Irish lad who we were a bit frustrated by earlier in the day drove down to Dublin from Newry unannounced for a final goodbye :)



Our flight home could not have been smoother. We were a little anxious as Mr. Volcano has been having a few more mood swings, but everything went perfectly on time and I was asleep in my bed in Maple Grove by 11:00 PM on Thursday evening. We didn't realize how lucky we really were until I got word from another American friend in Ireland who was supposed to depart Saturday that the soonest she can leave is now Tuesday. Gosh, Eyjafjallajokull! Enough already.

All in all, it's great to be home. I have a couple weeks off before I start work again and I plan on relaxing, sleeping, reuniting with friends, and doing a few projects I've conjured up in my mind...ta ha


Ta!! Cheers
Karen

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

O'Loughlins

Mom and I had a great day yesterday exploring County Clare, which is on the western coast of Ireland. My aunt Sheila was able to trace our family's roots back to a small town called Kilfenora which is just a few miles inland in Clare. Even more amazingly, my aunt was also able to locate the place where a few of our ancestors are buried. Thanks to our posh British GPS woman, we found the cemetery and paid a visit to Peadar and Padraig O'loughlin...




We also made a wee stop at a Megalithic tomb:


Explored Ailwee Cave:


Weren't sure which way to go in this town:


All in all, a jam packed but fun filled day! We're up early this morning and headed for Kilkenny.

<3 Karen

Sunday, May 9, 2010

mom's arrival

Hello!

My time is wrapping up here too fast! My mother arrived on Friday morning and we've been at full speed ever since. Literally... we rented a car and I've learned to dominate the left hand side of the road. Ba ha ha. We drove from Dublin to Ballycastle on Friday, spent the night at Corrymeela and got all my final goodbyes finished, drove to Derry and Donegal town on Saturday, and drove to Galway and Clare this afternoon. We've been almost all the way around the country in 3 days!

Wooo!



My mom decided it would be a good idea to get a GPS, which I fully support. The default setting we received was one with an American narrator which I had to immediately shut off. It sounded too funny in an American accent the words "carriageway" and "roundabout", etc. We now have a posh sounding British woman giving us directions.

My favourite part of our journey thus far was lunch in Derry (one of my favourite cities in Ireland), and the discovery of two of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. The first is a beach called Silver Strand. It's in SW Donegal and is surrounded by dramatic green cliffs with sheep roaming around. The second is the cliffs of Slieve Lieg, which is one of the highest seaside cliffs in all of Europe. On the horizon we could see the Iceland volcano's ash cloud slowly moving across the sky as well as a rainbow coming from it. Slightly eerie, and beautiful.

We are staying in the Bunratty Castle Hotel the next two nights, which I'm happy to say has internet :) Yay!

Also snaps for figuring out the timer on the camera :) :)


Cheers,
K

Monday, May 3, 2010

the first farewell

Conor and I stopped in Magherafelt this weekend to say goodbye to my friend, Tom Mullin. He's become quite a good friend throughout my time here in 'norn iron and it was sad to bid the first farewell :(

By the time we left Magherafelt to head back to Newry, it was about 11:30 p.m. I was a little knackered and fell asleep about five minutes into the car journey. I must have been EXTREMELY tired, because it was only when we arrived back in Newry an hour and a half later was I informed by Conor that we had gone through two police checks. Apparently, police in Northern Ireland are starting to have checkpoints again at night to make sure there isn't any funny business going on (i.e. bombs being transported across the country). Supposedly they had flashlights, asked where he was going and who the sleeping girl in the passenger seat was, checked the backseat, and checked the trunk. This happened twice, and I slept through the entire thing. I'm completely oblivious.

4 days until my mom arrives :)
1 week and 3 days until I depart for home!

Cheers,
Karen

Friday, April 30, 2010

mayo mayhem

Well, the day has arrived. My final day at Corrymeela! It's quite strange as I feel like the time absolutely flew by and that I arrived last week, but at the same time it feels like home at the moment. Naturally once I've gotten used to community living and daily meal times once again (thank you, AOII), it's time to return home and become independent again. I feel like I can't remember what I like to cook for myself at home and what time I like to eat at...sad.

My last couple days were quite an amusing way to end. I worked with a teenage boys group from County Mayo (btw: they have exactly the stereotypical Irish accents that Americans think of-precious!!) for two days and had quite a shocking experience. I was somewhat excited to work with boys as it's not typical we get all boy groups up here. Also, in my opinion activities are easier to plan for males (just make a football appear and you're set for 2 hours). HOWEVER. These boys were slightly rambunctious. Slightly nightmarish. Slightly racist and maschovanist. The other volunteers and I had to bite our tounges so many times over the course of their stay and ended up just trying to make it through until the end with no one snapping rather than excecuting the great programme we had set up for them. It was a little tragic. Nice note to end on!

I have a rough idea of what I'll be doing in the next week before my mother arrives, but have a lot open for spontaneity. I'll be in Maghera tonight, Magharafelt tomorrow night, exploring the Sperrins on Sunday, then hopping around between Newry and Belfast until Thursday when I catch a train to Dublin. Great craic!

I'm departing Corrymeela in the next hour or so. Packing wasn't too hard as I don't have any luggage with me (my mother is bringing it), so I'm storing most of my stuff here and picking it up on the 7th of May. It's strange to see my bed bare and all the paintings, drawings, and notes off my wall. On the flip side, quite amusing bringing all the arts & crafts supplies I stole from the store room back up to the main house in a big bag this morning. Mwa ha ha. I'll definitely miss having a fully stocked arts and crafts building 30 feet from my bedroom.

I'm planning on saying more of a "see you later" to everyone rather than a goodbye. I know I'm returning to Corrymeela on the night of the 7th with my mom to pick up my things and I'll see most again, but my time as a volunteer is over and the relationships I know with the other volunteers here is coming to an end. I didn't realize it until the last day or so, but I'm quite heartbroken to think about the possibility of not seeing some of my friends ever again. That's the beautiful but tragic thing about this place...When else am I going to live in the same hallway as my friends from Germany, Myanmar, N. Ireland, Florida, England, Rhode Island, and Scotland? It's a wonderful thing, but it's rare and over too fast. Throughout the next few months, we'll all be back where we came from. Hopefully more enriched and satisfied with life.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Corrymeela begins when you leave...and that is rapidly approaching

Sorry for the lack of updates!

I spent the midweek relaxing in Newry with Conor, made brilliant stir-fry, visited the seaside town of Newcastle, and overall had a bit of craic. 'Twas lovely :)
On the drive back up to Ballycastle Thursday afternoon, we decided to stop at No.8, which is the office I worked at in Belfast for two months last year. I wasn't sure if the lovely women there would remember me, but alas :) they did, and it was great to catch up and see familiar faces.

We arrived back at Corrymeela Thursday night and began preparing for "Community Weekend". As a peace and reconciliation centre, the "Corrymeela Community" is a network of folks who support the work of the organisation by donating, volunteering, working, or just have a genuine interest in the visions of the organisation. Twice a year the Centre hosts a community weekend where members come to spend two nights socializing, learning about recent events at the Centre, and planning. It was a bit crazy with about 200 people at the Centre, but it was fun talking to so many new people.

I can't believe it's my last week here!! Three other volunteers had their last day on Monday, and it got me thinking more about mine. It's crazy how new people and friends come in and out of your life so fast... I hate to think about how many I've met here I'll most likely never cross paths with again.

I get to work on a High School boys group this Wednesday and Thursday, which should be interesting for several reasons. 1)High School aged Irish boys=hilarious. 2)Conor is the facilitator, meaning he's running all of their sessions and planning their program. 3)There are two schools coming together for the programme, one from the South of Ireland and one from a particularly posh district of Belfast...

I'm attempting to plan out where I'll be this Friday-the following Friday when my mother arrives :) After brainstorming last night and weighing out options and possible couches to crash on, I have a rough idea that I'll be bopping around from Kilrea to Newry to Belfast and eventually Dublin. Should be two great final weeks on the wee island! My mom and I are planning on visiting Donegal, Clare, Limerick, Kilkenny, Dublin, and wherever the road takes us. As long as I can navigate on the left side of it, that is.

Karen

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Dear Iceland,

It's been quite an interesting couple of days due to an unnamed volcano deciding to start spewing over in Iceland. Actually it does have a name, but I wouldn't dare try to pronounce it: Eyjafjallajokull. Honestly... Apparently part of the problem is that Eyjafjallajokull is sitting on a glacier, so aside from shooting scorching lava into the air there's also deadly ice chunks the size of houses being shot into the sky. The past few days have been quite hazy, and we're told to be on the lookout for ash clouds....is this real?

One of the Corrymeela volunteers is stuck alone in France, one is stuck at home in England, one has had her trip to Sweden cancelled for Monday, and two more are waiting to hear if their flights are cancelled for Thursday. We're told it isn't safe to go outside if it begins to rain, and some parts of the UK people are being told to wear masks to protect their lungs.

It would help if certain news reports stopped overexaggerating and saying things like "Volcanoes can erupt for up to periods of six months" and "There's a larger volcano next to this one, and volcanoes are known to affect each other's eruption patterns", blah blah blah. I'm banking on things being sorted in four weeks time. I'd like to see my mother and although I'm loving it here, I'm not quite ready to prepare for a Northern Irish summer. Things to do at home!

Anyway, the group that was coming to stay at Corrymeela for a week had to cancel their trip due to the natural disaster issues, so all of a sudden all the volunteers (who are here anyway) get the weekend off. At least there's one instance of a positive situation in the whole horrible volcano plague!

Ta,
Karen

Friday, April 16, 2010

internet

FINALLY internet is back on!!!

It's only natural it would go out across a 3-day window in which I need to register for my college courses...

Monday, April 12, 2010

Camping

Despite being extremely ill last week, I naturally decided this weekend would be the most appropriate time to explore the outdoors of Northern Ireland and take advantage of the glorious (by Ireland standards, of course) weather.

I finished my shift Friday, and after reflecting upon my well being (fair to quite fair, I determined) I deemed it a good idea to join Eamonn and Chris in their swimming adventure. We grabbed wetsuits from the Recreation Store room and headed towards the sea. The beach was absolutely packed with families due to the warm weather, but probably for good reason there was no one in the ocean. After several minutes of persuasion on Eamonn's part, the three of us were about 30 feet out and body surfing in the freezing water. It really was only horrible for the first five minutes, and then once everything went numb the experience was quite enjoyable. The best part may have been the shocked onlookers on the beach...
Naturally my Raynauds disease took over (LOVE that I have a name for this) and we determined our 15 minute sea jaunt should come to a close. Soaking wet, we headed back up the cliff and opted for hot showers and tea in the living room.

On Saturday, Eamonn and I were feeling quite restless and wanted to get out of Corrymeela for a while. Without much planning, we packed up backpacks, a tent, sleeping bags, some sustenance, and began walking towards Fairhead. I've never been proper camping before, so it was quite an adventure. We walked around and up Fairhead for about three hours, and then began the journey towards Murlough Bay, which is in my opinion one of the most beautiful places in the area. After:
-4 hours hiking
-Many, many stops for "the view!"
-Eamonn yelling at me for eating all the marshmallows on the walk
-Grumpiness
-Return to happiness
-Scaling a cliff and pitching a tent in a forest by the sea
-Making a bonfire
-Realizing we forgot a tin opener and bashing open the tin of baked beans with natural materials

We enjoyed a lovely supper of toast, baked beans, and roasted peppers on the open fire. It was quite glorious, if I do say so myself. Sleeping in a tent wasn't exactly the lap of luxury, but there is something special about waking up uncomfortable and a little cold, but being able to hear the ocean waves, rustling of trees, and "MEEEEHHH"ing of wee sheep across the cliffside.

There are some moments I feel like I never ever want to leave this place, and I think freezing my bum off and being uncomfortable with a sore back in a tent on Murlough Bay at midnight was definitely one of them...

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Raynauds

So for the past few years when I get really cold, strange things have happened to my fingers. I used to think nothing of it until my EMT roommate at Corrymeela, Kristin, informed me that I was indeed not normal. So the story goes: Kristin did a little research, and stumbled upon my diagnosis!!! Ta da...Raynauds Disease. Pretty non-serious, but everyone loves a diagnosis.
Naturally since we figured it out, it hasn't been happening. However, last evening when I was relaxing outside on the patio in the semi-cool Northern Irish evening, one of my fingers began to tingle and I whipped out my camera for proof.




Neat, huh? Why do I always get strange medical problems...

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Easter

Merr I hope I'm not getting sick. My throats been hurting for the past day and my glands are swollen. Ahh!

Easter Weekend here at the center was quite busy with two youth groups in from Friday to Sunday. Since I'd worked with groups my last two shifts, this weekend I was on kitchen and got the lovely task of making baked goods for all the volunteers and guests at the center for the weekend. Enter: 60 decorated cupcakes, a lamb-shaped cake, chocolate nests, and buttercream cake. My kind of weekend! Amazin' like.

This week I'm working with a group called Cedar Foundation, which is an organisation in Northern Ireland that works with physically disabled teenagers in the sense of creating opportunities for them to meet friends, engage in fun activities, and help them plan for their future. They arrived yesterday afternoon and are such lovely folks. Unfortunately it's pouring today and they won't get to go see the Giant's Causeway as planned, but instead they are going bowling. It's really amazing how much people in wheelchairs are able to participate in and do today...

One of my favorite fellow volunteers, Chris, a High School English teacher from New York, had his last day today. That's one of the hard things about this place is the constant coming and going of people. Other people have said you get to a point where you just don't want to form new relationships with anyone here because you're constantly forced to have sad goodbyes. Thats sort of a sad mindset, but I'm starting to understand it to some level. I think I meet at least 25 new people here per week.

Quick naptime, then off to finish my day with Cedar Haven. Ta for now!

Karen

Friday, April 2, 2010

Newry

Ciao! I spent the lovely midweek in the bordertown of Newry at a fellow volunteer's home. Northern Ireland experienced "North Pole-like" (so said the local news) conditions on Tuesday night, which I found somewhat hilarious...
Certainly not the part where a large number of motorists got stranded for the night in town halls because they couldn't drive through the snow, or the part where Corrymeela lost power for about a day. Just the mere fact that in Minnesota the same conditions might be labeled a "dusting". Sigh. The world has no idea what sort of place we hail from, Minnesotans. We deserve more credit.

Besides the "blizzard", during my week in Newry I went out for a nice meal, ate a lovely stirfry dinner with the McGraths, got proposed to by Mr. Conor Mcgrath himself, watched all the power go out in the South of Ireland from across the bay in Newry, had a coffee at "Fulla Beans", took a gorgeous drive through the Mourne Mountains, and all around wished I had a little more time off. Sigh! I arrived back at Corrymeela last evening thankfully to a electronically powered site, and ready to work again this morning. Busy busy!! I can't believe I only have 4 weeks left...

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Lubna

By the way...I forgot one VERY strange important coincidence.


Lubna is from Basrah, Iraq. Also the place where my cousin Sarah is stationed for the Nat'l Guard. Very strange how people everywhere in the world are connected to each other. I'm a firm believer in the 6 degrees of separation theory.

New Roommate

I was just given a new roommate yesterday, and I really am not looking forward to it...

Not to be a pessimist, but I really hate sharing bedrooms with people (Kristin was an exception because she was awesome).

Lubna, my new roommate is a 35 year old woman from Iraq. She seems super sweet and I'm sure it will be a great experience, but grrrr. Mid-day nappers don't make good roommates, and that's whats currently going on. I hate having to tip toe around at 2:00 in the afternoon when I have things that needs to be done. She also has quite a strong perfume that she wears, and my room doesn't smell like me when I walk in which I don't really like :/

Merrrr. It'll be fine. On the upside, I spent last evening in Kilrea helping celebrate Tom's 22nd birthday. He had about 15 friends over at his house, and I was the only one not born and bred in Kilrea. 'Twas good craic! Tom's little sister was shocked (and looked a little disappointed) that I was from Minnesota and didn't have the stereotypical accent. Thank goodness!

I'm with a new group this morning until tomorrow afternoon called Active Dads, which I'm really excited about. It's a group of ten fathers from East Belfast up for a night for bonding activities with their wee ones. It's great to see the dads out! Also semi amusing watching tough men from a loyalist background in their parenting mode. One already asked me if I am married. Awkward. I'm leading out an arts and crafts session for the kids tonight while the parents are in a lecture, so that hopefully will go well :)

I think my typing is disrupting Ms. Lubna's slumber, so I shall say Ta for now.

Ka

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Cards

Hello!

I started a new art project a few weeks back ago: Greeting cards! Well, I suppose it spawned from the decision that my paintings were taking too long, and when I started one I'd pretty much work through the night until I finished. Doesn't bode well when you're waking up at 8:00 a.m. and trying to work with a group of Primary School children. SO, to remedy this I made a smaller painting. Then I folded over the other side of the unpainted page. Ta da! A card...

In the last couple weeks I have finished 3, and hopefully I'll have somewhat of a full set (how many different images are in a set of greeting cards, anyway?) by the time I leave.




Ta!
Ka

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

hi from the causeway

Katie took this video at Giant's Causeway :)




cheers!! tanx, (in a dublin accent, like) katie!
-Karen

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

at the weekend

It has been a busy past couple of days!

Katie, her mother, and myself played tourist on Friday and Saturday with trips to Carrick-a-rede rope bridge...


Wasn't that scary until you look down!

Eep!

We also visited the Giant's Causeway, Dunluce Castle, Portstewart, Coleraine, and Rathlin Island. It was great to get out and see some of those things again after living here for a while and having at least a little more of a native perspective :)

Katie and her mom left Saturday afternoon, and I spent the rest of the day relaxing and walking down to the beach to collect some more sea glass. I found a gorgeous royal blue piece, and a large clear piece that has the word "milk" on it. So fun! I need some good jewelry designs and proper wire asap.

TODAY was quite interesting. I was on "cover", which I think I've explained before, but basically was the person on hand all day on the site in case of any issues or emergencies. I have really never dealt with anything more than making sure someone's heat is turned on in their room, overseeing various things, etc. Should've knocked on wood, because today the cover mobile rang and alerted me that a member of a group had fallen outside and most likely broken his foot. Hence, it was my responsibility to call for an ambulance and fill out all the necessary forms, etc.
Bit daunting. I'd forgotten how squeamish I get with medical emergencies as well. Poor lad's foot was double in size...


And I leave you with:

Pretty view of Ballycastle Harbour from the ferry Katie and I took to Rathlin :)

Cheers,
Karen

Saturday, March 20, 2010

visits from afar!

So comes to a close a very short but sweet visit from friends and family! I thoroughly enjoyed Thursday, Friday, and Saturday afternoon with Kristen, Drew, Katie, and Katie's mother, and it is nice to finally have people who can picture in their minds where I'm living and what I'm doing. Kristen and Drew only stayed Thursday evening unfortunately, and Katie and her mother spent Friday night as well. Everyone is gone this afternoon, and alas, I am back on my own!

On Thursday I navigated and Drew drove (impressively)us to some scenic sights near Ballycastle. First, I took them to the mysterious, haunted graveyard in town. It's really Ballycastle's pride and joy ghost story, and as much as I think I don't believe in ghosts there really is something eerie about Bonamargy Friary, a friary for Franciscan monks hundreds of years ago. After the monks left, a recluse named Julia McQuillan moved in and became known as "The Black Nun". There are many different variations of the story, but the bottom line was Julia supposedly murdered a few different people, made prophecies that came true, and for years frightened the people of Ballycastle. In the end, they ended up breaking into the Friary and killing her. Nowadays, Julia haunts the old Friary and loves it when little children stick their hand through the keyhole in her gravestone, because then and only then are they marked with THE CURSE OF THE BLACK NUN. Dun dun dun...


I also took the group to (in my opinion) one of the most beautiful places I've ever been, Murlough Bay. It's near Corrymeela and I think it has one of the biggest ocean views I've ever seen. We also drove through the quaint town of Cushendun, and played around on Ballycastle Beach. After the outdoor adventures, the four of us took in a nice meal and a few pints at O'Connor's pub. THEN. I got a brilliant idea. Why not go for a wee midnight graveyard stroll? After all, I'm sure Julia much prefers to haunt people in the dark. Drew was as excited as a little boy on Christmas at the idea, and Kristen and Katie politely said they'd wait in the car...
Good thing Drew and I are persuasive, because next thing I knew the four of us were clinging to each other weaving through gravestones and checking around stone walls before continuing through. Great craic!! Too bad Drew is too curious and had to stick his hand through Julia's keyhole gravestone. He's pretty much doomed I'd say...

Here are pics of my sister and me outside Corrymeela, a cute Irish woman walking her Springers outside the Friary(They looked just like Nitro), Murlough Bay, and Ballycastle Beach/the Pier:










I was sad Kristen and Drew could only stay one night! So good to see them. On the other hand, Katie and her mom stayed until Saturday afternoon, which gave us ample time to catch up and do some more tourist activities! I shall update later describing our adventures yesterday at the Rope Bridge, Causeway, Dunluce, Portstewart, and (oops!) a little shopping in Coleraine. Ta for now!

Karen

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

bahh

I went for a wee dander today and for the first time really noticed and appreciated some of the great things about SPRING...the main particular one being wee lambs running around everywhere. I honestly can't get enough of them. If anyone was looking out their front window at the road this afternoon they probably would've been confused as to why a wee blade was stopping every few feet along the road to admire the little beings. I didn't bring my camera, but I wish I had!! I found this photo on the internet (The black faced lambs are my fav):



Usually the fields are filled with low, semi-frightening "BAHHH's" from the big sheep. Now in Springtime there is a nice harmony of rumbling "BAHHH'S" and little baby "bahs!" that sound a little squeaky. So incredibly adorable. There was even a lamb trying to chase a bunny! Ahh! I die.

Alright, enough with the obsessing over the lambs. My apologies.

-Karen

Monday, March 15, 2010

bit of an art frenzy

I have been doing a lot of art in my spare time! I realized I have a problem with telling people I'll make a painting or drawing for them, then becoming attached to it when making it and end up not able to part with it come time. he he.






maybe I miss my MN friends a little?!

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Amsterdam II



Hello again! A few more points about Amsterdam I failed to mention in round 1:

-The Van Gogh Museum was amazing. It was quite interesting to see some of his work when he was just beginning, and also strange to think of Van Gogh as a beginner. Also interesting was how much his work changed throughout his career-his first paintings and last were not even recognizable as done by the same man...
So you DEFINITELY weren't allowed to take photos in the museum, but you know I just couldn't resist blossoming almonds...



Woops! Mwa ha ha.

Overall, Amsterdam was quite a beautiful city with a lot of unique qualities. If I ever make it back to Holland I'd definitely want to get out and see more of the countryside, though!




On to things Corrymeela-ish. There are currently several residential groups at Corrymeela, and thus hectic days for all. I washed more dishes today than I ever want to again. It's good to be back in Norn Iron and back amongst friends, and it's always comforting to feel a certain sense of "home" here.

Cheers,
Karen

Amsterdam

Hello!

I arrived home from great Amsterdam trip late last evening and unfortunately had to work bright and early this morning! Good morning, kitchen duties! I was helping chop vegetables by 9:30 am this morning and now have finally gotten a chance to sit down, and err...shower. Much needed.

Amsterdam was unlike any other place I've ever been, and even after four days I'm still not sure I completely understood what was going on there. Kristin, myself, and Tom packed as much as we could into our short time there, and left with the main objectives of visiting the Anne Frank house, Van Gogh museum, Canal Cruise, Wax museum, and keeping some time for fun and spontaneity checked off the list. The city was bustling and a melting pot of many different types of folk, and it was pleasant knowing we weren't the only ones who weren't quite sure what to make of our surroundings.



We walked (a little frightened, if I may add) through the Red Light District the first night of our trip. You aren't allowed to take photos (which I think everyone understands why), but considering we were all feeling thoroughly awkward and sped walked down the street I don't think stopping for a photo opp. crossed any of our minds...

On the second day, we navigated our way to the Anne Frank Huis, which before visiting I suppose I didn't even realize was located in Holland. It was as expected a more solemn activity on our trip, and really quite fascinating. It was strange to think while walking around the rooms of the Franks and Van Pels families living there in the dark for two years. No photos allowed in this place either, but Kristin and I decided we wouldn't feel right treating it as such a tourist sight. In a strange way you could feel a sense of spirits in there.



Later on in the day after our journey back to the WWII era and a few blocks down the street, the three of us found a glorious little cafe called "Bagels and Beans" where we succeeded in relaxing with lovely cups of coffee and gourmet bagels at least a few times. The second morning for breakfast I discovered the magic of a bagel with maple syrup, brown sugar, and banana slices....mmm..




I will update a little later regarding the rest of the trip. It's officially time for a nap in my room!

Love,
Karen

Friday, March 5, 2010

new things




Sorry its been a while since I updated! Its been extremely busy around here. In the last week, I have

-Learned what sea glass is, collected some, and crafted a few pieces of jewelry with string, sea glass, and wire.

Finished product:



-Explored Murlough Bay and Torr Head, which are two local scenic attractions and if I may say two of the most beautiful places Ive ever been in my life

-Worked on housekeeping a few days and learned what a horrible ironer I am. Sorry to the woman I was working with…every time I finally finished ironing a duvet I would look over to see that she had done 6 in that time. Oops.

-Eaten way too many desserts and drank way too much coffee and tea. On that subject, actually began the road to addiction to tea. I now have an internal struggle each time when it comes time to decide to choose between a wee cuppa tea and a wee cuppa coffee

-Slowly began hating my computer again. It keeps freezing….hence why I am using the old computer in the main building that someone has sneakily changed all the keys to German language…hence why this post is going to be somewhat short. It is taking me forever to insert all the right symbols and figure out which keys on the board are flip flopped.

-Took a few long walks along Ballycastle beach.

-Started planning a camping trip with Tiff and Eamonn, two fellow volunteers. Hopefully we will go sometime over a weekend in the next month. And were talking proper camping, complete with kayaking and tents. Eep

-Went on a couple dates with a lad I met at Wee Toms pub two weekends back. Quite lovely…

Now I am getting ready to leave for Amsterdam with Kristin on Sunday. My friend from Kilrea, Tom, has also decide to spontaneously buy a ticket and tag along. It will probably be good to have a male in the trio I suppose.

I promise I will update more later. I am just frustrated with the constant freezing of my computer. Why cant it just behave for once….

Monday, February 22, 2010

MN? Is that you?

I dislike waking up to this:




And more to come apparently! Booo.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

lovely rose of clare

when asked if i had any irish blood by the nearing 60 traditional irish music singer at the pub last night and responding with "yes, from clare", i afterwards got serenaded with this:



so lovely. ha ha.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

galway & connemara

And so has ended my first trip to the west!

I left with just a wee backpack early on Tuesday morning, and despite having many dreams Monday night about missing buses and ending up stranded somewhere, I successfully navigated myself in a taxi to the Ballycastle bus stop, switching in Coleraine, switching in Derry, and finally onward 5.3 hours to Galway city. I think I may have spent more time on a bus this week than actually in my destination, but it was well worth it.

Galway was described to me as a charming "bohemian melting pot", which I couldn't say was false. It was an old merchant town at one point and somehow never quite lost its constant influx of international visitors. I've never seen so many foreign people in one place in Ireland before...
The first night was rather strange as I had booked a spot in an 8-bed dormer in a hostel and was the only one in the room. Lonely! I decided to get myself a coffee and a pastry, read some of my book, and call it an early night. Lucky for me, since my refreshed self was able to get myself out of bed early on Wednesday morning and walk all around the city, grab a wee cuppa, and finally give in and visit the tourist office. As much as I didn't want to do something super touristy, I decided I would see the most for the cheapest by doing an all day bus tour of Connemara...embarassing, yes, but SO worth it. The tours are normally 25 pounds, but in the off season (aka february!) it was just 7.50 to be driven around one of the most beautiful regions in Ireland for 8 hours with a knowledgeable guide. I got to see Galway, Spiddle, an abandoned famine village, Screeb, Kylemore, Leenaun, Maam's Cross, and many other breathtaking places. I think I took about 100 photos, and once again it's easier to put them all on flickr so if you're curious:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mo_chroi/

There yeh are! Some of my favourites, although, include:





Traveling alone sadly means limited pictures of myself...but I came out with two nice ones after persuading other people (all French, naturally) on my tour bus to take some of me!



More later! My break is about to end, then a couple more hours of a Belfast teenage group and I'll be off til tomorrow morning.

-Karen

Sunday, February 14, 2010

monsters?

So this group is leaving in less than an hour, and it REALLY can't come soon enough.

Friday was nice as Kristin and I got to take care of the babies, but naturally their parents wanted them to be included in the big kids group all day Saturday and today. Let's just say if I could choose one word to sum up this group of 5-8 year olds, it would be N-I-G-H-T-M-A-R-E. Or perhaps M-O-N-S-T-E-R-S.

I'm not sure if their parents never heard of the word "discipline" or "responsibility" or any of that hodge podge, but even if not, you'd think they'd have the common sense not to let them all keep their gameboys with them for the weekend up here. Or maybe take away their toy gun before coming to a peace and reconciliation centre? Just saying...

Saturday, February 13, 2010

babies

Kristin and I are on "creche" for the weekend, which is the British English term for nursery or daycare, I guess. Anyway! As much as small children can frighten me, working with little baby Ceilan and Siona is pretty much the cutest thing I've ever seen. Both are little quirky blue eyed Irish toddlers and immediately took a liking to us. Ceilan and I made up a song about tea and toast and Kristin and Siona helped facilitate musical chairs for the older kids. SO CUTE.

Friday, February 12, 2010

Busy but exciting days

Hello :)

It has been a busy week with various tasks-housekeeping, a day group on Wednesday, reception, etc. Unfortunately it'll be a busy weekend as well! There is a very large group of about 40 people arriving this evening and staying until Sunday afternoon. Myself and four other volunteers will be responsible for creating their program, supervising and facilitating it, organizing everything for them, etc. It should be an interesting group though...I believe it is a group of a mix of Somalian refugees and asylum seekers as well as their host families. There is going to be babies, kids, teens, adults, the whole lot. Whew.

Something very exciting is on the horizon after the busy weekend, however! I have the midweek off next Tuesday-Friday afternoon, so I've decided to endure some very long bus rides and spend two nights on the west coast of Ireland. I believe I'm going to spend one night in Galway and one in Connemara, which is about an hour north and also where the beautiful Kylemore Abbey is located :) Something I am very excited to see! Should look something like this:


He he :) So hopefully everything works out and I don't miss any buses or get mugged, as I am traveling alone. A little scary but semi empowering!

Karen

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

my life has arrived

FINALLY MY COMPUTER CAME!!
I can now skype.
And upload photos.
And reconnect with my life.
For just a 77 pound delivery charge...How convenient. Not.

Anyway, I added some pics to my Flickr if you want to check it out:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mo_chroi/

For now...


View from Corrymeela towards Fairhead :) And you can see Scotland in the background...

all the best,
karen

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Back to Belfast

Hello! After finishing out the week volunteering at Corrymeela, I was trying to decide what to do with my weekend when my friend Tom informed me of a Pearl Jam Tribute band playing in Belfast Friday evening. I'm not exactly the biggest Pearl Jam fan you'll ever meet, but the opportunity to get to Belfast for the night was one I decided to take advantage of. And I'm SO glad I did. Tom's friend goes to Queens University and let me, Tom, and Tom's friend Fergal stay at his place for the night. His flat was only about a ten minute walk from the show, so it worked out well. We stopped at Subway on the way to grab a sandwich, and it was only natural I ran into one of the students who was up with his class at Corrymeela this week for a session and that I worked with. You can't go ANYWHERE or meet anyone here without realizing you have mutual friends or that your brother in law's best friend's sister is actually your neighbor, or something. It's a little ridiculous.

Despite not liking Pearl Jam, the show was actually pretty good and I am excited to say I checked something off the list of things to do before I die....ready?

Yep..I definitely crowd surfed. Ha ha! So grand.

The combination of crowd surfing, the show, good company, free lodgings=brilliant evening. I've just arrived back in Ballycastle now, and I think I'm going to relax for the rest of the day/evening!

6 Nations Rugby match tonight!!! Go Ireland! :)

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

energy research & swedes

Hiya!

It is my 3rd official day here volunteering, and things are going quite well. There's a rotation schedule that allows each volunteer to spend time working with groups, helping with reception and housekeeping, helping cook meals, and get a chance to do various other tasks around the centre. This Tuesday-Thursday I am on "Centre Support", which can mean basically any odd job a fellow called Shane comes up with. Yesterday he gave me the project to do research on the centre's energy consumption and come up with a report to share with the volunteers, simple tricks to reduce energy consumption, and whatever else I could think of.

I compiled a list of easy tips to saving energy and also made a fun sheet of "Interesting ways to think about Energy". On my sheet, I compared the loss of energy caused by small things (i.e. leaving a laptop plugged in overnight, leaving the lights on when you aren't in your room, etc.) to bigger activities. For example, leaving a PC moniter on all night wastes enough energy to microwave 6 dinners. Then I added a little personal story to each scenario such as, "Ethan had to eat six cold spaghetti dinners because someone left their PC moniter on all night". Sort of fun! Anyway, the staff members absolutely loved it. Snaps for me. Little did they know, it really didn't take a lot of work as Shane let me take 2hours off yesterday to walk into town :) He he. More research today, though!

Also, there's a Swedish group here for a couple days. I'm not working with them, but I talked to a couple of the leaders at lunchtime yesterday. They said they have a couple of students with them named "Karen" and asked where I was from. I had no idea the general population of Sweden knew of Minnesota, but they were ecstatic when I told them I was from Minneapolis and knew it was a major place for Swedish immigrants.

Cheers,
Karen

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Hoodlums

I know this is awful, but I have to share it since...well..it's gotta take some creative mind to come up with this.
The town I stayed in with Tom my first two nights in Northern Ireland is called Kilrea. It's a very small town about 10 miles south of Coleraine. Basically everyone knows everyone, and its only made up of two main streets intersecting and in the middle having a sort of "town square" area, if you will and in the middle of that is "Kilrea Town Hall". Take a look at the defacement of the town hall's signage:



I had to laugh because, wow. How do you even think of that?

-Karen

Monday, February 1, 2010

Ballycastle

I'm settling into my first day here in Ballycastle, Co. Antrim and I've already met a ton of lovely people :) Mondays are pretty quiet here at the centre and consist of a lot of meetings, which weren't really that exciting, but it gave me a chance to meet most of the staff and volunteers. There are volunteers from all over the world here including a couple more from America, and very very strangely there is a 24 year old girl named Allie, who resides from....dun dun dunn....EAGAN, MN. SO WEIRD. Why is it wherever I go on the planet there always seems to be someone from a Mpls/St Paul suburb? I don't get it.

Unfortunately it's raining out this afternoon (gasp), so I can't go for the walk I had planned on and appreciate where I am. Corrymeela is perched up on top of a cliff and looking out over the town of Ballycastle and about a thousand miles of ocean. Also, on clear days you can see Rathlin Island (it has puffins!) a few miles out, and on very clear days you can even see Scotland across the water. So beautiful!

THANK GOODNESS my boxes were quietly awaiting me when I arrived here yesterday. I guess most people bring all of their things along with them, because apparently the hot topic for a week or so around the centre was the mystery volunteer who sent half her life across the world with her. Word is there were even bets going about how much they weighed and how much it must've cost to post them. This place has gossip like a small town, I tell you. Hence, whenever I met anyone today the response was "You're the one with the packages!!" Sigh. Yep.

I feel bad mooching off my roommates computer as mine is still living in Minnesota (hopefully I'll have it in a few weeks!). So ta for now.

all the best
karen

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Norn Iron!!

I arrived last evening at Belfast International Airport and was greeted with....wait for it....
A BLIZZARD! Hello, Northern Ireland! Why is it that everytime my plane lands here it's snowing??

No worries. A friend of mine named Tom picked me up from the airport with two of his mates and is allowing me to stay at his family's house in Kilrea (near Coleraine) for two nights before I head to Ballycastle. It's really the first time I've been a guest in a proper Irish home and I couldn't ask for better hospitality. A giant,fresh bed with an en suite fully stocked with luxury bath products awaited me along with the lovely Mullin family who is constantly making sure I'm well fed and happy. I love Irish hospitality.

The sun was shining today, although it was still a bit cold. I guess I can't complain since the coat I'm using here would still probably suffice only for September and October in Minnesota. Besides the weather, it feels AMAZING to be back amongst rolling green hills and sheep wandering everywhere. It also is quite nice understanding the locals speech, whereas last year when I arrived I couldn't pick out any English for a good few weeks.

Tom is kindly driving me up to Ballycastle tomorrow afternoon, so I'll update probably tomorrow night. Unfortunately I won't have my computer for another few weeks and depending on when my boxes arrive won't have my camera cord either. I haven't been taking really any pictures so far anyway, but the time will come!

cheers
Karen

Monday, January 25, 2010

Edinburgh

Good afternoon! Or morning still I guess for the MN folks.
My weekend in Edinburgh was quite delightful. I didn't really know what to expect, but it was an extremely old, gothic-looking city with big clocktowers and the massive Edinburgh castle sitting in the middle overlooking everything...



I didn't go inside because it was over £20 (wow), but I admired it from below! All in all from the weekend I quite enjoyed:
-The (in my opinion) gorgeous Scottish accent. Don't know what they were saying to me half the time but it was quite pleasing in the audiological department
-Pints of Guinness. Apparently Scotland is one of the only places besides Ireland you can get one "worthy"
-Surprisingly cheap prices. I got a few very nice meals for just a couple pounds
-Watching the football (soccer) premiership. It's really growing on me...

Now I am back in Newcastle, enjoying my 7th day in a row of rain I believe. And by enjoying I mean not really enjoying that much...Oh well.

Got my first latte and scone this afternoon! Lovely.

Later,
Karen

Friday, January 22, 2010

check

This morning I started...dun dun dun.....

Writing a book! Hooray! Probably won't be quite a bestseller since it is the first attempt I have ever made, but I have created a list of things I want to accomplish during my semester off school and this is a major one.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

The Coast

I awoke this morning and decided to be adventurous and navigate the metro system. After a quick shower and a bowl of Jordan's Country Crisp, I put on my what would be autumn coat at home but gloriously my winter coat here and walked out the door. Instead of exploring downtown Newcastle, I decided to take the metro east and meander around the coast for the afternoon.
A tiny little girl with blonde curls clutching a doll with her grandma kept grinning at me on the train, so I said "Hello, what's you're name?". She replied in her toddler Jordie accent and I couldn't tell you what her name was for the life of me, but she seemed interested in my accent and came and sat next to me in my tiny seat and kept grinning at me the whole trip. Awkward, but pretty adorable.
The metro dropped be off at a place called Whitley Bay. I don't have my computer or camera cord to post photos, but it was a quaint little seaside shopping area with a big lighthouse. I found this photo on google, but I have an almost identical one that I took so I thought I'd post it for the time being:

I also stopped in a little cafe by the sea and got a £1.60 latte. I can never remember what jargon I'm supposed to use whenever I order coffee anywhere else than Caribou coffee, and apparently "small nonfat latte" didn't register at Whitley Bay. The clerk first asked me to repeat myself, and then said "so...semi skimmed milk will do?" Semi-skimmed I think means 1%, but I suppose it worked.
All in all, it felt good to walk around outside today and to finally start to have the effects of jetlag diminish.

Cheers til later
Karen

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Here

I made it! I am currently sitting in a little flat in Newcastle, England and looking out the window to an extremely drizzly day. It looks a lot like Ireland here to be honest, but the people that live in Newcastle (Jordies, as I have learned they are called) have accents that I've definitely never heard before. Some strange English-Scottish hybrid.

My plane ride(s) were semi grueling. My quick Minneapolis-Chicago was smooth, but my hopes were soon plummeting on the Chicago-London leg despite having 2 seats to myself when I realized the screaming baby one row up was indeed not going to shut up. The whole flight. Sometimes I feel like there should be cheaper seats if you're within ten rows of an infant, or all-infant flights, or whatever. Maybe that's mean, but I definitely mean it when I have to arrive in England after ten hours in travel with bloodshot eyes, disorientation from no sleep, and a frightening, intimidating immigration officer to deal with.

And frightening and intimidating she was. I suppose I DID maybe seem kind of suspicious with my only carry on and one way flight, but the UK has already issued me my work visa and I had all my travel documents with me, so there wasn't really anything she could do about her inkling that I was going to wreak havoc somewhere on her people. Pshhh. I rudely snatch my passport back after she just about stabs it with her little stamp and beckons me into England.

I rented a room at the Yotel (a hotel inside the airport) for 4 hours since I had a while between my arrival and my last flight, so at least I got a chance to shower and lay down for a bit. As tired as I was I was to nervous to fall asleep for fear that I wouldn't wake up in time to catch the 2 trains I needed to take to terminal 5.

My last flight was definitely the funniest. I guess no tourists or Americans or for that matter non locals at all travel from London to Newcastle, because everyone at the gate seemed to be blabbering away in their Jordie accent and staring and pointing at me. One of the male flight attendants came up to me in the flight and said "Are you from the UK?" I was hesitant to speak because it takes away any question surrounding what nationality I may be, but I had to respond so I merely said "no". I think even from such a small word people can detect American accents. He gave me sort of a cock eyed look and said "Aye, alright then".

Everything went very smoothly, surprisingly, but I cant believe how long it took me to be sitting here in this little living room on the other side of the world drinking instant coffee and eating my favorite UK cereal, Jordans Country Crisp. A thoughtful Northern Irish host went grocery shopping before I arrived and stocked his cupboards with (him rolling eyes, snorting in disgust) vegetarian friendly foods. Lovely :) He works until 6 pm, so I'm going to enjoy this bowl of cereal and perhaps go for a wee dander and explore.

Ta for now,
Karen

Monday, January 18, 2010

Departure Eve

It is the eve before my departure! I had a bit of a scare today when I tried to check-in online, was denied because of my suspicious one way ticket, and phoned the airline only to hear my ticket didn't exist. What?!?!
I am taking US Airways from Minneapolis to Chicago and switching to United from Chicago to London. Turns out, US Airways apparently doesn't get to have access to names of people who switch airlines on their journey. Either that or the woman on the phone was an idiot. Luckily I do have an existing ticket (500 pounds off my shoulders), but I still have to check in at the airport tomorrow morning personally rather than online probably thanks to 9/11 and Christmas Day incidents, etc. An innocent passenger who prefers only carry on luggage and a one way ticket is nowadays clearly code for trouble.
I'm shipping one large box and one small box to Corrymeela, so hopefully the majority of my things will greet me when I arrive in Ballycastle, Co. Antrim on January 31st. Til then, I'm making do with my wee carry on :) Many European airlines don't allow a second item either (i.e. purse, laptop bag, etc.) in addition to a carry on, so I didn't risk it. Should be nice and easy to carry at least! Until Tuesday afternoon when I finally touch down in Newcastle, let's all please cross our fingers I make all my connections, am not deemed a happy, innocent, non-dangerous passenger, don't have a panic attack mid flight over the Atlantic, or really for anything out of the ordinary to happen. Please!

I suppose until I'm settled in England then, ta for now.
-Karen

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

One week

Well...the countdown has officially begun. It's hard to believe I depart the states one week from today. I moved out of my room in the apartment I share with 4 friends in Dinkytown this afternoon and immediately unloaded and started organizing/packing my belongings once I got to Maple Grove. I'll be shipping one box...one very large box that is..directly to Corrymeela (the organisation I'll be volunteering with) in Ballycastle and bringing solely a carry-on for the first 12-day leg of my journey. I'm crossing my fingers that
A)My box arrives safe and sound in Ballycastle
B)I'm not over-estimating my packing abilities for my carry on bag. It's one thing to pack clothing for 12 days, and it's another thing to pack clothing that will keep me adequately stylish and comfortable among the English.

Maybe I haven't thoroughly explained my travel plans to anyone who may read this. I'm flying out on Monday, January 18th, enduring two layovers in Chicago and London Heathrow, and finally after a grueling trip touching down in Newcastle, England (a city in the northeast of England, nearly bordering Scotland) around 2:00 pm on January 19th. A friend who I met last year in Northern Ireland took a job in Newcastle last summer, and coincidentally airplane tickets to London were much cheaper than Belfast or Dublin. Hence, I am killing two birds with one stone by saving money and getting the opportunity to stay in England for a week or so before I head over to Northern Ireland. The friend I'm staying with is employed as an optometrist/optometrist in training at the moment, so I'll most likely have a lot of time to meander around Newcastle and see the sights. Eep!

I'm getting antsy now that one of my good friends, Alicia, just touched down a few days ago in her semester-long Caribbean destination and started blogging away. Also another friend, Missy, is spending the semester in Cork, Ireland and began blogging a few days ago as well. It's definitely my turn, and it is long overdue!! Ahhh! Please just let all my planes be on time and my bags and boxes make it to where they need to go.

One more week of organising, packing, probably stressing, and saying my goodbyes.

Ta,
Karen

Saturday, January 2, 2010

P.S.

My new flickr account is:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mo_chroi/

So I don't have to try to shove every possible photo into this blog...

Friday, January 1, 2010

Promise

I promise to get religious with this blog again once I leave!

Which by the way is the afternoon of January 18th....
eep!