Friday, November 23, 2012

A week or so ago, I had an unfortunate accident on the bus. I hit my head on an over-head railing when the driver took the corner to sharply. 

Well long story short, after waiting a week with terrible headaches, I went to the emergency room and was informed that I had a concussion. 

No need to worry! I finally got a cat-scan after waiting in the ER for 7 1/2 hours. There is no bleeding or bruising and I am on the long road to complete recovery. 

To cheer me up, one of my roommates taped this to my door when I returned from the ER. 




Christmas Lighting Ceremony
Friday, November 16th, 2012
Cork City, Ireland

Every year the citizens of Cork gather together to celebrate the beginning of the Christmas season. The main event is when they turn the lights on all at once. 


The main stage on Patrick Street. 



Patrick Street

Opera Lane
The Tree on Patrick Street





Care-package from home!!!!




Wooohooooo, now I am fully stocked!

I have never walked so much in my life before I came to Ireland. I've been walking so much, I have hole in my socks!

Well, I definitely know what I am asking Santa for Christmas!



Kinsale
Saturday; November 10th, 2012


Originally a medieval fishing port, historic Kinsale is one of the most picturesque, popular and historic towns on the south west coast of Ireland.




It has been hailed as the Gourmet Capital of Ireland, with no shortage of cafes, pubs and restaurants to suit every taste and budget.







Only 18 miles from Cork, Kinsale marks the beginning of scenic West Cork and is ideally placed as a yachting and deep-sea angling centre and in recent years aworld class golf destination.







Charles Fort




Charles Fort is one of the finest surviving examples of a 17th Century star-shaped fort, and much of the construction begun in 1678 remains. 




The fort has two enormous bastions overlooking the estuary, and three facing inland. 



Within its walls were all the barracks and ancillary facilities to support the fort’s garrison. The fort continued in military use until 1922. 

As one of the largest military installations in the country, Charles Fort has been associated with some of the most momentous events in Irish history. The most significant of these are the Williamite War 1689-91 and the Civil War 1922-23. Charles Fort was declared a National Monument in 1973.




On our way home, we stopped at this point. It was so windy and I am actually surprised I was able to catch such a breathtaking photograph!





Our final stop before heading back home was a beach. I thought it was absolutely necessary to write my name in the sand :)






















Friday, November 16, 2012

Last week I was watching television with a friend. This group of guys was singing on the show and we said, "Hey, they are really good. Let's check them out online."


The Overtones are a British-Irish-Australian group made up of 5 male vocalists.


We checked their fanpage to see when they are in concert. They were playing the next evening in Cork at the Cork Opera House! We were so excited, but were quickly let down when we saw that the tickets were sold out :(




The next day when we were in town, we decided to stop by the Opera House to see if any tickets were available. Lucky for us, we got the last two!!!!!






Even better, 30 minutes after we got the tickets, we were on Patrick Street waiting to cross the street. I look over to the other side and there they are! The whole band is standing across the street! They saw me see them and they came right over. One of them hugged me and we were able to get a picture with them. 

It was absolutely amazing!!! 



They are amazing in concert. I highly recommend them to anybody who enjoys the big-band / swing music. 



Check out the video montage of the concert on my YouTube page!
The Overtones Concert Motage Link

Thursday, November 15, 2012

St. Stephen's Green is Dublin's largest green. It covers a span of 22 acres. 

St. Stephen's Green

Trinity College Dublin

Tower in the Main Square

Main Entrance to Trinity College Dublin

Kilmainham Gaol

Kilmainham Gaol is a former prison located in Dublin, which is now a museum.  Kilmainham Gaol played an important part in Irish history, as many leaders of Irish rebellions were imprisoned and some executed in the prison by the British and latterly in 1923 by the Irish Free State.




The inscription on the wall says:
"Beware The Risen People,
that have harried and held, ye that have eviled and bribed."

This inscription was written by the IRA prisoners. 




The view of the main part of the prison.

Memorial

This is the exact spot where members of the IRA, who started the Easter Rising to make Ireland a free state, were executed. 

There hasn't been a single place in all of Ireland where I felt like I connected to anything historical, until I saw this. Because of those brave men, Ireland is now a free state. 

Cork in the morning on our way to Dublin.
Saturday, November 3rd, 2012


Cork City

Cork Country

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Saturday, November 10, 2012


Here is a clip of part of the game. 



A few weeks ago, I went to my first soccer game. It was absolutely amazing. I couldn't believe the enthusiasm the people in the stands had!



 Princess Diana Memorial Park





The London Eye

View from the London Eye

View of Westminster Abbey & Big Ben 

I have no idea what this was, but it was absolutely beautiful. 



London Tower

London Tower Bridge

River Boat Cruise


London Bridge

Shakespeare's Dome

View from the Double Decker Bus


Big Ben
You cannot go to London and not take the Tube at some point. 

The infamous sign.

Waiting for our Tube!

LONDON

It's pronounced:

"LUN-DUN"

Friday, October 12th, 2012 - 
Sunday, October 14th, 2012
The weather wasn't looking to good for a while. It was cloudy and raining. We couldn't see anything. The brush and trees were in the way. Then, we took a corner and this is what we saw when the rain let up:

CAN YOU SEE THE RAINBOW?



The house of Daniel O'Connell

Beach located at O'Connells home



Daniel O'Connell is often referred to as The Liberator, was an Irish political leader in the first half of the 19th century. He campaigned for Catholic Emancipation—including the right for Catholics to sit in theWestminster Parliament, denied for over 100 years—and repeal of the Act of Union which combined Great Britain and Ireland.