Just a test...

Ok, so I have two posts written that I can't. Publish for some reason.  I keep getting a message about "publishing error 400"!  So I just want to see if I can get anything to publish.

Our numbers are changing...

Just a teaser that our merry band of travelers has changed...someone went home early. I'm not telling who, so stay tuned.  The three remaining Hunts are heading out on an all day tour to the West Highland Lochs and Castles today.

Airport security!?

OK...so in the past few weeks we have gone through airport security in Oakland, Oslo, Bergen, Dublin, Shannon Ireland, Manchester England and finally Edinburgh Scotland.  And now for a few observations...

Leaving Oakland ...why do only US airports require you to take off your shoes?  No European airports require you to remove your shoes.  I guess we have Mr. Reid (the shoe bomber) to thank for this...just because he had a bomb in his shoes, we are still thinking this is how the terrorists will attack our country!  Do you feel any safer because you have to march 100 feet through all domestic USA airports in your socks?  I don't!  I'll tell you the airport I feel safest in...MANCHESTER, ENGAND!!  After you get your boarding pass, you must pass through a turnstile where you scan the barcode on your boarding pass, then pause before a turnstile and look at a small screen while an eyeball scan is done.  After they have determined that your eyeball scan does not match a terrorist on file, the turnstile opens and lets you pass on to the hand luggage security area.  As I put my purse, and carry on into the usual grey plastic tubs, the agent reminded me to take out my iPad, and any liquids.  I pulled out a small bottle of liquid hand sanitizer from my purse and I proceeded forward.  Once my body was scanned, I watched my tub come down the conveyer belt...suddenly it was scanned then a little door opened and my tub was sucked onto another conveyer belt. Behind a glass wall...I could see it, but I couldn't get to it.  I waited in a line until my bag was pulled up front...then it was examined by hand( by a female agent who did not smile at all!)   A second X-ray came first, followed by an unceremoniously upside dump of my purse.  I was mortified when the agent pulled these items aside...(all of which had made it through airport security at 5 other airports).

That's a total of one hand lotion, one eyeglass cleaner, one more hand sanitizer (?!) and a whopping 7 lipsticks/lip glosses...and I swear, I usually only apply in the morning and then maybe once later in the day!  What the hell were all those dangerous lipglosses doing in my humble purse?!?!  Next came the special cloth attached to a long tong for a thorough swipe (remember my purse was empty now!)  and then testing of the special cloth inside a small machine for explosive residue.  Then my plethora of lip products were put in a plastic bag that was also tested for explosives!  OMG!!  Finally my purse and its contents were returned to me and we were allowed to continue through the aiport. 

Second runner up in the airport security game was the Edinburgh airport where we saw guards strolling in pairs.  This would not be an unusual sight except that they were armed with huge machine guns in their arms, and taser guns in their belt holsters.  In all honesty, I was at first a bit horrified, but ultimately came to the decision that I DID feel safer in both these airports than if I had just had to remove my shoes!  It is sad that we have to go through things like this, but if the world IS as dangerous as we are lead to believe, then let's really do everything to protect ourselves...be proactive...and don't just pretend that parading through airports in our socks will protects us from any bad guys. 

 (It did not help to read recently that in a recent test of TSA agents in U.S. Airports, 95% of them failed their task, letting suspicious material get through airport security in a "secret shopper/secret traveller" situation) 

One final note...I will never travel with lipgloss in my purse again!!

Our last day in Ireland...

.

Our busy time In Ireland is drawing to a close, but we have a few more sights to see before our busy bus tour ends.  Our last day here began with another early start, and new assigned seats on the bus.  Even though the seats change every day we are always sandwiched between the same groups.  We always have "The Magnificient 7" (the inspiring family traveling with their terminally ill mother), behind us, and then in front of us we have 2 young women that Ron has named "the Cucko Pidgin Sisters". This name comes from 2 giggly women on the old "Odd Couple" TV show.  These 2 Jersey girls (cousins actually) are giggly all day because they generally have a cocktail in their traveling coffee cup.  They have taken more selfies than I ever knew was possible...and since I have been sitting behind them, I have consequently photobombed more photos than I ever knew was possible!! We probably should have taken advantage of their skills in the art of taking selfies...because ours still look like this:

The entire group was moving a bit slower than usual, because we had a medieval banquet in King Johns castle, named Bunratty Castle.  This actually was quite fun...starting with goblets of mead (fermented honey wine)!  Dinner was served with a knife only...hands were used and nothing else!  Perhaps the most memorable thing that happened that night was walking through the castle grounds which were restored to be like a little village.  There were huge trees overhead  which were FILLED with the noisiest birds I have ever heard.  Suddenly Gary was the unlucky recipient of the contents of one HUGE birds digestive tract!  It was a direct hit right on his forehead!  Lots of laughter from everyone in our group, followed by offers of hand sanitizer from at least 5 other women on our tour!  

The servers, dressed in costumes of the times, also provided the entertainment.  They were accomplished madrigal singers and performed many songs for us...with a bit of humor thrown in. But darn it...they ended the show with a very nice version of "Oh Danny Boy". And now I have that darn song stuck in my head!!

Of course a king and queen from the group of guests and they presided over us during dinner.  One of the young men from our tour,  Michael,  was deemed by the king to be a traitor,  having been accused of the crime of infidelity, supposedly with one of the servers, Lady Sharona.  In order to be released from his sentence in the dungeon, the king demanded that the prisoner Michael sing a song.  Michael dazzled the crowd with his quick thinking accapella version of "My Theresa" sung to the tune of "My Sharona"! (It was a bit of a leap forward in time...but he was so in to it, he dazzled everyone!) 

 We actually got a second performance of his song, when he took the microphone on the bus ride back to the hotel!  Anyway, the mead, combined with the very late dinner...made for a slow start on the last day of the bus tour...we were ALL dragging a little bit.

Once in our seats however, and after tour guide Denis had counted to make sure all 47 of his charges were on board, we took off to see the Cliffs of Moher.  These cliffs rise straight up from the ocean over 700 feet above the water.

It was lovely and clear...the best day all summer it was reported...it might have been sunny, but boy was it windy.  At one point we all had to huddle to get out of the wind!

It is really hard to get a photo that shows the striations in the rock cliffs...it was really beautiful. I'm only bummed that we didn't see any of the puffins that supposedly nest in the cliffs.  

Back in the bus, we headed for Galway.  We did take a few stops for some sightseeing along the way though.  This is the town of Adare which has some amazing thatched roof houses.  This little town won the annual "Tidy Town" contest this year, deservedly so!!

This cute town of Adare, is where Lenore went into the pharmacy to get lactaide tablets.  She spoke with "Lizzie the Legend" who was not familiar with what Lenore needed.  However she did suggest baby colic drops for Lenore...so now when Lenore is about to eat cheese, she squirts baby colic drops into her mouth...as the directions are "1 drop into baby's bottle"...we are not sure of the correct dosage...just 2 squirts seem to be working well!  Lenore will probably kill me for posting this, but honestly, it makes me laugh so hard...not sure if it the picture I find funny or the thought of Lenore using baby colic medicine...whatever, it IS funny!  (And the drops seem to work!,)

Lenore and I are ready to move into this little one!

A few more scenic stops along the way...that's our big CIE bus parked there!

The cows that have been making that delicious butter and cheese that we have all been enjoying! (I'm pretty sure the Irish cows are happier than the California cows on TV at home!)

This is an "Irish fixer-upper"!  

Green, green, and more green!

Eventually we made our way to Galway, where we had a private walking tour through the medieval part of town.  Our guide is getting his PhD in arche-astrology (archeology + astrology) studying how ancient cultures around the world have used the sun and stars to guide in placing churches, grave sites, etc.  he was very interesting...and probably too smart to just be guiding American tourists through Galway!

Those are banners in the window to support the local Galway Hurling team that was just in the Ireland finals (like the Super Bowl of Hurling). The entire town was decked out, as were many homes in the countryside.  Sadly, Galway lost...they have now gone 28 years without winning the title.  :-(

This was the home where the founder of the very first SPCA lived many many years ago.  He put forth a bill into the Irish Parliment making cruelty to animals be illegal.  He home was decorated with this cute rabbit sculpture!

That guy on the right with the short sleeve shirt and tie is Denis O'Sullivan our guide and driver...he was wonderful (and apparently very thirsty!)!

The banners above the streets are maroon and white, the colors of the Galway hurling team.

This is Connor Riorden, our arche-astrologer Galway guide...

The original claddagh ring store...first one to sell the iconic rings (made me think of Maureen!)

And it was here in Galway that Ron had "the best fish and chips EVER!"  But that deserves a post of its own!  Just a little teaser...this is the pub where he ate them:

Ron is a happy man!

Ever since we began talking about this trip, Ron has been talking about how good the fish & chips were going to be!  His neighbors, Bob and Vala had been to Ireland in June.  They raved about the quality and size of the fish and chips here...so Ron has been on this quest to find the best ones in Ireland. We went to the wonderful city of Galway  today.  This town had great medieval roots and we had no trouble finding a pub after our tour here!  We settled on a pub called The King's Head...where Ron, of course ordered fish and chips. Guess what...Ron decreed them the best on the trip...so good fact that he bought a tee shirt from this old pub which was originally owned by the executioner who beheaded King Charles in 1649!

Mmmm....that is one happy tourist".  But too bad you can see his perfectly poured Guinness!!

So here is the pub...we had a great table right in that big front bay window so we could watch the world go by...Ron enjoyed his fish and chips and a Guinness, while Lenore and I each had the Ploughmans plate.  We thought this would be a light bite because we had dinner scheduled in just 2.5 hours.  We were so wrong...but so right!  Wrong because it was so much food...basically one of the best sandwiches I have ever had.  (And that deliciousness was what was so right!).   It began with the most delicious bread, followed by a thick smearing of good Irish butter, then thick slices of corned beef, a slice or two of cheese, and a good dollop of carmelized onions, then bread and butter!!  Boy was my tummy happy. In hindsight we should have shared this "light" meal...but remember this is Lenore and Kathy...we went all in on this sandwich!

But back to Bob and Vala...while Ron might have gotten good advice regarding the fish and chips...Lenore and I are less than thrilled by Vala's comments that she was freezing in Ireland!  We packed our suitcases full of sweaters, and have been hot every single day!  We can't really blame Vala...Ireland has just been basking in glorious weather!  Who would ever have thought we would be complaining about the weather being too good!?

Out and about in Ireland!

We are riding in the bus now, just left Killarney, heading for our last hotel stop in Ireland, Newmarket-on-Fergus.  It seems like a good time to fill you in on some our outings in Ireland.  We got up early this morning (most of you know that I am NOT a morning person!). Suitcases had to be packed and outside our rooms at 7:30am (for the porter to take to the coach). We ate breakfast at 7:30 and were out the door at 8:20.  We hopped into horse-drawn jaunting carts.  The carts held 8 people...6 in the back and 2 up front with the driver.  Well, you KNOW that Lenore and I spoke right up and asked to ride up front with the driver!  

Michael, our driver (or "Jarvey") was adorable...a true Irishman with a great brogue and the ubiquitous gift of gab!  As it was a cool morning, we were given wool blankets (called "hankey-pankey" blankets...keep your hands on the top!) and we took off for a jaunt through the Killarney National Park to scenic Ross Castle.  This park was gorgeous, set on the shores of Killarney's largest lake, Leogh Leanne!  It was a cool grey morning, with a bit of the mist in the air...it looked just like what an Irish morning should look like!

Yesterday we had a beautiful drive around the Dingle Penninsula. Our coach driver is amazing, just so adept at maneuvering on the narrow winding roads!  We just kick back, and enjoy the scenery!  We had perfect weather...blue skies and lots of sunshine, which made the colors of the landscape even more intense...the green fields, with all the little stone walls looks like a patchwork quilt!  Throw in a few spectacular ocean/bay views and you have miles and miles of intense beauty that will take your breath away.  

Ron on his personal quest to find the best fish and chips in all of Ireland...these were pretty good, but Ron is still doing some product research!

We drove to Slea Head which is the westernmost point of Ireland.  As Dennis, our guide said, the next parish you would come to is Boston!!  We also toured the small Dingle Brewing Company and got to pour our own beers.  This is a relatively new brewery with tasty beer.  

We bought 4 cans to bring home, hopefully they will make it home for our boys to try.  (Hope WE don't have to break into them when our cocktail hour gin runs out!!!). 

We are hearing lots of great traditional Irish music...Lenore and I are planning a special Festivus music program for all you Hunts!  Of course we will have to be well lubricated with Guinness before serranading all of you with CarrickFergus, Black Velvet Band, and Christmas in Killarney!!  I had a great experience in Dingle yesterday when we were wandering through the cute little town.  I saw a music store up a little lane so Gary and I wandered up.  There was a little old man sitting outside with a plate of lunch (salmon!) and a glass of wine.  There was also a cat sitting on his table.  We went in to look around and Gary quickly left.  I picked up a cd and didn't see any shopkeeper to pay.  I poked my head out the door and asked the man eating lunch with the cat.  He took a sip of wine, wiped his mouth with his napkin, shoed  the cat off the table and came in his store...muttering something about the cat eating his salmon!   He looked at my cd and nodded, saying it was a good one.  When I told him I picked it because it had the song Carrickferfus on it, he paused, looked me over, then picked up the old accordion on the floor, asked if I could sing, and then he serranaded me with that song I love, Carrickfergus!!  (There is a Van Morrison album where he plays with The Chieftans and this song makes me cry!).  Being serranaded by this proper little old Irish gentleman was another one of those magical moments...I sure wish the rest of my family had been there to see it!!

One of the most popular things to see in Ireland is the Blarney Stone, and we spent an afternoon there.   It is really a beautiful location.  We wandered through the castle grounds, the ruins of Blarney Castle looming above us!  

There were miles of paths meandering through camellia glens, fern groves, poison gardens, rose gardens, etc.  One of the most unusual things there was a grove of trees that had been "yarn bombed"!  As a knitter, this just made me smile...it was so fun and cheery to see!  

We decided to brave the climb to the top of the tower...this was very slow moving, in a super narrow winding stone staircase.  Most of the steps were only a few inches wide!  Once to the top we had to walk along a rampart to get to the spot where you could kiss the Blarney Stone and receive "the gift of eloquence"! Some of you may know that Gary has a pretty substantial fear of heights, so this walk along the rampart, where you could look down and really see how high up you were, was a real problem.  He was kind of frozen, unable to move forward. This is a problem as it is narrow and all single file...if Gary couldn't move forward, nobody in the enclosed circular stone staircase could get up or down!  Finally Gary crouched down so he couldn't see over the edge...and he could walk on and move ahead.  This is me cracking up as I watched my husband, The Hunchback of Blarney Castle.  

(Sorry...I have a photo of Ron bending backward to kiss the Blarney Stone, but I can seem to get it to land here!!  A case of the Android photo not wanting to play on the Apple iPad!!!  Sorry!).   :-( 

Suddenly a young man just a few people in front of us, got down on his knee and proposed to his girlfriend right there at the Blarney Stone...she said yes and we all clapped!  It was a really fun moment to be a part of!  Ron was the only one in our group who actually kissed the stone.  I actually remember doing this when I was a young girl traveling in Ireland with my Oma and Opa.  When I commented to Lenore that I couldn't believe my grandparents had climbed up there with me...Lenore "gently" reminded me that my grandparents were probably not much older then than we are NOW!

Fun fact of the day:  Ireland has the highest per capita incidence of Celiacs Disease/gluten intolerance in the world (#2 is Sicily). We are finding Ireland to be just as accommodating as Norway was...menus are clearly marked, GF bread is available at every meal, and wait staff are so understanding and careful with Gary's food, in a very matter of fact way.  In fact, we just stopped at at little town called Adare to see their thatched roof houses, and even the little restaurant in the visitor center proudly offered up gluten free bread. In this same town we popped into the pharmacy and they have shelves of gluten free breads, crackers, cookies and flours.  

 It is so frustrating to think that the USA prides itself on being "the best" and #1 in all things...this is one area where we fall so short, it is appalling.  Europe is far and away ahead of us in this matter.