Prague is the city of dreams, you see pictures of it but it is not until you are really there that you get the majesty of the place.

I still get a complete and utter buzz with new places, it never ceases to amaze me that you can get somewhere completely different after only a short flight.  I suppose it is part of coming from a land locked isolated city. As soon as I arrive I immediately wantto get out,  find my bearings, see a few markers and get a sense of where I am. Hearing a new language, getting to grips with a new metro system, dealing with a new currency seem like exciting pieces of a puzzle that will allow you to unlock the experience.

I had booked an AirBNB room, as I was alone I decided to get a room in someone’s place, with the hope that I woudl be able to pick the brains of my hosts, I was not disappointed.

Jakub, my host met me at the bus stop and escorted me around the corner to his apartment.  On the fifth floor of a soviet style block. Hundreds of them all the same, one bedroom, one living room, tiny kitchen with the bathroom and toilet in the centre.  How cool to get to see inside one of these places.  Jakub was meeting friends in the city later that night, which meant he had a couple of hours free, so off we went into the city.

He walked me through the vineyards up to Prague castle, pointing out things that he liked and points of interest.  It was late, so the place was deserted of tourists.  He took me through some of the streets and around into the parklands, which were in fact Olive groves and Orchards, the scent of blossom still in the air. We walked for an hour and he took me to his favorite look out close to the replica mini size version of the Eiffel tower.  We then went down into the city, grabbed a few beers and sat beside the river, got out a map and he proceeded to point out his favorite places for coffee, beer, Czech food, mueseums and galleries.  He then bid me farewell and I made my way to a pub he had recommended for dinner.

Inside it was clearly just locals, he had recommended the smoked duck, bacon dumplings and red cabbage.  It was really good and cost about $NZ8, I had a few beers which slid down nicely and I just soaked it in.  I then walked accross the Charles Bridge and wandered around a bit, had one more beer and caught the last metro back to his place about midnight.

My days planned I did not have to rush, so I just took things in my stride, wandered around, tried to avoid the hordes of tourists, lingered outside a few museums and galleries and decided whether or not I would go in once I was there.

Prague is all about the architecture, some over 1500 years old.  It seemed so familiar I had seen so much of it before in pictures that it hardly felt real.  Clearly Prague was not subject to the same war damage ( I think) that many other European cities were subjected to, so their archirtectural history is intact.  It’s also cheap, so is a magnet for young hordes of bachelor and hen parties, roaming around loud and obnoxious, doing things they probably would never do in their home cities,  a very strange contrast to the majesty of the Prague itself.

In my time there I saw all the sites I wanted to get to, including of course the main sqaure, the astronomical clock,  the armoury the castle itself, a few museums and also one of the modern art museums.  I had no idea there was also a whole period  and style of Czech cubism art.  I love angular and geometric design, so it was great to see some of that.  With my trip coming to an end I was also a little more open to buying things that I would be able to carry the last leg.  What else is good in Prague?  Glass, so I bought a modern glass bowl ( which weighs about 5kg) and then just as I was leaving I fell in love with an antique art deco vase made in 1937), that’s one way to add 40% to the weight of your bags.

David had been in Prague two years ago, and he loved it, I now know why, if you ever get  the chance take it…you wont be disappointed.

My next stop was getting the train from Prague up to Hannover where a friend was meeting me. We had been workmates in a hotel in Switzerland in my twenties and have stayed in touch ever since.  It’s been about 17 years since we last saw each other.  The first surprise was her taking me to her Porsche, and discovering they have ridiculously small boots for my now ( much heavier) bags.  So with bag propped up behind me we headed up to Oldenburg where she now lives with her family.  So here I am in this flash car, on the Autobahn and we are not only talking at a thousand miles an hour it feels like we are driving at that speed too.  I start to get a little anxious and find myself unconciously planting my foot on the floor as though I am am driving.  I peek over and we are now going at 200km an hour.  The car is so low i feel like I am sitting on the road, and feels ridiculously fast.  Still she speeds up and she is still asking me questions and chatting away.  I am now gripping the seat so tightly I can feel my shoulders andback tensing up.  At 245 I have to ask her to slow down, it was just too much for me.  Apparently they have reached speeds of just under 320km at times.  Shitting. My. Self.  

My friend is still in hospitality and her and her husband now own a hotel and restaurants, cafes in Oldenburg.  I was treated like complete royalty.  Shown to my suite, it was named after an actor who has ties to the city Deborah Kara Unger, who coincidentally was the female lead in the Emilio Estevez movie “The Way”, the movie about the Camino, that Kel and I both watched before we went on the Camino.  It also happened to be a year since we had finished the Camino.  The room was fantastic and completely unexpected, they then plied me with wine at their restuarant and fed me the local specialties.  In between all this we talked and talked and talked, again the years between visits seemed to have disappeared.  Oldenburg was also fortunate to have not been bombed during the war so is still intact, a pretty mid sized city, big enough to be interesting but not so small that it is claustrophobic.

Final stop in this whistle stop month long tour was in Cologne (Koln) to see my NZ Cousin who married a German woman.  Despite having been hear 17 years ago, this was my first time seeing them here.  Cologne is not really a pretty city, it sits on the Rhein which is one of its best features.  It was completely destroyed in World War 2, with only the spiers of the Cathedral “the Dom” still standing above the destroyed city.  Reconstruction was in parts fast and haphazard so it feels like a jumble of a city.  In the cathedral today you can still see that some o f the windows have not yet been restored or have temporary fittings in them.  I suppose it took almost a thousand years to complete in the first place, so its evolution will continue to carry on for many more.  Some of the ruins have been icorporated into more modern buildings, in ways that are very innovative.  It’s hard to imagine what it must have been like to emerge from the cellars after the bombing and firestorms that killed thousands to find your city destroyed.  To have the fortitude to rebuild and to reconstruct makes me think that we could do the same with our canterbury cathedral, even if it takes 50 years to raise the money, lets rebuild it….

I also was lucky enough to talk to one of my hosts about her own family history and it just makes you wonder how horrible the war would have been.  The conversation also turned to other things German and I got the chhance to ask a question I had been meaning to ask for a while.

I had heard that it has been a ritual for decades in German households to watch a TV vesrion of an English play that was filmed in 1962 callled Dinner for One.  The story line is simple, the Lady of the house is having her 90th birthday and has invited 4 guests, all of whom it woudl appear are deceased.  So the Butler has to play the role of all the other dinner guests.

It is played at 6:00pm on New Years eve on every TV station in German and everyoe stops to watch it.  

I could not understand how this woudl reach such meteoric popularity, first, it’s in English, while it is amusing it is not particularly funny, and while its amusing I don’t think I would like to see it every year for 40 years ( like my host had)….so why I asked??

Well, turns out this was filmed in Hamburg and represented a moment when the English were once again prepared to perform in Germany again.  That was a really big deal!  You don’t really have to understand he language to know what is going on, and some of the lines appeal to a German sensinility.  ” Same procedure as every year James” being the classic.  If you have a spare ten minutes it is worth watching, it fascinates me that this is now an indelible part of German culture..

http://youtu.be/6lzQxjGL9S0
Train back to Paris and then flight to Hong Kong, looking  forward to seeing my boys….

   
  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

     
   

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

                  

   
                    

   
  

         

After our time in Ireland, David and I parted ways, he started the long journey to Malaysia  for work and I was making a quick hop accross the Irish sea to Manchester.  
The original plan had been to pick up a car and go and see my cousin  in Yorkshire and spend a couple of days with him.  More of his family were in Liverpool ( including my aunt and uncle), but after the whirlwind in Ireland I just did not think I would have time to see them.  One of my other cousins got wind of my plans and was not going to let the opportunity to meet up pass us by, so instead of heading East to Yorkshire, I found myself heading East towards Liverpool for a full English fry ( which has to be said is remarkably similar to an Irish fry?)

My cousins daughters were all at his home ready to greet me, and what a welcome it was. Here were three adults who I had only ever briefly met once before, as well as seen on Facebook.  It was so cool meeting them, talking to them and getting a brief glimpse into their lives.  I had made the mistake of forming impressions of them based on their facebook posts, it’s fair to say that was not an accurate reflection of the dynamic, hard working women, full of potential who sat before me as we enquired about each others lives. How could I have missed this opportunity??   It was a real privilige and I hope that I get to see them again. 

So off I went to my cousins place, someone who I met almost 40 years ago, and with whom I have had a connection ever since.  The distance between us  melted away, and you are left wondering where did those almost 40 years go?  Once again, so great to be in the presence of family.

Unfortunatley part of the day had to be spent sorting out some issues with my bank in Hong Kong, my accounts have been accessed and I have to provide 11 pages of details to the bank, which I understand needs to be done, but they required it by fax!!!  Who uses faxes these days?  Calls to the local school, post office and eventually a local real estate office lead us to the only fax machine within 20 miles!!  Job done, we coudl get on with our day.  That’s a Hong Kong story if I ever heard one!

After a couple of days and a look around parts of Yorkshire, I headed north to Edinburgh.  It was such a gorgeous drive.  The car I had hired had particularly big windows and I felt like I was in a glass cockpit as I zoomed through the stunning scenery and highways with BBC Classical radio blaring.  I had sunshine, rain, rainbows and as I crossed into the Scottish borders hail.  It was one of those sweet moments of utter contentment and wonderment.

I was visiting a friend who emigrated to Scotland a couple of years ago, a brave and courgeous move.  Great to see where she is living and to catch up in the local pub and yak for hours on end.  

We went into Edinburgh for the first time and the temperature gauge nudged up into the teens, and the sun came out and we got to enjoy Haggis pizza in the sun.  We explored the city for the day and I picked up a bottle of Edinburgh gin to bring home to David.  One of the highlights was coming accross the statue of a famous faithful dog, Greyfairs,  who when his owner died, would sleep every night on his grave for the next 12 years.  He was eventually given a key( or collar) to the city so he would not be picked up as a stray.  I think all of us who own dogs would like to think this would happen…

Spring was still in full force in Edinburgh, the last of the daffodils were still flowering and the tulips were at their best.  I could not get over the long days, the suun setting close to 10:00pm…and seemingly rising again very early….It must mean that they have very short days in winter…..

While it’s great seeing so many people and going to so many places I am beginning to get a bit weary…

Next stop Prague!

   
 

  

  

  

  

  

  

     
                 

The warmth of a family is a special thing indeed…

It’s been ten years since I was last with my Irish family and it may as well have been ten days…( ok there are a few more grey hairs, and wrinkles….but it feels like ten days!)

I have had more tea, more bread in the past three days than I have had in the past year….We have been welcomed into so many homes, with such generosity it is hard to describe…Hospitality is provided as a statement, not as a question!

Although my time here was way too short, we did manage to at least see a few familiar faces ( and some new ones in all the young ones, some of who are now adults themselves!), and I did manage to learn a few things…

The word “lads” is a non gender specific pronoun in Ireland….use it generously!  Prefrably followed by a “look after yeself, or be well”

Tracey my cousin reminded me how my grandmother used to grab and squeeze our forearms, it instantly brought back memories from when I was ten years old, and is now something that some of my aunties do….

My grandmother and grandfather  from Cummer in Ireland now have 94 surviving descandents…..( with the loss of one as a toddle)

Irish slang and vernacular is infectious, I have been here a week and already I am swearing in Irish, outside the hotel tonight I heard David say” Jesus, Mary and Joseph its frekin cold!”

My predisposition to getting names wrong IS genetic….I can be looking at someone, I know who they are, I know their name and yet I will call them something else, my mother often calls me Jason( my brother) or Una ( her sister), and I do the same thing.  While in Ireland all my aunties and uncles, without exception called me David and Angela Maher my cousin you managed to do so as well….. I rest my case….

My great grandmothers surname was Kennedy, Nora Kennedy, my mother is named after her, and my niece is named after my mother…..I must find a way of introducing my niece to all her wonderful cousins in Ireland, I know she will love it and her fathers visits as a child are the stuff of folklore in the family, she needs to hear them!! ( and know she has family who will welcome her and love her here!)

It’s been interesting to see how familys grow and blossom, (if all goes well and in the right conditions), I think my family in Ireland have been lucky enough to experience that…When I was younger my mothers siblings used to make a point of getting together, staying connected, and their kids as cousins knew each other.  Now those cousins have their own families, and each of those groups of siblings get together and stay together often.  It was wonderful and heart warming to see and nice to know that I am also part of it.  It’s meant that through sheer numbers they cant all get together as often as they once used to, but there is still a connection and vists by interlopers like myself are reasons for that to happen…it’s been a privilige to experience..

Ireland has undergone a huge amount of change, and next week they will be voting in a referendum on marriage equality, if the views of my family and a lot of the people we have met are anything to go by ( and people get out to vote)  then this will go through.  It;s been great to be able to have conversations about how family can only be improved through a yes vote, that a yes vote can only improve, not detract from strengthening families.  Without exception David has been made to feel warm and welcome.  Hard to believe that when I was living in Kilkenny all those years ago gay sex was a criminal offence…You’ve come a long way Ireland, i hope you join the marriage equality club! 

It’s been heart warming to be part of this, I will not allow another ten years to pass before I am back!!

Thank you Moyne Finnahy Cummer and Coornaboola

  

      

Ah Dublin, it’s been a long time….

The first conversation i overheard  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

 when we arrived in Dublin was a young Irish woman, a stressed Mum trying to get things dones with three kids in tow, shouting at them in a broad Dublin accent” Ahmed, Jusef, will you get away with yourselves and cop on”

It would appear that Ireland, like the rest of the world is under the influence of a little globalisation as well….

Dublin itself looks the same, sure the shop fronts have changed, you can now get Nepalese and Vietnamese food,  and there is a very tall and minimalist structure on O”Connell St, a spire that rises out of the ground,.  It is affectionately known as The Spire in the Mire, or the Rod to God. (We have come accross a few of these renamings of structures “The Balls on the Falls” ” Noola with the Hoola” and The Flusie in the Jacuzzi” I’ll post some pictures of them below.), maybe its after being in Hong Kong, but it’s surprising how low rise Dublin is, there appear to be no substantial tall buildings.

We have gotten into the habit of doing the city bus tours to get bearings and orientation and to decide what we will go and see and Dublin was no exception.  We decided on Trinity College, Guniess Brewery, Kilmainham Jail and if we had time the Irish Modern Museum of Art.

It’s been about 25 years since I was last at the Guiness brewery and it’s fair to say the visitor centre has changed, just a bit.  A slick six story exhibition centred around a giant six story pint glass, you get to see production, history, advertising, tasting rooms, pouring lessons and of course a free pint in their very flash bar on what must be one of the highest bars in the city with magnificent views.  We had a great time, although it was odd being in a crowded room at 11:30am drinking beer with what felt like a rather “mature” crowd.  ( It’s always nice when you bring the average levels down)

Kilmainham jail was not a polished exhibit, but it was very rich in history.  A history that depsite having lived in Ireland I was completely ignorant of.  The 1915 uprising which razed most of the centre city and the execution of 14 activists in the jail shortly afterwards.  It was these executions that turned public opinion and would result in Ireland becoming a republic ( with the annexation of Northern Ireland as it was the richest counties with the most industry), those decisions still reverberating a century later.  Quite moving being in the cells and seeing where these men were put to their deaths.  Their sacrifice is now being more recognised and honoured for what it was.

Tourist duties over, we found a couple of bars to hang out in.  A bit of music here, a fantastic tapas bar there, and a cocktail somewhere else and before we knew it we were in a gay bar.  For a Tuesday night it was absolutely packed, they screen a reality TV show Ru Paul’s drag race, a completely over the top, camp production and piss take.  The room was lapping it up.  Lot’s of very friendly and chatty people.

It’s a very interesting time to be in Ireland, they are holding a referendum next week on whether or not to allow marriage equality, or same sex marriages to be part of the Irish Constitution.  The polls are showing it shoudl get through, but the biggest concern was voter turn out.  I came accross my first no voter, a conservative older man who felt that same sex marriage was “different” to heterosexual marriage so they should not be made equal. I certainly did not expect to have my first no conversation in a gay bar in Dublin.  However conversley, it was fantasticv talking to the young activists who were just back from door knocking and hearing the excitment in their voices about what an important and exciting time it is to be gay in Ireland.  ( when I was living here last gay sex was a criminal offence).  So we are loaded up with badges and will be talking to our family in the south about marriage equality.  Well timed visit on our part.

Next stop my old stomping ground of Kilkenny

Boy it has been a while since I posted, so sorry for thse of you who may have reciveed this twice, I inadvertently published it before it was complete, this version has pictures! 

I get the sense that my incessant facbook posts may be getting a bit annoying, it’s not that long ago I would be sitting at my desk, looking out on  a dull winters days , and read the posts of a friend who was a flight attendant and thinking, good grief, she’s there now!  and while i understood it was work and not at all glamorous, it didn’t stop a small pang of jealously from rising up.  I think I may now be person causing similiar reactions amongst my friends.  So rather than sprinkle a whole heap of bile producing posts I will try and condense things into a blog post.  

I have a bit to say…

So, bit of background, I have been fortunate enough to join David from my period of unemployment in Hong Kong on a work trip to Paris, we had originally planned on walking another section of the Camino in France, but for various reasons those plans have changed…..so instead of walking for ten days we came to Ireland.

Paris was fantastic, I reacquainted myself with places I have not been for a long time, and also had the time to go and see a few new sites.  And of course the food, oh my god, the food!  They really know how to eat and it is SO good!  Even the supermarkets are a gourmet delight.

It’s been interesting how the internet has changed travel so much, not just booking online but the entire way things are done.  It’s great.  Using what David would have spent on a hotel room, we had a week in a swanky modern apartment in the 16th arondidement, ten minutes walk from where he had to go to work.  Restarants were booked through La Forchette, allowing you to see reviews, the menu, prices and availability…use the location finder to get something close.  Did this the first night, found a cute bistro, loved it so much went back the last night as well.  Some still have a few things to learn ( why oh why does the Picasso museum need my address, date of birth and a password to buy tickets??), overall it’s good, but makes a data package essential while travelling…( which also allows those facebook and instagram posts, the social media element of this as well, lets npt forget that.

I did enjoy the sights, but crikey the crowds were something else, we arrived at Versailles just on opening time, there were a thousand people already waiting to get in. We cockily thought, we have tickets, we will bypass that.  But the thousand people in front of us also had tickets!!  Tant pis!  C’est comme ca!,   The same at La Louvre, you queue for an enternity only to discover that was the queue for security and then  you have to do it again to get in.  Luckily I have had my Tsim Tsa Shui training to acclimiatise me, the crowds there can prepare you for anything, head down, headphones on, emotional cone of silence activated!  Came in handy.

So I had a great time in Paris, and I’ll never say no to seeing this beautiful city, but for me I really prefer France outside of the main centres….next time the Camino!!

So, off we went to Belfast.  A city I visited in January 1991.

In some ways it has undergone a significant transformation and in some ways it still has a long way to go, but in all ways it is worth a visit.  I loved it.

We were visiting friends, so yes it helped to have some local knowledge, they had originally suggested tha they would  take us up to Giants Causeway and the Jamieson’s brewery, having seen those the first time I visited  and really wanting to focus on seeing our friends, we suggested that we just stay in Belfast, a decision that would haunt us all weekend!! As it became the butt of many jokes.

The thing i remember about Belfast the first time I was there and that you can still feel now, is the all encompassing warmth and spirit of the people there.  I swear, it’s palpable!  They are so warm, and strong annd funny in that way only the Irish can be.  On our first trip into town the taxi driver was pointing out various landmarks, including the Europa hotel.  ” the most bombed hotel in Europe, that is, an apprentice glazer worked there for 35 years non stop, so he did, came out with a pension”  Humour to cover what the most difficult of dark times.

On our first day we went to the Titanic museum and I have to say that I was rather hesitant.  I mean, I have seen the movie 5 times, and a muesuem on it now, I don’t think so.  How wrong was I!  It was fantastic and probably one of the best museum experiences I have ever had.  While Titanic is the brand that pulls you in, thsi is also a museum about Belfast, her history, her workers, the construction of the ship, the sinking, investigation and subsequent discovery.  The way it was done was simply outstanding, from small things, like giving you unexpected views and amazing digital experiences, to rides, movies, it had it all.  World class, and if you ever get here, it is a must see.

We also went on the Belfast  taxi tour.  Taxi drivers who ( still to this day) service West Belfast after buses stopped running because of the troubles, have now started to conduct tours of the city focussed in the period know as the “troubles”.  You not only get history, you get their stories and you can feel and sense some of what they have been  through.  I had really very little idea of the history that led to the religious sectarian violence that tried to tear communities apart, I really didn’t.  I  didn’t know that 50 foot fences still divided communities and that large gates still separated them at night.  I had not appreciated the horror that had been perpetuated on so many people.  I had also not for a very long time experienced and felt the strength of collective resistance.  The street art that remembers those who are lost and now is being used to about current social and political issues.  Again, if you get the chance i would highly recommend it.

Belfast still has a way to go, but it’s getting there.  We only had a few days there, but the memories of what what I felt in 1991 were still there.  People embrace you, the laugh, they carry on, they have suffered enormously as well, but maybe that makes them just that little more eager to get the most out of the moment…

It turned out that the tour we had turned down had been a picnic and 26 people were going on it, well, did we hear about the disappointed people when the bus tour was cancelled, the disappointment stories lasted all weekend, all as a result of our cancellation….divorces, redundancies, the yarn just got bigger and bigger, and was all delivered with humour and love.  Humour and love, a lot of what Belfast was about for me!

Sean Rahui