Ireland-Northern Ireland 2009

Travelogue Ireland - Northern Ireland

May/June 2009

We got up very early on Saturday morning and left the house at 10 to 6 am. It was going to be a long journey to Ireland. We had to take the train to Cologne and had to transfer 5 times. Unbelievable enough it worked out perfectly - we caught each train with no problem at all, although we only had a couple of minutes between each one. Then at the airport we had our first delay - the plane was 30 minutes late - well, we didn't care because we weren't in a hurry. Funny thing was we actually arrived 10 minutes earlier in Dublin then actually scheduled...

The Guinness-Nails-Metal-Fork of Love & Doom

We picked up our rental car and headed off for our hotel which was in downtown Dublin only 700 meters away from St. James Gate - what a coincidence - or maybe not? Driving through the city sucked because we didn't have a decent road map and besides - everyone was driving on the wrong side of the fuckin' road. I guess my doctor would've diagnosed high blood pressure if he was there to measure my heartbeat while I drove into those first roundabouts...

Well, after some time we did arrive at our hotel - it was a Best Western and it was great. We didn't want to start off our vacation in some shabby little shithole because I wanted to arrive in Cork on Sunday feeling good and relaxed for my marathon on Monday. We checked in and about an hour later we were at St. James Gate to visit Guinness - the brewery of our favorite beer. That was pretty cool and we enjoyed the free pint on the roof and had a great overlook of Dublin. The Store was great as well and we did buy a couple of things - as I remember it was Tina's day.

Afterwards we walked into town and were quite hungry - we searched for an Indian restaurant but just couldn't find one. It was hot as hell and we walked around and around and the whole city was damn crowded - too much for our nerves. So, finally we decided to go to the Hard Rock Cafe and eat some American food. Holy shit - was the food expensive in Ireland - the beer cost the same as in Germany but paying 19 Euros for a burger and fries sucked - I finally knew why the Irish drink so much, hehe... We walked home to our hotel and went into a local pub and had a couple of Guinness and talked about what lay ahead of us.

The next morning we got up and had ourselves a grand Irish breakfast with the works - I ate 5 eggs and tons of bacon. Tina had herself some beans and sausages. We then headed for Cork which was all the way in the south. The driving was great - there weren't many cars on the road so we arrived quite early. I had talked to Xoan on the phone the evening before telling him we would arrive at about 2 pm. We did arrive at 12.30 am and went immediately to the city hall to get my marathon starting number and measure chip. I called Xoan and of course caught him under the shower, hehe. He picked us up and we went to his apartment and said hello to Sophia. The apartment which was in a former Hotel was really cool - although it was hot inside - but hell it was supposed to rain in Ireland and not be hot like in other normal places, right? We checked out his "drum kit" and found out that it looked easier to play than it was. Tina thought she was good at it but I really won't give you my comment on that one - I love her too much.

Later on we went to "downtown" Cork and met up with Kostas, had some food and then walked around town. Xoan and Kostas kept ranting about what a shit-hole Cork was and Tina and I just didn't get the point. It was an old city with millions of pubs - so what the fuck did one need more - ok, it may not come in handy if you don't drink beer like Xoan...

No, I don't want that pair of sunglasses - they suck.

After visiting a cool church we went to have ourselves a cool pint. We actually went to more than one pub and had a Beamish, a Murphy's and a Guinness to compare - I must say that I'll (and Tina, too) will stick with Guinness - the other ones were just too sweet.

We walked around and came across Rory Gallagher's Place which was nice because he was a great guitarist. I didn't even know that he was from Cork. Xoan took us to a fantastic Mexican restaurant and we had delicious Fajitas. We finished the night at a pub and got to meet Kostas' girl friend Natalie. They are a very nice couple.  We went back to Xoan's apartment quite early because tomorrow was going to be my big day - or maybe not...

Pisica the REAL owner of the apartment - nice cat but very distinct, "Hey, what do you mean I have to get off MY bed!?" The next morning we got up at 6 am. I showered and got ready for my marathon. Tina, Kostas and Xoan were there to cheer me on. You can find that story here: http://www.master-of-the-wind-eng.de/MarathonCorkENG.html

In the afternoon we went to a diner and the House Of Death Party (MANOWAR Forum) kicked off. Our "very" Irish Paddy from Northern Ireland showed up first and then Pete from Wicklow and a couple of his friends joined us as well. We started drinking and had a splendid time. I was a bit tired from running but I felt good.

We went back to the diner to get some more food and then when everyone was having a quiet minute the earth suddenly shook... Sam and Jen from Northern Ireland had arrived and lifted everyone's mood by just walking through the door - what a great couple. So, hellyeah let the party begin.

Jen had found her twin sister and everyone was having a fabulous time. There was only one problem that I had - I hardly could understand the Northern Irish dialect - which Paddy on the other hand couldn't understand at all. That problem was to be solved during our vacation, although it did take a bit of time. We drank and talked about this and that and of course MANOWAR. We finally left the pub and ended up in a disco where they played disgusting music - well, they did put on a bit of rock 'n' roll for us so we actually did get to bang our heads together. All in all it was just super to have everyone there and we ended up going home at 3 am. A bit drunk but who cared. And it was a WEE bit chilly outside...

The next day we visited the University of Cork where Xoan worked. It is a very beautiful complex and actually just by walking through those gates you felt a wee bit more intelligent - the problem was on the way out you immediately felt as dumb as before. Sam and Jen and Paddy left us in the afternoon and had to head back to Northern Ireland. It was so great meeting them - people you just have to love. They invited us to their home and we had to deny because we just couldn't make it due to our vacation schedule. Damnit!!! Pete had already left for home so we didn't see him on that day. It was very cool that he had been able to make it the day before.

Xoan took us on a sightseeing trip to the ocean. At some point I couldn't walk any more because my legs ached like hell. We got back to Cork and ate at a Indian restaurant - finally - great stuff. There was this funny couple that walked in to the place, took the menus from the waiter and when he came back they told him that they actually had wanted to eat something Italian - well, sure - the name of the place was Bombay Palace so I guess that couple had definitely missed their geography classes during school, hehe...

A bird

A finger

A crazy wife

Kostas and Natalie caught up with us once more and we went to - I guess you know, don't you - a pub. They actually had brought some Irish gifts which we loved - Thank You again!!! It was our last night in Cork and we discussed our further route and also the possibility of Kostas coming to the Magic Circle Festival in July at the Loreley in Germany. He said he probably couldn't make it and we tried to have him change his mind - well, it didn't work that evening but in the end it did because he came and as far as I know he didn't regret it. Such a shame that Natalie isn't into metal but I still hope that Master Of The Wind will help change her mind some day...

The next morning we had a great breakfast like everyday which had been prepared by Sophia. She was very kind and we'd also like to say thank You to her. We drove Xoan to work and said goodbye. Man that sucked - we did it quite quickly so that we could act like men. We had had such a pleasant stay and Xoan's hospitality was tremendous. Thank You so much my friend. We headed north and at same time of the day we decided to leave everything behind and head straight to Connemara. We talked a lot - like we always do - and I said, "Hmmh, Belfast sounds pretty cool." "Lovey you're right - it does." So, we decided not to stay in Dublin for the last two days of our vacation. We weren't fond of that idea anyway - we had seen the place already - so what the heck. I actually called Xoan and he gave me Sam's number and laughed his ass off doing so. I got a hold of Sam and asked if they had time for us on coming Sunday - well, the crazy couple actually changed plans and arranged everything so that we could visit them. But more about that later on...

We wanted to stay in Galway but when we arrived there it was like Hell on earth - the whole city was going crazy - there was some kind of event going on and everything was packed - I looked at Tina and she looked at me - she asked if I was still able to drive and I said yeah sure. I mean I was dead tired but I also did not want to stay in that city - no way. So we drove onwards and finally arrived in a tiny place called Oughterard - holy shit we couldn't even pronounce the name of the village but it looked nice. We checked into a bed and breakfast and headed to the village. We wanted to find an Indian restaurant but of course didn't. We love Indian food and were eating it all the time during our vacation in Scotland - we thought it would be the same in Ireland... So we ate at a Chinese place and we both almost puked - damn that stuff tatsted like total shit - no wait - it actually only tasted like garlic. It was the kind of dinner where you could definitely not gain any weight.

We went to a local pub and had a couple of Guinness and although we were totally knackered we stayed there until the "band" showed up. The two of them played marvellous traditional Irish music and we loved every minute of it.

The next day we did a sightseeing tour of Connemara and hiked to the top of Diamond's Head - my legs were getting back to normal. It was a fun day but still something was missing - that same kind of feeling we had in Scotland wasn't there. The countryside aside from the ocean was exactly like the countryside where we live in Germany - and no folks, Ireland was not greener than at home either. The people on the other hand were so lovely and the hospitality and friendliness were unforgettable.

In the evening we settled for traditional Irish food and went to our pub again. This evening the band was a band but they were a bit - let's say rusty. We still enjoyed their music and the cold Guinness - like every night.

The next day we drove to Cliffdon and did a little hiking. We had to walk on the road because either we were too stupid to find a path or there just weren't any. That was a bit disturbing as well - the whole island was fenced - sure they looked cool those stone walls or green bushes but hey, you couldn't get anywhere. We had to climb over fences to get to the ocean and that did suck in my opinion. Sure they did have to have fences because of the sheep but the funny thing was there were always sheep still walking on the roads anyway. Speaking of roads - the ones in Connemara where I'd say the most tourists are, were terrible. Up and down and holes and shit - my back was screaming in pain.

Finally Tina got to see her Connemara Ponies.

Looks like a guy I know...

The next day we left our "mother" who had taken great care of us and provided us with traditional Irish breakfast each day and headed for Port Laoise to visit another member of the House Of Death and his family that we had met a year before  - you guessed it - at the Magic Circle Festival in Bad Arolsen. On our way there we stopped to visit Tullamore Dew. It was the historical building where the whiskey was first made - the actual distillery had to moved to Middleton in 1975. It was a nice stop and we did get a free whiskey so it was worth it.

We drove to Port Laoise and Dave picked us up at a gas station and brought us to his wonderful house which was located outside the city - beautiful. It was the first day where it rained and damnit it did rain - like hell - so we had finally arrived in Ireland and we did get that special kind of feeling we were looking for... Call us crazy and I guess you're right! Still Dave and his wife Catherine wanted to show us a great castle - The Rock Of Dunamaise - what a wonderful site. Dave gave us a historical update and meanwhile we got soaked - totally soaked but we laughed our asses off and did not give a shit whatsoever.

We drove back to his house and started off with our first Guinness - it was to be one of many to follow, hehe... We patiently waited until it was 5.30 pm so that we could finally go to an Indian restaurant - yes folks, you read right - Dave and Catherine were as fond of Indian food as we were! It was a fabulous place and the thought of the food let's my mouth water just while I write these words - gorgeous. Although Dave actually ate fries with his meal...

We went to the Deadman's Inn and had a splendid time - slowly but surely getting drunk - holy shit, did we drink a lot of Stout! Back at home we celebrated Catherine's birthday until we all had enough. Dave apologized the next morning for falling asleep on the couch - he actually wouldn't have had to - because I hadn't remembered anyway...

The next morning we got up and felt like shit - haha - although who cared. We had a great breakfast while watching an Iron Maiden DVD and sadly enough had to say goodbye because our next appointment was waiting for us. We thanked Dave and Catherine for their grand hospitality and headed north - to Belfast. I must admit that Belfast is a city that Tina and I never would've visited on our own. It sounded kind of dangerous and looking back in history - it was - well, had been. Travelling was easy going although I'd sure like to know where the Irish take a piss while driving on their motorways - no toilet facilities whatsoever - unbelievable.

Arriving outside Belfast at 3 pm Sam and Jen picked us up and we headed to their beautiful home in Carrickfergus. I had a job to do and afterwards asked Jen how to open up the window in the bathroom - "It's broken!", she said and oh shit I thought... They had set up a fabulous BBQ and Jen's father and mother and brother with his wife and baby were going to come as well. I mean how cool was that - you got to know the whole family and you actually felt like you were at home - immediately. We ate and drank and had a lot of fun - Jen's parents being great MANOWAR Fans themselves ;). Later on Paddy arrived with his wife and we watched a MANOWAR DVD and had a great time together.

The next day Sam took us on a sightseeing tour of Belfast and I must say that the city is beautiful. Jen sadly had to work so it was only the three of us. We visited the docks where the Titanic was built - I didn't even know that up until that day. We also visited the Protestant and the Catholic parts of the town and looked at the murals there. They were very disturbing and Tina and I had a "funny" feeling inside. I will never understand why anyone would kill someone just because he has a different religion. All those motherfuckers should start reading their goddamn bible and live by it and not interpret it the way they want to. I mean hey, we live in a civilized world in the year 2009 don't we - get the fuck along people. Well, that is something I will never understand - fuck religion - to hell with it. The situation has calmed down in Belfast and I hope it stays that way. It's none of my business anyway yet still. We ended our tour in a famous pub where we had lunch - Irish Stew which tasted great.

It was time to say goodbye again. We had a tremendous time and Sam and Jen's hospitality was as grand as everyone else's had been! We drove back to Dublin and arrived at our hotel and left immediately for the Jameson distillery - we actually got there 10 minutes before the last customers were let in - call us minimalists but hell it worked.

Our last evening in Ireland was quite relaxed. We were still totally tired from all the partying. Our last dinner was of course a delicious order of Fish & Chips. We went to bed early. The next day we drove to the airport and had our last Guinness before flying home. Everything went more than smooth and we even caught an earlier train in Cologne and arrived home at 7 pm.

So that was Ireland - I must admit the country itself had not totally convinced us. It was just too much like where we live. But who the hell cared. We had met so many gorgeous people and had enjoyed so much unbelievable hospitality from our friends. And that was more than priceless. Xoan, Sophia, Kostas, Natalie, Paddy, Pete, Sam & Jen and Dave & Catherine had made our vacation like a great big coming home. We had such an unforgettable and wonderful time all because of these people - so who the fuck cares about any fences anyway - besides Ireland still has the best fuckin' beer in the world...

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