7 Days in Canada

Day 1
Right as I set my feet down off the plane and smell the fresh, earthy smell of springtime, I knew I wanted to start my Canadian excursion off with a big BANG! I decided to go and experience what is called Zorbing. Zorbing is where you roll down a hill tucked inside a life-sized "Hamster Ball!!" The adrenaline rush is amazing, your mind is spinning, your heart is racing, and you can't help yourself from saying "Yahoo!" Following my adventure, I quickly made a new friend, for I had done sphereing with my new friend, which is a version of Zorbing, but with two people inside the ball. We were both California boys, and had gone to Canada for some adrenaline-pumping action. It turns out that we were staying in the same hotel so we started to spend some time and really got to know each other.

Day 2
My friend, Zac, and I decided to keep the adrenaline pump primed and go to Whistler, the epic Downhill mountain-biking capital of the world. At Whistler mountain we sped through a course called Crank it Up (see the bottom for video) Everywhere ride you are on this fast-paced, rugged journey where there are jumps, gaps, berms, and wall-rides. On our fully-equipped Kona mountain bikes we jammed. We loved every minute of it! I would say that we biked through the cool forest and tall trees of Whistler mountain for about five or six hours straight. My favorite part was when I dropped down a 20-foot hill and hit a jump at the bottom. I also loved the GLC Drop. It felt like my stomach sailed up into my chest when I did the drop. Anyway, it was a fun day at Whistler mountain, and I had a great time with my friend, Zac. A hot shower felt good that day.





Day 3
It was hard to beat what I had already done these past few days in beautiful Canada, but I wanted to at least try to do something active. So I decided on a zip lining adventure, and of course, I had a blast! On one of the lines I was twenty feet above white-water rapids, and I made the mistake of looking down and gazed upon a forest of evergreen trees. Beautiful and majestic, yes, scary and petrifying, exactly! I was screaming like a little girl when she sees a creepy, crawly, spider. Very embarrassing!! Another eccentric zip line expirience was over 2,000 feet long! That's more than seven football fields, or 440 Dylan Carmody's lying toe to toe down on the ground. I loved every thrill of the zip line adventure.

Day 4
Today I wanted to see something that would make me want to jump with fear, so I took an excursion to the Narcisse Snake Dens located in Narcisse, Manitoba. It was amazing how many snakes there were slithering all over each other hissing like Medusa's head. It looked like a plate of black spaghetti. These snake pits have the largest number of snakes in the world (of this particular type of snake.) I personally adore snakes (Zac, on the other hand does not.) I was able to have a snake slither around my arm, neck, and all around my body. These slick reptiles' population around Narcisse was roughly 70,000 snakes, (AACK!!!!) until terrible weather in 1999 killed tens of thousands of these Garter snakes before they could reach their winter dens. So now there are about 45-50,000 Garter snakes in the Narcisse dens. Even though the Garter snake can't smell, you can smell this nasty creature. Although it wasn't at all like the GLC Drop, I still had a lot of fun.

Day 5
After all of the adventures Zac and I have had, we decided to lay low and hang out by Whistler Lake. It was a beautiful sight, with the crystal blue lake water reflecting off of the spring mountain snow. When we finally dipped our feet into the water, it felt just like a SBMS sunrise swim in the middle of the day! But I clenched my jaw and dove right in. (I have had almost 9 months of experience jumping into icy cold waters, so I was more prepared then Zac.) Later in the day, Zac and I made up a contest challenging each other to be the first to catch a fish first with our bare hands. The loser had to buy the winner a Coke. Both of us are pretty competitive so we started playfully pushing each other around in the cold mountain lake. We were especially frisky when one of us were about to grab a fish. It took about an hour of staying still so that the fish would come close to me and then I would dive and try to catch them until I finally caught a slippery little four-inch fish. I was proud, also I got a free Coke. I think that today was my favorite day because I got to hang out with a friend, play in the water, and fall asleep by a mountain.

Day 6
Today I decided to go out out and really show Canada what I am made of. No sissy whale-watching for me! I kayaked through the turquoise-blue Pacific Ocean and met up with the Orcas. These are the black and white beasts of the Pacific Ocean. I am surprised by their nickname; killer-whales, because they were so friendly. I was even able to touch one of their rubbery black backs. That was so cool! Kayaking with the Orcas is an experience I won't forget! Once I paddled back on shore and had some lunch (what else, other than fish and chips), I traveled to the Fraser River to feed the sea lions in their aquatic arena. I was going for an all-day sealife, seafood, seaside day adventure! The people who worked at the aquatic park gave me small fish to feed these graceful sea mammals. One of them popped their head up and barked at me for a fish. I threw it up in the air and the sea lion caught the fish right in its mouth! I took a bus ride back to the hotel with my arms aching from all of that paddling. I fell right to sleep right as I flopped onto my bed in the hotel room. That night I dreamed of enormous black and white fish swimming circles around me while I paddled frantically in my kayak to getaway. Weird travel dreams!

Day 7
Today I planned to just take a mellow day and catch my red-eye flight back home. But, that plan didn't work out that way. I am OK traveling with unexpected delays or detours. Usually that is when the fun happens. And that is what happened this time too. My flight took me all the way across British Columbia to Alberta because all flights going into the U.S. were canceled. What a treasure I discovered! Lake Louise was spectacular....I decided to hike part way around Lake Louise to see what there was to explore in this area. The icy-blue, glacial-fed water seemed that it would freeze your feet off if you jumped in. Apparently, Lake Louise is the hiking capital of Canada. I saw everything from mountainous glaciers, to beautiful water falls. In the background of my hiking the Fairmont Chateau's (nicest hotel that I have ever seen) British architecture caught my eye. Sadly, never enough time when traveling, but I will make a note to visit the Banff National Park when I return to Canada.

7 Things to do in Western Canada

1. Go Downhill Mountain biking in Whistler and hit the GLC Drop

2. Take a dip in Whistler lake, it is really cold, and DEEP!!!!!

3. Whistle over whitewater and old-growth forest on a series of zip lines, some as long as 2,200 feet

4. Feed Sea Lions, these are Steller Sea Lions found on Northern Vancouver Island

5. Go Zorbing (basically running down a mountain in a hamster circle)

6. Visit with snakes in Narcisse, don't worry, they don't bite

7. Visit and tour Banff, and Lake Louise

Currency Conversion (EUR)

1 USD = 0.782665 EUR
5 USD = 3.9161 EUR
10 USD = 7.82778 EUR
20 USD = 15.6659 EUR
50 USD = 39.1545 EUR
100USD = 78.3091 EUR

Languages in Canada (French)

Hello - Bonjour
How are you doing? - Comment faites-vous ?
What are you doing? - Que faites-vous ?
Water - Eau
Food - Nourriture
Clothing - Vêtement
Building - Bâtiment
How is it going? - Comment va-t-il ?
Restaurant - Restaurant
Goodbye - Au revoir

My Air-Travel to Canada

	US Airways Flight 6920 operated by UNITED EXPRESS/SKYWEST AIRLINES	12:45pm Los Angeles, CA (LAX)	6:19pm Vancouver, BC Canada (YVR)	5hrs 34min - 1 Stop Change planes in Seattle/Tacoma, WA (SEA)	$628 per person 1 seat left at this price		Turboprop Service more
	Air Canada Flight 8120 operated by JAZZ

6 places to go

1. Peru - The Machu Pichu Mountains

2. Chile - Take a walk through sculpture park

3. Cuba - Get a tan on the white, sandy beaches

4. Mexico - Walk down the colorful streets of San Miguel de Allende

5. Brazil - Canoe down the Amazon River

6. Canada - Mountain-Bike in Whistler

Canada... you better make some room!

James Cameron

1. Jim generates his house with a solar power system
2. He sells power back to the government
3. He makes his own goat milk
4. He does composting
5. He recycles properly
6. He drives hybrid cars
7. The parents of children need to be educated the most

Helene Schnieder

8. Helene Schneider rode her bike to earth day
9. She put in new energy saving technologies in her kitchen
10. She gets to work by the city bus

Dave Davis

11. His family is thinking about getting some chickens
12. CEC: Community Environmental Council

Grounded In Mumbai

Dear Journal,
Because of this volcanic eruption in Iceland I am unable to travel back home. The plane flight that I was going to go on took off in Mumbai, India. As I am in the Mumbai airport, surrounded by frustrated people because of the ash in the air, I start to get hungry. So when I walk outside into the streets of India I am overwhelmed by the smell from the food vendors. I ordered some curry, my favorite Indian dish. When I was watching this man prepare my meal, he gave me the recipe for his curry and told my to make it.

Spending a Week in Thailand

Day 1

Today I had a big adventure! I took a train from where I was in southern Thailand and chugged the rugged landscape up to northern Thailand. This is where the Thai people have elephant riding; a tourist activity where the Thai can make some money. I never knew how enormous elephants actually were! I awkwardly climbed and hoisted myself up on top of this gigantic mammal. I peered down once I got up on top of the elephant and said, “The people look like ants from here!” I soon realized that elephants stop frequently to eat and they also do the opposite of eating a lot, which I will not say!! Let’s just say it is not pleasant. As we trudged through the luscious jungle, the beauty of everything green and tropical surrounded me, and I was captured by its beauty. Ferns, banana palms, and monkeys were everywhere I looked. I thought that this tour was amazingly fun. Riding a monstrous animal through an interesting jungle was tiring, so I picked up the Thai newspaper and tried to pick out words that I knew. I recognized the word America, but that was the only one.

Day 2

One of the main objectives I wanted to accomplish with my travels to Thailand was go to a Muay Thai Temple. This is a temple where one learns Thai kick-boxing. A man who only spoke Thai soon greeted me at this spectacular site. This was my first challenge. Language barrier. I said “hello”. Stunned by what I said he replied back, “Hello.” After the awkward silence, my master taught me many different counter-attack moves and before I knew it, I was a natural at kick-boxing. I knew how to block a punch and how to use the force of the punch against my opponent. I thought that learning these ancient fighting techniques of the Thai people would be a great addition to my Thailand journey. After my lesson I felt protected on the streets of Thailand.

Day 3

Today I decided to snorkel with the sharks. I was very excited and nervous. The bus to take us to the tour station departed at seven o'clock a.m. So I woke up at about 6:15 and got ready. I didn't have any time for breakfast. When I finally arrived I smelled the fresh salty air and I knew it was going to be a good day. I got my gear on and got ready to plunge into the depths of the ocean (really it was just a snorkel, mask and some fins).

Off the side of the boat and into the water I jumped. In no time at all sharks were in sight. As I swam along with sharks it was just magical and suspenseful at the same time. Yet, I felt like there was a connection between this exciting creature and me; like somehow we were communicating. We sped through the water like torpedoes, but I knew I was growing short on breath. Suddenly, I couldn't hold my breath any longer. I shot up through the water and gasped for air. Filled with the beauty and exhilaration from my snorkeling experience and playing in foreign waters, my day felt compete. I soon realized from the s

un's angle that it was later in the day and my guide told me that my time with snorkeling time was up. So we went back to the station and went to a local restaurant. I had some spicy shrimp and curry. Yummy... After I gulped down my meal I walked across town to find many surprises; none were very too interesting though. So I decided to create my own fun and to sleep on the beach right by my hotel.

Day 4

Today I woke up and as I was starting to make breakfast, I decided that today would be the day to learn how to cook rice curry. So I asked my concierge for local chefs who might give some foreigners a cooking lesson. He gave me a name of a restaurant that gives lessons and off I went. As I arrived at the restaurant, the smell of spicy Thai f

ood overwhelmed my senses, and it didn't take long for me to realize that it was a good decision to come here. The first dish that my chef and I cooked was called nam phrik mamuang. This is a Thai dip that is made out of palm sugar, red chili, red shallots, dried shrimp, green mango with a little bit of shrimp paste in the middle. When I tried it, so many unusual flavors filled my mouth many that I had never tried before. They all came flooding into my mouth. It was delicious. Tonight I tried making a new dish for dinner. It was called Kahnom Luk Chub. This dish was a stretch for me because it was so colorful, with so many different ingredients (ginger, lemon grass, curry, etc.) to add... But in the end, I succeeded with a making a delicious meal!

Day 5

Today when I woke up I felt a little bit stressed because of work that I would have to make up once I get back to Santa Barbara. So I decided to relax and take a meditation class. Luckily there was one happening every three hours down in the lobby of my hotel. I scribbled my name up on a board, implying that I would take a class at 12:00 p.m. I strolled to the local breakfast joint and I ordered an unusual meal. It was called Kao Tom. I don’t know what was in it, but it was delicious. Time flew by, and it was already 11:30 a.m. So I sprinted back to the hotel and got ready for my meditation class. This type of meditation is sort of like the stereotype of all meditating. You take a deep breath, and when you release the air (and all of the stress) you say “Oooohhhhhhmmmm.” This meditation is believed to originate in the very first Indian civilization. Also great saints, sages, and fathers of every decade have accepted this concept as a way to relax and connect deeply with themselves. The mediation exercises really calmed me down, and I feltready to accomplish any task whether it is in Thailand or Santa Barbara.

Day 6

Today I decided to go kite flying. Did you know that the Thai people actually have a kite flying festival? In the early Siamese kingdom of Ayutthaya, kite-flying was so popular that it was prohibited to fly kites over the Royal Palace, as kites and kite string may have tangled, and then damaged the architectural spires. I felt peaceful and calm while I was flying the kite. It was a really fun experience, flying kites with people I didn’t know the names of, but somehow we seemed like friends. Playing can connect people in the best way. It was a lot of fun and a day of blue skies and beautiful kite-flying went by really fast.

Day 7

Today is the day that I have to leave for Santa Barbara. I definitely will miss it here in Thailand, but I still have a couple of hours to kill before my plane leaves, so I will visit the Enchanted Kingdom of Thailand. This ancient Mon kingdom, centered in the Mae Nam river, is in Ping Valley in northwestern Thailand. It was founded in the mid-7th century by a queen of Lopburi, the capital of the Mon Dvaravati kingdom to the south. I was awe-struck by this kingdom’s magnificent marble sculptures, and even the building itself was structurally beautifully. But I kept my eye on my watch and after a while I had to hitch a ride to the airport for my flight back home.

7 things to do in Thailand

1. Go Kite-Flying

2. Learn Muay Thai (Thai kick-boxing)

3. Find my inner being during meditation

4. Ride an Elephant in Northern Thailand

5. Learn how to cook with Thai recipes

6. Go snorkeling with the sharks

7. Visit the Enchanted Kingdom of Thailand

Money Exhcange from Thailand

$1 - 1.40 TD
$5 - 7.10 TD
$10 - 14.20 TD
$20 - 28.40 TD
$50 - 71.00 TD
$100 - 142.oo TD

Words and Phrases

Hello - สวัสดี
How are you doing - เป็นไงบ้าง
Bathroom - ห้องน้ำ
Goodbye - ลาก่อน
What is going on - สิ่งที่เกิดขึ้น
Bicycle - รถจักรยาน
Computer - คอมพิวเตอร์
Food - อาหาร
Number - หมายเลข
Reservation - จอง

Flight Itenerary for Thailand

$1042 Tax & Fees incl. Select

United Airlines

• SBA 9:09a - BKK 11:10p 2 stops 24h 1m
• BKK 6:50a - SBA 4:53p 2 stops 24h 3m

My Adventure to Egypt

Day 1

Today I visited the Avenue of the Sphinxes at the Luxor Temple. This avenue is three kilometers long and loaded with more than 70 Sphinxes all together. There are about 34 Sphinxes are on the western side and 38 are on the eastern side of this 2,390 year old monument. I was amazed about the amount of these beautiful statues. I thought that it was amazing how the ancient Egyptians had built these temples so long ago and they are still standing today.

On my way back to my hotel I got really hungry, so I was lured into a local restaurant by some strange but good smells. The restaurant was a very noisy place. I ordered some grilled goat meat, and for dessert I devoured a date bar. The aroma and taste was strangely good. After a filling meal, I went to my hotel and drifted off to sleep.

Day 2
Today I visited the Great Pyramids of Giza specifically Khufu's Pyramid. I was awe-struck by the size of this colossal giant. It is truly fascinating how people from literally 4,500 years ago, built this enormous temple, brick, by brick, by brick. This pyramid consists of more than 2.3 million lime

stone blocks, and each block weighs 2.5 tons, that's the weight of a mainland elephant. That's 6.5 million tons! The base of this tomb is 13 square acres, that's 568,500 square feet! This was the most amazing structure that I have ever seen in my whole life.

Day 3
Today I ventured toward the Abu Simbel Complex. It was an amazing sight that I will never forget. These carved statues of Ramses (a well-known pharaoh) are fascinatingly giant and beautifully sculpted. Each sculpture is about 20 meters (65.6 feet) tall. I realized that they were built in 1244 B.C.E.; that's 3254 years old! What is surprising about this site is that recently these giant rocks were carefully cut into 20-30 ton pieces, and archeologists and engineers moved this historic work of art to higher ground. They did this because the water from the Nile River was rising and eroding these masterpieces, and they wanted to preserve them. This took the archeologists and engineers four careful years to get these giant rocks to higher ground. I found this sight astonishing.

Day 4
Today I saw the Philae Temple in Aswan. Philae is an island in the Nile River and the previous site of an Ancient Egyptian complex in southern Egypt. When no one else was looking I secretly brushed my hand across the walls of this temple. I felt the cool smoothness of the hand-carvings in the wall of this structure. I also feel the rough, gritty sandstone in some places. Sadly, I didn't see the tourists on the other side of the temple, and so I got busted for touching a rare archaeological sight. Actually, they just stared at me and talked with me for a while. I realized that they were from California too. Only they were from Redding, in northern California. I went to dinner with them and we talked for what seemed like half an hour when it was about two hours. We shared our stories and discoveries of ancient Egypt. They were an interesting group of people that I would like to get to know better.

Day 5 Today I stayed another night in Aswan. Instead of visiting a tourist-like area I decided to walk the streets and see how actual modern-day Egyptian people live. I saw a bunch of "locals" sailing their boats down by the waterfront. But, everywhere in Egypt there seemed to be a tourist attractions. Here, along the waterfront there was "Sailing Lessons." I thought, "Well, I guess that I should take them." Apparently I am a really bad sailor. There are a lot of things to do when you're manning a sailboat. Eventually I caught on, and after a while I was sailing on my own. I almost hit the cliff that you see in the picture, so the instructor turned helped me turn the boat away and I decided not to sail for shore. Then I took off on a hike and hiked around to that same cliff and watched the sun set over the water. I think that today was my favorite day because I didn't have to hear a lot of people say "oooooh" and "ahhhh." I actually learned something.

Day 6
The Al-Azhar Mosque was truly astonishing. It was established in 972.

That's 1,038 years old. Anyway I sort of got lost in this giant maze of a temple. It was BIG!!! My direction sense in a building is not very good. I thought that I was going to get stuck in there so after about half an hour, and feeling overwhelmed, I wandered out of there and took off.

I thought that the Al-Azhar Mosque was great, however, it was

not my cup of tea. After all my blog's name is Dylan's 3 Cups of Tea. So I decided to just make it a short day and head home.

Day 7

Today I decided to live like an ancient Egyptian. So I began by using their mode of transportation... I rode on a camel. The rocking back and forth motion didn't help me at all, but the real life experience was definitely worth it. What I realized was that the humps in the camels back are filled with water so that the don't dehydrate in the hot Sahara Desert. This was my final day in Egypt, so with sand between my toes and a smile on my face I headed to the Cairo airport. I drifted off to a deep sleep as my plane floated across the Mediterranean Sea on its way to California.

7 Things to do in Egypt

1. Visit the Great Pyramids of Giza

2. Ride on a Camel

3. Visit the Abu Simbel Complex

4. See the Al-Azhar Mosque

5. Watch the sun set over Aswan

6. See the temple Philae

7. Visit the Avenue of the Sphinxes at the Luxor Temple

Egypt Currency Exchange

1 US Dollar = 5.52383 Egyptian Pound

5 US Dollars = 27.61915 Egyptian Pound

10 US Dollars = 55.23830 Egyptian Pound

20 US Dollars = 110.477 Egyptian Pound

50 US Dollars = 276.192 Egyptian Pound

100 US Dollars = 552.383 Egyptian Pound

10 Words in Arabic

Hello - مرحب

How are you doing? - كيف حال

Where is the nearest hotel? - أين هو أقرب فند

Where can I get food? - أين يمكنني الحصول على الغذا

My name is -اسمي هو

Good Bye - إلى اللقاء

American - أمريكا

Cell Phone - الهاتف الخليوي

Water - ماء

Food - طعام

My Flight Itinerary

Flight	Airports/times	Stops	Duration/equipment	More information
United 934 LL5NCE	Depart: LAX Mar 15 6:01 PM Arrive: LHR Mar 16 11:25 AM Arrives next day	Non-stop	10h 24m Boeing 777	> Flight info View seats Flight details 5,456 miles traveled Dinner , Breakfast Economy 5456 Award miles Availability Economy Y, First Y, Business Y
<<<>>>
United 9858 Operated by Egypt Air LL5NCE	Depart: LHR Mar 16 2:00 PM Arrive: CAI Mar 16 8:45 PM	Non-stop	4h 45m Boeing 777-300	> Flight info View seats Flight details 2,196 miles traveled Meal Economy Availability Economy Y, Business Y
United 9857 Operated by Egypt Air ML1RCE	Depart: CAI Mar 22 9:40 AM Arrive: LHR Mar 22 1:00 PM	Non-stop	5h 20m Boeing 777-300	> Flight info View seats Flight details 2,196 miles traveled Meal Economy Availability Economy Y, Business Y
<<<>>>
United 959 ML1RCE	Depart: LHR Mar 22 2:20 PM Arrive: ORD Mar 22 6:35 PM	Non-stop	9h 15m Boeing 767-300	> Flight info View seats Flight details 3,953 miles traveled Lunch , Snack Economy 3953 Award miles Availability Economy Y, First Y, Business Y
<<<>>>
United 129 ML1RCE	Depart: ORD Mar 22 8:24 PM Arrive: LAX Mar 22 11:00 PM	Non-stop	4h 36m Airbus A320	> Flight info View seats

The 16 Middle East Countries

Bahrain - Visit the Beach

Egypt - Visit the Great Pyramid's of Giza

Iran - Visit the Original Garden of Eden

Iraq - Walk through the Basalt Desert

Israel - Visit the City of Jericho

Jordan - Nabataean city of Petra

Kuwait - Island of Failaka

Lebanon - Relax in a Nargile hut

Oman - Swim in the Gulf of Oman

Palestine - Learn Hebrew

Qatar - Visit the Island of Al Alyia

Saudi Arabia - Walk in the city of Jeddah

Syria - Walk in the ruins of the Qala't Ibn Maan Castle

Turkey - Visit the Chora Museum

United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) - Visit the Burj Al Arab Hotel

Yemen - Visit the Hadramaw Village

My Unexpected Adventure to Uganda

Day 1
I was going to travel to Rwanda for ten days but my flight got canceled. So now I have to stay in Uganda for three more days. After seeing the movie Invisible Children I was a little bit scared about being abducted by other child soldiers and never being able to come back. But luckily that never happened. I found myself wanting to live the life of the children who were running away from the soldiers in these three days. So I hung out with them. It was a lot more difficult than I thought. I experienced part of the life that these children did. I saw the fear in their eyes and felt the fear in mine. So I hid when they hid, I slept when they slept, I ran away when they ran away. I was truly scared of what could happen anytime and anywhere. I ate the one meal a day that they did. This dish that I ate was delicious, but smelled horrible. So far I am doing great, but I am feeling a little scared.



Day 2
Today I woke up to the sound of gun shots nearby. Apparently a young girl refused to go with the soldier so the young soldier shot the girl. I asked Jacob, "How often does this tragedy happen?" He told me that they have about one death every day. I couldn't believe it. Once every day? Anger rose up in me and I had to think of some way to stop it. Everyone gathered around the little girl and prayed. Even though I didn't know her name, I felt mournful that she had to die for no particular reason; just because some boy wanted her to be captured. We all held hands and I felt the roughness of Jacob's hands in mine. We all stayed together for a while, and then the girl's family buried her, and somehow everyone returned to every day life. By the time this memorial had ended, I realized that it was already 1:00 A.M. So Jacob and I left,and we kept running, hiding, and exhaustedly we ate our one and only meal. After that we gently fell into a restless asleep.


Day 3
Today as I was on my plane ride to Rwanda, I felt glad that my flight was canceled. I felt this way because if the flight wasn't canceled then I wouldn't have been able to meet Jacob and learn about the child-soldiers ("Invisible Children"). Jacob's life story was so interesting to learn from. Every day he has to go through fear, pain, and suffering; and worst of all he has to remember what he has seen, and remember his brother's death. Watching Jacob, I learned how he copes with sadness and death. Each day he takes a moment of silence for his brother, and he doesn't cry.
I thought that everything about the culture of the African people was very interesting. I would love to visit here for a longer period of time when I return again. Well, we just landed in Rwanda, so I have to go now. Bye.

Save The Children Foundation

My Week in Ireland

My Week In Ireland

Day 1
Today was my first day on my trip to Ireland, and I loved it! I visited the Rock of Dunamase. It was the most beautiful castle ruins I've ever seen (it was also the only castle in ruins that I've ever seen). It is hundreds of years old, and I'm not talking about the 1800's I'm talking about the 12 century. Also this building is 150 feet high, that's 46 meters. My neck got a cramp from looking up at all the archs and spires for so long. But there was another aspect that I liked about this Irish site. There is no bus, train, or taxi that will take you there, you have to hitch-hike to get to the castle. Someone finally picked me up (hitch-hiking). I was relieved that the person knew where they were going as I couldn't afford to get lost in a foreign country. But they were going to the Rock of Dunamase too. After a great day of exploring, I hitched another ride back to my hotel with these new friends. As we drove back, I looked through the pictures I had taken, and realized I already had filled up my memory on my new camera. Well, I'll see you tomorrow because I'm a little jet-lagged and it's also pretty late.

Day 2
Today I got to sleep in because the Dublin Ghost Bus (tour bus) doesn't leave until 11:00 A.M. The bus took us to so many beautiful sights. One of them was a drive along the beautiful south sea views. We saw waves crashing on the rock; the white foam spraying the spring air. We also could feel the cool breeze from the ocean, and at least I felt a little bit of salty mist on my face. Dublin is almost like Santa Barbara. If you look only at the ocean you might miss the bright green mountains right behind you. The only difference is the mountains in Dublin are a deeper green and are taller. The last stop on the tour was a stop at the Powerscourt House and Garden Estate. This house and this garden are the finest in all of Ireland. I saw so many lush plants and bright yellow, pink and orange flower as I wandered through the garden maze. Inside the estate, I saw many amazing art pieces and paintings.

Day 3
Today was especially amazing because I traveled to Dun Laoghaire. Dun Laoghaire is the oldest town in all of Ireland. It was settled in the 8th century. A sea fort surrounded the town and had been built for protection from raiding nearby countries such as Britain and France. The person who founded this colony was the High King of Ireland. He ruled the land for many years until he died. During his time of rule he built two piers. Both made of granite, and they still stand today. Many people windsurf near the west pier. I tried to windsurf, but the waves were too strong! So I walked along the east pier taking in the sites and smells of the beautiful ocean. Then I went out for a piping hot dish of Shepard's pie, and leisurely took in the evening in Dublin.

Day 4
A visit to Killarney is a must. The area is surrounded by beautiful lakes and horse-back riders galloping across velvety, green hills. This historical city is also dedicated to the "Ladies in Waiting." "Ladies in Waiting" are those wanting courtship and marriage--maybe I should keep my distance, and spend some time in the Irish Pubs instead. I mean what's a trip to Ireland without an Irish Pub Crawl? So today I went for a long walk through Killarney, and discovered that in that little town they have over seventy pubs!

Killarney Evening Pub Crawl
A Limerick Toast

Here's to the men who drink beer
Who stumble out of the pub with no fear
With 200 years of historic life
The pubs are where men prefer beer over a wife
Toasting to their Ireland, so dear

Day 5
Visiting Clonmacnoise was so much fun. Clonmacnoise is a Christian Monastry. It is on the east side of the River Shannon which once was the Kingdom of Meath. A very old saint founded this wonderful place more or less, about 1,000 years ago. This man went by the name of Saint Ciaran. He started building the monastery the day it was discovered. Today it has two twenty-foot round towers, and three celtic-high crosses. All of these structures were beautifully created, and were crafted with detail. The Whispering Door / Hallway. It was an important stop that I had read about in my tour guide books. Saint Ciaran built this structure so that it echoed when you whispered. This whispered echo could be heard throughout the hallway. This is where courting couples would stand side by side and whisper words of love underneath the arches of the Whispering Door. Forget the wife, forget the girlfriend, I just ran around yelling ECHO! ECHO! ECHO! ECHO!ECHO! Everyone was staring at me, and thinking that I was crazy, but the fun outweighed the humiliation.

Day 6
Today I thought that I would take a break from historic sites and walk across town to the Punchestown Festival. Apparently, it is the highlight of the social and sporting calender. Right as I set foot in the stadium, I could feel that that statement was true. There were vendors and food stands for everything that you could imagine. I started out by sampling the food. Now these weren't your basic popcorn and hot dog stands, these were a step above that. I sampled seafood and pasta at a few of the stands. The food was like no other food I had ever tasted. It was delicious! Fresh seafood from the cold Atlantic. With a stomach full of food I waddled over to the live entertainment area of the festival. That was fantastic too! They had everything from mimes to fashion shows. I checked out the street entertainment first. They had jugglers, mimes, and stilt-walkers. They even had a juggling mime on stilts!! I thought that these artists demonstrated a special gift so I threw a couple of euros into their basket. Then I saw the fashion show. They were modeling clothes and pop fashion that I didn't even know existed. I mean I saw a white leather wedding dress! Well, now it was off to go to the place that I really came to the Punchestown Festival for, the horse races! I found as seat in the cheering stands and watched the competitive horses race to the finish line. It was a close race, but the number two horse won the race! All together it was a festive, fun day of Irish culture.




Day 7
Today I visited the Fairgreen Shopping Center. I mean what's a vacation trip without getting some foreign trinkets to bring home? As I walked into the shopping center's revolving door, after being stuck in it for about half an hour, I could feel the excitement. From baby cradles to coffins they had it all! I started my shopping looking for some fun souvenirs. I went to BEST Men's and Boys' Clothing store. I purchased a few t-shirts that said "I (four leaf clover) Ireland" and a pair of jeans. After a few hours of shopping, I was feeling hungry. I mean my hunger is no comparison to an SBMS trip bike ride, but it's still a good work out for a novice shopper. So I went to Byrne's Burgers and Steaks fro a hearty lunch. I got their "Famous Cheeseburger," and I have to say it was one of the best burgers that I have had in a long time. Sadly, my flight is scheduled to leave at 2:00 P.M. and it's 1:00P.M., so I had better book it out of here and grab a cab and get to the Dublin Airport fast.