Watch out for the dates. My posts got out of order when uploading I'm afraid.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Snowdonia National Park
Thursday, June 28th
Somewhere in Snowdonia National Park
Morning rain, afternoon sun. Getting to be a theme., thank goodness.
"Do you want to take a shower?"
"Are you kidding?"
"No, while the we're down having breakfast, make yourself at home."
"Do I smell that bad?" I joked:)
Thank you Talbot-Halls for the delectable shower and delicious breakfast and enriching company. I sure hope our paths cross again, some time, some place:)
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this young family (ya, that was Emma who came over to my tent this morning with the offer). We had so much to share: similar interests and similar parenting ideas. And the girls...the girls. They came over to my tent this morning and figured out how to turn on my iPhones. I did not teach them any of the games, though!
"Strange place to camp" said a woman walking her dog this morning as I was packing up.
"This is where we bring the dogs for their walks!" Oh!!! That's the smell! They seem to be scooping the poop though as I didn't see any of that.:)
So after a cloud burst in which Lyra danced in the rain, stomping in the puddles, they were finally off to the beach. I wish I could upload the video I took of them leaving with Lyra waving goodbye from the back. Priceless.
Then I returned to the cafe because I finally had WIFI! As I was sitting outside at the cafe, the jeweler who repaired my mother's silver and turquoise bracelet clasp yesterday (even though his sign said "no alterations or repairs") stopped by, recognizing me. I told him I didn't manage to get out town yesterday, but I would today:) Love that small town feeling:)
What an incredible afternoon ride up into the Snowdonia National Park. The slopes on this high hills is vertical. I know my pics won't do it justice, but I took them just the same. Lush, idyllic countryside with steep, steep large hills. No mountains here, by my estimation. And the road (a green road - major) was delightfully graded. I met some young girls touring as I left town this morning and gave them some info about the route since they were heading south...and they said they'd taken a cycle path and found it incredibly steep. Scares me. I'll stick to roads. Can always hitch, if need be:)
Fanciest bathroom I've been in in awhile! Cloth hand towels, oh my!
Here's the inn the bathroom was in:
And, as usual, I didn't take any pictures with my phone of the countryside. Let me see if I can take a pic of a pic for ya'll.
Tonight's campsite is a nook off the main road in the woods where the owner has started to cut some of the wood. I know because he stopped when going by and seeing my tent.
"I hope this is all right that I'm camping here. Yes, just one night. I'll be gone in the morning. Thanks ever so much!"
Too bad it's a busy road and quite noisy, but that will calm down as the evening wears on and pick up early in the morning. Can't have everything. It's sunny out right now even though I'm in the woods. I can see it through the trees and that's good enough for me!
Off to start a new book that won the Book of the Year, British Book Awards. "man and boy" by tony parsons. One review said, "I cried five times and laughed out loud four." Sounds like my kind of book.
And that's all the news from the BagLady encampment.
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Somewhere in Snowdonia National Park
Morning rain, afternoon sun. Getting to be a theme., thank goodness.
"Do you want to take a shower?"
"Are you kidding?"
"No, while the we're down having breakfast, make yourself at home."
"Do I smell that bad?" I joked:)
Thank you Talbot-Halls for the delectable shower and delicious breakfast and enriching company. I sure hope our paths cross again, some time, some place:)
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this young family (ya, that was Emma who came over to my tent this morning with the offer). We had so much to share: similar interests and similar parenting ideas. And the girls...the girls. They came over to my tent this morning and figured out how to turn on my iPhones. I did not teach them any of the games, though!
"Strange place to camp" said a woman walking her dog this morning as I was packing up.
"This is where we bring the dogs for their walks!" Oh!!! That's the smell! They seem to be scooping the poop though as I didn't see any of that.:)
So after a cloud burst in which Lyra danced in the rain, stomping in the puddles, they were finally off to the beach. I wish I could upload the video I took of them leaving with Lyra waving goodbye from the back. Priceless.
Then I returned to the cafe because I finally had WIFI! As I was sitting outside at the cafe, the jeweler who repaired my mother's silver and turquoise bracelet clasp yesterday (even though his sign said "no alterations or repairs") stopped by, recognizing me. I told him I didn't manage to get out town yesterday, but I would today:) Love that small town feeling:)
What an incredible afternoon ride up into the Snowdonia National Park. The slopes on this high hills is vertical. I know my pics won't do it justice, but I took them just the same. Lush, idyllic countryside with steep, steep large hills. No mountains here, by my estimation. And the road (a green road - major) was delightfully graded. I met some young girls touring as I left town this morning and gave them some info about the route since they were heading south...and they said they'd taken a cycle path and found it incredibly steep. Scares me. I'll stick to roads. Can always hitch, if need be:)
Fanciest bathroom I've been in in awhile! Cloth hand towels, oh my!
Here's the inn the bathroom was in:
And, as usual, I didn't take any pictures with my phone of the countryside. Let me see if I can take a pic of a pic for ya'll.
Tonight's campsite is a nook off the main road in the woods where the owner has started to cut some of the wood. I know because he stopped when going by and seeing my tent.
"I hope this is all right that I'm camping here. Yes, just one night. I'll be gone in the morning. Thanks ever so much!"
Too bad it's a busy road and quite noisy, but that will calm down as the evening wears on and pick up early in the morning. Can't have everything. It's sunny out right now even though I'm in the woods. I can see it through the trees and that's good enough for me!
Off to start a new book that won the Book of the Year, British Book Awards. "man and boy" by tony parsons. One review said, "I cried five times and laughed out loud four." Sounds like my kind of book.
And that's all the news from the BagLady encampment.
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Loitering, Lingering, and Lolly-gagging
Tuesday June 26th
Machynlleth, Wales (and don't ask me to pronounce it!)
Rain...what else? Yesterday was an anomoly - however that's spelled...
Worse campsite yet. It was getting late and I was getting desperate and it was raining and a big town was coming up. I'm right by a major road but back off yet in plain view and near all the road noise. Shut up in my tent with new lines strung above to dry things overnight and gear out each door...this place looks trashed. Amazing how all this gets packed up and fits on Blaze in a fairly orderly and consistent way.
New lost item: headlamp. Haven't needed here because I'm asleep before the sun sets, but the last time I remember using it was at the hostel in Bantry. Haven't seen it since and couldn't find it this morning. Backup is the headlight on Blaze since it's not getting any use on her.
Late, late start this morning. I do not even begin to pack up if it's raining. Nope. It's my rule. So this morning I didn't start until 11 am! I slept late, made coffee, read, slept some more...and awoke to silence. Ah, I love this pace. How slow can I go?
(There's a song playing on my iPod that is bringing tears to my eyes. I have a memory of Dana dancing with me in the kitchen to it and I cried then...too... Top of the World - Dixiie Chicks... I loved being their mom more than anything I've done in my life and so miss having them around all the time. But alas, they have lives of their own and I'm free to wander the world...)
ok, I digress...back to Wales and rain and ...
I was biking along the coast with the most spectacular scenery: green rolling pastures dotted with little white sheep, old stone houses with rosebushes winding up the sides, ancient cemeteries and churches, and off in the distance was the Irish Sea.
Also saw a sign for the steepest grade yet.
I'm sure glad I was going downhill. I do not even think I could have pedaled up that hill. I would have had to hitch a ride for the both of us.
Borth where I got lunch a wifi (not free) is a beach town, but today was not a beach day. Grey, overcast, and drizzling. But it had it's own essence to it and I enjoyed it just the same.
Then I pulled onto a "green" road. They're the largest roads on my Wales map. Lots of cars. No choice. Got to use them to get across the mountains. That's what the next couple of days brings. Today I had to cycle through road construction while it was raining. Oh, the cheers I got from the construction crew pedaling along with my silver umbrella up was priceless! Even some drivers gave me cheery beeps. LIfts my spirits immensely. So the next time you see a loaded cyclist, signal to her: thumbs up, a wave, or a cheery beep. It will make her day! Some days it's the energy of others that pushes us through.
I managed to have a successful day of loitering, lingering, and lolly-gagging around. Dropped the guilt and traveled to my inner voice. Great day even with the rain and the lousy camping spot and the car traffic (which is dimming as rush hour has passed).
My thumbs seem to be holding up as long as I don't do any writing. Tonight I did some postcards and holding a pen really irritates them...well, the right one. Not taking anything for them because I don't know what causes that skin reaction and I don't want anymore of it.
Enought babbling. I figured out I write at night for the company, so thanks for spending the evening with me.
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Machynlleth, Wales (and don't ask me to pronounce it!)
Rain...what else? Yesterday was an anomoly - however that's spelled...
Worse campsite yet. It was getting late and I was getting desperate and it was raining and a big town was coming up. I'm right by a major road but back off yet in plain view and near all the road noise. Shut up in my tent with new lines strung above to dry things overnight and gear out each door...this place looks trashed. Amazing how all this gets packed up and fits on Blaze in a fairly orderly and consistent way.
New lost item: headlamp. Haven't needed here because I'm asleep before the sun sets, but the last time I remember using it was at the hostel in Bantry. Haven't seen it since and couldn't find it this morning. Backup is the headlight on Blaze since it's not getting any use on her.
Late, late start this morning. I do not even begin to pack up if it's raining. Nope. It's my rule. So this morning I didn't start until 11 am! I slept late, made coffee, read, slept some more...and awoke to silence. Ah, I love this pace. How slow can I go?
(There's a song playing on my iPod that is bringing tears to my eyes. I have a memory of Dana dancing with me in the kitchen to it and I cried then...too... Top of the World - Dixiie Chicks... I loved being their mom more than anything I've done in my life and so miss having them around all the time. But alas, they have lives of their own and I'm free to wander the world...)
ok, I digress...back to Wales and rain and ...
I was biking along the coast with the most spectacular scenery: green rolling pastures dotted with little white sheep, old stone houses with rosebushes winding up the sides, ancient cemeteries and churches, and off in the distance was the Irish Sea.
Also saw a sign for the steepest grade yet.
I'm sure glad I was going downhill. I do not even think I could have pedaled up that hill. I would have had to hitch a ride for the both of us.
Borth where I got lunch a wifi (not free) is a beach town, but today was not a beach day. Grey, overcast, and drizzling. But it had it's own essence to it and I enjoyed it just the same.
Then I pulled onto a "green" road. They're the largest roads on my Wales map. Lots of cars. No choice. Got to use them to get across the mountains. That's what the next couple of days brings. Today I had to cycle through road construction while it was raining. Oh, the cheers I got from the construction crew pedaling along with my silver umbrella up was priceless! Even some drivers gave me cheery beeps. LIfts my spirits immensely. So the next time you see a loaded cyclist, signal to her: thumbs up, a wave, or a cheery beep. It will make her day! Some days it's the energy of others that pushes us through.
I managed to have a successful day of loitering, lingering, and lolly-gagging around. Dropped the guilt and traveled to my inner voice. Great day even with the rain and the lousy camping spot and the car traffic (which is dimming as rush hour has passed).
My thumbs seem to be holding up as long as I don't do any writing. Tonight I did some postcards and holding a pen really irritates them...well, the right one. Not taking anything for them because I don't know what causes that skin reaction and I don't want anymore of it.
Enought babbling. I figured out I write at night for the company, so thanks for spending the evening with me.
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Teenage Hooligans!
Friday, June 29th (2012...for when I'm reading this years from now and wonder...)
Shrewsbury, England
Rain in am...sun in pm...
9 pm. Late night for me to be starting my journal. Got lost in Shrewsbury and was going in circles, I found out. Thanks, Sam...for trying to orientate me:) I did finally - after another asking down the road and cycling down a one way with folks yelling at me, like I didn't know it...did finally find the road I wanted.
A kid, Ben, also tried to help me but I didn't believe he knew enough and my problem is explaining where I want to go: the yellow roadl, not the green or the red.
I'm camped in a clearing behind a sports complex...kinda in the bushes because I didn't want to be on the beautiful grass. It's sort of trail back through here that has been recently weed-whacked. Again, I'm in the dog walking area! Me and the dogs fighting for turf! This woman tried to walk down the path and was weaving around my tent. I apologized for being in her way and said I didn't want to camp on the sports fields. She said they'd probably arrest me! Well, maybe I'd get another shower! I know it's going to be much harder finding places as it gets more congested. I'll just have to play it by ear. (Another dog just waddled by:))
Did a lot of cycling today and got to another country: England. Feels different than Wales and different than Ireland. It's a bit more worn around the edges, but the people have been as terrific as ever.
Just when I crossed over the border...and you don't know when that happens without consulting a map...I came across "Hill Climb". What's this? I was needing a distraction anyways, so I pulled into this incredible park. Turns out it used to be part of some Lord's estate and now the 300+ walled acres just contains mostly deer and woodlands...and this 1 mile, twisty, turny, paved, one-lane race course for cars.
They are timed as to how fast they can navigate the climb and there are different classes for the different types of cars all the way up to Formula 1 cars. The record was something like 43 seconds. The guy let me walk part of the course. Pretty cool. Obviously it takes some definite good driving skills! Has anyone ever seen something like this in the States? Not I.
Not all chews are good. I'm suffering with today's purchase which is sticky too much to my teeth...annoying! Got to have at least one torment!
It's about 100 miles to Sheffield. I planned out a route today on my map app. It's so hard to get it to give me the backroads. I have to keep putting in way points of little towns on the roads that I want to take. There's more than one way to skin a cat.
Well, this may have been a bad place to camp. Some guys just came by and slapped my tent. I stuck my head out to let him know that a woma
}"@:>@
>>>>*@#
10 pm. I had to pack up and move. Even though it was after 9 and I was all comfy in my tent, those boys were gonna be trouble. They pulled the cover off of Blaze and ran with it laughing. I don't feel safe. They were too brazen and they were drinking and it's Friday night. That was the fastest packing job I've ever done. It was dark due to heavy clouds and threatening rain again! Half hour later I'm camped a mile down the road in the side field of a Rugby Club. Hope they aren't earlier risers. Maybe I'll get to see them play. I'm in the country now and although I can hear the city noise, it's further away. Well, that was a first! As I left, I noticed it was across from an apartment complex. Not good. Teenagers are the worst. I hope my British experience improves. It's not off to a good start:(
Oh, before I forget. In Wales (and maybe here) you have to pay about 8 cents for a plastic bag at the grocery store. It's the law. And they say it has reduced bag requests about 80%. Didn't they do that in LA? My problem is I use those bags for garbage. I'll have to remember to get bags in produce for garbage.
Goodnight. Sweet dreams!
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Shrewsbury, England
Rain in am...sun in pm...
9 pm. Late night for me to be starting my journal. Got lost in Shrewsbury and was going in circles, I found out. Thanks, Sam...for trying to orientate me:) I did finally - after another asking down the road and cycling down a one way with folks yelling at me, like I didn't know it...did finally find the road I wanted.
A kid, Ben, also tried to help me but I didn't believe he knew enough and my problem is explaining where I want to go: the yellow roadl, not the green or the red.
I'm camped in a clearing behind a sports complex...kinda in the bushes because I didn't want to be on the beautiful grass. It's sort of trail back through here that has been recently weed-whacked. Again, I'm in the dog walking area! Me and the dogs fighting for turf! This woman tried to walk down the path and was weaving around my tent. I apologized for being in her way and said I didn't want to camp on the sports fields. She said they'd probably arrest me! Well, maybe I'd get another shower! I know it's going to be much harder finding places as it gets more congested. I'll just have to play it by ear. (Another dog just waddled by:))
Did a lot of cycling today and got to another country: England. Feels different than Wales and different than Ireland. It's a bit more worn around the edges, but the people have been as terrific as ever.
Just when I crossed over the border...and you don't know when that happens without consulting a map...I came across "Hill Climb". What's this? I was needing a distraction anyways, so I pulled into this incredible park. Turns out it used to be part of some Lord's estate and now the 300+ walled acres just contains mostly deer and woodlands...and this 1 mile, twisty, turny, paved, one-lane race course for cars.
They are timed as to how fast they can navigate the climb and there are different classes for the different types of cars all the way up to Formula 1 cars. The record was something like 43 seconds. The guy let me walk part of the course. Pretty cool. Obviously it takes some definite good driving skills! Has anyone ever seen something like this in the States? Not I.
Not all chews are good. I'm suffering with today's purchase which is sticky too much to my teeth...annoying! Got to have at least one torment!
It's about 100 miles to Sheffield. I planned out a route today on my map app. It's so hard to get it to give me the backroads. I have to keep putting in way points of little towns on the roads that I want to take. There's more than one way to skin a cat.
Well, this may have been a bad place to camp. Some guys just came by and slapped my tent. I stuck my head out to let him know that a woma
}"@:>@
>>>>*@#
10 pm. I had to pack up and move. Even though it was after 9 and I was all comfy in my tent, those boys were gonna be trouble. They pulled the cover off of Blaze and ran with it laughing. I don't feel safe. They were too brazen and they were drinking and it's Friday night. That was the fastest packing job I've ever done. It was dark due to heavy clouds and threatening rain again! Half hour later I'm camped a mile down the road in the side field of a Rugby Club. Hope they aren't earlier risers. Maybe I'll get to see them play. I'm in the country now and although I can hear the city noise, it's further away. Well, that was a first! As I left, I noticed it was across from an apartment complex. Not good. Teenagers are the worst. I hope my British experience improves. It's not off to a good start:(
Oh, before I forget. In Wales (and maybe here) you have to pay about 8 cents for a plastic bag at the grocery store. It's the law. And they say it has reduced bag requests about 80%. Didn't they do that in LA? My problem is I use those bags for garbage. I'll have to remember to get bags in produce for garbage.
Goodnight. Sweet dreams!
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Emma, Ben, Lyra, and Sylvie
Wednesday, June 27th
Machynlleth, Wales
Rainy morning, sunny afternoon
Yup, same town, other end. This going slow is most enjoyable! Opportunities to do other things and share connections. Guilt free.
Lots of honks for me this morning from the many cars passing my spot by the roundabout. And all they could see was a soggy tent and soggy bike cover through the mist. Sure made me feel welcome. Since I was so close to town, packing up wasn't as difficult because I knew where I was getting breakfast! And when I got to town: market day! The street was lined with vendors. My lucky day! Found a veggie cafe and got scrambled eggs and toast and my latte...trying to hook up to wifi, when in comes a young family.
"We love your bike!"
"Are you touring too?"
"Yes with the 2 girls!"
"Please join me!"
So that's how this day begain. Ben and Emma, Lyra and Sylvie live in England and are biking to friends' house for holiday. They've been on the road for 4 days, camping too. Their daughters are 4 and 2. What brave young parents! They ride with Lyra on the back of a tandem and Sylvie in a trailer. Then after breakfast, some great info on the best route to Sheffield, and goodbyes, we went our separate ways. Small town. I kept running into them. They decided to get a room and go to the Center for Alternative Technology this afternoon which was just outside of town. May I join you?
Then after lunch we met up and cycled there. Fascinating place they started in a quarry 40+ years ago by local hippies, exploring sustainable building, heating, and growing methods. Now it's the largest alternative energy research and education center in Europe. This is something I have a strong interest in and know I need to find a way to do it. It feels right! The "where" is still a big question.
I had such fun. Lyra wanted me to sit beside her. What an honor that is! And later tonight after our pizza picnic in the hotel courtyard, while Lyra had mommy time, Ben, Sylvie and I went to check out the camping site Ben had found for me. Sylvie, who previously had not really acknowledged me, played tag with me. And she's fast! The smiles, the giggles, happiness is...
In the morning, we'll have our goodbyes, but I so enjoyed today and their energy, patience with their daughters, and interest in a sustainable future. A fascinating couple! Thank you, Universe!!! You done good!
Oh, and they introduced me a drink I really liked: lemonade and beer. (Although I think the lemonade was more like Sprite.) It's called a Shandy. Now that I can drink! Makes beer actually tasty:)
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Machynlleth, Wales
Rainy morning, sunny afternoon
Yup, same town, other end. This going slow is most enjoyable! Opportunities to do other things and share connections. Guilt free.
Lots of honks for me this morning from the many cars passing my spot by the roundabout. And all they could see was a soggy tent and soggy bike cover through the mist. Sure made me feel welcome. Since I was so close to town, packing up wasn't as difficult because I knew where I was getting breakfast! And when I got to town: market day! The street was lined with vendors. My lucky day! Found a veggie cafe and got scrambled eggs and toast and my latte...trying to hook up to wifi, when in comes a young family.
"We love your bike!"
"Are you touring too?"
"Yes with the 2 girls!"
"Please join me!"
So that's how this day begain. Ben and Emma, Lyra and Sylvie live in England and are biking to friends' house for holiday. They've been on the road for 4 days, camping too. Their daughters are 4 and 2. What brave young parents! They ride with Lyra on the back of a tandem and Sylvie in a trailer. Then after breakfast, some great info on the best route to Sheffield, and goodbyes, we went our separate ways. Small town. I kept running into them. They decided to get a room and go to the Center for Alternative Technology this afternoon which was just outside of town. May I join you?
Then after lunch we met up and cycled there. Fascinating place they started in a quarry 40+ years ago by local hippies, exploring sustainable building, heating, and growing methods. Now it's the largest alternative energy research and education center in Europe. This is something I have a strong interest in and know I need to find a way to do it. It feels right! The "where" is still a big question.
I had such fun. Lyra wanted me to sit beside her. What an honor that is! And later tonight after our pizza picnic in the hotel courtyard, while Lyra had mommy time, Ben, Sylvie and I went to check out the camping site Ben had found for me. Sylvie, who previously had not really acknowledged me, played tag with me. And she's fast! The smiles, the giggles, happiness is...
In the morning, we'll have our goodbyes, but I so enjoyed today and their energy, patience with their daughters, and interest in a sustainable future. A fascinating couple! Thank you, Universe!!! You done good!
Oh, and they introduced me a drink I really liked: lemonade and beer. (Although I think the lemonade was more like Sprite.) It's called a Shandy. Now that I can drink! Makes beer actually tasty:)
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Ups and Downs, But No Hills
Monday June 26th
Aberystwyth, Wales
Sun! I awoke to sun! Didn't help. I still didn't want to get up:/
11 am (sitting at the laundromat) But finally did and was blessed with Donna, Griff, and Tomas. Mom and kids going down to the river via the cycle path before nursery school. Said hey on the way down and we got chatting on the way back. I needed that! Thanks Donna for the lift me up.
8 pm What a fabulous day. Did less than 5 miles and couldn't care less. Spent the day in Aberystwith (I'd been missing the y before), gots lots done, got little done, enjoyed the people I met and got to facetime with my daughter, Dana for hours this afternoon. Was like spending the time right with her. Would love to do the same with my other daughter and her hubby, but time differences is one challenge since she's in San Diego so it's 8 hours and I have to be in wifi range and the skype has to work. I've been trying to skype a few different friends lately and it just drops. Don't know why facetime works. But wait! Avery, don't you have an iTouch? Can you do Facetime with it? Dennis can with his. Send me an email and let me know. I can't even make an appt because I don't know where I'll be when.
Aberystwith is a mini city right on the coast with a harbor and a beach and condos! And a lot of one-way streets, my nemesis. I don't even know how to tell a street is one way except to watch the traffic flow. I never saw a one way sign anywhere today. I did see some Do Not Enter slashes. They don't mean me! I take to the sidewalk usually if it's a one way because I don't know how else to necessarily get where I'm going. These streets aren't laid out in a grid, ya know.
So met the most fun people today! The guy by the laundromat who said he had seen me yesterday and wanted to stop then and talk but didn't. He'd been researching these trikes and knew a lot about them. He didn't accept my offer to take Blaze out a spin though.
Then the lady that I asked directions to a cycle shop and it turns out she was giving me directions out of town to a hardware store. When we were chatting about TV, she said "I like a bit of my trash!"
And the girl at the coffee shop with free wifi who just couldn't get over that I was going to cycle all the way to Sheffield, but gave me great directions to the shore road (where I'm camped tonight).
And the little girl about 3 all dressed up in her princess costume of a full-length pink dress with wand. Princess Sophie! Precious! (Meeting kids is great because I'm right down at their eye level!)
And I got clean clothes!
The downer today was a technical challenge. For some reason, my mail accounts wouldn't download onto my iPhone while everything else was working fine. And it had been awhile since I had checked my mail so I was a bit peeved. I know I've had this problem once before but I''ll be damned if I can remember what the fix was. And a quick google brought no solution. So I thought I'd try deleting one of them (I keep 2: business and personal) and reloading it. But when I went to reload it, it wouldn't. Arrghh! Then I tried to get into it through Safari and it didn't like my password. Really? I know it's right. It's really odd how disconnected it made me feel not to be able to check my mail. And I felt like I couldn't get the problem fixed from my phone...and it's gonna be a long time before I'm home at my own computer. I already can't use Facebook except on my phone because I have turned on login controls that only work by sending me a code to my phone when I try and log in from a new computer...and my phone is turned off so I can't get the text message...and I can't change this option from my phone, so I'm stuck. And from the phone I can't "Share" or send "Friend Requests". So today, while on the phone with Dana, she was able to get into my gmail accounts and get it so I could view them in Safari. I still don't know why they don't load onto the phone as they used to. Anybody else know what's up with that?
To top off the day which started with me feeling lonely, was the invitation from Tina and Huw, my new neighbors for the night, of a cuppa tea. Yes! Newlyweds of just a year, so lucky to have found each other, beautiful modern home, great stories of his hitchhiking through Canada to Alaska and her daughter going to Rio Grande University in Ohio for an exchange program. But the best is just sharing a connection. Thank you both for the hospitality! I needed it and you shared it with me!!! And hot water is quite tasty...try it some time:)
Ok, my last tidbit tonight before I sign off is about my bath. I told you I got the clothes done today, but what good are clean clothes on a dirty body? It's only half the job done. But I didn't know how I was going to complete the other half. I cycled by a campground tonight and thought about getting a shower there and cycling on, but that would have felt quite cold to bike afterwards in the evening. But the Universe provides! Of course! I'm camped tonight on a plot of grass across from a church. An old church. And churches over here have their cemeteries right in the front yard...and the side yards...and the back yard. So for entertainment while I munched tonight's salad I wandered the grounds. And right next to the front gate and the front wall was a spigot! Hmmm. Unlimited water...hmmm. Get some and heat it up and ...oohhhh...hot bath in a cup! But wait...what about my hair? I know...under the spigot...so I did...crouching down behind the wall so I couldn't be seen...I lathered and creme rinsed...and now...it's CLEAN! Then I heated my big pot (all 3 cups) with water and used some to wash and some to rinse. A full, warm bath! I'm all clean and shiny now!
And full...of connections. No, I'm not lonely any more...just traveling alone...meeting the nicest people...who are filling me me up! Thank you to all the wonderful Welsh folks who are are reaching out to me on this journey and warming my soul:)))
I think this is the first time I've seen it get dark over here...it's 10:30.
Blessed BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Aberystwyth, Wales
Sun! I awoke to sun! Didn't help. I still didn't want to get up:/
11 am (sitting at the laundromat) But finally did and was blessed with Donna, Griff, and Tomas. Mom and kids going down to the river via the cycle path before nursery school. Said hey on the way down and we got chatting on the way back. I needed that! Thanks Donna for the lift me up.
8 pm What a fabulous day. Did less than 5 miles and couldn't care less. Spent the day in Aberystwith (I'd been missing the y before), gots lots done, got little done, enjoyed the people I met and got to facetime with my daughter, Dana for hours this afternoon. Was like spending the time right with her. Would love to do the same with my other daughter and her hubby, but time differences is one challenge since she's in San Diego so it's 8 hours and I have to be in wifi range and the skype has to work. I've been trying to skype a few different friends lately and it just drops. Don't know why facetime works. But wait! Avery, don't you have an iTouch? Can you do Facetime with it? Dennis can with his. Send me an email and let me know. I can't even make an appt because I don't know where I'll be when.
Aberystwith is a mini city right on the coast with a harbor and a beach and condos! And a lot of one-way streets, my nemesis. I don't even know how to tell a street is one way except to watch the traffic flow. I never saw a one way sign anywhere today. I did see some Do Not Enter slashes. They don't mean me! I take to the sidewalk usually if it's a one way because I don't know how else to necessarily get where I'm going. These streets aren't laid out in a grid, ya know.
So met the most fun people today! The guy by the laundromat who said he had seen me yesterday and wanted to stop then and talk but didn't. He'd been researching these trikes and knew a lot about them. He didn't accept my offer to take Blaze out a spin though.
Then the lady that I asked directions to a cycle shop and it turns out she was giving me directions out of town to a hardware store. When we were chatting about TV, she said "I like a bit of my trash!"
And the girl at the coffee shop with free wifi who just couldn't get over that I was going to cycle all the way to Sheffield, but gave me great directions to the shore road (where I'm camped tonight).
And the little girl about 3 all dressed up in her princess costume of a full-length pink dress with wand. Princess Sophie! Precious! (Meeting kids is great because I'm right down at their eye level!)
And I got clean clothes!
The downer today was a technical challenge. For some reason, my mail accounts wouldn't download onto my iPhone while everything else was working fine. And it had been awhile since I had checked my mail so I was a bit peeved. I know I've had this problem once before but I''ll be damned if I can remember what the fix was. And a quick google brought no solution. So I thought I'd try deleting one of them (I keep 2: business and personal) and reloading it. But when I went to reload it, it wouldn't. Arrghh! Then I tried to get into it through Safari and it didn't like my password. Really? I know it's right. It's really odd how disconnected it made me feel not to be able to check my mail. And I felt like I couldn't get the problem fixed from my phone...and it's gonna be a long time before I'm home at my own computer. I already can't use Facebook except on my phone because I have turned on login controls that only work by sending me a code to my phone when I try and log in from a new computer...and my phone is turned off so I can't get the text message...and I can't change this option from my phone, so I'm stuck. And from the phone I can't "Share" or send "Friend Requests". So today, while on the phone with Dana, she was able to get into my gmail accounts and get it so I could view them in Safari. I still don't know why they don't load onto the phone as they used to. Anybody else know what's up with that?
To top off the day which started with me feeling lonely, was the invitation from Tina and Huw, my new neighbors for the night, of a cuppa tea. Yes! Newlyweds of just a year, so lucky to have found each other, beautiful modern home, great stories of his hitchhiking through Canada to Alaska and her daughter going to Rio Grande University in Ohio for an exchange program. But the best is just sharing a connection. Thank you both for the hospitality! I needed it and you shared it with me!!! And hot water is quite tasty...try it some time:)
Ok, my last tidbit tonight before I sign off is about my bath. I told you I got the clothes done today, but what good are clean clothes on a dirty body? It's only half the job done. But I didn't know how I was going to complete the other half. I cycled by a campground tonight and thought about getting a shower there and cycling on, but that would have felt quite cold to bike afterwards in the evening. But the Universe provides! Of course! I'm camped tonight on a plot of grass across from a church. An old church. And churches over here have their cemeteries right in the front yard...and the side yards...and the back yard. So for entertainment while I munched tonight's salad I wandered the grounds. And right next to the front gate and the front wall was a spigot! Hmmm. Unlimited water...hmmm. Get some and heat it up and ...oohhhh...hot bath in a cup! But wait...what about my hair? I know...under the spigot...so I did...crouching down behind the wall so I couldn't be seen...I lathered and creme rinsed...and now...it's CLEAN! Then I heated my big pot (all 3 cups) with water and used some to wash and some to rinse. A full, warm bath! I'm all clean and shiny now!
And full...of connections. No, I'm not lonely any more...just traveling alone...meeting the nicest people...who are filling me me up! Thank you to all the wonderful Welsh folks who are are reaching out to me on this journey and warming my soul:)))
I think this is the first time I've seen it get dark over here...it's 10:30.
Blessed BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Monday, June 25, 2012
SUN! Need I say more?
Rosy Swales. Walked around the world. Note to self to google her.
Sunday, June 24th
Aberstwyth, Wales
Sunny clouds ALL DAY!
In the grey, drizzly morning, it's so so hard to think about getting up and packing up. So I don't. I linger and I dawdle and I sleep some more and I ask myself why am I doing this and I feel guilty for laying around reading and guilty for going slow and I ask myself why do I feel guilty and on and on and on until something...I don't know what...pushes me to get moving...probably guilt of some sort. When Fuat was here, he always got up around 7 ish and got up straight away and started the coffee. I lingered then too. But then I knew there'd be a cup of hot coffee just waiting for me whenever I could manage to drag myself out of bed. I lingered less then then I do now. Just one morning, I'd like to awaken to sunshine and see if that made getting up any easier. There's always tomorrow.
I managed to delaying leaving Lampeter until 11 am: coffee, breakfast, chat with folks for directions, and groceries for the day . Today it was cheese and ginger snaps, cucumber and wine gums, and bread. Keeping up with sharing my meals (because I know one young lady that's worried I'll starve since Fuat has left), I had crusty wheat bread and brie with grapes for lunch and quinoa salad (a Fuat dish, you'll remember) for dinner. I had tomatoes, cukes, onion, cheese, red pepper and broccoli to put in it. So I'm still eating well. But I'm powered by "chewies". Back home I'm addicted to Swedish Fish..oh ya! But when I travel I have to settle for other countries chewies. And in Ireland I discovered Wine Gums. Yup, for now, thems my favs!
I got a bit of wifi today in a town I went through. I've learned to ask at hotels. I tried to call some friends and either they didn't answer of skype kept disconnecting. So no chatting.
Today's ride was much more like what I enjoy: rolling terrain. But outside of one town I wanted to take some smaller roads and go a more direct route than swing back to the coast to get the major road that crosses the mountains. About 1-2 miles out of town I took the picture of a sign that said "Mountain Road" and it had me worried, especially after yesterday.
But I proceeded, strong in my commitment to do this. But when the road got so steep again, I rethought "mountain road" and decided it was possible this was WORSE than yesterday. I'm not getting myself into trouble. So I turned around and whipped back into town, looked at my map, and went the main road. It was delightful and scenic. Got to a pub to get some water and chatted with the barmaid. SHowing her the map, we decided that the road I was attempting in that town was not even the right road and had I continued I would have been directly east (not north, the way I wanted to go) and way off course. Whew!
So tonight I'm camped on the side of a cycle path. Very hard to find my usual nooks over here. Took me over an hour to find this. But it's quiet and mostly out of the way...lots of foot traffic and not one person has stopped to ask me anything. Strange.
I just finished listening to Robert Fulghim's "What on Earth Have You Done?" Love his writing and thinking style. So much good wisdom in there! Do check it out. Better yet, listen to it because he reads it and adds lots of emphasis and enrichment. Truly enjoyed!
Now I"m on to "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen. A good reader really adds to a story and they've got 2 for this one because the storyteller is both young and old.
Listening to audiobooks is delightful and makes me feel less lonely out here. Besides it really passes the time and enhances my listening skills, which are very weak.
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Sunday, June 24th
Aberstwyth, Wales
Sunny clouds ALL DAY!
In the grey, drizzly morning, it's so so hard to think about getting up and packing up. So I don't. I linger and I dawdle and I sleep some more and I ask myself why am I doing this and I feel guilty for laying around reading and guilty for going slow and I ask myself why do I feel guilty and on and on and on until something...I don't know what...pushes me to get moving...probably guilt of some sort. When Fuat was here, he always got up around 7 ish and got up straight away and started the coffee. I lingered then too. But then I knew there'd be a cup of hot coffee just waiting for me whenever I could manage to drag myself out of bed. I lingered less then then I do now. Just one morning, I'd like to awaken to sunshine and see if that made getting up any easier. There's always tomorrow.
I managed to delaying leaving Lampeter until 11 am: coffee, breakfast, chat with folks for directions, and groceries for the day . Today it was cheese and ginger snaps, cucumber and wine gums, and bread. Keeping up with sharing my meals (because I know one young lady that's worried I'll starve since Fuat has left), I had crusty wheat bread and brie with grapes for lunch and quinoa salad (a Fuat dish, you'll remember) for dinner. I had tomatoes, cukes, onion, cheese, red pepper and broccoli to put in it. So I'm still eating well. But I'm powered by "chewies". Back home I'm addicted to Swedish Fish..oh ya! But when I travel I have to settle for other countries chewies. And in Ireland I discovered Wine Gums. Yup, for now, thems my favs!
I got a bit of wifi today in a town I went through. I've learned to ask at hotels. I tried to call some friends and either they didn't answer of skype kept disconnecting. So no chatting.
Today's ride was much more like what I enjoy: rolling terrain. But outside of one town I wanted to take some smaller roads and go a more direct route than swing back to the coast to get the major road that crosses the mountains. About 1-2 miles out of town I took the picture of a sign that said "Mountain Road" and it had me worried, especially after yesterday.
But I proceeded, strong in my commitment to do this. But when the road got so steep again, I rethought "mountain road" and decided it was possible this was WORSE than yesterday. I'm not getting myself into trouble. So I turned around and whipped back into town, looked at my map, and went the main road. It was delightful and scenic. Got to a pub to get some water and chatted with the barmaid. SHowing her the map, we decided that the road I was attempting in that town was not even the right road and had I continued I would have been directly east (not north, the way I wanted to go) and way off course. Whew!
So tonight I'm camped on the side of a cycle path. Very hard to find my usual nooks over here. Took me over an hour to find this. But it's quiet and mostly out of the way...lots of foot traffic and not one person has stopped to ask me anything. Strange.
I just finished listening to Robert Fulghim's "What on Earth Have You Done?" Love his writing and thinking style. So much good wisdom in there! Do check it out. Better yet, listen to it because he reads it and adds lots of emphasis and enrichment. Truly enjoyed!
Now I"m on to "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen. A good reader really adds to a story and they've got 2 for this one because the storyteller is both young and old.
Listening to audiobooks is delightful and makes me feel less lonely out here. Besides it really passes the time and enhances my listening skills, which are very weak.
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Sunday, June 24, 2012
The Day My Legs Got Stronger
Saturday, June 23rd
Lampeter, Wales
Welsh weather...what more can I say?
Its 6 in the evening and I'm sitting in my tent in a town park in the...drum roll please...RAIN! Can you believe it? Rain in Wales? Who'da thunk??? Every evening. I'm growing moss on my north side. I think I may actually be getting used to it, feeling constantly soggy, that is:)
Do most of you know Miller Hill in Canandaigua? Cyclists talk about it all the time. It's the hill to beat all hills because of its grade. After today, Miller Hill would be a piece of cake. I did Miller Hills again and again and again. 14% grades. On and on and on. I wanted to cry when the steep steep downhills came into the next village because I knew what was coming after it. I did cry once. I felt so defeated and depressed. I didn't think I could go up yet again another effin' hill! Ya know how often when you're biking the steepness of the hill coming up looks bad but when you get there it's actually flatter than first it seemed. Not here. Nope. What you saw was what you got. Straight up. These roads were cut in before switchbacks were even a glint in someone's eye. I felt like I was hiking the AT all over again. The part where ya can't quit in the woods. The part where you're dying but ya still go on. Step by step by step. Well I pulled from deep within and slowly, ever so slowly, 1.5 mph slowly, with granny stops every 10 strokes (if I could do that many), rest, and stroke, and rest again. I know I can. I know I can. I know I can. And I did! And I'm not quitting like I thought I would...earlier today. No. However long it takes, I'm crossing the Cambrian Mountains of Wales and biking to Sheffield. Now from there I may take a bus to the ferries do I can get to the continent sooner. That's highly likely. But I'm figuring I can be in Sheffield in a week to 10 days and still do all the sightseeing I love to do. All the chatting with the locals that eats up much of my day:) And besides. I like a challenge. And besides, I did it today, so I know I can do it tomorrow...and the next day. One pedal stroke at a time. I got to Maine. I can sure as heck get to Sheffield. And what doesn't kill me only makes me stronger. (I'm gonna have thighs like an Olympic speed skater when this trip is over:))
Speaking of locals, my day started off by meeting the farmer that owned the land I camped on. I was sitting on a rock having my morning coffee when a truck pulled up to the tiny opening and backed in. He gets out and we begin to chat. He had seen me climbing that hill the night before and thought perhaps that I was handicapped and also thought about stopping to see if I needed help. WHen he saw the bike this morning he then knew who I was...and said "That'll be 50 quid!" I thought oh no...here we go again. (and 50 quid would have been about $75!) He moved here from about 20 km away 50 years ago when he married. Dairy farm he had. But now he rents out the farm and buys back the milk to make cheese. Says it's so much easier to rent than to farm!
Then a short ways on after I started I saw a couple of teenage girls (Kathryn - I spelled it like my name, but I don't know how she spells is...and her twin sister, Maggie) with a horse. I'd had a couple of horses and riders trot by me so I asked if it was them. Then we talked about riding a bit and why the little girl (Sally) had rags tied in her hair to hold the curls. And I have to say she had the most beautiful head of red hair I think I've ever seen!!! "Our sister's getting married today!" Oh, how old is she? "We don't know." That had me perplexed. THen they called there mom, Lynn, over to see my bike and she explained that the sister was in her 40's and from a previous marriage. Oh...now I understand.
(that's a picture of a picture I took with my Canon - I've figured out how to get some of my Canon pics into my blog)
She then showed me their pet foxes: Basil and Fern...acquired as pups when they were injured. I'd have been invited in for tea (and would have accepted for sure) but they had a busy day ahead and had to get going. Had it been another day I might have gotten to ride...it was the Starlight Riding Center, after all. Congratulations to your sister on her wedding day! Next time I'm in the neighborhood I'll stop in for that tea, Lynn:)
As you can tell from how this blog began, today was a tough, tough day. But there were moments that just warmed my heart and fueled my legs. People waving from their windows...of their houses! I was stopped on one of those hills adjusting something and I looked across the street and saw and man and women my age waving. So I waved backed. Then she motioned to see if I wanted a drink. I would have loved to have stopped, but I was going ever so slowly as it was and had talked to so many people today already and I didn't need a drink so I gave her a thumbs up and motioned "thank you" and cycled on. But I can tell you, it sure lifted my spirits seeing the smile on their faces and the generous offer of a drink. So without even saying a word to each other we had a connection and I was moved.
Later today a similar thing happened. Again I was stopped and again I was adjusting. I looked over across the road and a young dad is holding a baby showing him me out the window. I wave. I always wave to kids (especially ones down at my level) and Dad waved back and then in the corner I see the arm of Mom waving too. Thank you, strangers for cheering me up today. I sure needed it:)
I almost forgot to mention eating Chunky Cawl. It was a Welsh stew in a pastry pocket. And quite tasty. You should have seen the look on the young girls' faces when I mentioned I was a vegetarian as I ate it. "It's not vegetarian!" they exclaimed in a panic. I said I knew that but that I like to sample local foods and that meant eating meat. It won't kill me now and then. I'm not strict when I visit people's houses because I don't want them to go out of their way for me AND I want to experience their foods. I just don't cook meat at home.
And now goodnight:)
Battered BagLady
P.S. gonna try tent yoga tonight. My legs and hips need stretching and it's too wet outside. This should be fun:/
P.p.s. And the reason I came to Lampeter, the quilt exhibit comparing Welsh quilts up Amish quilts...the gallery is closed the next 2 days and I won't get to see it:(
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Lampeter, Wales
Welsh weather...what more can I say?
Its 6 in the evening and I'm sitting in my tent in a town park in the...drum roll please...RAIN! Can you believe it? Rain in Wales? Who'da thunk??? Every evening. I'm growing moss on my north side. I think I may actually be getting used to it, feeling constantly soggy, that is:)
Do most of you know Miller Hill in Canandaigua? Cyclists talk about it all the time. It's the hill to beat all hills because of its grade. After today, Miller Hill would be a piece of cake. I did Miller Hills again and again and again. 14% grades. On and on and on. I wanted to cry when the steep steep downhills came into the next village because I knew what was coming after it. I did cry once. I felt so defeated and depressed. I didn't think I could go up yet again another effin' hill! Ya know how often when you're biking the steepness of the hill coming up looks bad but when you get there it's actually flatter than first it seemed. Not here. Nope. What you saw was what you got. Straight up. These roads were cut in before switchbacks were even a glint in someone's eye. I felt like I was hiking the AT all over again. The part where ya can't quit in the woods. The part where you're dying but ya still go on. Step by step by step. Well I pulled from deep within and slowly, ever so slowly, 1.5 mph slowly, with granny stops every 10 strokes (if I could do that many), rest, and stroke, and rest again. I know I can. I know I can. I know I can. And I did! And I'm not quitting like I thought I would...earlier today. No. However long it takes, I'm crossing the Cambrian Mountains of Wales and biking to Sheffield. Now from there I may take a bus to the ferries do I can get to the continent sooner. That's highly likely. But I'm figuring I can be in Sheffield in a week to 10 days and still do all the sightseeing I love to do. All the chatting with the locals that eats up much of my day:) And besides. I like a challenge. And besides, I did it today, so I know I can do it tomorrow...and the next day. One pedal stroke at a time. I got to Maine. I can sure as heck get to Sheffield. And what doesn't kill me only makes me stronger. (I'm gonna have thighs like an Olympic speed skater when this trip is over:))
Speaking of locals, my day started off by meeting the farmer that owned the land I camped on. I was sitting on a rock having my morning coffee when a truck pulled up to the tiny opening and backed in. He gets out and we begin to chat. He had seen me climbing that hill the night before and thought perhaps that I was handicapped and also thought about stopping to see if I needed help. WHen he saw the bike this morning he then knew who I was...and said "That'll be 50 quid!" I thought oh no...here we go again. (and 50 quid would have been about $75!) He moved here from about 20 km away 50 years ago when he married. Dairy farm he had. But now he rents out the farm and buys back the milk to make cheese. Says it's so much easier to rent than to farm!
Then a short ways on after I started I saw a couple of teenage girls (Kathryn - I spelled it like my name, but I don't know how she spells is...and her twin sister, Maggie) with a horse. I'd had a couple of horses and riders trot by me so I asked if it was them. Then we talked about riding a bit and why the little girl (Sally) had rags tied in her hair to hold the curls. And I have to say she had the most beautiful head of red hair I think I've ever seen!!! "Our sister's getting married today!" Oh, how old is she? "We don't know." That had me perplexed. THen they called there mom, Lynn, over to see my bike and she explained that the sister was in her 40's and from a previous marriage. Oh...now I understand.
(that's a picture of a picture I took with my Canon - I've figured out how to get some of my Canon pics into my blog)
She then showed me their pet foxes: Basil and Fern...acquired as pups when they were injured. I'd have been invited in for tea (and would have accepted for sure) but they had a busy day ahead and had to get going. Had it been another day I might have gotten to ride...it was the Starlight Riding Center, after all. Congratulations to your sister on her wedding day! Next time I'm in the neighborhood I'll stop in for that tea, Lynn:)
As you can tell from how this blog began, today was a tough, tough day. But there were moments that just warmed my heart and fueled my legs. People waving from their windows...of their houses! I was stopped on one of those hills adjusting something and I looked across the street and saw and man and women my age waving. So I waved backed. Then she motioned to see if I wanted a drink. I would have loved to have stopped, but I was going ever so slowly as it was and had talked to so many people today already and I didn't need a drink so I gave her a thumbs up and motioned "thank you" and cycled on. But I can tell you, it sure lifted my spirits seeing the smile on their faces and the generous offer of a drink. So without even saying a word to each other we had a connection and I was moved.
Later today a similar thing happened. Again I was stopped and again I was adjusting. I looked over across the road and a young dad is holding a baby showing him me out the window. I wave. I always wave to kids (especially ones down at my level) and Dad waved back and then in the corner I see the arm of Mom waving too. Thank you, strangers for cheering me up today. I sure needed it:)
I almost forgot to mention eating Chunky Cawl. It was a Welsh stew in a pastry pocket. And quite tasty. You should have seen the look on the young girls' faces when I mentioned I was a vegetarian as I ate it. "It's not vegetarian!" they exclaimed in a panic. I said I knew that but that I like to sample local foods and that meant eating meat. It won't kill me now and then. I'm not strict when I visit people's houses because I don't want them to go out of their way for me AND I want to experience their foods. I just don't cook meat at home.
And now goodnight:)
Battered BagLady
P.S. gonna try tent yoga tonight. My legs and hips need stretching and it's too wet outside. This should be fun:/
P.p.s. And the reason I came to Lampeter, the quilt exhibit comparing Welsh quilts up Amish quilts...the gallery is closed the next 2 days and I won't get to see it:(
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Cardigan, the Sweater and the Town
Friday June 22nd
near Newcastle Emlyn
rain morning then clear and mostly sunny!
11:00 am Cardigan coffee shop
Slept 12 hours last night then laid in bed for another hour angsting over the weather (rain...duh!) and how to get up the courage to venture out into it...arrgghhh! Why oh why did I leave my warm dry nest yesterday? But then again, when I put my hiker head on, life is good. I love the challenges...remember?!!! I do this because the cushy life bores me. That's why I couldn't stay yesterday.
Last night the rain started about 5 pm and let up at 11 pm. All night I heard the rain dropping from the trees onto my tent whenever the wind blew. This tent will not dry under all these trees.
So I dragged my sorry ass out of my sleeping bag and had to figure out what clothes the day required. How warm or cold...how wet or dry. How to stay cool but not cold. Cool enough not to cause hot flashes but warm enough not to cause freeze flashes. Have I mentioned my thermostat is BROKEN? Completely broken. Doesn't work on either end of the spectrum. If I'm the least bit warm, the hot guns fire and I'm sweating in no time...right over the top. And if I'm the least bit chilled, I'm frozen to the core. It's so hard to find that middle temperature and it requires a lot of adjusting of gear: coats, hats, gloves, pant legs etc. If there's something that affects my temperature you can bet it's been on and off my body several times during the day.
I got my coffee made and my gear packed up and started pedaling on up the hill. I camped halfway. Up and up. And I too got to point where my rear tire was spinning because the road was so steep and wet. That was the first time I've ever gotten off and pushed Blaze. And it was no easy task. First, the parking brake doesn't hold well so I was holding the hand brakes and trying to stand up on a very steep hill. Once up I had to release all the brakes and not let her runaway backwards. Yikes. Push! I had trouble finding my own footing. Get your back into it. Come on, wimp! We made it!
It was actually a beautiful morning for cylcing...in the light rain, I was grinning with happiness. The Welsh countryside is gorgeous: manicured pastures, tree-lined fencelines, the white caps on the bay in the foggy distance. And I'm right here!!
Some thoughts as I pedaled along:
- why do they have locked gates on cemeteries? Is that to keep the dead locked in or the living locked out?
- the roads have very high hedges growing out of very high banks...I couldn't see a view even if I stood up!
There were more thoughts that I so wanted to remember to write down, but they're gone now. I have great ideas while I'm pedaling...earth-shaking, life-changing...and I tell myself "Remember them!" And then when I have a moment to write them down...nothing...what were they? They're in there somewhere...think! Nope, not coming.
Sitting in a cafe in Cardigan, watching the sun break through out there. Making plans for this afternoon to go visit a castle.
7 pm winding my way to Newcastle Emlyn
Next time someone suggest you might want to go back around because of the hill up ahead, you might want to listen to them. I was not on the road I thought I was, even after talking to the guy, and have winded my way through the back hills not getting much closer to where I wanted to be. Oh well, c'est la vie!
After I left the cafe, with the waitresses suggestion, I went to see the cardigan on display.
She said it was done to honor the 900th birthday of the town. Can you even imagine a town 900 years old? Boggles the American mind! Well this cardigan was a knitted quilt of different buildings and scenes of the town. Most artistic and clever! Many kids helped too. She said a jumper her daughter had outgrown but dearly loved us unraveled and knitted into the cardigan. It was so amazing to see this enormous sweater hanging in an art gallery. THat's the stuff I travel to see.
Then I wandered out of town after chats and hugs with some women working in a 2nd hand shop. I was suppose to be finding the cycle path that went along the river to the next town and a castle I wanted to see. Asked 2 different guys, got 2 different instructions and following first one then the other, still didn't find the path and had to take the main road. Of course, I did see where the path came into the town on the other side!
Ok, this castle, built on the river, was between 2 neighboring "tribes" and had no friends. They had to leave via the river at high tide. It was from the 14th century and built of slate which is plentiful in this area. I sense the harsh conditions and violent lifestyles when I visit them. I can't fathom being a woman during that time - a beast of burden, for sure. THis one didn't have a tour, darn it all. I love the tours because so much information is shared and I know so little about that period.
The little villages I cycle through are right off a postcard. Window boxes with flowers, stone walkways and iron gates, and lots of children out and about.
Tonight I'm camped in a large circular cutout closed off except for the opening where I pulled in. It appears that this may be a pit of some sort where soil or rocks or gravel is dug out of the hill. I can't be seen from the road and I don't think anyone will need any soil tonight, so it seems a good place to be. Plus, I'm sheltered from any wind there may be tonight. After my supper of their version of Pasta Sides with broccoli (and my own added to it) I wandered up the hill further to a big field and for a moment had wished I'd cycled a bit further and camped up there...until I felt the wind, and then was glad I didn't.
I was biking along and saw this little stand of eggs for sale and couldn't resist buy a 1/2 doz.
Right from the farmer on the honor system...love it! So I boiled up 4 of them tonight for lunch tomorrow and a salad tomorrow night. Before my AT hike I researched about storing eggs out of the fridge and found fresh eggs can be stored on the counter for up to a month. So I travel with fresh eggs quite often in my pack or on my bike. And here eggs are not usually in the fridge, they're just sitting on a shelf. See, they know they don't need refrigeration.
Oh, I took this pic of Welsh for y'all to see. I met a guy today that explained some of the letters: dd= th as in the, f=v, but ff=f....and that's all I remember:)
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
near Newcastle Emlyn
rain morning then clear and mostly sunny!
11:00 am Cardigan coffee shop
Slept 12 hours last night then laid in bed for another hour angsting over the weather (rain...duh!) and how to get up the courage to venture out into it...arrgghhh! Why oh why did I leave my warm dry nest yesterday? But then again, when I put my hiker head on, life is good. I love the challenges...remember?!!! I do this because the cushy life bores me. That's why I couldn't stay yesterday.
Last night the rain started about 5 pm and let up at 11 pm. All night I heard the rain dropping from the trees onto my tent whenever the wind blew. This tent will not dry under all these trees.
So I dragged my sorry ass out of my sleeping bag and had to figure out what clothes the day required. How warm or cold...how wet or dry. How to stay cool but not cold. Cool enough not to cause hot flashes but warm enough not to cause freeze flashes. Have I mentioned my thermostat is BROKEN? Completely broken. Doesn't work on either end of the spectrum. If I'm the least bit warm, the hot guns fire and I'm sweating in no time...right over the top. And if I'm the least bit chilled, I'm frozen to the core. It's so hard to find that middle temperature and it requires a lot of adjusting of gear: coats, hats, gloves, pant legs etc. If there's something that affects my temperature you can bet it's been on and off my body several times during the day.
I got my coffee made and my gear packed up and started pedaling on up the hill. I camped halfway. Up and up. And I too got to point where my rear tire was spinning because the road was so steep and wet. That was the first time I've ever gotten off and pushed Blaze. And it was no easy task. First, the parking brake doesn't hold well so I was holding the hand brakes and trying to stand up on a very steep hill. Once up I had to release all the brakes and not let her runaway backwards. Yikes. Push! I had trouble finding my own footing. Get your back into it. Come on, wimp! We made it!
It was actually a beautiful morning for cylcing...in the light rain, I was grinning with happiness. The Welsh countryside is gorgeous: manicured pastures, tree-lined fencelines, the white caps on the bay in the foggy distance. And I'm right here!!
Some thoughts as I pedaled along:
- why do they have locked gates on cemeteries? Is that to keep the dead locked in or the living locked out?
- the roads have very high hedges growing out of very high banks...I couldn't see a view even if I stood up!
There were more thoughts that I so wanted to remember to write down, but they're gone now. I have great ideas while I'm pedaling...earth-shaking, life-changing...and I tell myself "Remember them!" And then when I have a moment to write them down...nothing...what were they? They're in there somewhere...think! Nope, not coming.
Sitting in a cafe in Cardigan, watching the sun break through out there. Making plans for this afternoon to go visit a castle.
7 pm winding my way to Newcastle Emlyn
Next time someone suggest you might want to go back around because of the hill up ahead, you might want to listen to them. I was not on the road I thought I was, even after talking to the guy, and have winded my way through the back hills not getting much closer to where I wanted to be. Oh well, c'est la vie!
After I left the cafe, with the waitresses suggestion, I went to see the cardigan on display.
She said it was done to honor the 900th birthday of the town. Can you even imagine a town 900 years old? Boggles the American mind! Well this cardigan was a knitted quilt of different buildings and scenes of the town. Most artistic and clever! Many kids helped too. She said a jumper her daughter had outgrown but dearly loved us unraveled and knitted into the cardigan. It was so amazing to see this enormous sweater hanging in an art gallery. THat's the stuff I travel to see.
Then I wandered out of town after chats and hugs with some women working in a 2nd hand shop. I was suppose to be finding the cycle path that went along the river to the next town and a castle I wanted to see. Asked 2 different guys, got 2 different instructions and following first one then the other, still didn't find the path and had to take the main road. Of course, I did see where the path came into the town on the other side!
Ok, this castle, built on the river, was between 2 neighboring "tribes" and had no friends. They had to leave via the river at high tide. It was from the 14th century and built of slate which is plentiful in this area. I sense the harsh conditions and violent lifestyles when I visit them. I can't fathom being a woman during that time - a beast of burden, for sure. THis one didn't have a tour, darn it all. I love the tours because so much information is shared and I know so little about that period.
The little villages I cycle through are right off a postcard. Window boxes with flowers, stone walkways and iron gates, and lots of children out and about.
Tonight I'm camped in a large circular cutout closed off except for the opening where I pulled in. It appears that this may be a pit of some sort where soil or rocks or gravel is dug out of the hill. I can't be seen from the road and I don't think anyone will need any soil tonight, so it seems a good place to be. Plus, I'm sheltered from any wind there may be tonight. After my supper of their version of Pasta Sides with broccoli (and my own added to it) I wandered up the hill further to a big field and for a moment had wished I'd cycled a bit further and camped up there...until I felt the wind, and then was glad I didn't.
I was biking along and saw this little stand of eggs for sale and couldn't resist buy a 1/2 doz.
Right from the farmer on the honor system...love it! So I boiled up 4 of them tonight for lunch tomorrow and a salad tomorrow night. Before my AT hike I researched about storing eggs out of the fridge and found fresh eggs can be stored on the counter for up to a month. So I travel with fresh eggs quite often in my pack or on my bike. And here eggs are not usually in the fridge, they're just sitting on a shelf. See, they know they don't need refrigeration.
Oh, I took this pic of Welsh for y'all to see. I met a guy today that explained some of the letters: dd= th as in the, f=v, but ff=f....and that's all I remember:)
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Can't Sit Still
Thursday, June 21st
Fishguard, Wales
9:00 am. Rain all night, dry morning, forecast for heavy rains this afternoon. What would you do? Been trying to decide whether to cycle on or stay put. If I cycle on, I know I'll get wet and have to probably set up in the rain. If I stay out, I stay dry, have bathroom and showers and a little store.... and WIFI! Haven't done much cycling this week but after getting drenched coming into Bantry last week, I'm hesitant to cycle out into the heavy rain again. This trip isn't about where I'm going, it's about where I am. And today, and likely tomorrow I'm on a cliff overlooking Fishguard Bay and the Irish Sea. Nothing wrong with that. I have a new book to start, 13 more books on tape, postcards to write when I find a new pen. Lots to do. And a nap to take! Don't forget that!! And whole it's dry this morning I may take a wander. And do some yoga. I'm on "holiday" and I might as well act like it;). Will I ever find my Type B personality? I know she's in there somewhere. No goals today. No doing, just being.
5:00 pm. How things change! I did some walking along the cliffs and when I got back, I checked the weather report again. It was do nice out it was hard not to be cycling. New report. Lighter showers expected. Asked the guy if I could have my 11 euro back so I could cycle on and he said okay. So I packed up and left about noon. New missing item: the buff I got on Nepal. Hope it's tucked in some corner of my gear. I love that buff. Bluebearee and Apple Pie know how long I hunted for "the right one"! It was a tedious and painful search through the many market stalls in Namache Bazaar. I hope she turns up tonight. (found her in my daypack pocket...that little devil!:))
Back up that hill. You remember "that hill". Why they're never as bad as they appear they will be going down, I've yet to figure out. Was true on the AT. In the evening it always seed like a long steep descent to the shelter and in the back of my mind I was dreading going back up in the morning...but alas, it was quick and easy!
Quaint cottages here!
I'm feeling a lot like a hiker tonight. A happy hiker. Ya know, the one for whom the skies break just long enough for ya to get a tent up and your gear and you inside BEFORE the down pour renews. The happy hiker eating cold tuna from the packet with stale bread and loving it. The happy hiker who has not 1 but 2 chocolate pudding cakes for dessert. Yup! Warm, dry, fed! Oh, does it get any simpler than that?
I am camped 15 ft from the side of the road in a bend of a steep hill out of Moylegrove, up the coast from Fishguard. This little nook has a gate leading to the Coastal Path, a National Park in Wales. Yes, good hiking here. And today I met one and saw two "walkers". Some camp, others go from B&B to B&B. That's what this guy was doing while photographing the coastline.
I didn't get 50 ft down the road when a cycle tourist headed the other way stops by. Lee Johnstone is cycling around the world too. Right now though he's doing the coastline of Great Britain to train and to pass the time until he can go to the Olympics in August. We may try and meet up later depending on where we are. He wanted to cycle with me...or me with him down to southern Wales, but I told him I'm too slow to cycle with anyone and I'm just getting my solo sealed under me.
So the rains did come but all is well. What was I afraid of this morning? No more waiting for rain. When it's dry, start pedaling. BTW, new coat was fabulously warm and dry. Happy, happy, happy.
Tonight I'm starting a new book, Lovely Bones, and going to sleep early. Not much else to do, but that's okay with me. I'm never bored when I'm around:)
Oh, and for all the quilters I know, tomorrow I'm off to Lampeter where there is a quilting museum I plan to peruse. Will share.
Another note. This hill where I'm sleeping is so steep and tight several cars have gotten stuck spinning their tires and had to back down. I can see headlights flashing into my tent might be an issue. Oh ya and one car gave me a friendly "toot toot" as he passed my tent. Warm, friendly folks here (too)!!!
Nearly soggy BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Fishguard, Wales
9:00 am. Rain all night, dry morning, forecast for heavy rains this afternoon. What would you do? Been trying to decide whether to cycle on or stay put. If I cycle on, I know I'll get wet and have to probably set up in the rain. If I stay out, I stay dry, have bathroom and showers and a little store.... and WIFI! Haven't done much cycling this week but after getting drenched coming into Bantry last week, I'm hesitant to cycle out into the heavy rain again. This trip isn't about where I'm going, it's about where I am. And today, and likely tomorrow I'm on a cliff overlooking Fishguard Bay and the Irish Sea. Nothing wrong with that. I have a new book to start, 13 more books on tape, postcards to write when I find a new pen. Lots to do. And a nap to take! Don't forget that!! And whole it's dry this morning I may take a wander. And do some yoga. I'm on "holiday" and I might as well act like it;). Will I ever find my Type B personality? I know she's in there somewhere. No goals today. No doing, just being.
5:00 pm. How things change! I did some walking along the cliffs and when I got back, I checked the weather report again. It was do nice out it was hard not to be cycling. New report. Lighter showers expected. Asked the guy if I could have my 11 euro back so I could cycle on and he said okay. So I packed up and left about noon. New missing item: the buff I got on Nepal. Hope it's tucked in some corner of my gear. I love that buff. Bluebearee and Apple Pie know how long I hunted for "the right one"! It was a tedious and painful search through the many market stalls in Namache Bazaar. I hope she turns up tonight. (found her in my daypack pocket...that little devil!:))
Back up that hill. You remember "that hill". Why they're never as bad as they appear they will be going down, I've yet to figure out. Was true on the AT. In the evening it always seed like a long steep descent to the shelter and in the back of my mind I was dreading going back up in the morning...but alas, it was quick and easy!
Quaint cottages here!
I'm feeling a lot like a hiker tonight. A happy hiker. Ya know, the one for whom the skies break just long enough for ya to get a tent up and your gear and you inside BEFORE the down pour renews. The happy hiker eating cold tuna from the packet with stale bread and loving it. The happy hiker who has not 1 but 2 chocolate pudding cakes for dessert. Yup! Warm, dry, fed! Oh, does it get any simpler than that?
I am camped 15 ft from the side of the road in a bend of a steep hill out of Moylegrove, up the coast from Fishguard. This little nook has a gate leading to the Coastal Path, a National Park in Wales. Yes, good hiking here. And today I met one and saw two "walkers". Some camp, others go from B&B to B&B. That's what this guy was doing while photographing the coastline.
I didn't get 50 ft down the road when a cycle tourist headed the other way stops by. Lee Johnstone is cycling around the world too. Right now though he's doing the coastline of Great Britain to train and to pass the time until he can go to the Olympics in August. We may try and meet up later depending on where we are. He wanted to cycle with me...or me with him down to southern Wales, but I told him I'm too slow to cycle with anyone and I'm just getting my solo sealed under me.
So the rains did come but all is well. What was I afraid of this morning? No more waiting for rain. When it's dry, start pedaling. BTW, new coat was fabulously warm and dry. Happy, happy, happy.
Tonight I'm starting a new book, Lovely Bones, and going to sleep early. Not much else to do, but that's okay with me. I'm never bored when I'm around:)
Oh, and for all the quilters I know, tomorrow I'm off to Lampeter where there is a quilting museum I plan to peruse. Will share.
Another note. This hill where I'm sleeping is so steep and tight several cars have gotten stuck spinning their tires and had to back down. I can see headlights flashing into my tent might be an issue. Oh ya and one car gave me a friendly "toot toot" as he passed my tent. Warm, friendly folks here (too)!!!
Nearly soggy BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Heike, Philippe, Lena, and Felix
Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday June 16th thru 19th
Cork, Ireland
all the weather, all the seasons...and lots of rain! Until today which was dry and sunny and lifted the spirits.
We're heading to Cork today, about 65 km away and we promised Heike and family we'd be in tonight. It was an Irish day of cycling: lots of steep hills and constant temperature shifts as the we climbed and descended...Buff up, hood up, jacket zipped...then everything reversed. Lost my gloves I fear back at the library in Bantry I presume. I have rain mitts (silicone hand covers) that keep the chill at bay while I'm cycling...and the do a pretty good job of it. Just putting them on warms me up. Little touches make a big difference in managing my thermostat:)
One thing I've noticed is that the old manor houses seem to dot the countryside in either peach or pink or yellow. Bright spots on a grey horizon. The other thing is the smell of Ireland that dominates: the smell of manure. This is farming country after all.
We were biking past a DIY home store and I wanted to stop and see what they're selling for appliances, etc. Everything seems to be smaller here. Front load washers were selling for 300 euros...that would be about $400, half the price of back home. They had small fridges and stoves. Just what I would need to outfit a cottage home when that day arrives that I really settle down. I'm being drawn to owning horses again as I pet them by the side of the road. They were such a part of my childhood and I miss the contact. Would love to test my hand at raising a foal someday perhaps.
We hit the "burbs" of Cork at about 3 pm and had to wind our way through the city. Our maps are pretty useless but strangers offer the best option of getting suggestions of routes. We're never able to follow the directions all the way, often missing a turn ...take a left at the "take out office"...and having to ask again. Makes for wonderful conversation!
What a multi-lingual house we've landed in! Heike speaks German and English. Philippe speaks French and English. And the children understand all the languages because Mom speaks to them mostly in German and Dad speaks to them in French...and they respond in English! I don't know how those little brains do it, but they do.
The kids are great...good parenting pays off. They loved Blaze and spent quite a bit of time riding her around and around the cul de sac where they live. The other hit was my iPhone and some of the games on it. Felix spent 30 minutes one evening working on Trace where he had to draw lines for the little guy to travel on and not bump into the obstacles. What tenacity! Lena would spend quite a bit of her time outdoors running around the neighborhood with her friends and come in with the rosiest cheeks and biggest grin. It was nice to see children outside playing and not sitting with their faces glued to a sceen (other than my iPhone...oops...bad influence I am!)
I'm pretty exhausted tonight after traveling by bus for most the day and having to take drugs so I didn't get sick.
I'm hoping I can stay awake enough to catch ya'll who's not on Facebook with the news.
I'm traveling alone now. Fuat decided to fly to Oregon and bike across the US. He wasn't having any fun and didn't know if bike touring was for him. I think I had something to do with his unhappiness although he shared nothing with me in that vain. He has a way of dropping bombs on me. This time I was better prepared to handle it. I, also, found touring together difficult. I'm not having as much fun as I usually do and I'm not sure why. But I decided to try going on alone and see if I can figure this all out. I've always wanted to do this so let's just see if in reality it's as much fun as it sounded. The difference in cultures (although not dramatic) has an effect. I often have a hard time understanding people and get tired of having to ask them to repeat themselves so I smile and nod at whatever was said.
Back to the rest of the weekend. Sunday we all went out to lunch at the market by the harbor and tried to bike into the center of town, but the rains beat us down. Philippe took us in by car later so we could get some supplies. That's when I started the hunt for a real rain coat. I've got to figure out how to be warmer or I'll be hopping a plane home too:) And I did find one that I think will work well AND is cute. Critical, of course!
I"m just too tired to continue or the drugs are still in me, but I can't type another letter.
Goodnight, BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Cork, Ireland
all the weather, all the seasons...and lots of rain! Until today which was dry and sunny and lifted the spirits.
We're heading to Cork today, about 65 km away and we promised Heike and family we'd be in tonight. It was an Irish day of cycling: lots of steep hills and constant temperature shifts as the we climbed and descended...Buff up, hood up, jacket zipped...then everything reversed. Lost my gloves I fear back at the library in Bantry I presume. I have rain mitts (silicone hand covers) that keep the chill at bay while I'm cycling...and the do a pretty good job of it. Just putting them on warms me up. Little touches make a big difference in managing my thermostat:)
One thing I've noticed is that the old manor houses seem to dot the countryside in either peach or pink or yellow. Bright spots on a grey horizon. The other thing is the smell of Ireland that dominates: the smell of manure. This is farming country after all.
We were biking past a DIY home store and I wanted to stop and see what they're selling for appliances, etc. Everything seems to be smaller here. Front load washers were selling for 300 euros...that would be about $400, half the price of back home. They had small fridges and stoves. Just what I would need to outfit a cottage home when that day arrives that I really settle down. I'm being drawn to owning horses again as I pet them by the side of the road. They were such a part of my childhood and I miss the contact. Would love to test my hand at raising a foal someday perhaps.
We hit the "burbs" of Cork at about 3 pm and had to wind our way through the city. Our maps are pretty useless but strangers offer the best option of getting suggestions of routes. We're never able to follow the directions all the way, often missing a turn ...take a left at the "take out office"...and having to ask again. Makes for wonderful conversation!
What a multi-lingual house we've landed in! Heike speaks German and English. Philippe speaks French and English. And the children understand all the languages because Mom speaks to them mostly in German and Dad speaks to them in French...and they respond in English! I don't know how those little brains do it, but they do.
The kids are great...good parenting pays off. They loved Blaze and spent quite a bit of time riding her around and around the cul de sac where they live. The other hit was my iPhone and some of the games on it. Felix spent 30 minutes one evening working on Trace where he had to draw lines for the little guy to travel on and not bump into the obstacles. What tenacity! Lena would spend quite a bit of her time outdoors running around the neighborhood with her friends and come in with the rosiest cheeks and biggest grin. It was nice to see children outside playing and not sitting with their faces glued to a sceen (other than my iPhone...oops...bad influence I am!)
I'm pretty exhausted tonight after traveling by bus for most the day and having to take drugs so I didn't get sick.
I'm hoping I can stay awake enough to catch ya'll who's not on Facebook with the news.
I'm traveling alone now. Fuat decided to fly to Oregon and bike across the US. He wasn't having any fun and didn't know if bike touring was for him. I think I had something to do with his unhappiness although he shared nothing with me in that vain. He has a way of dropping bombs on me. This time I was better prepared to handle it. I, also, found touring together difficult. I'm not having as much fun as I usually do and I'm not sure why. But I decided to try going on alone and see if I can figure this all out. I've always wanted to do this so let's just see if in reality it's as much fun as it sounded. The difference in cultures (although not dramatic) has an effect. I often have a hard time understanding people and get tired of having to ask them to repeat themselves so I smile and nod at whatever was said.
Back to the rest of the weekend. Sunday we all went out to lunch at the market by the harbor and tried to bike into the center of town, but the rains beat us down. Philippe took us in by car later so we could get some supplies. That's when I started the hunt for a real rain coat. I've got to figure out how to be warmer or I'll be hopping a plane home too:) And I did find one that I think will work well AND is cute. Critical, of course!
I"m just too tired to continue or the drugs are still in me, but I can't type another letter.
Goodnight, BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Hanging Around Bantry
Friday, June 15th
Dunmanway, Ireland (65 km west of Cork...we may get there yet:)!)
18 miles and didn't get started (the 2nd time) til 4:30 because we were waiting for the rain to stop!!!!
And that about sums up today.
Packing up and leaving the hostel early 'cause we couldn't get any coffee nearby...then off to breakfast at a little bakery and cafe. An Irish vegetarian breakfast of baked beans, sauteed mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, and two very fried eggs with toast. It was tasty...I was surprised. Then I wandered into some stores to learn about rain gear and a new metric for waterproofness. 8000mmH2O was one coat. I think mine's around 2000, if that. If I can find a Goretex that I like (that's important...not just dryness, but likeability, too) I'll get it. I need to stay drier and this is a rainy summer for all of Europe I'm a-hearin'.
Another problem is my Keen bike sandals are falling apart. The stitching is breaking away on the heel strap.
This morning I attempted a fix using dental floss and a needle, but it didn't hold up walking around Bantry today. So on my long list of things that need to get addressed in Cork is taking them to a shoe repair shop and sewn professionally. Fuat's gonna have his sandals glued there too.
So then, in Bantry to pass the time, we went to the library. Felt like a hiker for sure then, but didn't use the internet because they wanted to charge me. Not paying for it. Against my religion! The woman there told me that the organic cafe had free wifi. Two birds with one stone: free wifi and good food!
So after a couple of hours in the library catching up on the Irish news, we headed off to eat again. Can't do that too much, but I'm trying to keep the portions small during the day. Very hard to pedal in the position with a full stomach. Just doesn't work and feels awful. Then we got brave and ventured out of town because it seemed to be clearing up. Nope. Wrong. One mile down the road, the skies opened up and we headed back. Not doing it. Not biking out in the rain. Let's wait til 6 when the library closes and see what it's doing then. Worse case, we'll just bike out of town and set up camp. I checked the weather map on my free wifi and saw the weather pattern. A second bout of rain was coming after the clearing mid afternoon. Let's make our break around 4 and see if we can get some miles behind us before the next cloud burst. So off we headed. Oh, why is always so hard to get started? My legs are working too hard. But we managed to bike nearly 3 hours and got to the next town.
We're camped in the field of a trotter track. They were nice and left the bathroom unlocked for us., too.
Ooops! My tent is leaking. Rain is dripping on me!! I think this thing is on it's last legs. We usually use Fuat's new REI Quarter Dome. But it's wet from when we packed it up yesterday. I really like it, but it would be too heavy for backpacking. I hope I don't have to buy a new tent on this trip. i had to resurface the tent floor before we left. Guess I should have resiliconed the whole thing! Silnylon must have a limited shelf-life. Anyone know what it is?
So here we sit, listening to it rain...AGAIN. At least we're mostly dry and warm. We'll make it through another night and then we'll be spending a few days with new friends in Cork. Can't wait to meet Heike:)!
I'm testing the 2 theories tonight. 1) wool is warm when wet and 2) clothes dry in the sleeping bag. I wore my long johns when we rode down off the mountain yesterday and they got drenched. They didn't dry out over night and I kept them separate from my dry clothes in the pannier. So tonight I have soggy long johns on for sleep wear...hence the tests. So far, so good. I'm warm and I think they're almost dry.
I must say we're getting much better at reading our 2 maps. But it does take a team effort for us to get anywhere. It will be a real test of our map skills getting into Cork and to Heike's house tomorrow. I have the address but my map app wants to always put us on the main roads. There's a walking option but I can't always get it to route it right. I know there's much I don't understand about this map app and learning on the road without being able to google it is challenging. And of course, there are no instructions that I can find build into the app. Anyone else ever used Sygic Maps Apps?
Enough for tonight. I'm ready for sleep.
Oh, dinner, you ask? A salad of cukes, tomatoes, snow peas, and cheddar cheese tossed with oil and vinegar. And humus bought at the farmers market with brown bread. Then spelt brownies and chocolate cake for dessert. Fuat spends his time biking thinking about what we'll have for dinner and I'm glad he does! I'm the one who always makes sure we have something for dessert:)
And an update on the itching 'cause I know ya'll worry about me...talked to a pharmacist today and he said some of my itching was due to midgie bites (that's the no-see-ums I was talking about.) He said they can last up to a week. I got an antihistamine ointment and it's calming everything down. Much better than a pill. Do we have that? Better idea.
Ok, now...goodnight and hugs and love to everyone!
Bug-Bitten BagLady
p.s. got several albums of Roy Orbison on my iPod...he's got the best voice!!!!
p.p.s have been listening to the book Wild on my iPod. Read it! That girl can write AND she has a good story to tell. It's as much about her life before the trail as it is about hiking. She deserves the recognition she's getting!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Dunmanway, Ireland (65 km west of Cork...we may get there yet:)!)
18 miles and didn't get started (the 2nd time) til 4:30 because we were waiting for the rain to stop!!!!
And that about sums up today.
Packing up and leaving the hostel early 'cause we couldn't get any coffee nearby...then off to breakfast at a little bakery and cafe. An Irish vegetarian breakfast of baked beans, sauteed mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, and two very fried eggs with toast. It was tasty...I was surprised. Then I wandered into some stores to learn about rain gear and a new metric for waterproofness. 8000mmH2O was one coat. I think mine's around 2000, if that. If I can find a Goretex that I like (that's important...not just dryness, but likeability, too) I'll get it. I need to stay drier and this is a rainy summer for all of Europe I'm a-hearin'.
Another problem is my Keen bike sandals are falling apart. The stitching is breaking away on the heel strap.
This morning I attempted a fix using dental floss and a needle, but it didn't hold up walking around Bantry today. So on my long list of things that need to get addressed in Cork is taking them to a shoe repair shop and sewn professionally. Fuat's gonna have his sandals glued there too.
So then, in Bantry to pass the time, we went to the library. Felt like a hiker for sure then, but didn't use the internet because they wanted to charge me. Not paying for it. Against my religion! The woman there told me that the organic cafe had free wifi. Two birds with one stone: free wifi and good food!
So after a couple of hours in the library catching up on the Irish news, we headed off to eat again. Can't do that too much, but I'm trying to keep the portions small during the day. Very hard to pedal in the position with a full stomach. Just doesn't work and feels awful. Then we got brave and ventured out of town because it seemed to be clearing up. Nope. Wrong. One mile down the road, the skies opened up and we headed back. Not doing it. Not biking out in the rain. Let's wait til 6 when the library closes and see what it's doing then. Worse case, we'll just bike out of town and set up camp. I checked the weather map on my free wifi and saw the weather pattern. A second bout of rain was coming after the clearing mid afternoon. Let's make our break around 4 and see if we can get some miles behind us before the next cloud burst. So off we headed. Oh, why is always so hard to get started? My legs are working too hard. But we managed to bike nearly 3 hours and got to the next town.
We're camped in the field of a trotter track. They were nice and left the bathroom unlocked for us., too.
Ooops! My tent is leaking. Rain is dripping on me!! I think this thing is on it's last legs. We usually use Fuat's new REI Quarter Dome. But it's wet from when we packed it up yesterday. I really like it, but it would be too heavy for backpacking. I hope I don't have to buy a new tent on this trip. i had to resurface the tent floor before we left. Guess I should have resiliconed the whole thing! Silnylon must have a limited shelf-life. Anyone know what it is?
So here we sit, listening to it rain...AGAIN. At least we're mostly dry and warm. We'll make it through another night and then we'll be spending a few days with new friends in Cork. Can't wait to meet Heike:)!
I'm testing the 2 theories tonight. 1) wool is warm when wet and 2) clothes dry in the sleeping bag. I wore my long johns when we rode down off the mountain yesterday and they got drenched. They didn't dry out over night and I kept them separate from my dry clothes in the pannier. So tonight I have soggy long johns on for sleep wear...hence the tests. So far, so good. I'm warm and I think they're almost dry.
I must say we're getting much better at reading our 2 maps. But it does take a team effort for us to get anywhere. It will be a real test of our map skills getting into Cork and to Heike's house tomorrow. I have the address but my map app wants to always put us on the main roads. There's a walking option but I can't always get it to route it right. I know there's much I don't understand about this map app and learning on the road without being able to google it is challenging. And of course, there are no instructions that I can find build into the app. Anyone else ever used Sygic Maps Apps?
Enough for tonight. I'm ready for sleep.
Oh, dinner, you ask? A salad of cukes, tomatoes, snow peas, and cheddar cheese tossed with oil and vinegar. And humus bought at the farmers market with brown bread. Then spelt brownies and chocolate cake for dessert. Fuat spends his time biking thinking about what we'll have for dinner and I'm glad he does! I'm the one who always makes sure we have something for dessert:)
And an update on the itching 'cause I know ya'll worry about me...talked to a pharmacist today and he said some of my itching was due to midgie bites (that's the no-see-ums I was talking about.) He said they can last up to a week. I got an antihistamine ointment and it's calming everything down. Much better than a pill. Do we have that? Better idea.
Ok, now...goodnight and hugs and love to everyone!
Bug-Bitten BagLady
p.s. got several albums of Roy Orbison on my iPod...he's got the best voice!!!!
p.p.s have been listening to the book Wild on my iPod. Read it! That girl can write AND she has a good story to tell. It's as much about her life before the trail as it is about hiking. She deserves the recognition she's getting!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Friday, June 15, 2012
Never Hike out in the Rain...or Bike, for That Matter
Thursday June 14th
Bantry, Ireland
15 miles, I estimate (cause when I zero out my bike computer, it also turns if off...sometimes...it's a special feature:/)
Gusty winds and heavy rains
Last night was a delightful evening up high in the mountain meadows, sleeping with the sheep. But we seem to have to pay for our good fortune. We awoke this morning to gusty winds. Fuat was up at 6 - and ungodly hour - and about 6:30 awoke me saying that it was going to rain and maybe we should pack up. Ugh! I don't wake up well. When he offered "or stay put", I put my head back down. I was exhausted still. So I slept on nestled under my warmer bag in my long johns while I heard the rain hitting the tent and felt the winds blowing in its sides. Fuat managed to get his morning coffee, eat his soaked "horse chow", and finish his book...while I slept and slept. I was content to stay there all day and wait out this storm. We knew it was coming. He was bored and wanted to go. So I agreed. Now I hadn't had my morning coffee or any breakfast and it was too stormy to prepare at this point. Just pack and go. It was raining, so I packed my panniers inside the tent then left them there to weigh the tent down while we disassembled it. Packing has it's own rhythm and everything it's particular place and we manage to finish at about the same time. Off we went, still going up the mountain. I looked ahead and there's Fuat walking his bike! What! Why? He never walks...never. I get up to him. He said the wind was blowing so strong he couldn't pedal against it. He walked the last 1/4 mile to the top. And then had to walk still. The wind was stronger on the other side. Blaze was her steady self:) When he was finally able to ride, he kept one foot out because he was leaning so strongly into the wind he feared a gust would blow him over.
We passed through the most pastoral countryside looking down over very old estates, just like in the movies. I felt like we'd stepped back in time and in fact, we had. Seeing these scenes in person is nothing short of breathtaking. There are just so many old stone houses around. We hiked up to one near our campsite last night. It was a 12x20 foot stone hut with a second story in the eaves and a fireplace on each end. Then there was a circular stone paddock attached with walls 4 ft high where perhaps their animals were kept. We joked about the difficult living conditions up there in the mountains and tried to estimate when it might have been built. With the stones it's hard to say, but the log beams supporting the second floor were still in place. It might have been 200 years old or older. There's an energy of the families that lived in these old places that's palpable to me. I feel honored to cross their paths in this way and I honor their lives and the difficult conditions under which they lived....and died. I've felt them in the castles and the manor houses, but more in these rural stone cottages.
I got a few pictures, but nothing on my iPhone...can't take it out in the rain. Moisture voids the warranty...remember?
It was a slow descent. I decided to stay behind him instead of my usual screaming down. The rain was painfully pelting our faces. I didn't need to add speed too. And down, and down, and down we went. I was getting wetter and colder. My Renaud's Symdrome kicking in and my feet numbing painfully so. I just wanted to get down, get to a pub, get warm and dry. This was a crazy idea. We could have stayed in the tent where we were warm and dry and waited out the storm. We had everything we needed. Bet you're not bored now, Fuat, I told him. Can you tell I wasn't happy. No. You don't hike out in the rain...RULE # 1 on the AT. Had to learn it the hard way. You shouldn't do it cycling either. Even if you are in Ireland and the weather can change any minute. Wait for the weather to change first. Pedaling and pedaling, shivering, and with numb stinging toes. Where is Keakill? We should have been there by now. FInally signs of civilization and signage. I catch up to Fuat and he says Bantry is 6 km away. WHAT? We shouldn't be that near Bantry! We find a map posted. Where are we??? OMG!!! We missed our turn and headed west! Not good news. I'm not happy. In fact, I'm miserable...and I'm mad...and I don't want to take it out on Fuat. I could have said No, we're not leaving this warm dry tent. I agreed. I have to own up. And I didn't take the time to check my Iphone Map App to see where we needed to go, what turns to take to get to the right spot. So I guess there must be a reason we need to go to Bantry. All I knew was that we were getting a room in a hostel for the night because I needed to get warm and dry and out of this nasty weather. I thought that if I could just get into a pub and get some hot liquid into me, I'd feel better. But when we stopped at one I realized that if I warmed up, I still had to go back out into the cold and wet and pedal on to a hostel. Let's just keep going. I don't want to stop until we find a place to stay and I can dry out. We were biking on a main road and of course with no shoulder and in heavy rains. I felt a bit scared that someone would come whipping around a curve and hit me without even seeing me. I'm not usually afraid, but these were the worst conditions to be out there. I must say that I have yet heard any driver honk at us with anger for being out there, though they have excelerated around us, probably due to timing.
Turns out my raingear is still useless. My whole body was wet, my fleece underneath was wet, my longjohns were soaked. And Fuat said only the edges were wet. His rain pants look just like mine. What gives? I've never found a good rain jacket. Even my $200 eVent fabric coat I bought in Damascus while hiking the AT got wet on the inside. Breatheable means the water soaks through.
We managed to find the hostel and for 15 euros per person per night we have a nice room overlooking the harbor. Felt bad hauling all of our wet gear upstairs but what could we do. She said she didn't mind but then she brought up newspapers to soak up the water from the carpet. Sorry:( A warm shower, tuna sandwich, and crawled into bed to get warm...3 hours later I awoke. Still cold when out of bed. I asked Fuat to go see if he could find a laundromat we could use to dry our gear since the lady here said she didn't have one. We have everything hung all over the shared bathroom and our room. I could not find anywhere to hang a line. (Brought back memories of the many times in Nepal that Bluebearee, Apple Pie, and I hung lines across the rooms to dry our gear:))
No, laundromat...just a launderette - where you drop off and pick up your clothes...and they do shoe repair. My well worn Keen bike sandals are falling apart. Why didn't I think to check and see if I should have gotten new ones before leaving. It took me years to find those (no other bike shoes did I like) and I probably can't replace them over here. I'll have to see if I can stitch them with my needle and dental floss.
After a nice dinner of soup and Banaffee Pie for me and cod for Fuat and some free wifi and some weather reports and a stroll around town...and short one because it's raining of course, we're back hanging out in our room. Ah, such memories of long distance hiking, many similarities.
We'll just have to see what tomorrow brings, whether we bike on or wait a day. If there's any chance of clearing, we'll bike I'm sure. Probably 2 days (90 km) to Cork. Poor Heike D. (who's a friend of Heike B. - the German woman I met last summer on the Olympic Peninsula and biked with and then went to Hawaii with last winter)...well I've been trying to give Heike D and estimation of our arrival day and it keeps changing. Making this wrong turn today added a day to our schedule...if we had a schedule:)
But this is an adventure and it unfolds to us...we just have to open our arms and receive it, in all it's glory.
BagLady
p.s. the itching continues - last night when I tucked my legs into warm socks and a warm bag, it set off the hives on my ankles and feet. I swear this is systemic...just like poison ivy...and it itches as much!
...and I had to take Ibuprofen today to kill my caffeine headache...I've got to find some decaf and get off this caffeine again. and off the ibuprofen which may be the culprit causing this outbreak...or I'm allergic to Ireland!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Bantry, Ireland
15 miles, I estimate (cause when I zero out my bike computer, it also turns if off...sometimes...it's a special feature:/)
Gusty winds and heavy rains
Last night was a delightful evening up high in the mountain meadows, sleeping with the sheep. But we seem to have to pay for our good fortune. We awoke this morning to gusty winds. Fuat was up at 6 - and ungodly hour - and about 6:30 awoke me saying that it was going to rain and maybe we should pack up. Ugh! I don't wake up well. When he offered "or stay put", I put my head back down. I was exhausted still. So I slept on nestled under my warmer bag in my long johns while I heard the rain hitting the tent and felt the winds blowing in its sides. Fuat managed to get his morning coffee, eat his soaked "horse chow", and finish his book...while I slept and slept. I was content to stay there all day and wait out this storm. We knew it was coming. He was bored and wanted to go. So I agreed. Now I hadn't had my morning coffee or any breakfast and it was too stormy to prepare at this point. Just pack and go. It was raining, so I packed my panniers inside the tent then left them there to weigh the tent down while we disassembled it. Packing has it's own rhythm and everything it's particular place and we manage to finish at about the same time. Off we went, still going up the mountain. I looked ahead and there's Fuat walking his bike! What! Why? He never walks...never. I get up to him. He said the wind was blowing so strong he couldn't pedal against it. He walked the last 1/4 mile to the top. And then had to walk still. The wind was stronger on the other side. Blaze was her steady self:) When he was finally able to ride, he kept one foot out because he was leaning so strongly into the wind he feared a gust would blow him over.
We passed through the most pastoral countryside looking down over very old estates, just like in the movies. I felt like we'd stepped back in time and in fact, we had. Seeing these scenes in person is nothing short of breathtaking. There are just so many old stone houses around. We hiked up to one near our campsite last night. It was a 12x20 foot stone hut with a second story in the eaves and a fireplace on each end. Then there was a circular stone paddock attached with walls 4 ft high where perhaps their animals were kept. We joked about the difficult living conditions up there in the mountains and tried to estimate when it might have been built. With the stones it's hard to say, but the log beams supporting the second floor were still in place. It might have been 200 years old or older. There's an energy of the families that lived in these old places that's palpable to me. I feel honored to cross their paths in this way and I honor their lives and the difficult conditions under which they lived....and died. I've felt them in the castles and the manor houses, but more in these rural stone cottages.
I got a few pictures, but nothing on my iPhone...can't take it out in the rain. Moisture voids the warranty...remember?
It was a slow descent. I decided to stay behind him instead of my usual screaming down. The rain was painfully pelting our faces. I didn't need to add speed too. And down, and down, and down we went. I was getting wetter and colder. My Renaud's Symdrome kicking in and my feet numbing painfully so. I just wanted to get down, get to a pub, get warm and dry. This was a crazy idea. We could have stayed in the tent where we were warm and dry and waited out the storm. We had everything we needed. Bet you're not bored now, Fuat, I told him. Can you tell I wasn't happy. No. You don't hike out in the rain...RULE # 1 on the AT. Had to learn it the hard way. You shouldn't do it cycling either. Even if you are in Ireland and the weather can change any minute. Wait for the weather to change first. Pedaling and pedaling, shivering, and with numb stinging toes. Where is Keakill? We should have been there by now. FInally signs of civilization and signage. I catch up to Fuat and he says Bantry is 6 km away. WHAT? We shouldn't be that near Bantry! We find a map posted. Where are we??? OMG!!! We missed our turn and headed west! Not good news. I'm not happy. In fact, I'm miserable...and I'm mad...and I don't want to take it out on Fuat. I could have said No, we're not leaving this warm dry tent. I agreed. I have to own up. And I didn't take the time to check my Iphone Map App to see where we needed to go, what turns to take to get to the right spot. So I guess there must be a reason we need to go to Bantry. All I knew was that we were getting a room in a hostel for the night because I needed to get warm and dry and out of this nasty weather. I thought that if I could just get into a pub and get some hot liquid into me, I'd feel better. But when we stopped at one I realized that if I warmed up, I still had to go back out into the cold and wet and pedal on to a hostel. Let's just keep going. I don't want to stop until we find a place to stay and I can dry out. We were biking on a main road and of course with no shoulder and in heavy rains. I felt a bit scared that someone would come whipping around a curve and hit me without even seeing me. I'm not usually afraid, but these were the worst conditions to be out there. I must say that I have yet heard any driver honk at us with anger for being out there, though they have excelerated around us, probably due to timing.
Turns out my raingear is still useless. My whole body was wet, my fleece underneath was wet, my longjohns were soaked. And Fuat said only the edges were wet. His rain pants look just like mine. What gives? I've never found a good rain jacket. Even my $200 eVent fabric coat I bought in Damascus while hiking the AT got wet on the inside. Breatheable means the water soaks through.
We managed to find the hostel and for 15 euros per person per night we have a nice room overlooking the harbor. Felt bad hauling all of our wet gear upstairs but what could we do. She said she didn't mind but then she brought up newspapers to soak up the water from the carpet. Sorry:( A warm shower, tuna sandwich, and crawled into bed to get warm...3 hours later I awoke. Still cold when out of bed. I asked Fuat to go see if he could find a laundromat we could use to dry our gear since the lady here said she didn't have one. We have everything hung all over the shared bathroom and our room. I could not find anywhere to hang a line. (Brought back memories of the many times in Nepal that Bluebearee, Apple Pie, and I hung lines across the rooms to dry our gear:))
No, laundromat...just a launderette - where you drop off and pick up your clothes...and they do shoe repair. My well worn Keen bike sandals are falling apart. Why didn't I think to check and see if I should have gotten new ones before leaving. It took me years to find those (no other bike shoes did I like) and I probably can't replace them over here. I'll have to see if I can stitch them with my needle and dental floss.
After a nice dinner of soup and Banaffee Pie for me and cod for Fuat and some free wifi and some weather reports and a stroll around town...and short one because it's raining of course, we're back hanging out in our room. Ah, such memories of long distance hiking, many similarities.
We'll just have to see what tomorrow brings, whether we bike on or wait a day. If there's any chance of clearing, we'll bike I'm sure. Probably 2 days (90 km) to Cork. Poor Heike D. (who's a friend of Heike B. - the German woman I met last summer on the Olympic Peninsula and biked with and then went to Hawaii with last winter)...well I've been trying to give Heike D and estimation of our arrival day and it keeps changing. Making this wrong turn today added a day to our schedule...if we had a schedule:)
But this is an adventure and it unfolds to us...we just have to open our arms and receive it, in all it's glory.
BagLady
p.s. the itching continues - last night when I tucked my legs into warm socks and a warm bag, it set off the hives on my ankles and feet. I swear this is systemic...just like poison ivy...and it itches as much!
...and I had to take Ibuprofen today to kill my caffeine headache...I've got to find some decaf and get off this caffeine again. and off the ibuprofen which may be the culprit causing this outbreak...or I'm allergic to Ireland!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Showers and Clean Laundry - Life's Simple Pleasures
Wednesday June 13th
East of Kenmare Ireland
21 miles...hilly, quite hilly, miles
mix of weather, but no rain to speak of...just a sprinkle, but that hardly counts
Today we cycled through Killarney National Park for about 20 km. Slow and steady were Blaze and me. It gives Fuat lots of time to sit and look at the countryside. Have I told you bike like a Slinky Dog? He cycles ahead and waits for me until I catch up...all day long, stopping several times an hour. What a patient man! He could do many more miles in a day if he were cycling alone. Blaze and I are the slow pokes.
I didn't know Ireland had this kind of wilderness mountains and lakes. It's unbelievably beautiful! After passing through a delightful town of Kenmare (south of Killarney) we cycled into some serious mountains, the Shehy Mountains northeast of Bantry.
We've opted to start heading east to Cork and should be there this weekend (heads up Heike:)) How long it takes is weather and hills dependent. We love where we're camped tonight up in the rocky, treeless mountains with the sheep baaing in the distance. And those no-see-ums stayed away long enough for us to cook up another fantastic meal. Patient and he can cook! I'm a lucky woman to be traveling with this guy:) Tonight it was barley with chickpeas, Kalamata olives, oil, vinegar, and tomato paste. I could have eaten more of that, but I had to share. I haven't mentioned the cheeses and breads we've been picking up along the way for lunches. Even their mature cheddar tastes wonderful...and then there's camembert and today St.? cheese - the sharpest cheese either of us have ever eaten! It needs crackers, not bread.
In town, the most important thing for me was getting a shower and laundry done. Neither are easy on this trip because laundromats are rare and we're not staying in campgrounds (not that there are very many around). I was hoping a hostel would let us shower and do laundry for a fee, but the one in town said no. We couldn't find out from anyone if the campgrounds had shower and laundry facilities, but we did find out there was a self-service laundromat so we went there to at least do the wash. And since they had a sink, I'm not too proud to wash my hair. I can bathe the rest of me in a pot of water (and I did just that the other night), but washing the hair is more challenging, for one thing we don't carry that much water with us extra for such frivolties.
The other thing I've learned while cycling here that I didn't know before was about burning turf after it's been cut from a bog and dried out. It's a common source of fuel for the fireplaces.
Goodnight,
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
East of Kenmare Ireland
21 miles...hilly, quite hilly, miles
mix of weather, but no rain to speak of...just a sprinkle, but that hardly counts
Today we cycled through Killarney National Park for about 20 km. Slow and steady were Blaze and me. It gives Fuat lots of time to sit and look at the countryside. Have I told you bike like a Slinky Dog? He cycles ahead and waits for me until I catch up...all day long, stopping several times an hour. What a patient man! He could do many more miles in a day if he were cycling alone. Blaze and I are the slow pokes.
I didn't know Ireland had this kind of wilderness mountains and lakes. It's unbelievably beautiful! After passing through a delightful town of Kenmare (south of Killarney) we cycled into some serious mountains, the Shehy Mountains northeast of Bantry.
We've opted to start heading east to Cork and should be there this weekend (heads up Heike:)) How long it takes is weather and hills dependent. We love where we're camped tonight up in the rocky, treeless mountains with the sheep baaing in the distance. And those no-see-ums stayed away long enough for us to cook up another fantastic meal. Patient and he can cook! I'm a lucky woman to be traveling with this guy:) Tonight it was barley with chickpeas, Kalamata olives, oil, vinegar, and tomato paste. I could have eaten more of that, but I had to share. I haven't mentioned the cheeses and breads we've been picking up along the way for lunches. Even their mature cheddar tastes wonderful...and then there's camembert and today St.? cheese - the sharpest cheese either of us have ever eaten! It needs crackers, not bread.
In town, the most important thing for me was getting a shower and laundry done. Neither are easy on this trip because laundromats are rare and we're not staying in campgrounds (not that there are very many around). I was hoping a hostel would let us shower and do laundry for a fee, but the one in town said no. We couldn't find out from anyone if the campgrounds had shower and laundry facilities, but we did find out there was a self-service laundromat so we went there to at least do the wash. And since they had a sink, I'm not too proud to wash my hair. I can bathe the rest of me in a pot of water (and I did just that the other night), but washing the hair is more challenging, for one thing we don't carry that much water with us extra for such frivolties.
The other thing I've learned while cycling here that I didn't know before was about burning turf after it's been cut from a bog and dried out. It's a common source of fuel for the fireplaces.
Goodnight,
BagLady
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Killarney National Park
Tuesday, June 12th
Killarney National Park
15 miles
heavy rains early
Last night we camped in an unmaintained field. Fuat tried to find a farmer to ask, but gave up. We spent a wonderful evening with the sun strolling the meadows and checking out the birds. Fuat thought he saw a new bird, a long-tailed tit, but he just told me it wasn't in his book. (That info is for any bird watchers reading...Laura:)) So we tucked in around 9 and were to sleep at 10. In the morning I told Fuat that I had a dream that the farmer woke us up last night asking for money to camp there. And that you offered him 5 euros and he wanted 15=20...then you offered 10 and he begrudgingly took it and wished us a goodnight. I told you that I thought it wasn't even the farmer that owned the land, just somebody who wanted to get some money off of us. Fuat said it wasn't a dream! That's a first for me and I've done this a fair bit. Oh well. You come across folks like that every now and again. I still don't think he owned the land, but we weren't about to pack up and we sure didn't want a tussle.
Today was a day of sightseeing. We rode into Killarney in a heavy downpour. We needed to find fuel for our camp stoves so headed to the outlet mall downtown (we were told they had outdoor stores there). It was a great place to get in out of the rain, get some wifi, and wait for the stores to open. But they didn't have what we needed. After finding our fuel at another store, we strolled the streets a bit, got some soup and bread, looked at the most beautiful Aran Island woolens, got groceries and got info on the Killarney National Park. It's right on the edge of town with delightful bike trails throught the area nearby. There's a castle from the 1400's that we toured. This castle was restored and furnished. So old, so unbelievable that people could live under those cold, harsh conditions (and they were living the good life). Would love to have gotten some pics but no photography allowed. Do they mean me???
It was a day of 3 seasons, but Fuat said he didn't think we had any summer today:) Jacket on, jacket off, fleece on, fleece off, pants rolled up,pants rolled down, buff on my head, hood up, hood down, buff off. Cold then hot, then cold again....as the sun went in and out of the clouds. It was raining so hard this morning while we were running our errands that we decided to get a room in a hostel. We could use the shower and laundry and it's just not fun biking in heavy rain. But as we finished up at the bike shop, the sky lightened up and the rain stopped. No sense in getting a room now, so we didn't.
At the castle I had my rain jacket and my fleece, my 2 iphones and my battery pack for charging all in my pockets. A lot to keep track of even for me...oh and my Buff. I lost my Buff on the tour but the tour guide went back for it for me.
We got back to our bikes and I went to hook my Iphone up to the solar charger (yes, some sun!), but couldn't find it. Did I leave it back on the bench in the exhibit? I run back, look on the bench and it's not there. A bit of panic. Let's ask at the desk. DId you find a phone? Yes, and he's looking at it. He tells me he looked at the pictures to find out who owned the phone and found pics of the inside of the castle...oops! Caught! I'll delete them. I was just glad to get my phone back.
So with the guy last night asking for money to camp in a vacant field and getting caught taking pics today, this bad karma has got to go.
So where are we tonight? Camped illegally in the Killarney National Park. Well, in our defense, we're camped behind the johns at the Denis Cottage Tea House which is closed...at least tonight it is. And the johns are locked darn it! OMG but the no-see-ums are out in full force and it was hell getting the tent up and getting in...and they managed to join us and continue to nibble away as I type.
This park is beautiful...what fabulous views of the mountains on the other side of the lake. Reminds both of us of the Adirondacks. We also toured Muckross House which was built in around 1840's. Loved seeing how they lived back then. These tours taking you right into the rooms and the guides provide a ton of information on the period, the lifestyle, the furniture, etc. I really enjoy the experience and the fees for the tours are very reasonable and affordable. It was 3 euros ($4) for the castle and 5.5 euros ($7) for the house. There's no charge to enter the park...in fact no entrance to it at all.
And we toured an old Franciscan Abbey,...that was cool too!
Okay, I'm pooped so I'm signing off now to go scratch my new sun bumps and no-see-um bites!
BagLady
P. S. dinner was another delicious meal by Fuat...this time quinoa salad. As I cooked the quinoa, he chopped cucumber, green peppers, tomatoes, and radishes. We mixed it all together and pour our olive oil and vinegar and garlic dressing over it. YUM! I record our meals so that I can remember them the next time I go off alone:) Also, so you can drool!!!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Killarney National Park
15 miles
heavy rains early
Last night we camped in an unmaintained field. Fuat tried to find a farmer to ask, but gave up. We spent a wonderful evening with the sun strolling the meadows and checking out the birds. Fuat thought he saw a new bird, a long-tailed tit, but he just told me it wasn't in his book. (That info is for any bird watchers reading...Laura:)) So we tucked in around 9 and were to sleep at 10. In the morning I told Fuat that I had a dream that the farmer woke us up last night asking for money to camp there. And that you offered him 5 euros and he wanted 15=20...then you offered 10 and he begrudgingly took it and wished us a goodnight. I told you that I thought it wasn't even the farmer that owned the land, just somebody who wanted to get some money off of us. Fuat said it wasn't a dream! That's a first for me and I've done this a fair bit. Oh well. You come across folks like that every now and again. I still don't think he owned the land, but we weren't about to pack up and we sure didn't want a tussle.
Today was a day of sightseeing. We rode into Killarney in a heavy downpour. We needed to find fuel for our camp stoves so headed to the outlet mall downtown (we were told they had outdoor stores there). It was a great place to get in out of the rain, get some wifi, and wait for the stores to open. But they didn't have what we needed. After finding our fuel at another store, we strolled the streets a bit, got some soup and bread, looked at the most beautiful Aran Island woolens, got groceries and got info on the Killarney National Park. It's right on the edge of town with delightful bike trails throught the area nearby. There's a castle from the 1400's that we toured. This castle was restored and furnished. So old, so unbelievable that people could live under those cold, harsh conditions (and they were living the good life). Would love to have gotten some pics but no photography allowed. Do they mean me???
It was a day of 3 seasons, but Fuat said he didn't think we had any summer today:) Jacket on, jacket off, fleece on, fleece off, pants rolled up,pants rolled down, buff on my head, hood up, hood down, buff off. Cold then hot, then cold again....as the sun went in and out of the clouds. It was raining so hard this morning while we were running our errands that we decided to get a room in a hostel. We could use the shower and laundry and it's just not fun biking in heavy rain. But as we finished up at the bike shop, the sky lightened up and the rain stopped. No sense in getting a room now, so we didn't.
At the castle I had my rain jacket and my fleece, my 2 iphones and my battery pack for charging all in my pockets. A lot to keep track of even for me...oh and my Buff. I lost my Buff on the tour but the tour guide went back for it for me.
We got back to our bikes and I went to hook my Iphone up to the solar charger (yes, some sun!), but couldn't find it. Did I leave it back on the bench in the exhibit? I run back, look on the bench and it's not there. A bit of panic. Let's ask at the desk. DId you find a phone? Yes, and he's looking at it. He tells me he looked at the pictures to find out who owned the phone and found pics of the inside of the castle...oops! Caught! I'll delete them. I was just glad to get my phone back.
So with the guy last night asking for money to camp in a vacant field and getting caught taking pics today, this bad karma has got to go.
So where are we tonight? Camped illegally in the Killarney National Park. Well, in our defense, we're camped behind the johns at the Denis Cottage Tea House which is closed...at least tonight it is. And the johns are locked darn it! OMG but the no-see-ums are out in full force and it was hell getting the tent up and getting in...and they managed to join us and continue to nibble away as I type.
This park is beautiful...what fabulous views of the mountains on the other side of the lake. Reminds both of us of the Adirondacks. We also toured Muckross House which was built in around 1840's. Loved seeing how they lived back then. These tours taking you right into the rooms and the guides provide a ton of information on the period, the lifestyle, the furniture, etc. I really enjoy the experience and the fees for the tours are very reasonable and affordable. It was 3 euros ($4) for the castle and 5.5 euros ($7) for the house. There's no charge to enter the park...in fact no entrance to it at all.
And we toured an old Franciscan Abbey,...that was cool too!
Okay, I'm pooped so I'm signing off now to go scratch my new sun bumps and no-see-um bites!
BagLady
P. S. dinner was another delicious meal by Fuat...this time quinoa salad. As I cooked the quinoa, he chopped cucumber, green peppers, tomatoes, and radishes. We mixed it all together and pour our olive oil and vinegar and garlic dressing over it. YUM! I record our meals so that I can remember them the next time I go off alone:) Also, so you can drool!!!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Tis Ireland After All!
Monday June 10th
just north of Kilarney
about 35 miles
damp start to the day, but a gloriously sunny finish!
A friend suggested I take a photo of a map upon which I'd drawn the route we were traveling. I didn't know how it would work, but tonight I drafted it up. In order to see any detail I took a picture of just the western side of Ireland and the last few days of travel. Let me know what you think.
Our route west out of Dublin, then north to Trim Castle (off the map).
Continuing to bike westward across the country.
The last couple days getting to the ferry and Inis Oirr of the Aran Islands...then south to Cliffs of Moher.
Above is the last couple of days of cycling southward towards Kilarney.
Feedback, please...about the maps.
At lunch we were in a health food cafe and I asked the waitress if she knew what the weather was going to be for the next couple of days. She shook her head and said "Most likely raining, tis Ireland after all. The sun doesn't shine here much!" Then looking out the window, she added, "It's gonna rain this afternoon." Cracked me up!
I'm getting much better at using this darn map app. As long as I can figure out where we are, I can map a back country route to where we want to go, but I couldn't do it without a large map too! Tonight I figured out how to use it to actually map out a route and it will read it back to me turn by turn. But it behaves funny, flipping around if I try to do the Walking Mode. I can use it now for estimating distances though and that should be helpful.
We're winding our way down to the Kilarney National Park. There's quite a lot to see down around there, but that means Tour Buses too...or as they're called here, Coaches. But so many folks have said we must see West Cork (the county, not the city, we found out) so were working our way down there.
Because we're going so slowly we've decided to look at taking a train or a bus from Cork to Waterford so we can get the ferry over to England sooner.
For a bit today we biked on a main road. It was no fun. We got to the next town faster, but didn't enjoy the process as much. Later as we were winding our way southward, I told Fuat we needed to go straight at a particular intersection. When we got there, he didn't want to because "Did you see that hill?" So we looked at the map on my phone and I routed us around so that we'd end up on the same road further south...it was the most direct route towards Kilarney. Don't ya know, the alternate route had not one hill...nope, it had THREE! I said that's the last time we go around a hill. We did more hills AND more miles! Met a farmer on the alternate route that was cracking up at fact of us trying to avoid hills. He said it would have been better had we just gone straight...hehehe! He the richest, twangiest Irish accent I've heard yet. Everyone's seems to be different. Some people are easy to understand and some I can't make out a word. Fuat was chatting with this farmer while waiting for me and he said he understood not a word. Might have been speaking Irish.
I wanted to try and learn some Irish. When we were at Pat and Mary's we talked with them about it. I told them I couldn't even sound it out because there seemed to be no correlation between the letters and the sounds. Pat agreed. He had a dictionary at the house and it didn't have any pronunciation clues. On Inis Oirr, all the signs are in Irish only. Mary (who's American) types the notices into Google Translator to find out what they're saying. So I"m gonna leave Ireland without having learned any of the language, sadly so.
Tonight we're camped in an abandoned field. So delightful with the late lingering sun. And dinner was chickpea curry over rice. It surely is delightful traveling with a man who can and likes to cook! I'm a good chopper and dish washer. I do help with ideas too, especially lunches...and treats:)
And that's all she wrote!
BagLady
P.S. update on the blisters...problem continues...they never go away and when the sun returns they flourish and itch...and the skin gets tender...got them on my face now too. It's gonna be a long summer at this rate. Does anyone know if turmeric could be causing this? I've stopped the ibuprofen but am continuing a daily dose of turmeric for the thumb arthritis.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
just north of Kilarney
about 35 miles
damp start to the day, but a gloriously sunny finish!
A friend suggested I take a photo of a map upon which I'd drawn the route we were traveling. I didn't know how it would work, but tonight I drafted it up. In order to see any detail I took a picture of just the western side of Ireland and the last few days of travel. Let me know what you think.
Our route west out of Dublin, then north to Trim Castle (off the map).
Continuing to bike westward across the country.
The last couple days getting to the ferry and Inis Oirr of the Aran Islands...then south to Cliffs of Moher.
Above is the last couple of days of cycling southward towards Kilarney.
Feedback, please...about the maps.
At lunch we were in a health food cafe and I asked the waitress if she knew what the weather was going to be for the next couple of days. She shook her head and said "Most likely raining, tis Ireland after all. The sun doesn't shine here much!" Then looking out the window, she added, "It's gonna rain this afternoon." Cracked me up!
I'm getting much better at using this darn map app. As long as I can figure out where we are, I can map a back country route to where we want to go, but I couldn't do it without a large map too! Tonight I figured out how to use it to actually map out a route and it will read it back to me turn by turn. But it behaves funny, flipping around if I try to do the Walking Mode. I can use it now for estimating distances though and that should be helpful.
We're winding our way down to the Kilarney National Park. There's quite a lot to see down around there, but that means Tour Buses too...or as they're called here, Coaches. But so many folks have said we must see West Cork (the county, not the city, we found out) so were working our way down there.
Because we're going so slowly we've decided to look at taking a train or a bus from Cork to Waterford so we can get the ferry over to England sooner.
For a bit today we biked on a main road. It was no fun. We got to the next town faster, but didn't enjoy the process as much. Later as we were winding our way southward, I told Fuat we needed to go straight at a particular intersection. When we got there, he didn't want to because "Did you see that hill?" So we looked at the map on my phone and I routed us around so that we'd end up on the same road further south...it was the most direct route towards Kilarney. Don't ya know, the alternate route had not one hill...nope, it had THREE! I said that's the last time we go around a hill. We did more hills AND more miles! Met a farmer on the alternate route that was cracking up at fact of us trying to avoid hills. He said it would have been better had we just gone straight...hehehe! He the richest, twangiest Irish accent I've heard yet. Everyone's seems to be different. Some people are easy to understand and some I can't make out a word. Fuat was chatting with this farmer while waiting for me and he said he understood not a word. Might have been speaking Irish.
I wanted to try and learn some Irish. When we were at Pat and Mary's we talked with them about it. I told them I couldn't even sound it out because there seemed to be no correlation between the letters and the sounds. Pat agreed. He had a dictionary at the house and it didn't have any pronunciation clues. On Inis Oirr, all the signs are in Irish only. Mary (who's American) types the notices into Google Translator to find out what they're saying. So I"m gonna leave Ireland without having learned any of the language, sadly so.
Tonight we're camped in an abandoned field. So delightful with the late lingering sun. And dinner was chickpea curry over rice. It surely is delightful traveling with a man who can and likes to cook! I'm a good chopper and dish washer. I do help with ideas too, especially lunches...and treats:)
And that's all she wrote!
BagLady
P.S. update on the blisters...problem continues...they never go away and when the sun returns they flourish and itch...and the skin gets tender...got them on my face now too. It's gonna be a long summer at this rate. Does anyone know if turmeric could be causing this? I've stopped the ibuprofen but am continuing a daily dose of turmeric for the thumb arthritis.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
The Hills are Killing Me!
Sunday June 10th
Athea, Ireland
37 miles.
Overcast then sun then sprinkles
I'm gonna be short and sweet tonight (oh, I already am!) because my phone battery is low and we may need the maps on it tomorrow. I'm getting better at finding us on the maps, so they are a bit of help but we still wander.
Today was easy for the first 20 miles down to the ferry at Killimer to cross the Shannon river, but the next 16 hilly miles were steep and my legs are just tuckered out. Lots of granny stops on even short hills because of the grade.
Tonight we're camped beside the Hall, a town rec center right at the 3 corners. Everybody can see us, but the yard looked pleasant and there were trees for our tarp. Got to always put up the tarp in case of rain.
I have a major squeak on Blaze and I can't for the life of me figure out what's causing it. I listen to music or an audiobook to drown it out. It doesn't happen going/: up hill or if I push her and am not on it...or when she's unloaded. It's got me buffood (is that a word?)!
Met three darling Irish children tonight when I took Blaze out for a spin.
Jamie, Molly, and Calum all got a chance to ride on her. I gave them my biker card and told them I'd put them on my blog tonight. Aren't they adorable? If you kids read this, please send me a comment in the section below. I'd love to hear from you!
Walked in to town tonight to get water and a small amount of sugar for my coffee. (I often just grab some packets every day.) The little shop that was opened filled all 6 of our watre bottles, gave me a small jar of sugar and we managed to buy only a can of tuna. Didn't need anything else. She was so gracious! I just love the people here! Smiling, happy, and kind to us.
The world is good.
Changed our plans a bit today and decided to head towards Cork. Heike, if you're reading this, we figure it will take us about 3 days to get there. I'll try and send you an email from town tomorrow. That's rough estimates. We've been told to see West Cork, but we can't find any info on it, like where it is exactly:) That may alter our arrival time by a day or two.
Off to sleep to sound of pitter patter on the tent. If it's raining, it must be Ireland:))
BagLady
P.S. the sun blisters returned big time this afternoon. And itch! If anyone knows anything about this please share. It's on the tops of my thighs and my hands around the thumbs where they face the sun. At least tonight they're not burning.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Athea, Ireland
37 miles.
Overcast then sun then sprinkles
I'm gonna be short and sweet tonight (oh, I already am!) because my phone battery is low and we may need the maps on it tomorrow. I'm getting better at finding us on the maps, so they are a bit of help but we still wander.
Today was easy for the first 20 miles down to the ferry at Killimer to cross the Shannon river, but the next 16 hilly miles were steep and my legs are just tuckered out. Lots of granny stops on even short hills because of the grade.
Tonight we're camped beside the Hall, a town rec center right at the 3 corners. Everybody can see us, but the yard looked pleasant and there were trees for our tarp. Got to always put up the tarp in case of rain.
I have a major squeak on Blaze and I can't for the life of me figure out what's causing it. I listen to music or an audiobook to drown it out. It doesn't happen going/: up hill or if I push her and am not on it...or when she's unloaded. It's got me buffood (is that a word?)!
Met three darling Irish children tonight when I took Blaze out for a spin.
Jamie, Molly, and Calum all got a chance to ride on her. I gave them my biker card and told them I'd put them on my blog tonight. Aren't they adorable? If you kids read this, please send me a comment in the section below. I'd love to hear from you!
Walked in to town tonight to get water and a small amount of sugar for my coffee. (I often just grab some packets every day.) The little shop that was opened filled all 6 of our watre bottles, gave me a small jar of sugar and we managed to buy only a can of tuna. Didn't need anything else. She was so gracious! I just love the people here! Smiling, happy, and kind to us.
The world is good.
Changed our plans a bit today and decided to head towards Cork. Heike, if you're reading this, we figure it will take us about 3 days to get there. I'll try and send you an email from town tomorrow. That's rough estimates. We've been told to see West Cork, but we can't find any info on it, like where it is exactly:) That may alter our arrival time by a day or two.
Off to sleep to sound of pitter patter on the tent. If it's raining, it must be Ireland:))
BagLady
P.S. the sun blisters returned big time this afternoon. And itch! If anyone knows anything about this please share. It's on the tops of my thighs and my hands around the thumbs where they face the sun. At least tonight they're not burning.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Up and Down and Up Again
Friday and Saturday, June 7 & 8th
Inis Oirr then Kilfarboy, Ireland (just south of the Cliffs of Moher)
Fri windy, Sat sunny and gorgeous
We spent the day on Inis Oirr (Inisheer) going to the Arts Center to see the exhibit of native clothing...lots of wool, jackets, shawls, pants and skirts. They wore the same clothes every day with little or no washing. Sounds like hikers and touring bikers:) Makes total sense to me!
I also saw a flyer on the wall for a play that had come through last month title "Bag Lady" by Frank McGuinness...now they're writing plays about me! "You see them in the city. You see them in the town. Old ladies in crumpled clothes. Carrying their lives around. All with a story. This is her story..." It's done it's circuit. Wish I could see it.
It's a small island with these narrow roads leading down the stone wall-lined lanes going this way and that. So we went this way and that, checking out the cows and horses, stone buildings and fishing supplies.
All the shops were closed because with the ferries not running, no tourists were about. So we went back to the campground ladies room where I gear was stored and fixed up some lunch. I'm kind used to eating in bathrooms now. They're warm and dry. What more do ya need?
Then we met up with Pat as he was walking back from the store (he doesn't have a car) and shared with him what we'd heard down on the pier that the ferries wouldn't be running again until the morning. They had already invited us to stay another night if that turned out to be the case, so we walked back to his cottage with him. Pat's a musician and plays in the local pubs during the summer. Quite funny and talented. Google "Pat Quinn is playing 2" on YouTube to hear his funny song about Angelina Jolie. He writes all his own stuff. We've got his CD, too.
Fuat is interested in the local boats called currachs made of canvas and tar. Pat sent him next door to the local boatmaker to check them out. Found out the local lads were going to be training for a boat race down on the lake later that evening...so of course, down we went.
Pat's quite the cook and fed us both nights, bless his soul! Thurs it was spaghetti and garlic bread and last night roast chicken with potatoes, peas, and carrots. Thank you Pat for such delicious meals!!
Mary spends most her days tending her 2 grandchildren while her daughter works the cafe. Along with that she's starting a quilting business, trying to make some money from a hobby she loves. I'm sure she'll succeed!
So off to the boat training at the lake, then to the pub to hear Pat play. Ran into Shelbi and Cory...Shelbi's an intern from WIsonsin working at the daughter's cafe. We got to know her a bit the rainy afternoon we spent there. Such fun in a small town 'cause you keep running into the same folks. Cory we met at the Arts Center, also an intern.
Today started with an early rise to make the ferry by a little after 8. Even though the water was fairly calm at first it managed to get quite choppy near the far shore and didn't I find myself hanging my head over the side while the boat docked and the bikes were unloaded. Fuat tried to find me a barf bag, but either they didn't understand or there were none to be had. I was green. A sailor I'm not!
So down the coast we headed to the Cliffs of Moher. Man, these hills are steep. My little legs were getting quite a work out. Easier to bike across the Rockies then down the coast of Ireland...go figure! The Cliffs of Moher are too much of touris attraction. Tour buses everywhere. I like the architecture of the visitors center. It was built into the hill so that it had minimal visual impact on the site. Quite innovative! But I've seen cliffs before and needed to get away from the people. Fuat agreed, so off we pedaled.
Tonight we're camped just outside an old cemetary, there are even graves inside the ruins of the church...they're packed cheek to jowl in there.
And tonight's dinner was tossed salad and snow peas over rice in a soy sauce rue. Ya, we eat good! Fuat's a good cook and we like the same kind of food so that works well. We're good traveling mates. It's easy between us.
Ok, enough for tonight.
Goodnight one and all,
BagLady
P.s. Update on the sun rash. From my research it appears to be a drug interaction with the ibuprofen, so I stopped taking it. Got more blisters today: thighs, chest, and hands. They itch slightly but are quite tender. I tried to see if sunscreen today would help and I think it reduced the amount of blisters. Still a bit of a problem since being out of the sun nor wearing long pants are going to work. Suffer on and hope they don't mar my skin too much.
Inis Oirr then Kilfarboy, Ireland (just south of the Cliffs of Moher)
Fri windy, Sat sunny and gorgeous
We spent the day on Inis Oirr (Inisheer) going to the Arts Center to see the exhibit of native clothing...lots of wool, jackets, shawls, pants and skirts. They wore the same clothes every day with little or no washing. Sounds like hikers and touring bikers:) Makes total sense to me!
I also saw a flyer on the wall for a play that had come through last month title "Bag Lady" by Frank McGuinness...now they're writing plays about me! "You see them in the city. You see them in the town. Old ladies in crumpled clothes. Carrying their lives around. All with a story. This is her story..." It's done it's circuit. Wish I could see it.
It's a small island with these narrow roads leading down the stone wall-lined lanes going this way and that. So we went this way and that, checking out the cows and horses, stone buildings and fishing supplies.
All the shops were closed because with the ferries not running, no tourists were about. So we went back to the campground ladies room where I gear was stored and fixed up some lunch. I'm kind used to eating in bathrooms now. They're warm and dry. What more do ya need?
Then we met up with Pat as he was walking back from the store (he doesn't have a car) and shared with him what we'd heard down on the pier that the ferries wouldn't be running again until the morning. They had already invited us to stay another night if that turned out to be the case, so we walked back to his cottage with him. Pat's a musician and plays in the local pubs during the summer. Quite funny and talented. Google "Pat Quinn is playing 2" on YouTube to hear his funny song about Angelina Jolie. He writes all his own stuff. We've got his CD, too.
Fuat is interested in the local boats called currachs made of canvas and tar. Pat sent him next door to the local boatmaker to check them out. Found out the local lads were going to be training for a boat race down on the lake later that evening...so of course, down we went.
Pat's quite the cook and fed us both nights, bless his soul! Thurs it was spaghetti and garlic bread and last night roast chicken with potatoes, peas, and carrots. Thank you Pat for such delicious meals!!
Mary spends most her days tending her 2 grandchildren while her daughter works the cafe. Along with that she's starting a quilting business, trying to make some money from a hobby she loves. I'm sure she'll succeed!
So off to the boat training at the lake, then to the pub to hear Pat play. Ran into Shelbi and Cory...Shelbi's an intern from WIsonsin working at the daughter's cafe. We got to know her a bit the rainy afternoon we spent there. Such fun in a small town 'cause you keep running into the same folks. Cory we met at the Arts Center, also an intern.
Today started with an early rise to make the ferry by a little after 8. Even though the water was fairly calm at first it managed to get quite choppy near the far shore and didn't I find myself hanging my head over the side while the boat docked and the bikes were unloaded. Fuat tried to find me a barf bag, but either they didn't understand or there were none to be had. I was green. A sailor I'm not!
So down the coast we headed to the Cliffs of Moher. Man, these hills are steep. My little legs were getting quite a work out. Easier to bike across the Rockies then down the coast of Ireland...go figure! The Cliffs of Moher are too much of touris attraction. Tour buses everywhere. I like the architecture of the visitors center. It was built into the hill so that it had minimal visual impact on the site. Quite innovative! But I've seen cliffs before and needed to get away from the people. Fuat agreed, so off we pedaled.
Tonight we're camped just outside an old cemetary, there are even graves inside the ruins of the church...they're packed cheek to jowl in there.
And tonight's dinner was tossed salad and snow peas over rice in a soy sauce rue. Ya, we eat good! Fuat's a good cook and we like the same kind of food so that works well. We're good traveling mates. It's easy between us.
Ok, enough for tonight.
Goodnight one and all,
BagLady
P.s. Update on the sun rash. From my research it appears to be a drug interaction with the ibuprofen, so I stopped taking it. Got more blisters today: thighs, chest, and hands. They itch slightly but are quite tender. I tried to see if sunscreen today would help and I think it reduced the amount of blisters. Still a bit of a problem since being out of the sun nor wearing long pants are going to work. Suffer on and hope they don't mar my skin too much.
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