Going to Gallway

This morning, Rosie and I were waiting by the bus stop on the side of the road for the 1:40 bus to Gallway, when along came a small green bus at 1:35. We asked the bus driver if he was going to Gallway, and he said, "Gallway? You are trying to go to Gallway? Well, Christ. You can't get to Gallway from here. I'll tell you what, just hop on and um, I'll bring you ten minutes down the road where there is a bus stop to Gallway. You can be sure to get a ride there." And so we hopped on with a shrug as he refused to charge us anything. Pretty soon we were racing by the country side, being introduced over the buses intercom, hearing the histories of castles off in the distance and stopping by famine cottages. We found out that the Ford's, Kennedy's and Reagan's all came from such abandonded stone cotages. Then, we drove out to this huge outcropping of stone, and were told this is where we wait for a bus. There was a five foot shoulder and no bus stop sign. We were in the middle of nowhere. However, the bus driver did make sure that we had a sign that read "Gallway Please." It seemed like we had been takin out of civilization, where a bus was scheduled to come, and dumped on the corner of the world, where a ride seemed a little unlikely. However after a minute, we were picked up by some people from Philladelphia. They were able to take us all of the way to Gallway, and we ended up spending not a penny getting there. With a wonderful story to boot.

One Hot Chocolate, To go, Please

It is a very very big deal in Europe if they have to go items.
Rosie walked into a Cafe to get a hot chocolate and there was a very cute red head behind the bar. And after she heard what Rosie wanted, she squeeled, and said "Oh!!! I think we do have to go cups!!! I just saw them the other day!" Then, as she began to steam the milk, "oh!! this is my favorite part, aside from when I get to put the coco powder ontop of the cream!" And then, just because she had had such a wonderful time, she gave Rosie a 50% discount.
Gotta love the Irish.

Tralee

The land of my ancestors. It feels wonderful, and I have found the church where my family attended and where my brother was baptized. And, big news, I read my first word in persian today! I have been learning the alphabet and the sounds and I pieced together this word, and checked it in a dictionary, and I was right!
On a different note, Rosie and I are so taken with Ireland, that we extended our stay by a week and plan on enjoying more of the country. It is amazing to say my name and not have to specify that indeed, Lyons is spelled with a y instead of an i. Everyone here writes it down perfectly.

Eire

We have spent only a full day in Ireland, but have fallen in love with it. The countryside is amazing and there is such a raw beauty that comes with the intense green and cold winds. Although we have not yet seen any holy wells, Rosie and I have started to pick up accents and have both dyed our hair. The stews are amazing and Tralee feels like home already. Today we will hunt down some good black pudding, soda bread and fiddlin'. Tomorrow, we head for the Aran Isles.

The Way of the Breast.

In Vienna, people give directions to follow the direction a bare breast of a statue points.

We have found it to be a tired metropolitain with superb metro station food, insane prices for the smallest possible cup of coffee and a sanitary biscut. But we have met more people in the hostel from all over the world. We are all using Vienna as a jump board to other more exciting and cheap places. Can you imagine a city where a ticket to the opera is cheaper than an esspresso? It is an interesting place to be sure. And after just a day, we are eager to leave.

Goodbye to Prague

We ended up spending tons of time in Prague, and getting to know all of the small side streets. There is this one cafe on St. Wescales Square called Dobra Cajovna. If you ever get a chance to go, order the Yogi tea and the hummus plate. Make sure to stroll around the Little Quarter and follow the smallest streets. They will lead you to the most precious places, visited only by the local families that own the houses lining the winding streets.
Perhaps one of the best places to sit in cafes. Cheap coffee with an abundence of character and the same bartender that worked when the cafe opened 200 years ago. Make sure to walk by the Sex Toy Museum and see the man who has the large rat collection he displays on his dog. We met this great Canadian we hung out with for a few days.

Krakow and Aushwitz

We arrived in Krakow in the middle of a once a year fundraiser. There was this huge band stage set up in the middle of the town square with colored lights sweeping the entire population of Poland, gathered in the tiny square. They were playing polish rock and roll and at 10 o'clock, when they started playing a Bob Marley song, everyone dissapeared within seconds. Bizzar. The people are so friendly, and the city has a very metropolitain feel to it - almost like a mini New York.
Aushwitz is hard to explain. There was room after room of suitcases and baby's shoes that were tied together so they would not loose one of them. We saw the bolts of fabric made from womens hair that was like any fabric you would see in the states, and hallways of photos that the SS took when they were registering people. Some of them are smiling.
There were rooms with photos and information of people who were starved. Videos of bodies burning and children post-experimentation. Apparently, 500 children survived the camp. There were tours of the gas chambers and crematoriums and empty silouetts of hanging platforms riddled around.
There were guard towers everywhere and the mocking "work will set you free" slogan at the enterance.
By the time we got there, Birkenaw was closed, so we did not see the sorting platform or the major creamatorium.

Freezing in Praha (Prague)

Rosie and I met up with Wade yesterday at this tea house, with the worlds most crappy overpriced tea ever, but fantastic ambiance. It was all underground with one room that was two stories high and had an old domed stone ceiling. Comfy couches and dim lanterns with shisha smoke swirling made the experience complete.
On another note, we have become experts at getting lost. It is the best way to see a city and find your way around.
We have found shops where a 4 foot crystal chandelier is cheaper than a small garnet ring, and have spent hours in negative 10 Celsius walking around.
There is an astronomical clock that tolls every hour with Death ringing his bell. (reminding us all that we dont have infinite time here) And I think there is more fur used in coats and hats and muffs here in Praha than all of the fur from all of the animals in America put together.
We have seen many St.s' tombs and many kings. Also, we have found many many friendly fellow vagabonds eager to acquaint themselves with us. Beautiful stained glass windows, wonderful beer and amazing buildings pumping American music. Definitely some place to return to.
Now we are on our way to Aushwitz-Birkanow and will practice observing our emotions without letting them consume us.

The first foux pas

After arriving very tired in Prague, I attempted to buy the right tickets to get myself, cheaply, from the airport to the hostel. I managed to buy the right ones, but failed in realizing that the tickets had to be stamped before they were considered valid...
Needless to say, I looked like a foreigner with my bright orange backpack, sleeping bag and purse. So, I was the one that the inspectors pulled over to the side to ask for my tickets - which I proudly produced.
I will never forget to validate my tickets again. But what interested me, was that the man telling me the fee was angry with me, and defending himself from the beginning of the conversation. It was as if he expected me to argue and call over his boss. It makes me wonder what sort of behavior Americans usually exhibit.

Photos

This is the web address for the photos that I will be uploading throughout the trip. 

photobucket.com/VivianRose