Travel

Happy New Year 2012

This year, rather than go into the Dublin City center to have some crazy party and trouble getting back out, I went over to Paddy’s flat for the New Year’s Eve celebrations. It was a grand party, with plenty of people, a bit of foosball, and one interesting tradition that I was familiar with from living in Germany – the fortune telling by melting lead over a candle. I have been wanting to explain this – and it’s slightly amusing that I had to come to Dublin – to see a German tradition in action.

The spoon and lead

Basically, what happens is that you buy this package of lead that is in various “lucky” shapes. These are things like coins, pigs, mushrooms, etc. (I’m not sure why some are lucky – but each culture has their own connections). You take the spoon and hold it lightly over a candle and get the lead warm until it melts…

Melty Melty little lead

Once the lead is melted, you quickly pour it into a bowl of ice water (you can see the ice water in the bottom here)

New Year 2012

The lead quickly hardens – and then you pluck it out.. and try to determine what shape your lead piece has taken –

Is it a flower?

Is it a butterfly?
That's a lump of lead!

Is it a blob or a thumb’s up?
Rock on!

Once you kind of determine what shape it is – you look on the back of the package and get your “fortune” for the next year –

Fortunes on the box

some of which are quite amusing – even if you have to translate from German.

About the time this was complete, it was time to pop our head out the door for the New Year’s count down, and midnight kisses all around. Welcome to 2012 – the end year of the Mayan Calendar. Here’s hoping it’s a great one!

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Jedward Candy Bar

Things that make you go humm.

Folks, Jedward has come out with a candy bar. It just makes me want to cry, because it’s so painfully pop culture, punny, laughable and sad all at the same time. Someone else bought it for me as a gift, and my first thought was that I *Had* to blog about it and post pictures, because this is something that is lost in translation (and I’m sure didn’t make it across the pond). So here they are.

Jeward candy bar 4 (Jedward Twin Bars - Popping Chocolate Bars)
Jedward candy bar – twin “popping” chocolate bars

Jedward "popping" candy bar 3 (Full on, Crazy, Jeadly!)
(yes, it says that it’s FULL ON, Crazy, JEADLY)

Jeward "poppin" candy bar 2 (want to Meet Jedward?)
Want to Meet Jedward? Get the golden ticket! (Thank Goodness I didn’t get the ticket.)

For those of you who don’t know who Jedward is, let me explain (although I’m not sure there is any explanation for these two). They were twin contestants on “x factor”, which is basically the “American Idol” for Britain and Ireland. They’re 17 year old blonde teenagers who, for lack of a better word, are stupid – and famous for it. They can’t really sing, and they (like Bieber fever) are everywhere here in Ireland and one doesn’t really know why. You can’t get them gone. They’re on TV (doing ads for a local cell phone company), starring in Celeb Big Brother House, and earlier this year – were Ireland’s entry for the Eurovision song contest (please don’t get me started on the contest).

They’re voted one of the year 2011’s most annoying…

and deservedly so.

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Glendalough Ruins and Lakes

Back in March, and again the beginning of June, I decided that I needed to get out of the city and go see a bit more of Ireland. I had heard many lovely things about a place called “Glenda-lock”, which is situated in the Wicklow mountains. I have to say that after taking a friend there in March, I had to return in June (when the weather was better) and take my mom and a bunch of photographs.

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(Sunset at the Upper Lake at Glendalough)

Glendalough (Irish: Gleann Dá Loch, meaning “Glen of Two Lakes”) is one of the most visited places in Ireland. It’s located in the Wicklow Mountains National Park and has lots of walks and trails. The Glendalough Valley was carved out by glaciers during the Ice Age and the two lakes, from which Glendalough gets its name, were formed when the ice eventually thawed.

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(House ruins with foggy mountain in the background)

It is also renowned for its Early Medieval monastic settlement founded in the 6th century by St Kevin, a hermit priest (now in ruins). Kevin was born to one of the ruling families of Leinster, and studed under several early Christian leaders. During this time, he went to Glendalough and was enchanted by its beauty.

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(St. Kevin’s Cell)

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(Looking through the interior of St. Kevin’s Cell)

Shortly later, St. Kevin returned with several monks to found a monestary. As his fame spread, the settlement grew. Kevin died in 618, but the settlement continued for nearly 600 years – surviving through Viking Raids and deaths of many Abbots. In 1398, English troops finally invaded and destroyed the peaceful monestary for good.

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(Cemetery with 30 meter high Round tower to watch for raiders – Lower lake of Glendalough)

Since then, the place has remained one of pilgrimage, and I can see why as it’s one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. It’s mentioned in many manuscripts and there are remnants of cemeteries, workshops, guest houses, infirmaries, farm buildings and dwellings all over the upper and lower lakes. Most of the buildings that exist today are from the 10th and 12th centuries.

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(St. Kevin’s church)

For More information, please see http://www.glendalough.ie/heritage_of_glendalough.php

For more pictures of my trips there, please see my flickr set.

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