What a difference 150 days make

A major heat wave as hit the West Coast this week.

It is 100 in Portland Oregon, 106 in Tracy Ca, 127 in Death Valley. These are old photos of our Oregon place from a December long ago when we complained about the snow.

The Fourth of July in Scotland



     
     During the summer of 2004 we were spending a month seeing Scotland. On the north coast, not far from Saint Andrews, is the pretty little fishing village of Crail. We just happened upon it. Lovely place, it is.
     We stayed in a bed and breakfast run by a retired bobby and his wife. They set a lovely breakfast - full English as it is called.
     We knew that there was a another American staying there along with several couples from other places on the planet. We try and stay away from Americans in Europe, as we can see them at home.
     A young woman came bounding in to the breakfast room. She sat at the table next to us and, as is our custom, we struck up a conversation. It happened that she had just graduated from UC San Diego and this was a graduation trip.
     After breakfast, she came over to our table and bent down close and whispered, "Happy Independence Day."
     Indeed, it was the Fourth of July. We had forgotten.
     They do not celebrate it. There are no fireworks or parades. In fact, they do not seem excited about it at all.  We did not test this, however.
     The people of the UK did not lose the war, you know. Some read their history as the British people of America overthrew the bad King George and so the British actually won a civil war.
     I must admit that every July 4th for the last decade, I think of that young woman in the bed and breakfast in Crail and the secret, silent celebration we shared.

Lake Como, Italy

Near Lecco, Italy

Seaside, Oregon - The kites are up

The Columbia River Gorge - Multnomah Falls

Ceramic Italian Art

Switzerland - 160kph in the rain

what was that ... what as that ... what was that?

When you are driving very fast on an unfamiliar road in a raging rainstorm, it is interesting what you don't see.

Measuring Days of the year: Ireland

 

 



 

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Driving on the left

 

Someone asked what it is like to drive “on the wrong side of the road”. They meant driving in the United Kingdom, The Irish republic, or even Japan for that matter. Places where they drive on the left.

One finds zipping down an Irish back road at 100 km/h exciting not only because of driving on left, but because the roads are so narrow you are driving on the right as well.

The motorways are much like our highways. It does not bother you that the oncoming traffic is to your right. The more rural roads are nothing like ours.

Besides the obvious position of the steering wheel on the right and an often terrified passenger on your left, there are the sheep in the road.

It takes ten minutes or two on-coming trucks to get accustomed to being on the left. Dodging sheep takes longer.

The roads are often only wide enough for one car and we are not talking about a Hummer. Some people fold in their side mirrors, although this is illegal, because it makes it easier for two small cars to pass.

Hedges, houses and pubs are close to the road. This is based on the fact that the roads were originally for horse carts and pedestrians. There was no need for a set back.

The people warn you not to clip a hedge row because in every hedge there may be a stone fence or wall. There are no shoulders or ditches along the roads. Thus you cannot actually ditch a car. It is easier to stop at 30 km/h than to hit a wall.

So, you drive at 30 km/h a comfortable speed for people in Ireland. Their history is long and their commutes are short.

Besides sharing the road with sheep (cows, horses, chickens, and swans) there is also the occasional tractor or hay truck. In California a slow truck pulls to the right, which will not work in Ireland for two reasons. First, you should pull to the left and second there is nowhere to which you can pull.

Patience is the key to survival. The locals must be patient with those of us from other countries that drive on the wrong side of the road.

The Emotions of Ireland

Ireland has more than its share of great poets, novelists and playwrights.

In a land where emotions run high and are valued, it is easy to understand why literature is important. People allow themselves to laugh or cry when reading good work.

All over Ireland there are places where authors are remembered and celebrated. When you close a book or the curtain comes down, you feel as if you have taken a journey with the writer.

There is also something about the country that is both soulfully melancholy and wonderfully happy. It may be the rain which is followed by the sun. Whatever the weather, the land is indeed green, the lakes are blue, and the ocean as foamy as a Guinness pulled by the pint.

It is nice to be around people who allow their good humor and deep passion stay close to the surface. You not only know where you stand, but there is an intellectual culture that deals with every issue as if it were the most important.

The Irish talk about most any topic with skill and fervor.

Rarely in our American niceness do we raise our voice in zeal only to be accepted no matter if right or wrong. The Irish just buy a round for the privilege.

It is unfair to characterize the Irish as all gab and gulp. While drinking is a major social activity, it is not the main one. The Irish are creative, enlightened, and articulate. They know their world.

You have to know yourself and others when you have a history of being overrun by enemies and are no larger than West Virginia. In the end you learn to pull together so you are not pulled apart.

We could learn a lesson here. You let out emotion a little at a time rather than holding it back until it erupts. You learn first to laugh at yourself so you have bought the right to laugh at others.

On the whole, it is a place of good literature, good humor, and good food.

We can learn much from the Irish. The most important would be to learn to see how amusing we really are and how serious it is to live life to the fullest.

Tweed jacket in Ireland



So, we like to blend in when we go somewhere and my stereotype of Ireland was people walking around in tweed jackets.  So, I got a nice one for a trip in May. 1) I did not see another tweed jacket and 2) it was very warm and 3) wool is not great when wet. The photo above is from a parade in Kilkenny, Do you see anyone wearing tweed? - Except me... Verify stereotypes before leaving.

The Rev. Dr. Mike McLellan reminds you...

At altitude (7 - 9,000 feet) in Northern Italy, Austria, Germany and Switzerland it can be cool/cold/chilly even in August and September. We carry roll up windbreakers that start in a pack about the size of a burrito. You can also buy sweatshirts and fleece almost everywhere, but it will not help you to pack light. Also, especially at altitude you need a hat. This one is a foldable, crushable leather one from Australia.

(In another post I will tell you why not to wear tweed to Ireland.)

Famous art is everywhere.

 

 

So, you a walk into a church, almost any church and there is a Titian, a Tintoretto, maybe something by Leonardo. Almost no big deal.

You are wandering around and happen into a museum like the National Gallery in London or the Victoria and Albert and there is something you have seen in books for years. Or, you find a surprise by someone new..

 

 

Barons Court



Our home neighborhood is called Tennis Village and all of the streets are named after tennis venues. There are a variety of London references. Our street is "Barons Court". Cute. It is a stop on the Underground on the way to Heathrow. The picture above was taken through the window of the train - in a hurry - at the stop. We were on our way ... about 7,000 miles ... from one Barons Court to the other.

Baptistery Doors: Florence, Italy

 

 

The doors to the Baptistery in Florence are famous for their beauty and for telling the Biblical story in an age where few could read.  A person needed to be baptized in order to go across the narrow street into the Duomo , the large church where worship was held. In later churches, such as Westminster Abbey, the baptismal font is in the rear of the building. This is symbolic of entering the faith.

The pictures above show the reproduction doors outside of the Baptistery and the actual glided doors inside the protection of the Duomo Museum.

Califonia Coast

 

Whale migration

Pigeon Point

Pigeon Point on another day

Kircudbright, Scotland, UK

The ancient MacLellan* Castle

*aka McLellan Castle

Our shield

Our Tartan

Michelangelo's Moses, St. Peter in Chains, Rome

Funeral or cemetery art is a field of study that looks at the way humans decorate grave and tombs. Rome is full of the resting places of famous people. Some of the art used on these tombs is remarkable. People commissioned the great artists of their day to create these tombs.  Above is Michelangelo's Moses. Very impressive. For a little comparison see below. It is a cemetery along the Shannon River in Ireland.

 

Not so simple crosses.

Michelangelo

Michelangelo designed the vault of this church in Rome.

It is also pictured below.

 This is Michelangelo's second Pieta done when late in life and different from the one in the Vatican (this one is in Florence).

Then, there is his David below.

The accidemtal photographer

On the road between Innsbruck, Austria and Mittenfeld, Germany we pulled off to take some photos. It was a small pull out and the traffic was heavy. So, it was just a couple of quick shots before heading for the Autobahn and toward the west. I really like this shot, but it does not stand alone without explanation.