My First...

The past few days have provided me with several firsts. Here they are.

I saw my first movie in Ireland. It may seem odd that I would spend my time here in a movie theatre, but I think that it is a really interesting way to immerse yourself in another culture. There are different protocols and processes that take place in movie theaters in different countries. I also wanted to see the movie, which is set in Ireland, with an Irish audience. It was a really enjoyable movie. It was The Guard with Bredan Gleeson (Madeye Moody) and Don Cheadle. It was a bit dark, but it was really enjoyable to hear the audience laugh at things that an American audience just wouldn't get. I also got to see a few places in the movie that I had seen on my trip.

I had my first up close experience with a bird of prey. After a trip to the Cliffs of Moher, and impressive cliff ace, and a drive through the Burren, a unique area of protruding rocks and extensive flora, I came to the Aillwee Cave and Bird of Prey Center. I was there for my hawk walk. I sat through a flight demonstration with an owl, an eagle and a hawk. Following the demo, I got to get up close with a Harris hawk named Eric. I spent an hour walking through the woods with Eric and James, an employee of the centre. He talked to me about Eric and kept my glove covered with pieces of chicken that would bring Eric soaring back to us. He was amazing. It was really a really cool experience.

I took my first plane ride in a small Cessna airplane. I opted for the flight out to one of the Aran Islands, Inis Mor. I knew that I would have already taken a few ferries, so I arranged for a different transportation option. It was only a 7 minute flight, but it was pleasant enough. This also provided me with my first experience with the negative side of Ireland's weather. My flint back to the mainland was delayed by an hour because of weather. It was not a terrible delay, and it could have been a lot worse if I would have had to wait for the ferry and then get a shuttle back to airport and my waiting car. I have been very fortunate when it comes to the weather. Several of my excursions, especially those out on smaller islands, are heavily dependent on good weather.

On the island, I took my first bike ride in probably 15 years. The bike is the primary means of getting around the island for all of the tourists. While I really enjoyed the island and the ancient ring fort, Dun Aenghus which is the primary attraction, I cannot say that I particularly enjoyed the bike ride. Since I don't ride often, I had no concept of how to use the gears effectively. I am sure that I ended up working twice as hard as I should have. This lead to my first blister on this trip. Considering how much walking I have done, I guess I can't be too surprised that it happened. The other drawback from the bike occurred on my way back to the airport. There was a little bit of rain for most of the morning, which meant that there was water on the roads. There wasn't enough to cause me to lose control, but there was enough to provide a small spray for most of the trip. This wouldn't have been a big deal, because I would have eventually dried out. The problem is, the second most used form transportation on this island is horse and cart. There is an unavoidable amount of horse, and I imagine some cattle, droppings all over the road. By the time I dropped off my bike, my khaki shorts had become speckled shorts. They are now safely stowed away, separate from the rest of my clothes, with the hope that they do not cause an agricultural incident when I go through customs on the way home.

My final first occurred when I was hiking back from a secluded fort, way out on a cliff on the island. I passed a family who were heading in opposite direction, back towards the fort, and they stopped to ask how far it was. For the first time since I got here, I responded to this person, who was Irish, in an Irish accent. I couldn't help it. It all happened so quickly. I had been able to fight it up to that point. Luckily, it was a very quick conversation. I don't know what it is, but I have a very strong urge to pick up whatever accent I am around. It doesn't matter if I am in the south, on the east coast, or in Ireland, my natural impulse is to sound like the people around me.

I also saw Kylemore Abbey. I hate it when something doesn't fit my theme.

Irish cider might be ok