going back to cali cali

Lower Ormond Quay

By coincidence the little coffee shop which currently provides my internet connection and my daily americano is called West Coast Coffee. I move half a world away and end up with a corner coffee shop that has the Golden Gate Bridge as the logo. Little comforts I guess.

 West Coast Coffee

the pits

 

what the heck 

Of all the things I’d have to adapt to in a foreign country I never imagined it would come to weird deodorant. In the U.S. we believe in stick deodorant. Every deodorant up and down the aisle at the grocery store is in the same form. Target has almost two whole aisles of deodorants--all sticks. It’s simple: you wipe it on, and you never think twice about what other forms deodorant could or should take. Once I saw an elderly woman buying a little green roll-on contraption labeled Ban. She was obviously from the dark and distant past when stick deodorant hadn’t been invented and being elderly, naturally feared modern technology. She probably still owned a black and white television console with dials instead of a channel changer.

Imagine my surprise when I arrived at Boots drugstore in Ireland and the aisle was filled with deodorants of all shapes and sizes…but not a single stick. I’ve tried to vary my deodorant habits in the past. I made the switch to Arm & Hammer aluminum-free deodorant about two years ago after using Secret for years. Except for the most intense of summer days it does the job. Once I even tried Tom’s Natural Deodorant and smelled bad for a whole week just to make a serious attempt. Never have I had to use a deodorant other than the standard stick.

My first instinct at Boots was to buy a little roll-on applicator only because it was the familiar Dove label and they had a citrus scent I liked. For some reason the idea of rolling a wet substance onto my armpit seemed creepy so roll-on was out of the question. I stood there dumbfounded in the aisle and as I stood, I noticed every woman reaching for tall hairspray-bottle deodorants with the utmost confidence. In the interest of experiencing all things authentic about Irish culture, I too chose a tall spray deodorant can. Today is my first day spraying my deodorant on and at 6:23pm I am happy to report success. Does anybody know how long one bottle of spray-on deodorant lasts?

a house on the river

Ha'penny Bridge on the Liffey

Look what I saw yesterday when I came out the front door! This river is just alive with activity. These Monopoly hotels and houses are an installment that is part of the Dublin Fringe Festival. You can read a little blurb about them here in The Irish Times.

ballymun adventure

 

IKEA in Ballymun 

 

As far as decor for the new apartment there are a few options. Most of the department stores like Arnott's, Dunnes, and Boyer's have bargain shops in the basement--bargain basement prices ha!--that sell last year's home goods. I also found a cute thrift store in Temple Bar called Lucy's Lounge that has some great stuff. Lucy is currently checking into a "gram" (record player) to see if it is functional for our living room. For the basics though, it's good old IKEA. We rode the bus out to Ballymun where the monstrosity lives.

 

 mattress pad because the current "mattress" doesn't have padding at all

It was the perfect time to learn how to use the bus and we figured out that the 6 EUR day pass was more expensive than if we had paid 2.20 EUR each way but would be useful for catching connecting buses on the same day. We also figured out that you need exact change if you dont plan on buying a day pass.

 

Ballymun is apparently Ireland's first carbon-neutral city. The signs all said so.

 

 

Ballymun's tracksuit boys

 

riding the double-decker bus

heart attack

Riding the double-decker bus in the rain almost gave me a heart attack. Trees were slapping the windshield, rain was gushing down the windows like a waterfall, and every turn felt like we'd go skidding on our side like a 1990 Geo Tracker. I may never ride on the second level again.

things are going swimmingly

 River Liffey

I stepped out of the front door yesterday and saw a huge crowd gathered on both sides of the river and all along the bridge. I have no idea why these crazy people are swimming in the Liffey. Frankly, the water is a little brown for me. I think it was a race since some people were cheering? No matter what the reason, all I could think was, 'what a fun thing to see on my doorstep!'

Millennium Walking Bridge

 

the guy in the kayak seemed to be a judge of some sort

home is where the heart is

 our apartment is right there--I'm not even kidding!

We found an apartment and moved in! I am glad to announce that we are no longer at that nasty hostel (a long story including a flood) and have a place to call home. It is in the most perfect, most adorable building right along the River Liffey! I cannot believe our luck. Except for the washer/dryer that doesn't dry clothes, things are going swimmingly. It's a little one-bedroom apartment with an entryway, a kitchen/laundry, a living room/dining area, and a bathroom.

 living room slash dining room

kitchen--yes that is the washing machine right in the middle!

bedroom with a wardrobe, still not quite as big as our old walk-in :(

 our sailboat bathroom

 

courtyard with lots of greenery

 

We are getting settled and while we wait on our internet connection to be set up, we mostly shop. We need towel racks--who makes a bathroom without a towel rack?!--an entryway table to put our wet shoes under, and some sort of coffee table. We're just trying to make it seem a little cozier and more like home.

lashing and spitting

 more Italian food-Dublin, Ireland

What a beautiful day in Dublin! To be fair, it rained buckets today but our good friend Rachel--a friend we made back in San Diego when she was on summer holiday in 2005--made a trip in from Carlow and spent the day apartment hunting with us. Not only did she make us feel right at home with her hospitality and good laughs, but she taught me all kinds of new vocabulary:

various types of rain = "spitting, lashing, pouring, gushing, etc."

umbrella = "brolly"

band-aid = "plaster"

lesson = "grind"
squishy = "squelshy"
eggplant = "courguette"
pickle = "gerkin"
quay is pronounced "key"
Guineys (a store) is pronounced "guy-knees"

Millennium Bridge, The River Liffey

view of Bachelors Walk from the Southside Quays

Waiting on this corner, Rachel and I got drenched with puddle water from the cars and buses flying by. We tried to share my "brolly" as much as possible but it was inside-out more than it was shielding us. We were soaked from just about the knees down. Hubby unfortunately discovered that his expensive Urban Outfitters raincoat does absolutely nothing to keep the rain out (figures). Even so, a rainy day spent with a familiar face in a city where everything is foreign was such a breath of fresh air. We could not stop smiling and were sad to leave Rachel at the train station again. Just as I was beginning to feel as if we didnt have a friend in the entire country, Rachel brought the sunshine to Dublin for us!

 a good laugh

sunshine

it's a small world after all

Thanks to Ann, a new friend I met through the Technology Literacy Collaborative, for the excellent tip about DUBLIN EVENT GUIDE (for Free Events). Dublin Event Guide (for Free Events)--yes that is the proper name--is an e-bulletin that goes out weekly about all the free events available in Dublin. The name says it all I suppose. A man named Joerg puts it together in his free time and anyone can subscribe for free. Obviously, Joerg is amazing.

I was overjoyed to read the events today. Are you kidding me? Chilean Film Festival?! Obviously we are going. I've already seen Subterra about a million times but I am interested in the others. Would you choose "The Good Life" on Monday, "Taxi for Three" on Tuesday, or "Sex with Love" on Thursday?

Chile al descubierto: Chilean Film Series As part of the celebrations to mark the bicentennial anniversary of the independence of Chile, the Instituto Cervantes Dublin and the Embassy of Chile in Ireland are proud to organize the first Chilean Cinema Season in Dublin to reflect the rich cinematographic creation of this Andean country. We hope that the four movies selected for this festival will give you a taste of diversity that characterizes Chilean cinema of the last decade, as well as help you understand the complex reality of contemporary Chilean society. Class struggle, submerged passions, urban picaresque, difficult emotions, family’s ins and outs, or the social contradictions of today’s Santiago are some of the themes confronted by the directors.

Del 06/09/2010 al 09/09/2010 (19:00 h)
Instituto Cervantes
Lincoln House, Lincoln Place
2 Dublin
(IRLANDA)

sustenance

Temple Bar-Dublin, Ireland

I cant believe I was worried about finding food in Dublin. Everywhere I look there are Chinese restaurants, Thai food, Himalayan, and Donor Kebap! On a fun little walk to the Temple Bar area, hubby and I passed by the most adorable little Indonesian hole-in-the-wall and vowed to try it out soon. What is Indonesian food anyway?

To celebrate our first night in Ireland though, we thought it was appropriate to eat at a pub. We tried a cute little place showing a soccer game at first but ended up at Finnegan's on O'Connell Street since they were the only ones serving food past 8:30 pm north of the river. It was a little fancier and more expensive than I expected so in the future we will have to eat at a normal hour. Still--a delicious ending to our first day!

 

my first Guinness on Irish soil

 fish + chips and mushy peas

hubby and his beloved Guinness

round and round we go

As we begin our apartment-hunting in Dublin we are caught in a chicken/egg scenario. The building managers are asking if we have an Irish bank account to pay the rent. The Bank of Ireland says we need to have an Irish address before we can open a bank account. So...we will probably contact our friend in Carlow and ask to use her address. If all goes well we want to be in an apartment by week's end.

For now, we are staying at the Abraham House hostel on Lower Gardiner Street. The hostel is pretty large and there are plenty of backpackers. Thankfully we were able to book a week in an ensuite which is a private room. Our room has three twin beds because it was the only room left with a private bathroom and shower--communal showers are gross, especially with the smelly creatures that usually stay at hostels. Thankfully I had the insight about smelly people because down in the luggage storage it reeks. It's a tiny room but far enough off the street to be quiet and with a huge rooftop window to keep things cool.

 Abraham House-Dublin, Ireland

We are using Ireland's version of craigslist at daft.ie to do most of our looking. Hubby has been checking it for months and the guy at Carphones (where I bought our new cell phone) confirmed that it's the best place to find a flat. We want a 1 bedroom furnished apartment in either Dublin 1 or Dublin 2 near to the bus line to hubby's university classes. Here are a few that we will follow up on tomorrow. Where do you think we should live?

Little Green

Two Balconies

White Mod

Zen Gardens

irish life

 Chariot Statue-Dublin, Ireland

Well we made it. We are in Ireland. So far it feels like we are on vacation. In the last few hours we heard the cab driver call a lot of people "gobshites", stored our luggage at the hostel, walked around Lower Gardiner Street, bought a cell phone at a place called Carphones, looked up apartments in the neighborhood, and visited the bank to see about opening an account.

Next steps: register with immigration, register with revenue, and start to call about apartments. Before any of that happens though, I am in need of a shower and a nap.

P.S. American Airlines fails to provide the following on international flights: seat-back video players, vegetarian meals, free alcoholic beverages, and friendly customer service. I highly recommend Air India for all your travel needs...

be ruthless

Of all the preparations to move across the ocean, getting rid of stuff was not what I dreaded Now I know better. This is worse than moving apartments: Hubby and I are waging all-out war on our possessions.

In the beginning I told people we would be "getting rid of everything". The words rolled out of my mouth as if it were a simple act to accomplish. It's just stuff, right? After two weeks of attempting to make the stuff disappear, I fully realize how difficult it is. There are sentimental attachments: My grandma crocheted afghan blankets for each person in my family and somehow I ended up with most of them. There are value attachments: Do you realize how much I paid for these shoes? My mind conjures up perfectly legitimate reasons to keep absolutely everything in sight. If I were at an Attachments Anonymous meeting tonight, I might confess to an evil daydream where all my husband's clothes "accidentally" go up in flames and I conveniently get to pack my things in the two checked suitcases allotted to him.

O

The dining room as of 08/22. Notice the empty bookcase!

What about storage? Well thanks to my generous in-laws we do have a corner of their basement set aside for about 8 large plastic bins. It just seems silly to store kitchen utensils (or shoes, a Nintendo, and my favorite dressy coat) in a basement for four years. If it were essential I'd take it with me and if it isn't then somebody else should enjoy it. My new motto is "be ruthless". I repeated that motto in my head this afternoon as my husband pried the tie-dyed bubble-letter mugs imprinted with our wedding date out of my hands and put them in the donate box. Mugs people! Dont even get me started on paperwork and letters.

For those that have asked, we are not shipping any belongings to Ireland. We dont have the extra money nor do we have the time to figure out how to do it. Furnished apartments (excuse me "flats") are the norm in Dublin and will be a huge help in getting situated quickly. Also, we have located the nearest IKEA. In the meantime, I will continue to be as ruthless as I can be. How are we doing so far? 11 days and counting.

where in the world?

How does one go about choosing a country to live in Europe? There are so many amazing cultures and you have to narrow it down if you are going to make any preparations. You have to be clear about your goals.

 Graffiti-Madrid, Spain

My goal for moving to Europe is to get a job and begin grad school a few years down the road. Also, my plans for grad school meant we'd need to be in a fairly large city that has a decent selection of universities with graduate programs.

My husband's plan for our adventure abroad was to go back to school and get his undergrad degree. He currently works as a job coach and employment specialist for people with developmental disabilities, helping them gain independence and function in the community. He has 5 years of experience in the field and is also a musician in multiple bands. For him, moving away is an excuse or maybe the freedom to pursue something completely different.

 Graffiti-London, England

Hue wanted to attend a local university and interact with fellow students from that country (as opposed to an American university largely segregated from the locals). He wants to teach English literature when we return to the states. All of that basically leaves London and Dublin. England has a higher cost of living and if we are to survive initially on our savings, an instant conversion to the UK's Pound Sterling (£) would be devastating. Today the national exchange rate reveals £1 = $1.52 and Ireland's currency the Euro is about twenty percent less at €1 = $1.24.

Dublin was the right choice for us. Nowadays I can explain it one sentence but it took awhile to get there: Ireland speaks English and England is too expensive.