...Oops.

Hello all,

Sorry it's been so long since I've written. Let me see if I can catch up the last few weeks.

October: I did another race in Sligo, which was very hilly but a brilliant race, and I improved my time! John went away to Germany for work, and then for a stag (bachelor) party weekend in Wexford, so I was left to fend for myself a lot. At work we had our halloween party, which went over very well with the kiddies and staff alike. Then we started working on our Christmas play right after halloween!

I also joined a running club during October, and I am thoroughly enjoying it. I met some good people and its nice to be able to go out with a group. 

November: Nothing too exciting in November. Early in the month I ran a race in Athenry. It was a race only for members of Fit4Life, which is the program that runs my club and many clubs around the country. That was great, because it took a lot of the pressure off of the race. Again, we had an absolutely beautiful day. As I was approaching the finish line, I started to spring (as I always do at the end) to try to get the best time possible. Apparently the woman in front of me didn't like that, because she started sprinting as well and yelled "I'm not going to let you pass me!". I didn't even care about passing her- she needs to chill out!

After the race in Newcastle, Athenry.

Later in the month I did a 5 mile race with one of the girls from my running club. The day was gorgeous and we ran through Leenane. I had been to John's brothers 21st birthday a few nights before and I was still feeling that during the run!I was hoping to see John at the end of the finish line, but sure enough he was chatting away to someone that his family knows from a long time ago. Trust one of the Davises to find someone they knew in a random place!

Siobhan and I after our race 

The week following that race was Thanksgiving! It was very strange to be away from my family, but I made up for by going out for dinner with John's family. There is a restaurant here in Galway that is owned by an American, and he offered a Thanksgiving meal. It was delicious- unfortunately, my once large American stomach has shrunk to European standards and I couldn't even finish my dinner! The food was fantastic though, I'm so glad I found out about that place!

So much food!

The next week was very stressful for John and myself. He was best man for his friends wedding, and I was getting ready for the creche's Christmas play. We were both stressed, but everything really turned out alright. The wedding was beautiful, everyone love John's speech and the parents loved the Christmas play.

That's all for now! We are heading home for Christmas in about 2 and half weeks, and I can't wait!!!

Will try to be better about posting.

Lots of love!!

A little this, a little that

Hello readers,

The last week and a half have been pretty rough for John and I. Last week we both were really busy and stressed with work, with John having people in to review the project he's been working on and the daycare being down 3 people last week. Although it was nice to make some extra money from working extra hours, I am glad to have all the girls back at work!

Another hard thing is that John's granny Mary passed away over the weekend. She hasn't been in the best health for a long time, but it is still something you are never prepared for. We spent the last three days driving back and forth to Clifden (where John's granny is from) for the different funeral events. Although the atmosphere was heavy, it was nice to finally meet John's family! In Ireland it is customary for all your friends and family (from both sides) to visit the mourning family over the three days. So I got to meet almost ALL of John's family- which was great! Of all the Davis grandchildren, there is only one girl so she was glad to finally have another girl her age around!

We buried Granny in one of the most beautiful and unique graveyards I have ever seen. Basically, the graveyard is located on an island, and the only way to get there is to wait for the tide to go out and drive across the sand. We were incredibly lucky with the weather, it was gorgeous, sunny and incredibly warm! The ceremony was beautiful, and now Granny is in heaven with her husband.

In lighter news, I have another race coming this weekend! I bought some fancy under armour for it last week and I can't wait to break it out for this race. My running is definitely improving, and I'm really glad that I've had the determination to stick it out. I think it helped knowing that I did a long race already, and that I CAN run if I really want to!

I'll let you all know how it goes, and I hope anyone reading this is keeping well.

Lots of love,

Elizabeth

I took a run down the Salthill Prom on the day I-EH-I-EH!

So I wrote a while back that I had signed up for a 10k here in Galway. Today I ran that 10k, and I cannot feel the bottom half of my body.

I've been training for a few weeks now, but my running took quite a hit when I started working because I couldn't sleep in and go running whenever I felt like it anymore. John and I have started swimming after work everyday at a local pool, which is great because its low impact and a good way to build up the cardio. It probably really helped me through this weekend, as I wasn't really tired heart-wise just leg wise. So now I need to get better with the ol legs :)

Time chip!

For the kids!!

It was absolutely GORGEOUS weather today, a little windy but for the most part sunny and not too cold. The run went down the Salthill Prom which is right by the bay. It was great running and smelling the salty air, very calming and energizing at the same time.

I was surprised how easily I got into a stride. I was steady the whole way, with a little trouble on the 8th kilometre. We had to run out on a pier that juts out onto the bay, and there was a really bad head wind on the way down the pier. Once I turned around it was much better though, and at that point I could see the finish line so it was easy enough to finish.

I finished in 1 hour, 12 minutes and 57 seconds. I was really excited, because I haven't trained as much as I should have lately and I wasn't expecting to finish under 1 hour and half. I also raised 100 euro for Cancer Care West with the help of John's mom and her co-workers.

Maybe on the 2nd mile here? Still smiling :)

Struggle bus!!!

FTK!

Yum :)

I feel like absolute death right now. Must remember to stretch before I go to bed! Thanks to all of you who supported me and gave me advice :) Now stop reading my blog and go run!!

Next race: Sligo Women's 5k Race, October 17th!

Great Danes!

Some of you may have heard that I joined a choir here in Galway. It's true! Its Cois Cladaigh and it is a choir of about 40 men and women. I've been singing with them for about a month now, and we had our first concert last weekend! A Danish choir came to visit us for the night on their tour of Ireland. It was really interesting singing with them, especially because we were singing a) a song in Danish that I had never sung before and b) a version of Ave Maria arranged by their director! Both pieces were lovely, and the people were even nicer. One girl was quite talkative, but a little bit shy at the same time. And then they did their last song, a medley of spirituals again arranged by their director. And all of a sudden this girl just belted out a solo on these spirituals and all of our mouths dropped! She was really great, and you could tell she really loved singing.

The Danish Choir!

Great Scots!

Forgive me readers, for I have sinned. It has been many moons since my last blog. A lot has happened since then!

I got a job at a creche (daycare) as an after school teacher! Basically, the girls come to the creche from school, put on their play clothes, do their homework and then we do arts and crafts! It's challenging at times, as the girls get a lot of homework and I haven't done long division in years!! I am enjoying it a lot though, the women I work with are all really nice and we all help each other out!

About three weeks ago John and I headed to Scotland for my 'birthday' trip! We were in Edinburgh (the capital) for about two full days and we got A LOT done. On the Saturday morning we started off with a breakfast at our GREAT hostel, Caledonian Backpackers. Then we went up the Royal Mile to the castle, which sits on top of an old volcano! We went on the tour and got some great pictures of the city from the top.

View from the top of the castle

At the top of the castle is the Scottish War Memorial, which is an archive of all the Scots lost in the wars since WWI. I was fortunate enough to find my Great Uncle R. D. Cowan Stark's name after a little research from the staff. It was humbling seeing his name there, a man I was never privileged to meet. He was a volunteer with the Royal Air Force,lied about his age to enlist and was killed in 1941. I wish I could have taken a picture, but it was not allowed as it is a privacy issue for the other people in the book. His name is on the War Memorial Wall in Stirling, Scotland, so hopefully someday I will get there and pay tribute to him.

After the castle we went on a free walking tour of the city...but not before we got to witness another William of Orange Parade! Apparently we can't travel to the UK without bringing out the Protestants and their drums.

So on the walking tour we walked (duh) throughout the entire city, seeing things such as the Heart of Midlothian (where people used to have to pay taxes, and now they spit where the heart is), The Elephant Cafe- where Harry Potter was written (some of it :P) and the Covenanter's Tomb. The Covenanter's rebelled against the Monarchy who were trying to regain religious control of the country. There were thousands of them killed in the streets of Edinburgh.

Heart of Midlothian...minutes later someone hocked a loogie on it...

 We then went to dinner with the walking tour, and sat with a nice German man doing his engineering degree in Edinburgh. So what came from that? An hour and a half of engineers boring me to death. But we did try Haggis!!

Haggis! It actually wasn't that bad, kind of like sausage. The pepper sauce on it was WAY strong though, John struggled finishing it...I only had a bite :P 

 We went back to the hostel after dinner and then headed back up to the old town for the ghost tour! It was run by the same company that did the walking tour, and it was great! I did one when I was in Edinburgh last spring, and I was terrified afterwards. That tour had people jumping out at us throughout the walk, while the one John and I did was more about the history of the city and its hauntings and less about scaring people, which I appreciated!

The next day we went to the Elephant Cafe (where JK Rowling wrote some of the Harry Potter books) and had a nice a lunch...and I got a cool mug :)

Elephant Cafe :)

We finished our trip with a trip to the Museum of Scotland, which has artifacts dating back from the days of our favorite Scot, Robbie Bruce! It was interesting to see the fusion between Irish, Scottish and English heritage, as Scotland has been influenced by both of these cultures. It was also a good mix of kid-friendly activities and things that interest us older folks :P

We ended the trip with a dinner at TGIF's...I know I know, I should be enjoying the local cuisine. But seriously people it had been over THREE MONTHS since I had buffalo wings and blue cheese dressing. So step off my wings, and let me fly :P

More to come soon, I promise!!

Yikes!!

Hello all!

So since I've been in Ireland, I have taken up running more often. It started off as more of a thing to do when I was bored, which is a lot since I am unemployed. It also started off as more of a very slow jog, as I haven't really been in the shape that I should be in since maybe high school and even then I wasn't in great shape.

But I've taken action now! I signed up for the Galway Bay 10k, which is a race that benefits Cancer Care West here in Western Ireland. Its on October 2nd and starts in Salthill down by the bay, and actually ends right outside my house! This is the first race I've ever participated in, and I'm very excited to have a goal in mind for when I'm training. It helps knowing that there is something I'm working towards and that I really can't stop until I complete my goal. And then after that there will be bigger and better goals!

John and I are also trying to be more healthy...apart from the occasional mars bar :P My running has definitely improved though! I can run longer and faster than I could when I first moved here. If I just stick to it, I know I'll be able to finish the race! None of the runners/walkers/joggers are allowed to wear headphones and listen to music, so I am nervous about that bit. Music is one of the only things that helps me run, since it distracts me from the pain :P I'm going stop listening to my ipod the week before the race, so hopefully that will help!

One of my healthy meals :) Spicy glazed salmon, cous cous and sugar snap peas!

If anyone is interested in sponsoring me for the race, please email me at eahstark5@gmail.com! It's a flat rate donation and all of the money goes towards Cancer Care West!

Ketchup!

Hello all!

Sorry it's been a while since I posted anything, I've had a busy last few weeks!

Last week I had a bunch of job interviews, some at daycares and some at hotels. I've got a few promising leads, but I don't want to jinx it so just stay tuned to find out if I get a job! (Dun dun dun!!)

Earlier in the week John hunted down and bought me some Frank's Red Hot sauce so I could make buffalo wings for the upcoming Penn State game...too bad they don't sell chicken wings in Ireland!

This may look like a lot, but anyone who knows me and the 119 girls will understand that this is maybe 2 months worth of hot sauce :)

So last weekend Liam and Joy came down for a night so we could see them before they head off to Australia in a few weeks. I cooked a yummy dinner of salmon, mashed potatoes and sugar snap peas :) And then we started off with some pints...John had Beck's, Liam had Captain Morgan and I had Ben and Jerry's :)

We ventured our way into town, after Liam yelled at the taxi driver to a. Stop hitting on Joy and b."Stop swerving the car, ya taxi bastard!". If that gives you any indication as to how the night went, I shouldn't have to tell you much more than that!

The boys were so fascinated with the whiskey glasses that they didn't even notice Joy!

Yay girly drinks!!

After almost being thrown out of the Supermac's at the end of the night, I deem that night a success!!

More to come soon!!

Birthday weekend!!

On August 21 I celebrated my 22nd birthday, as well as my first birthday in Ireland! Needless to say, it was probably one of the best birthday's ever!

After John got home from work on Friday, we walked into town to go to Jalapeno's, a tex-mex restaurant in Galway. I've gone to tex-mex restaurants on my birthday for many years now, so I wanted a little taste of home. The restaurant was alright, I think Americans are a little spoiled when it comes to tex-mex food, as we have both Texans and Mexicans who can make it properly. It was nice to go on a date with John anyways though, even though the poor kid had really spicy food and spent the rest of the evening in the toilet.

We stopped at a bookstore on the way home, and John bought me a book by the woman who wrote "The Time Traveler's Wife", which I have been slowly chipping away at for the last few days. Its a great book called "Her Fearful Symmetry", I'll let you know how it is when I finish it! I also got an ice cream on the way home, so that was nice too :)

On Saturday we woke up late and lazed around the apartment. Then we went into town, being lazy and driving. This actually turned out for the best, as it started pissing rain on our way home. I shopped around Penney's for a birthday dress while John got his hair shorn. There's really no other way to put it, he had sheeps hair.

After shopping we stopped into John's friends house, who had just gotten back from Australia that afternoon. The poor kid was interrogated by John for the next twenty minutes, when all he really wanted to do was sleep.

John's good friend Joe stopped by after he had just climbed Croagh Patrick in an adventure race, which included a bicycle ride. I made lasagne for them (which proved to not be the best dinner for what happened later in the night), while also preparing for what would turn out to be an epic night!

Birthday Rainbow!

Around 930 our friends started showing up at the house, where we were just chatting and enjoying the evening, as well as consuming some beverages. We ventured into town to meet up with some other people and go to some clubs and pubs. The girls split up from the boys(minus one who was not in any state to go out and was sent home :( ) and went to club while the boys went to the pub. We met up with a stag party inside (aka bachelor party) and I tried to get them to buy us drinks, but they wouldn't :( Luckily I have great friends and we still had a fantastic time!

Maeve, Mags, Adah and myself :) 

To make a long story short, I had A LOT of fun. Too much fun, if you catch my drift, and I certainly paid for my fun that night AND the next morning. But it was totally worth it, and I'm looking forward to many more nights :) With maybe a little less "fun" though ;P

Derry and the Inishowen Peninsula

A couple weekends ago John and I ventured up to the north again for another cycle. His parents joined us so that was fun too!

The weekend started with us driving up to Donegal, where we stayed in this really nice B&B. The Donegal accent is the most difficult accent to understand in my opinion. I'd say its a combination of an Northern Irish accent and a Scottish accent. It took me a few times to understand what the owners of the B&B were saying, but they were friendly so they didn't mind at all!

On Saturday we went to Derry (or Londonderry if you're British :P ), which is part of the UK. The Apprentice Boys were marching, which created some tension between the Catholics and Protestants. Derry is known as the "walled city" as it is (you guessed it!) walls surrounding the entire city. Normally you can walk around the whole city just on the walls, but they had them blocked off to prevent any sort of violence.They also taped off all the trash cans, which was annoying!

Apprentice boys!

Yes that says IRA.

So we watched the parade from the one of the walls that was open. Afterward John's mom went to a guard and not only asked them when the trash cans would be uncovered, but also told them that she hoped the whole day "went off" well for them. Its a shock we didn't get chased out of town after that!

Franny made a friend!

We went for a really nice lunch after that, and walked around the city to look at the castle and everything.

Then we left Derry to drive around the Inishowen peninsula to see where John would be cycling the next day so we would know where to take pictures of him. The beaches there were absolutely beautiful- we really don't have water like that in the States! We stopped a lot, got out and took pictures, stopped and took more pictures. I'm surprised I had enough room on my camera!

The next day John woke up early and went to start his cycle. His parents and I woke up and had a nice breakfast before heading out to the top of the first hill. We met up with some other people who were there supporting the cyclists, so we had a good chat with them. Here's the hill they were coming up:

Now, John had injured his leg in the previous weekend, so we were expecting him to maybe stop after this hill, or maybe even walk it. But just like the trooper he is...

He made it!

And I met him at the top of a hill for a pat on the way back (no way I'm hugging him, he was already drenched in sweat!)

Yay! 

John's parents and I drove around the rest of the day trying to follow John. We went up to Malin Head, which is the northern most point of the island of Ireland.

Malin Head!

We finally caught up with John with about 20 more miles to go! We barely caught up with him at the last stop before he had to go finish the ride!

We met up at the finish line (after getting lost trying to find it :P ) where John had some much needed food and drink, as well as a VERY much needed shower. John's parents went on their way once we made sure he was still alive, and John and I made our way home. We stopped for some dinner at a little diner on the way, which was delicious (not nutritious) but John earned it!

 We also stopped at this pre-Christianity fort on top of a hill. It was beautiful and you could see so far away in the distance, I think up to four counties!

I fell :(

The view from the top!

More view!

It was a really spectacular weekend, filled with beautiful scenery and wonderful people! I'd recommend the area to anyone who visits Ireland! It's the best of the North and the South!

Belfast!

After another week of very frustrating bank and citizens information visits, John and I traveled to Belfast, Northern Ireland to visit some of his friends from college and work. It actually turned out to be a great weekend, as one of John's friends has a girlfriend who moved over from Wales to be with him, much like I moved from the States. It was nice to have someone who understood how I was feeling and she gave me some great advice about applying for jobs and everything. If only John still worked in Belfast!

We traveled up Saturday morning, getting to Belfast around 1:30pm and it was straight to the Ikea! After a delicious lunch of meatballs, fries and lingonberry sauce, we hit the store for some stuff for our house. We then spent the next hour and half arguing over plate colors, tupperware and the necessity of buying two massive whiskey glasses (John insisted). In the end we had a lot of nice things for the house, mostly for the kitchen. This made me happy since I am the one doing most of the cooking, as I can look up yummy recipes due to my jobless-ness. We stopped at Decathalon, a Dick's sporting goods-esque store. John drooled over the bike equipment while I pretended to know what all of it was for. We both purchased cloth swimming caps and goggles (which neither of us have used yet :P ).

The massive whiskey glasses John bought, compared to a wine glass.

 After Ikea, we checked into our hotel. Or at least we tried. The first place we went to, John kept telling the woman at the desk that he had used a website to book a room, and that he had a receipt for it but didn't print out. After checking several times, the woman said there was no reservation under his name. One euro in the public computer later, we found out that we indeed did book a hotel, but not the one we were standing in! So John apologized to the woman, tucked his tail between his legs and we walked to the correct hotel, where we were able to check in and rest for a while.

For dinner we met up with our friends Liam and Joy and had a delicious Indian dinner. We then walked over to a pub where John and his friends used to frequent when he worked there. After creeping on some people at a table, they finally left and we sat down, only to be joined by some very interesting older people. The man sitting next to me kept saying that I should drink more. I think he felt very self-conscious, as he was piss drunk and I could hardly understand him at all. From what I could understand, he was from England and came to visit his brother over in Belfast once a year. He kept pointing at his drinks and saying "It's only once a year love! Once a year!". I just smiled and nodded like I was comprehending more than every third word, and after the lads had their pints we walked down to meet some of John's other friends.

We didn't make it home til about 1am, which doesn't sound too late. But poor John had to wake up at 6am to do a 100-mile cycle in the Mourne, which has 11,000 feet of climbing! I slept in til about 10am, and watched tv in the hotel til I met up with Liam and Joy for lunch and shopping. I was really looking to try and buy some clothes that would help me fit in here, aka anything that's not jeans and Penn State shirt! Joy took me to Primark (or Penney's in Ireland), which is probably the best store in the world. It's dirt cheap, and great for trendy clothes. She picked out some clothes that I would NEVER have tried on, and I ended up with a few outfits for under fifty dollars! As she put it, she "Welshified" me, for which I am eternally grateful.

After shopping Joy and I went to the Ulster Museum while Liam went to the pub to watch the Man U match. Ulster is the northern province of the island of Ireland. The other three are Munster, Leinster, and Connacht (which is where we live). Belfast and the Ulster province have a dark modern history, more commonly known as The Troubles. In the 1970's, tensions between the Catholics and the Protestants were increasing, with the British forces open firing on peaceful protesters in Belfast (not a proud part of our history!). This is when the Irish Republican Army started setting off their infamous car bombs (not the drinks!), killing thousands of people over a 25 year span. While the two countries are mostly peaceful now, every now and again there are bomb threats or small bombs that go off around the city.

The Ulster Museum had a lot of information on The Troubles, as well as wildlife of Ireland and dinosaurs- my favorite! The museum didn't hold our interests for long, so we went back to the pub to meet Liam and eventually, a very tired John Davis. We decided to have a quick bite before heading back to Galway, in this little restaurant that Joy and Liam frequent. It was delicious! I had a burger, and John had a much needed steak with fries.

We made plans for Joy and Liam to come down to Galway, as they are leaving for Australia for a year or two in September. They will be here next weekend, and we can't wait to see them!

Next post: The Inishowen Peninsula!

The last of London

The next day in London was fairly uneventful (in some ways). We woke up, went to the same pub as the day before, and had a hearty breakfast again. And that is where John and I stayed for the next 11 hours! His friends left in the morning, and my friends came in throughout the day. One of my friends is doing her masters in London, so she stopped by, as well as some of my friends from the university where I studied last spring.

It was a really nice day, despite the lack of activity. I enjoyed catching up with people that I haven't seen in years while enjoying some Pimms (my new favorite drink!!!).

After stumbling back to our hostel and getting a semi-restful nights sleep, John and I checked out and decided to go to Buckingham Palace (since I didn't get there when I lived in London). We stumbled upon a free walking tour on the way, so we joined it and walked around London for the next three hours! It was so much nicer than a bus tour because we could go at our own pace, stop and take pictures and really get up close to things. Also, our tour guide was FANTASTIC! He was very charismatic, and the best part: he loves ketchup as much as I do!

The tour started at the Wellington Arch, and went to Buckingham Palace (where we got to see some of the changing of the guard!), Clarence House (where Prince Charles and the Princes live), St. James Palace, Churchhill's War rooms, the horse grounds, Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament.

After the tour we went for lunch at a pub, where we got a discount from being on the tour! Had a great fish and chips to finish off a great weekend in London!

We caught our flight home somewhat on time, so that was progress. The best part of the flight home was that John was wearing a Penn State t-shirt and some Americans yelled "WE ARE!" at him. He was completely shocked, but I covered him with a hearty "PENN STATE!". He's learned his lesson and knows how to properly respond now :) 

Wellington Arch

We weren't allowed to get close to them :( 

The changing of the guard

Our tour guide!

Tune in for the following weekends adventures: Being "Welshified" in Belfast!

London continued..

Roight! The first day in London was spent with a few of John's friends from university, as well as some other friends. We went to the local pub for a hearty brunch (I had fish and chips, as per usual) and then it was off to the match!

We made it to Emirates Stadium for the Emirates Cup during the second half of the Celtic-Lyon match. So the men drank and I took in the stadium. While not as big as my home stadium of Beaver Stadium, it was still an absolutely beautiful place to be. (See above) The game was nice, it was only a friendly match between Arsenal and AC Milan so there wasn't any blood thirst or anything (which personally I would have enjoyed :P).

After the game we went to the pub across the street for more drinking. There were people supporting all the different teams there, and after a few pints the singing commenced. Eventually, everyone was getting really annoyed with the Lyon supporters and they got thrown out on their French bums :)

We were then heading back to the hostel to change out of our Arsenal shirts as it might have started a fight if we went anywhere that Arsenal wasn't supported. The group got split up as the sober ones (John, myself, his friend Oisin and Oisin's friend Niall) went ahead to get back but got sidetracked looking for a toilet at the Finsbury Park tube station. The stop ended up being a bust, but we stumbled into this Irish pub across the way from the station, and they were playing traditional Irish music. We stayed there for the rest of the night, enjoying the "craic" (Irish for fun).

More London adventures to come later!!