The catch-up files (it's like heinz in this piece!): dubs and flubs and elbow rubs

The next port we came to was Dublin, Ireland.  Most exciting for me, indeed, except I didn't see much of it.

You see, as I mentioned before, there are different responsibilities that a person has to maintain while on the
ship, such as boat drills.  Well, I knew that my lifeboat number was 9, and that my lifeboat number was not among the listed boats on the roster.  What I didn't know was that the first drill that happens after embark is one that you MUST go to- meaning, if your a newbie, you best be there.  As it was not my common knowledge, I missed the drill the day before and was dinged upon my attempt to leave the ship (as was my two dancer friends).  In other words, no shippy-offy time until we spoke to the chief officer.

The Chief officer was a friendly, but stern guy, so he had to punish us.  This meant re-doing a computer training module about ship safety that I had JUST completed three days prior.  It would have been fine, if it meant I could just take the test on the module and go, but ooooooooh no- this was one of those you-must-play-all-the-scenes-before-you-can-go-on modules. As such, we were not done until another hour later.  Ordinarily, this would still give us plenty of time, seeing as we were at port at 8AM.  But what entertainer do you know that purposely gets up at 8AM? And we weren't able to talk to the CO right away, so that meant leaving at 1PM.  A 20 minute shuttle later, and we were at the Dublin city center.

Dublin was alive- bigger than Cork, definitely, but not much different in substance, from what I saw.  Still full of fun peeps and pubs.  And great shopping.  I literally had time to grab a beer, a box of chocolates, and a stroll before I was out of time and needed to get to the last shuttle back.

Bye, Dublin.

We sailed across the channel to Cherbourg, France the next day.  It would be our only port in France.  Seeing as Cherbourg was another small town, several of us cast members decided to make the trek to Mont Saint-Michel- a tidal island castle. A world heritage site, it literally is a fortress town on an island in the middle of land that becomes a huge lake when the tide rolls in.  During the day, you can drive right up, and so we rented two cars and did just that (which took about 1 1/2 hours one way).

You've seen Beauty and the Beast, right?  No, I'm not talking about the television show, I'm talking about the Disney movie (okay, I've just dated myself with that one.....)  When you see Mont Saint-Michel, you imagine that Gaston is going to come barreling out of its gate to tell you how awesome he is and that Belle is already feeling the hot crotch for Beast up in some ballroom high up in the upper reaches of this very vertically built estate.  Of course, you'd be wrong, for while there were dungeons and brick roads a-plenty, and watch shops and bakeries galore (you want guard towers? They have twenty) But who cares?  No big deal- what was really great was the Monastery at the top.

Incorrect Disney Movie Reference aside.....

It was the Monastery/Abbey that completed the ragged peaks of this solitary fortress-mountain-island. Completed in the 8th century AD, the Abbey was literally the very tip of the iceberg, perfect for some of the most breathtaking views of the surrounding lowland swamps (and the nearby tourist shops).  I began following a tour group up the long and slightly narrow ascension street up to the entrance steps where I saw the bell tower imposing- well, not imposing- it was too beautiful for that.  It made its statement gracefully, calmly entering the conversation as Grace Kelly would enter into a room at a party. Tall and impressive, it was a bit separate from the rest of the Abbey, and the entrance was a little confusing.  There was a huge door which we were not allowed to enter next to a door that led to a museum and kind of souvenir shop, so the Abbey looked
irritatingly small.

"That's it???" I thought, "the monks just crawled up and communed in some crappy bell tower???"

 However, I found out the museum/shop was actually the foyer to a grand entrance square to the cathedral portion of the Abbey.  It was immense!  It was framed with viewing towers at its corner- which probably doubled as archer towers- and was almost as big as the cathedral itself.  Once inside, I found that the tip of the iceberg was the tip of the iceberg.

The cathedral was, of course, grandiose and filled with huge windows and high arched ceilings.  In the Romaneque style, it was complex in its simplicity, filled with mathematical and symbolic calculation formulated into fantastical spaces of reverence. While the cathedral was a beautiful focal point, there were so many other hidden treasures within the Abbey.  The windows, rather than being plied with artistic renditions of biblical lore, were filled with Escher-esque geometical patterns. Inside the fellowship hall were fireplaces- two of them- that were big enough to contain all thirty children on a school field trip who oohed and aahed at the height of the chimneys.  Further inside was a huge wooden wheel which was either used for a water mill, a bell pulley, or a midieval torture device- I'm not sure, and could be wrong on all counts, but c'est la vie. To sum up the experience, the Abbey was a labyrinth of awesome.

Okay- confession.  Whenever I walk into a church or religious structure of this stature, I hear Bach's "Air on a G String" played in my head.  My steps slow and my eyes rarely leave the heights of the architecture.  I marvel at human intention and reverence, and I am speechless with questions about engineering artistry.  And, I wonder how we can create such fantasia for God, while we muck up ourselves- and each other- on earth.  I know that we are human, and I know we aren't perfect.  But how is it we can see all the good in God, which created all of us (including the devil) and not somehow seek the good in ourselves and our brethren?  Why can we build such a monument to that greatness yet tear each other down?  I don't know- it just bothers me sometimes how we shit all over the creations that God made us the stewards of on Earth.  We're not supposed to be overlords, not to neglect, disregard, and take advantage of what we're given.

That applies to Earth and opportunity.

The catch-up files (it's like heinz in this piece!) The crossing part four: Land, ho!

So, on a misty May 24th morning, we landed in Cobh, Ireland- a quaint hamlet right on the coast.  It boasts a beautiful cathedral on a hill and lovely people.  Walking off the ship was a thrill unlike any I've had since I saw Venice for the first time in 1998.  The difference here is, not only had I survived seven days at sea as opposed to 15 hours of flight and car travel, I knew that this was the very first definitive example of how much my life had changed and how much I was about to do the same.

The port was located next to the town train station, which also held a mini-plaza of sorts. There were a few tourist shops inside and a small restaurant or two.  As I went into one of the souvenir shops, I noticed a rack full of postcards with last names and their Irish history on them.  With a hunch, I searched for my surname.  Sure enough, there was Jackson!  I really am Irish- at least partly, or maybe just due to the fact that some of my ancestors were owned by a rich Irish person.  Either way, when I wear the t-shirt that says "I'm the Irishman your mother warned you about" I can do so with pride.

But, I digress.....

We decided that, as lovely as Cobh was, it just wasn't big enough to whet the Irish whistle and boarded the train to Cork- a much bigger town that was approximately 20-30 min. away.  So much was already different being in Ireland- the language was different- I mean, Celtic, people- you might as well learn Russian.  The pronunciation is so much more different that you'd expect with your roman alphabet and Germanic/Latin sensibilities  People did not get much sun there, as to be expected.  But there is something about a pale dude with ice blue eyes and dark hair and brooding features that says ZING!  Of course, maybe that is just me.

Cork has a truly vibrant energy about it- and seems to be a very open place.  we walked from the train- truly the first outing I took with the majority of the cast- and made it to the ped mall.  Oh ped mall- the bain and love of my existence for two reasons- H&M and Zara.  Those two stores, for those of you not in the know, are SOOO much more appealing in Europe because they are SOOO much different.  Fashion, fashion, fashion- and well fitted at that, most of which you'd never find in the US.  I did control myself somewhat- getting only one shirt, one pair of pants and two belts.

Needing a caffeine fix, we stopped at a Costa Coffee- a northern European Starbucks-like chain with much more appeal. There, we chilled to a cappuccino and enjoyed feeling a bit bougie. I mean, I was travelling and being paid for it.  It just seemed exactly like what I had seen in the movies- I was having my Angelina Jolie moment.  Yes, I said Angelina. Why her and not Brad Pitt?  Because this is not a period drama- this was happening in real time.  Besides, could you see Brad having a coffee in Ireland, or slicing at someone in Greece?  I rest my case.

After about an hour, we decided to head back to Cobh so that we could be closer to the ship.  Upon arrival, we realized we had not gotten our fill of Irish beer and headed for a pub in town.  Lots of dogs wandering around in Cobh, and one made fast friends of Erwin until he knew he wasn't getting anything.  On to Vinnie he went, and followed us until we found a bar with a rowdy and decidedly confused crowd of men. 

"Arrr arr arrr ar arrrr!"  they said.  Then, one of them turned to Katelyn and Jessica- the two statuesque and gorgeous dancers and said "IT'S YOU!!!!" To this, the men started jumping up and down and yelling "AAARR AARRRR ARRRRR!" while waving for them to come in.  With such a wonderful greeting, we could do nothing more but accept their invitation and promptly head to the bar down the street where they were not.

A nice quiet pub and a nice quiet time, we had a beer or two and walked back to the ship.  I had just had my first adventure.  And it was exhilarating.  I didn't scale a peak or rescue a homeless man or drive 150mph or anything, but the thrill was still concrete, the air was fresh, and my mind was full of possibility.