Monday, May 30, 2016

GOOD GRIEF! AND GOOD NEWS!

Good Grief!

The next two paragraphs are old news for those of you who have been following this blog.  But the dates are important if you want to understand what can happen to an aging mind.  Actually, four aging minds.

I began planning this trip to Inisheer in November 2015 based upon a Guardian article on “10 Best European Islands You Probably Never Heard Of.”  I had filed that email in my 2016 Travel Folder, pulling it out when I began getting serious about planning my 75th birthday. 

Inisheer sounded attractive so I wrote the recommended B&B (South Aran) asking whether they’d have a room.  Booked it for eight days because they had eight terrific-sounding breakfasts on their web site.   In March or so I watched four artistic videos on the island and was certain I’d made a good choice.


May 21, four days (FOUR) before take-off for Ireland I see a photo of a pub in Inisheer.  The teeniest memory -- not a dream -- peeps out behind one of those cerebral folds in my brain.  Not déjà vu.   I think I was in that pub! 

So on May 21 I write to the three people I thought were there with me:  Judy (my step-sister), Roseann and Marguerite (friends).  We had gone to Ireland together for a trad music festival in Ennis with some scouting around afterward in County Clare.  


Hi.  Remember when we took a boat trip to see the Cliffs of Moher?  Didn't the boat take us to a little island where we walked around a bit.  And Roseann and I and maybe Marguerite had a Guiness in a bar close to the beech?  Look at this website and see if it rings any bells:  Little movie about Inisheer

Before or after the boat ride, we went to walk in the Burren.  (Be sure to roll the 'r's'.)  Judy and Marguerite sat somewhere talking about Christy Gray while Roseann and I did the walk:  Movie I Made About Walking in the Burren

Boy have I improved my photography and movie-making skills since I made that movie!

Jeez, I can't believe I might have done this!  r 


My dear sister writes back from Twickenham (England) immediately:
 

Gosh. It was exactly four years ago and it seems like only last month to me, probably because I still speak about it so much! What a lovely boat trip it was, and how I tried my damndest to see Puffins.

The Burren was memorable because it was so otherworldly.  I vividly remember talking to Marguerite about Christy Gray and enjoying myself.  I also remember every delicious meal, especially the French - fried sweet potatoes. It was wonderful on the boat ride when we hoped to see Dolphins, although they never materialised.


AND NEVER SHALL I FORGET THOSE FANTASTIC CHIEFTAINS----OR ANY OF THAT WONDERFUL MUSIC.


Seeing your lovely movie of The Burren brought it all back ----so powerful it is! 


Thank you, love Judy
 


Notice she does not say she remembers Inisheer?

Roseann writes back:



You are DEFINITELY not crazy but.....after thinking on this for two straight days, I have to admit I don't remember.  I DO remember being on the boat & passing the Cliffs of Moher (a bit of a choppy ride, as I recall) but can't remember the rest.

On the other hand, if you had a question about the Maine trip -- or the music trip to Ireland -- I can recall details of those trips better.   Sorry to not be able to help, Rosemary - but I enjoyed looking at the websites.

Ciao!


I guess I’ll find out when I get to Inisheer whether my "memory" is only a figment.

GOOD NEWS!

 

May 22.  I learn that a most lovely friend of mine, Nina, is coming to Inisheer from Germany for my birthday.  I had seen Nina near Thanksgiving, when she came to the States for some personal business and visited us in Bishop.  While there, she asked what I was doing for my 75th birthday.  When I told her, she declared enthusiastically, “I’ll come there to help celebrate your birthday!  At least I’ll try to come.”  

Nina has a difficult job in Germany with barely enough time to communicate, let alone plan holidays.  So I did not expect to hear from her.  And did not.  In mid-May I wrote that perhaps I could fly to Germany at Christmas time to see her.  If I had any travel money left.  


Then three days before I am to leave for Ireland, Nina writes that she and her partner have booked a plane and will be here on Inisheer on June 1! 
What an amazing present!  So now we will all sit on a rock and think deep thoughts (what I had originally planned for my birthday).  There are certainly plenty of rocks in Inisheer. 


FERRY TO INISHEER - May 27

My alarm AND wake-up call get me up before 6 AM so I can walk around aimlessly, supposedly packing, before breakfast, which is served at “half seven in the dining room.”  When I see about 57 people sitting around finishing their breakfast coffee or tea, I realize that “half seven” means 6:30, not 7:30. 
  
My ticket for the ferry bus says it will arrive at 9:30 but to get “there” 15 minutes beforehand.  I stand at the designated spot at 9 AM, watching people walking up and down the prom.  One brave soul swims in Galway Bay.  About 9:20 I am thinking it would be nice to pee someplace.  But I am afraid to leave my post.



At 9:40 I send an email to the Aran Ferry people, asking where the bus is.

At 9:50 a bus stops and tells me, “This bus is full already but a second bus will come in about five minutes.”  A very long ten minutes later a smaller, second bus comes.    Thank you, thank you!  I am afraid the ferry will leave without me.  Breathe!  There are 20 other people on the bus so it is unlikely the ferry will leave until we’ve all arrived.  I relax except for needing a loo.


As soon as I’ve gotten my suitcase put in the designated corner, I look for a toilet.  Whew! 




 Standing on the deck is terrific but so is dozing inside.  One of the mates tells me I will get off at the second island.




What has become of my suitcase?  There it is:  the pink strap with mooses on it is showing at the bottom of the pile. 



Most items for island pubs, restaurants, and stores come on a ferry. 

Interesting signage makes you wonder if the cute four-legged is a cat.


I check the weather on my phone while a pensive traveler watches "our" island approach.



Strong men lift our suitcases up onto the ferry landing.  Then they construct a gang plank for us passengers.




As they wrote, Enda and Maria are waiting for me at the pier,  in their dark blue Nissan.   Enda explains he must have a beat-up old car on the island; it has to be simple enough for local people to fix.   Like Cuba.

I take a picture of this large sign before I get in their vehicle.  It is the exact same sign I photographed in 2012.  The dolphin warning sign is new, however.  Enda says people have annoyed the dolphin so he annoys them back.  Later, Maria says dolphins are never friendly in the harbor. 
Sign I photographed in 2012

New Sign

In the winter, I had reserved a room for two people, just in case Nina would be able to get away from her job.  It’s a lovely place with bird song and breezes coming through the window. 


Enda says they’ll begin serving dinner at 6:30.  The menu gets my stomach juices going.


 I unpack quickly, grab my camera and go for a five mile walk, heading counter-clockwise around the island.  The flowers are stunning.  Here is a little bit of what I see, with a surprise toward the end.

Ox-Eye Daisy

Early Purple Orchid

Could it be some sort of saxifrage?

Germander Speedwell
 

Scarlet pimpernel.  Sure looks orange to me.

Greater Bird's Foot Trefoil (yellow) and Greater Stitchwort (white).  I think.

Bladder Campion

Bladder Campion Close-Up


Flowers grow in the "grykes" -- the sunken slits between flat limestone rocks.
I remember taking a photo of this memorial back in 2012

The smooth limestone blocks are called "clints."


Where is a tree when you need privacy?

Bloody Crane's Bill
Bloody Crane's Bill Close-Up
Hart's Tongue Fern

Primrose

Wish I knew Irish



Back in town, I see the "cat?" from the ferry.   Next, the beach.


A large public sign shows what is in the water.


A different sort of rock has indentations collecting ocean water when the tide is out:  tidal pools.

Limpets and Barnacles

Barnacles ON a Limpet

Mussels

Sea Anemones

Healthy Looking Anemone

 I learn that the local air service is extremely important for commerce and health.  It is partially paid for by the Irish government but some politicians want to end it.  Should that happen, elderly will suffer and some will lose their jobs. 



MY GOODNESS -- THE DOLPHIN!
 Heading back toward my cottage, I pass "our" pub.  My memory is real.  We were here in 2012 for sure.
The pub I remember -- finally!

At South Aran Restaurant (where Enda and Maria are owner-cooks) I am still shaking my head at the forgetfulness of four women.  I enjoy a beautifully seasoned lamb dinner, the best I have ever eaten. The sun does not set till 10 PM but somehow I fall asleep at 9:30.  I do not have to go anywhere until June 3.  I am beginning to feel at home.