Day 1: 9-2-09

So the big day finally arrived. Time to head west. I've been getting ready for a few weeks, but today was the official first day of my journey. Here is a narrative of the day, in pictures.

Leaving my house. The truck was pretty full...almost Beverly Hillbillies-style. I made the decision a few weeks ago to not rent a U-Haul truck or trailer. This forced me to make many difficult decisions about what to take and what to leave behind. Unfortunately, when it was all said and done, I had to leave behind my bike (which I use twice a year), my golf clubs (once a year) and crock-pot (never used). :'(

Here's a picture of Thomas and me just before we left. We were about 5 minutes away when we had to return for some forgotten items. Thomas was really good natured about the fact that I had planned on a 10am departure and we didn't actually get on the road until 1:50pm. Believe it or not, that's a 1 hour 10 minute improvement over last year.

We stopped for gas outside of Columbia at a Conoco station that also doubled at Larry's Boots.

While I was filling up, Thomas managed to get into a somewhat heated debate about religion on Facebook using his new "Space Phone." The Space Phone proved very useful. We were able to listen to mlb.com streaming the baseball game as we drove through Middle-of-Nowhere, KS.

We made a quick stop by the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in Topeka on the way to Taco Bell.

I spotted this cool looking Pancake House in Topeka.

Breathtaking sunset over beautiful mid-Kansas.

Look what immediately greeted me upon my arrival in lovely Burlington, CO (see last post).

That's pretty much it for today. Tomorrow we'll be in Denver and up in the Rocky Mountains. I will post another update tomorrow night if there is internet at our next hotel.

the beginnings of a road trip

So I'm planning a trip out west and am looking at motels to stay at along the way. I think we'll be staying in the middle-of-nowhere, Kansas the first night. This is the photo for the least expensive place I could find. I guess the fact that the motel chooses to feature 4 withered houseplants as their main photo probably indicates that their room service menu is not too extensive.

And you thought you had a strict father...

After making last minute reservations at a local hostel, Andrew and I aimlessly wandered around Galway for the better half of an afternoon while Tom went fishing and hobnobbed with street performers. We were on a deserted side street when I spotted a creepy skull and crossbones carved into a wall. It appeared to be part of some sort of memorial, but the descriptions carved into the stone were faded and discolored, so it was impossible to know what the memorial commemorated. Thanks to the magic of PhotoEditor and the internet, I can fill in the details.

"The Lynch Memorial Window"

As legend has it, this window marks the spot where the Mayor of Galway, James Lynch Fitzstephen, hanged his own son in 1493. His son Walter murdered a Spanish guest of the family, and gave himself up to his dad, Galway's mayor and the town's chief magistrate. Everyone in town liked Walter. When his father convicted him and sentenced him to death, a mob demanded Walter's pardon and tried to rescue him. The Mayor, Walter and the bailiffs couldn't reach the place of execution because of the large pro-Walter crown demanding his release. Enraged, the Mayor took his son inside their nearby house, took him upstairs, tied a rope around his neck, and threw him out the window. Walter hanged to death in full view of the crowd below. The legend (several different versions of which I found online) serves to show that "the enforcement of the law was more important than the bonds of family." Some people believe that the word "lynch" comes from this event.

"This memorial of the stern and unbending justice of the chief magistrate of this city, James Lynch Fitzstephen, elected mayor A. D. 1493, who condemned and executed his own guilty son, Walter, on this spot, has been restored to its ancient site A. D. 1854, with the approval of the Town Commissioners, by their Chairman, Very Rev. Peter Daly, P. P., and Vicar of St. Nicholas."

"1524: Remember deathe, vaniti of vaniti and al is but vaniti"

Cool looking door located nearby

Belfast demonstration

Whatever street we were on in Belfast must have been a designated "protest street" because when we went by later in the day, there was another demonstration going on. This one was more like a parade, as there were a lot of children marchers and banners. The chants were not in English. Our tour guide said they were advocating for traditional Irish (Gaelic) to be taught in schools.

Since we were in Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK, I don't think spoken Irish was required in the schools. However, down in Cork (and maybe the rest of the Republic of Ireland) I think that every school kid learns Irish and actually has to take an Irish proficiency test on the college entrance exams. Just as a casual observer, it seems to me that the language issue is deeply rooted in the politics and history of the island, rather than in education or language. Even in Cork where everyone had studied Irish, very few people actually spoke it. Preserving the native language seems to be more of a point of national pride or national heritage...which I think is a good thing in a place with such a fascinating and complex history. As to whether school kids should be made to learn Irish, who knows?

Belfast protest

When we were in Belfast, we happened upon a protest in front of Subway (the sandwich shop, not the Metro) on one of the main streets downtown. They were protesting workers' rights...something about pregnant women and immigrant workers not getting equal pay or equal treatment. Like most of Belfast, there was a heavy police presence. So of course, I took alot of pictures of the goings on.

Mmmmmm....Burger King...

Tom's Cheer

Goooooooooooooooooooooo....pit stains!!

Norway: Royal Palace, etc.

Here's a video clip I shot of a motorcade we saw in Oslo, Norway. The cars were headed towards the Royal Palace. So maybe the crown-prince was in the limo. It's mildly interesting.

The Royal Palace, Oslo

Guards

A guard locked himself out of the house

Oslo po-po

London Metro (Underground)

Here is the famous logo of the London Underground.

Some of the Underground stations in London, like the one here, look just like storefronts or shops from the outside. But only you'd get on an escalator, go down below, and pay like $6 for a ride.

Vatican City, Rome, etc.

In honor of Easter Sunday, I thought I'd put up some pics of Vatican City from our visit to Rome. When I was hunting for them in my Italy folder, I came across some other Italy pics I don't think I ever posted...so consider this a sort of Rome grab-bag.

St. Peter's Basilica...it was rainy and at night, so my pictures of Vatican City didn't turn out all that great. And by the time we made it up to the door, visiting hours were over.

I think that the pope's apartment is the lighted couple of windows on the top floor on the far right.

Caught in the rain.

Caught in the rain again. You can see 2 street vendors trying to sell us roses behind the guy in blue.

In our hostel's tiny euro elevator.

Rome Metro (subway) sign.

In the Termini metro station, waiting for the train. It's Halloween, hence the ladies are wearing masks.

The Colosseo metro stop.

Random street protest. I think they were protesting something about higher university tuition costs or school fees. We also saw protests in Istanbul and I think a few in Ireland. Maybe I'll have to start another category...

Paris Metro

Along with lifeguard shacks and police cars, I also find myself taking alot of pictures of big city transport-related things whenever I travel: subway signs, buses, trains, etc. Here are a few pictures of Metro entrances around Paris.

This stop is near the Champs-Élysées.

This stop is near Hotel de Ville and Claire's Accessories. Coincidentally, Claire's Accessories loses more merchandise to shoplifting than any other store (in Cork, Ireland) according to a probabtion officer who spoke in our Criminal Justice clinic. I guess pre-teen girls just can't keep their hands off that awesome costume jewelry from China.

The sign/Metro stop (pictured above and below) is famous. It's on several of the stops near Pigalle (the red light district) and Montmartre. I think this particular stop is Anvers.

Canal Saint-Martin

The Canal Saint-Martin in a 4.5 km canal in Paris dating back to the days of Napoleon I. It opened in 1825, shortcutting a long loop in the River Siene. The canal is located on the eastern side of Paris in the 10th arrondissement, right next to Thomas' apartment for the semester. Nowadays, as far as I can tell, it is primarily used as a hangout spot and tour boat route. The most impressive part of the whole operation was the old-style pivoting road bridges and locks that allowed the boats to pass thru.

Here, the van is stopped on the stationary part of the road, while the rest of the road deck has swings out across the canal to the other side of the road.

How does a boat float uphill? Here's how... In this shot, I'm standing on a pedestrian bridge over the canal, right in front of one of the locks (or is it a dam?). You can see the doors holding in the water from the section above. There are a bunch of spectators on the next pedestrian bridge waiting to watch the tour boat pass thru.

This is a view of the road bridge, canal, and steps to the pedestrian bridge from the window of Thomas' apartment. Whenever a tour boat would pass, the booming French voice of the boat tour guide would fill the apartment.

Here comes the tour boat off in the distance. The car barriers are coming down.

Here, the road has swung off to the left and out of the way.

The tour boat passes thru the open road and under the pedestrian bridge.

Now I'm looking off the other side of the bridge. The boat is in the lock in the picture above. The doors open slowly, the water level rises, and the boat floats to the top.

Paris Police

Police picture #2: Here's a cop in Paris busting a businessman on a Vespa. Apparently his tie didn't match his socks. They'll pull you over for that kind of thing in Paris.

Off With Your Head

This unfortunate bishop lost his head and is now immortalized on the front facade of the Notre Dame de Paris. According to someone's Fickr comment board, it is St. Denis, bishop of Paris in the 3rd century, who was beheaded for being too good at converting people to Christianity.