Irish Travels

This is a little late, but better late than never.

Last week I was so lucky to have my mom and aunt visit for 7 days! Instead of celebrating American Thanksgiving we were traveling around Ireland staying in castles and eating potatoes!

We rented a car and headed out from Dublin. I have become a big fan of Irish Rail but to really see the island you need to rent a car. In classic Griswold Vacation style our rental car was about as big as a bike. My mom and I like to shop and both saved up (mentally and financially) for this week. Not that the car had any extra room to begin with, but we crammed stuff in every spare corner possible. By the final day I was buried in the backseat under bags, literally. Packing the car from destination to destination was like one big puzzle and served as a great form entertainment the entire week.

(not sure this picture really does the size of the car justice)

We started out in Waterford, which is in the south of the island.  For all of you lovers of fancy things, Waterford Crystal is a product of the small but powerful island of Ireland. The plant itself has had some trouble over the past few years (according to one man “you Americans aren’t buying this stuff like you used to”…I guess in recessions beautiful crystal is the first thing to go) but they still hold a small outfit in the company’s namesake, Waterford, Ireland.

We stayed in a converted castle on an island in the middle of the river that runs through the city. Cool stuff.

(Waterford Castle)

(They knew us well enough to put us in the Burg room. Hattiesburg represent!)

From Waterford we drove across the middle of the island cutting through Limerick and made a stop at Bunratty Castle. (starting to notice a theme here?) Bunratty is definitely a tourist stop, but that’s what we were and it was really neat. They created an entire village around a castle to show life in Ireland through the generations. I get the feeling it was the Irish version of Jamestown but that feeling doesn't have much weight because I've never been to Jamestown. 

(Mom and Aunt Deanna at Bunratty Castle)

After our pitstop we made it to the windy west of Ireland and Galway. We had a spot on Galway Bay so the wind was extra sharp. We spent a day in Galway on a tour that took us south of the city into County Clare and finished at the tour’s most famous stop, the Cliffs of Moher. The Cliffs of Moher are one of the iconic images of Ireland. They are an incredible display of land abruptly meeting sea. Unfortunately for us the weather was pretty terrible (foggy and raining-which is pretty typical for this time of year at the cliffs) but towards the end of our time at the Cliffs the fog opened up just a little and we got to see their magnitude.

(scary fact: on average about 15 people die every year at the Cliffs of Moher because of the powerful winds and people getting too close to the edge. This year there are been 12 deaths so far)

(With my Mama at the Cliffs of Moher)

(Other highlights of the tour included Celtic crosses...)

(AND a leprechaun! Like I said, we were tourists)

In Galway we spent a night at a local pub with all of three regulars but had a great time. We headed from Galway back to Dublin to finish up the week doing some more shopping and seeing St. Patrick’s and Kilmainham Jail (it was so good the first time, I had to go back).

(St. Patrick's Cathedral. The largest Anglican Cathedral in Ireland)

I was THANKFUL to have my aunt and mom with me for a week. I was happy to get to share some of Ireland with them as well as getting to see new parts of the island that I haven’t explored yet. I think my aunt and mom both had a great time and really like Ireland. My mom is planning on coming back in the spring and bringing my dad.

When they left, I got a little homesick. They reminded me how much I miss all the people that I love so much at home. But I’ll be home for a month in just two weeks and whenever I get homesick, I just remind myself that this experience far overpowers any brief moments I have of missing Mississippi and all its good people.

I’m off this weekend to Amsterdam! My maternal grandmother (who I’m eternally grateful for for teaching me acceptance and strength) was born in Holland and immigrated to the US following World War II.  So besides all the great things I’ve heard about Amsterdam being a really cool city, it has an extra special meaning for me. 

cheers,

 chelsea

#5 What I Read this Week and a lil listen

Sorry for being away from the blog for so long...you will hear why in the next few posts. But I'll just say that I've been traveling:)

As for my reading, this will be more of a multi-media post.

I just finished reading Eamonn McCann's book War and An Irish Town. It is all about Derry, Ireland and "The Troubles" told from McCann's perspective as an activist in Derry from the late 60s on. I feel like I'm been giving lots of history lately on the blog so to give you all a break on reading, I'll just say that the book was great!

To bring it all back to Mississippi (which I probably do way too often) reading War and An Irish Town would be like reading Local People, Radical Equations, or I've Got the Light of Freedom, or any of the major works that give a good understanding of the American Civil Rights Movement and are often told from the perspective of someone closely associated to the movement (Bob Moses more so than most).

In addition to the book, a professor turned me onto this online archive of info surrounding "The Troubles" and it is great! For anyone who is interested in learning more, give this site a browse...

http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/index.html

Since that is a relatively short post about what I've read I want to add in this little music bit.

Last night I saw a show in Dublin at the Academy. The Academy is one of the top music venues in Dublin and they have this great set up where they can have multiple shows going on at the same time. The show I saw was in the basement in what is their smallest venue. The room is surrounded by booths, christmas lights are hung everywhere and most corners are covered with curtains to give the entire place a really relaxed and mellow vibe. Has anyone ever seen Nickel Creek live when they play barefoot on rugs? Well this was like a Nickel Creek stage set but expanded to an entire room.

The main act, The Staves, are a sister trio whose harmonies bring to mind the scene from O' Brother Where Art Thou when the sirens are singing and washing the men in the river (I guess the trio thing plays a part in the look of the sirens but then their voices have a softness like Alison Krauss). They are good and very "up and coming" (I think this is probably how every band who plays in the basement at the Academy is described).

But my favorite portion of the night was a quick set from one of three opening bands, I Draw Slow. They have a terrible band name but give them the benefit of the doubt and give this a listen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kr1EJar5zGY

I sat thinking to myself that I could just as easily be listening to them play on a late Thursday afternoon at Thacker Mountain Radio as I could in a music venue in Dublin. They are the best modern representation I've heard of the strong connection between Appalachia folk/bluegrass and its roots in Ireland (from an Irish band that is).

Hope you enjoy! Lots more blog posts to come!

cheers,
 chelsea

Edinburgh-You Win

I went to Edinburgh,Scotland! Woop Woop!

One word to describe Edinburgh-"cool." Go visit if you ever have the chance because it will be well worth it. 

The entire city has a similar style of architecture and is based around a square at the town center so it makes for a really pretty place to visit and is easy to navigate. Edinburgh has a really cool, young sort of feel. People shop at nice stores and go to swanky restaurants yet it didn’t feel too pretentious. All in all, a great vibe.

We spent one of our days in the Highlands of Scotland looking at lots of lochs (lakes) and mountains. It was beautiful! AND, I rode a boat on Lochness but unfortunately, I did not see Nessy the Lochness monster.

The clan culture of Scotland is really neat to learn about. As a part of your clan, or family, your name and reputation hold a lot of weight. We heard stories about things that clans did hundreds of years ago and still in 2011 there are negative connotations for certain names because of that history. I can only imagine if we all had enough foresight to think in those terms how much calmer the Square would be on a football game weekend...

Clans also have neat plaids and often have castles. Overall, Scotland-I was presently surprised and I would go back!

Sad news from the trip-I spilled orange juice all over my camera and it stopped working. So I have no pictures from the trip. BUT, I have a friend who will rule the world one day and she was nice enough to be my photographer and send these along! Thanks Jess! 

And she has a really great camera and some solid photog skills so I really got lucky when it comes to spilling orange juice.

glamour shots by Jess

Scottish sheep

My mom and aunt are coming to visit Ireland next week and will be here through Thanksgiving! Then I'm off to Amsterdam for a weekend. Oh and somewhere in all of  that fun, I need to finish up my academic work for the semester. 

Cheers,

 Chelsea 

Derry v. Londonderry

Let me start with this story…and I hope it doesn’t get me in trouble if I go back to Northern Ireland.

My Dad, being the good Catholic man that he is, once gave me a tshirt that said “Catholics for a Free Northern Ireland.” At the time I had NO idea the extent of what that t-shirt stood for and it was only my time in Derry that put the real extent of that shirt in context. 

So to understand Derry I am going to attempt to highlight major points of Derry history in three paragraphs (there will be lots of links to learn more).

So to start out Derry is a place where history is present and still defines everyday life. This all starts with Derry being a “walled” city (the walls still exist and now while they are open and serve as an almost elevated sidewalk, they still remind the people of the place’s history everyday). In the 16th century the wall was used to keep the city's Protestants who were supporting William of Orange in his battle against the Catholic King James II safe. The Siege of Derry is the defining moment for the city and its walls in the 16th century. That sort of class and religious tension between Catholics and Protestants stays around (clearly I'm skipping a big piece of history) in all sorts of forms until it all explodes in the late 60s and from that explosion “The Troubles” really develop and shine an international light on Ireland. 

Several things happen in Derry in the late 1960s. In 1968 there is a Civil Rights March that becomes the first tide of change. The push for Civil Rights in the late 1960s in Derry largely stems from “jim-crow” esq voting restrictions that gave property holders a vote (and sometimes several votes depending on how much property). Historically, Catholics in Derry had not owned property and were treated like second class citizens. From an initial march in 68’ tensions begin to swell then in early 69’ protesters are brutally beaten on a bridge as they march to Belfast. So by spring of 69’ when it comes to marching season (parade time mostly used by protestant groups) tensions explode. The Bogside, which is the Catholic side of Derry decides they have had enough and for three days become what is know as Free Derry. They blockade the police from coming in and take claim to their area and it becomes known as the Battle of the Bogside.

Bogside, Derry

This was painted in 69' not long after the Battle of the Bogside

This stays true for several years as the Bogside becomes known as a no-go area for protestant loyalist police and military. Derry history continues to make international attention when Bloody Sunday happens in 72' when a over a dozen civil rights protesters are killed by British soldiers in the Bogside. Through the 70's and 80's Derry was a really dangerous place because of IRA and paramilitary activity of the two sides fighting for control of northern Ireland.

So that is a really rough and vague coverage of Derry history. A few interesting things to note... 

First, when trying to understand “The Troubles” from an American perspective there is often the question of how much is really centered around religion? Or is it really a republican vs. loyalists conflict? In 68’ when the first Civil Rights March happens nobody at that point is even talking about loyalists v. republicans. At that point the Catholics simply want to feel like full citizens of the UK. It really isn’t until 72' that the fight becomes one attached to nationalism.

Second, 1968 is an incredible year around the world.  In the USA, MLK and Bobby Kennedy are assassinated and the Tet Offensive is happening in Vietnam. It is a critical year of international unrest.

Third, the connection between what happens in the American Civil Rights Movement in 62’-65’ and the impact it has around the world in Derry, Ireland is something that I just can’t get over. One Man One Vote was used in Derry just like it was in Mississippi.

Sooooo all this leads to my time in Derry. Here are a couple things that I saw and heard that put into context just how much this divisive history still defines everyday life in Derry.

Most neighborhoods have the curbs painted with colors that show the neigborhood’s allegiance. In loyalist (pro-UK) neighborhoods the curbs are painted red, white and blue while in republican (pro-Ireland) neighborhoods the curbs are painted green, orange and white. The city is also filled with murals that depict the two sides of "The Troubles". Some of the murals have been created after the violence has ended but others actually served as neighborhood markers during the peak of violence (like the Free Derry sign above). 

Notice the curb at the bottom and the mural in the very loyalist neighborhood

                                            

George Washington even made a mural in Derry 

Not a great picture but MLK, Mother Theresa and Nelson Mandela-all in the Bogside! 

I was told by several people before I went to Derry not to openly talk about my faith or politics. So Dad, I'm glad I didn't bring my tshirt! Depending on who you talk to some would say that the violence with “The Troubles” is over but others like a man we talk to who lives in a Protestant neighborhood surrounded by Catholic neighborhoods (and who has an extensive collection of UK military paraphernalia) told us about rocks breaking his neighbors window just a few nights before.

Funny story. So Derick, being the good Wisconsin boy that he is, wanted a picture with the Miller bottle that you can barely see through the case. Then after taking the picture we both realized that the bottle is a petrol bomb that had been thrown in this Protestant loyalist neighborhood (the same neighborhood, and museum, where we saw the large stash of UK military paraphernalia). Suddenly the picture didn't seem as light hearted as the original...

I think there is probably some truth in both perspectives that you hear. By no means is Derry faced with the violence that it once was since the cease fire peace treaty in 1994 but this history is also still relatively new and it takes a long time for communities to heal. I think about Sumner, MS and the work of the Winter Institute in situations like these. 

Derry is the exact sort of clash of the past and present that makes me really attracted to places. Mississippi can be described in that way (though in someways I think Mississippi has progressed more than I always think) and South Africa has a similar story of relatively recent history.

Needless to say, I’m enthralled and next on my reading list is a book about Derry.

Also this is a great documentary that you can watch all the sections on youtube! 

self-timer again

OH and how could I forget, we stayed in a sweet little cottage on a farm and overall it was a fun weekend with sweet friends! 

cheers,

 Chelsea 

#4 What I Read this Week

After my week of reading Harper Lee I’ve dived into Ireland reading and haven’t looked back. I just finished Fintan O’Toole’s Ship of Fools.

O’Toole is a journalist who writes for the Irish Times and as a friend described him to me he is an “extreme moderate.” He is pretty liberal in the context of Irish “liberal” (which is probably worth an entire different blog post to explain) but he is still relatively mainstream. He writes for one of the most widely read papers and he doesn’t advocate complete redistribution of wealth-he really wants the wealthy to pay taxes.

This was a great read but I was glad to have read When the Luck of the Irish Ran Out first. Lynch’s book gave more background of who individuals were and how Irish systems operate. Toole’s book definetly gets into more of the nitty gritty so I was glad to already have a basic level of understanding. So if you don’t know a single thing about Ireland, don’t start with this book. You should read it but maybe after you have read a few other things.

Ship of Fools documents the widespread greed and corruption that took place during the Celtic Tiger years. It is great to really understand why the boom happened in the extreme way that it did and why nothing was done, on any level, to ensure a healthy economy after the bubble burst. According to Toole Irish politicians and bankers lived in a state of hazy ignorance in thinking that the economic boom would only continue to grow bigger, indefinetly.

The main lesson from Ship of Fools…

Toole promotes the theory that what brought the Celtic Tiger crashing down was exactly what people believed the Celtic Tiger was getting rid of, a 19th century Ireland.

He lists five main points to support this…

1.     “a primitive pre-modern land hunger created the new  feudalism in which an elite puffed up the price of land and inflated a fatal property boom”

2.     “the political system, most thoroughly rooted in Fianna Fail, remained rooted in the Tammany Hall politics of the nineteenth-century Irish-American Democratic Party machines.”

3.     “In business, and especially in banking, there remained an anarchic attitude to law and morality, rooted in both a colonial habit of playing games with authority and in a religious culture that saw sex , rather than money, as the currency of sin.”

4.     “The bourgesuie continued with its nineteenth-century attitude of valuing the professions above all, and certainly above science, maths and technology.”

5.     “And the heroic powers of denial, the ability to know and not know at the same time, that had been formed by peculiar circumstances of Irish history , remained remarkedly intact.”

     Really a great read! I feel well prepared for pub chats on the economy now. Hope all is well from wherever you are reading!

cheers,
 Chelsea 

Lord, I was born a ramblin' man

Just to give everyone a quick run down of upcoming travel plans…

My fall break is this coming week so I have a week off from classes and I’m going to spend it doing a bit of traveling.

I’m starting off the week in the Northern Ireland (so I officially have to cross a border, get new money, and enter the UK). A group of us are heading to Derry/Londonderry. It is typically called Derry by people who support the Republic and Londonderry by people loyal to the UK.  Derry supposedly has one of the biggest Halloween celebrations in Ireland. We have rented a cottage for a few days and are looking forward to all the festivities.

(Halloween in Derry ends with a huge firework show over the river in the center of town. This is from Derry last year)

After a few days in Derry I’m planning on heading over to Belfast for a day or two to see the sights of the city and drink a few pints with friends.

(Northern Ireland. Londonderry and Belfast-here I come!)

I’ll head back south to immediately turn around and fly to Edinburgh Scotland for the final part of the week.

So I’m not flying anywhere too far away but I’m excited to see a few new sights.

I also put the deposit down today for a surf trip to Morocco the final week in January. My middle school dreams are finally coming true! This is one of those trips that I don't will ever really seem real. Surfing in Morocco? Haha really? Yes really. 

I’ll be away from the blog for a while, but I’ll be sure to come home with lots of good updates!

PS. I’m living out another dream of mine on Halloween by being Penny Lane from Almost Famous. I have a friend with an equal love for Almost Famous so he is going to be William.  Life is good.

 (William and Penny. But I will not/nor will I ever wear a half top)

 cheers,

 Chelsea 

Longford Women's Link

I got to travel out from Maynooth last week with some of my classmates. We headed to Longford, Co. Longford to the Longford Women’s Link.  To say the least, it was inspiring.

The Longford Women’s Link is a non-profit situated in a rural town. One of the statistics that stuck with all of us is that the town of Longford has 7,000 residents, 5,000 of which are unemployed. The LWL founders realized the heavy impact such financial circumstances were having on the women of Longford and decided to create the program to provide a variety of resources to the local community. 

A part of the work at LWL that I really appreciated because of the rural work of the SCFP is that the LWL provides transport for the women who are participating in programs. Not only transport but they also provide childcare!  I'll say it again-childcare! And affordable (or sometimes free) childcare. I think the price and availability of childcare is a thing so often underestimated for single moms. (thanks to my mom for all the money spent over the years on that)

Once the women are at LWL’s facility they can participate in a variety of classes. The program is effectively functioning as a junior college in ways by providing technical training programs as well as personal development classes like sewing and entrepreneurship. 

Their childcare and educational programs would be impressive alone, but that is not all they do. They also serve as a resource center for women experiencing domestic violence and they have organized a women’s political group that makes sure the women of Longford are considered in the political decision making process.

All of that programming is impressive in its own right, but I walked away equally as impressed with their professional approach.

The real dilemma at the core of most small non-profits (Longford functions on 1.2 million a year, which for the breadth of their services is impressive) is that non-profits and the people who usually run them are built on an emotional appeal. Yet, it takes a very different ethos (or at least a lot of people feel it’s a very different ethos) to constantly market and fundraise for a non-profit. Self-promotion is a necessity of survival in the non-profit world, yet we are programmed to think that self-promotion takes away from the “do-good” nature of the work.

What I really liked about Longford Women’s Link was that they were honest and clear in every part of their message. The group of women who presented to us didn’t waste the whole time talking about the problems of Longford (which is such an easy hole to fall into-I actually found myself doing it in a class presentation about TALENT in Tallahatchie County the other day). They quickly said the problem, then clearly told us how they were working to fix it and the results they have seen so far. They knew their mission and could easily tell any group about it, which resulted in my class being able to walk away and repeat exactly what we heard. 

I got the impression that the staff at LWL had the perfect balance between this common problem of good work v. self promotion in non-profits. But towards the end of the session the executive director talked about their recent push to start fundraising (their multi-year grant is coming to an end) and how it has been a difficult mind-set to adjust to. She talked about how she just wasn't good at asking. I kind of smiled to myself and thought that this problem really does affect even what seem to be the best non-profits. Sure you get through them, and I have faith that LWL will, but they always exist to some extent. 

Lonford Women's Link

(and if you feel like giving a little, I know it would be greatly appreciated) 

Getting exposed to different non-profits really gets my mind turning about what I want to do when I get back to Mississippi...

cheers,

 Chelsea