I just landed in Denver about 8 hours ago. I am back in the states! The only problem is that it is 2am in Denver as I sit in my living room surrounded by boxes and suitcases and type this message. It’s 9am in Dublin, so my body thinks that it is day time. It will take a bit of re-adjustment.
My last week in Dublin was crazy. The bible study girls gave me a wonderful send off dinner on Monday. I am so thankful for the incredible friends I met in Dublin. I am planning to visit one of girls when she and her kids are home in Florida for Christmas.
The girls that I worked with gave me a beautiful Ireland picture book. They said they want me to look at it and miss Ireland and come back. I’m not so sure about the coming back to live, but I definitely wouldn’t rule out coming back to visit! J
Packing up and moving out of my apartment took a lot of logistical planning. In the end it went pretty smoothly, but it’s never easy or fun to pack up and move! I ended up shipping 5 Fedex boxes and they were all in Denver when I arrived. Now I just have to figure out where to find room for all the stuff in my house.
I want to thank all of you for reading my Ireland blog and I hope that you have enjoyed joining
me on this journey. It was an incredible opportunity to live in another country and travel. I thoroughly enjoyed my time, and I think that living in a different country and experiencing different people and cultures has influenced my world view.
Tara
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Germany & Austria
I just returned from a wonderful trip to Berlin, Germany and Vienna, Austria. Before I start writing I have to warn you that my spelling may not be accurate..the German words have way more letters than I am used to and also dots and such above letters that I can’t do on my US computer.
I met my parents in Berlin and traveled with them for a week. Berlin is a fascinating city and the wall that came down in my lifetime. It has so many museums that they call it “museum island”. We went to sites that my parents remember seeing on tv including Checkpoint Charlie, Brandenburg gate, we saw the Jewish memorial and new Jewish museum as well as the Pergamon museum, Egyptian museum and the Gemaldegalerie art museum and walked the Unter den Linden. The Kaiser Wilhelm church was left in ruins and a modern memorial was built around the ruins that are still standing. It is a visual reminder of the bombs that devastated so much of the city. We also visited Reichstag and toured the new glass dome on the top. One evening we listed to the Berlin symphony orchestra. We also enjoyed wonderful food including a Prussian soup with beets. It sounded weird, but it was actually very good. And we made a last minute stop at the KaDeWe – a famous shopping mall. It is the largest shopping mall on the European continent. My dad gave my Mom and I 20 min. to wander around..it was not enough time to do any serious damage J
We flew from Berlin to Vienna mid week and our time in Vienna was a mix of sightseeing and time with relatives. Josef and Sisi Herfert warmly welcomed us into their home and served my Dad a wonderful Austrian cake for his birthday! The cake is called and here is the description from Wikipedia..it was incredible!
“ The cake consists of two layers of dense, not overly sweet chocolate cake (traditionally a sponge cake) with a thin layer of apricot jam in the middle and dark chocolate icing with shreds of chocolate on the top and sides. It is traditionally served with whipped cream without any sugar in it, as most Viennese consider the Sachertorte too "dry" to be eaten on its own. “
I’m not the genealogy buff that my dad is, but here is the family connection as I understand it… Josef’s Grandfather and my Dad’s Great-Grandfather were brothers. My Dad’s great-greatfather immigrated to America and all of his siblings remained in Austria and many of their descendents are there today. Josef and Sisi took us sightseeing around Vienna to many churches and also the Hoffburg treasury which was incredible. My parents and I took the train out to Schonbrunn, which was the summer home of the Hapsburg family and is similar in grandeur to Versailles. We also took a tour of the Vienna opera house and listened to the Vienna Imperial Orchestra.
I only have 5 day s left in Dublin, so I am working on packing and cleaning my apartment and I will return to Colorado on Nov. 16. I can’t wait to see everyone at home!
I met my parents in Berlin and traveled with them for a week. Berlin is a fascinating city and the wall that came down in my lifetime. It has so many museums that they call it “museum island”. We went to sites that my parents remember seeing on tv including Checkpoint Charlie, Brandenburg gate, we saw the Jewish memorial and new Jewish museum as well as the Pergamon museum, Egyptian museum and the Gemaldegalerie art museum and walked the Unter den Linden. The Kaiser Wilhelm church was left in ruins and a modern memorial was built around the ruins that are still standing. It is a visual reminder of the bombs that devastated so much of the city. We also visited Reichstag and toured the new glass dome on the top. One evening we listed to the Berlin symphony orchestra. We also enjoyed wonderful food including a Prussian soup with beets. It sounded weird, but it was actually very good. And we made a last minute stop at the KaDeWe – a famous shopping mall. It is the largest shopping mall on the European continent. My dad gave my Mom and I 20 min. to wander around..it was not enough time to do any serious damage J
We flew from Berlin to Vienna mid week and our time in Vienna was a mix of sightseeing and time with relatives. Josef and Sisi Herfert warmly welcomed us into their home and served my Dad a wonderful Austrian cake for his birthday! The cake is called and here is the description from Wikipedia..it was incredible!
“ The cake consists of two layers of dense, not overly sweet chocolate cake (traditionally a sponge cake) with a thin layer of apricot jam in the middle and dark chocolate icing with shreds of chocolate on the top and sides. It is traditionally served with whipped cream without any sugar in it, as most Viennese consider the Sachertorte too "dry" to be eaten on its own. “
I’m not the genealogy buff that my dad is, but here is the family connection as I understand it… Josef’s Grandfather and my Dad’s Great-Grandfather were brothers. My Dad’s great-greatfather immigrated to America and all of his siblings remained in Austria and many of their descendents are there today. Josef and Sisi took us sightseeing around Vienna to many churches and also the Hoffburg treasury which was incredible. My parents and I took the train out to Schonbrunn, which was the summer home of the Hapsburg family and is similar in grandeur to Versailles. We also took a tour of the Vienna opera house and listened to the Vienna Imperial Orchestra.
I only have 5 day s left in Dublin, so I am working on packing and cleaning my apartment and I will return to Colorado on Nov. 16. I can’t wait to see everyone at home!
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Black Tie
Last week I received an email from the managing director of the Ireland office inviting me to a Black Tie Charity Ball sponsored by the Irish Canadian Business Association. My first reaction was OH NO I have nothing in Ireland to wear to something like that!!! I sat in my desk chair at work and realized the event was only 10 days away and one weekend is NOT enough time for me to find something suitable to wear and even if I did find something, it would be so ridiculously expensive. So, I called my mom in a panic and she went to my house gathered a dress, shoes, a handbag and a wrap and shipped it all to Ireland. Mom you are amazing!
The event was last night and it was fun! My company sponsored a table and some of us on assignment were invited...everyone else on assignment is from Canada, so they were pretty excited to hear the Canadian Ambassador speak. It is one of those nights that makes you feel like a little kid playing dress up. Apparently a tux in Ireland does not include the different versions like the vest. They consider that just a suit, so all the guys were in black tuxes with bow ties. There were beautiful ball gowns and of course the simple black dress. It was a night of wonderful food and they raised money for Crohn's disease research.
I head back to the states soon, so I need to start packing and preparing. I am flying to Germany to meet my parents tomorrow and spend the week traveling with them in Germany, Austria and Slovakia. Then one more week of work and I head home. I am getting excited to see family and friends and just to be in my own house and bed and to drive a car!!
The event was last night and it was fun! My company sponsored a table and some of us on assignment were invited...everyone else on assignment is from Canada, so they were pretty excited to hear the Canadian Ambassador speak. It is one of those nights that makes you feel like a little kid playing dress up. Apparently a tux in Ireland does not include the different versions like the vest. They consider that just a suit, so all the guys were in black tuxes with bow ties. There were beautiful ball gowns and of course the simple black dress. It was a night of wonderful food and they raised money for Crohn's disease research.
I head back to the states soon, so I need to start packing and preparing. I am flying to Germany to meet my parents tomorrow and spend the week traveling with them in Germany, Austria and Slovakia. Then one more week of work and I head home. I am getting excited to see family and friends and just to be in my own house and bed and to drive a car!!
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