Aran Islands; Arts Week!

I have an excuse this time -- there was a major hacker attack on eircom, the most common internet provider, and we had no internet last night. My other excuse is that I decided to complete one of my papers at the graduate level, so while it was completed, it is now only about half done. . .and I WAS SO ahead of the game!

On Sunday we were fortunate enough to have a beautiful excursion to the Aran Islands. We went to the biggest of the three, Inismor. The weather in the morning looked awful, and we were told it is always bad on the Islands, so imagine our surprise to arrive to sunshine (after an incredibly bumpy ferry ride)! When we arrived, we all got bikes -- and I must say, having not ridden a bike in over five years, I did very well! Berit takes the prize though -- she was snapping pics with one hand, and even had no hands for awhile (although I yelled at her because we were near a cliff with no railing -- it was the teacher in me, and now she can't stop making fun of me!) We biked along the sea through the countryside, viewing horses, cows, and even some seals -- what a combination! We came to a stop at the foot of a Bronze Age settlement called Dun Aonghus. As the pictures will show, it is a very unique place as a lot of the stone structures (like 15 foot-think walls) remain. There is also a protective "layer" of sharp stones sticking out of the ground surrounding the area to prevent attack -- very cool! (The whole landscape of the Aran Islands is basically stone with a bit of grass mixed in -- we've done a lot of reading about the incredibly hard work of those who use to farm this land, and I totally have a new appreciation for them after seeing it.) Anyway, the settlement is also right on a cliff, so we dared to lay down and get some beautiful pictures of the crashing sea below. I cannot express how rare it was that we had sunshine on the islands! We then biked back (subtext -- literal pain in the butt) to the little town below, and unfortunately did not have much time to look in the shops, but I'm told they are quite expensive anyway! The sea was much smoother coming back, thank goodness! I am, however, sunburned once again from the day. I'm telling you -- if you looked at the sky when we left, you'd have thought there would be no way we'd ever see the sun!

Yesterday was a good day as it was my first day at the Arts Festival. After a film showing of The Wind that Shakes the Barley, a horrifyingly brutal taste of Irish history, we headed for dinner and to see the play Blackbird. I almost didn't go knowing that the play was about sexual abuse, and after the movie I had seen enough depressing material for the day (we decided we all needed to play with puppies and kittens after it), but I am SO glad that I did -- it was a PHEMONOMINAL show; I LOVED it! Now I know this sounds weird given the material, but there was also a lot of love in the story, and the actors were both great. I also want to mention that I have been loving getting away from the conventional, proscenium, commercial US theater. Broadway is great, but there is something very intimate about smaller theaters, and while I know there are a ton of them in New York I don't seek out performances in them nearly enough. Anyway, it really is a fabulous play, and was a great way for me to kick off the festival.

Today there is much to do -- class most of the morning, a singing class and a seminar this afternoon, another movie showing at 4:00, and the play Palace of the End tonight. Lucky for me, tomorrow should be much lighter, so the goal is to finish my paper then. Check back later in the day for pics from the weekend -- I'm hoping to get them up this afternoon or evening for sure!