The Great Escape

Excited about the chance!

When planning this journey we discussed trying new things. We said we would put our fears aside and give something back in exchange for the chance to learn. One of the ways we wanted this idea to manifest itself was through working on an organic farm as a WWOOFer, worldwide organic farm organization volunteer. We would volunteer to work on a farm in exchange for room and board....not money. Working with our hands, outside, while learning the skills of farming, animal husbandry, making cheese, or wine......anyone of the above would have been magical compared to the place we ended up.

Hunting for the right place...or any place.....

We sent out 35 emails to different farms about coming to work for them. Getting in contact with them was a little tricky considering we did not sign up for the offical WWOOFing website because the dues are high and we agreed we should not pay to volunteer somewhere. Ross found a dated list of emails of farms that accepted WWOOFers. Out of 35 we received 5 emails back, two were offers and three were letters of regret for not needing help. We agreed to work on Fern Hill Farm in Lisdoovarna, Ireland from August 20- September 30. What were we thinking??? Our communication with the owner transpired in four emails, we asked just a few questions; but nothing about our room, wifi, or food. We did not even ask what our duties would include. We did not want to seem needy so we just left it at will be there around noon. She filled our heads with ideal images of live Irish music in the farm house nightly, the chance to learn how to cook traditional Irish meals, and the opportunity to garden and work with cows.

Fern Hill Farm House 

The Nightmare Unfolds.....

We received a 30 second greet upon arrival and were told to wait while she took care of a few things. Patients is what she asked for....so patients is what she got. The owner of the farm had told us we would have fun working at her farm. She needed us through the end of September because of the annual Match Making Festival in Lisdoovarna. The population goes from around 2,000 to 40,000 people and she was booked solid. Oh yeah if I forgot to mention she runs a bed and breakfast, farming cattle for sale is a second income. We were to clean, cook, do laundry, and take care of the lawn maintenance... there would be no farming.

There were three young adults working for her when we arrived; two guys one French and one Italian, as well as one female, from Spain who was leaving the next day. They all were there to practice English while on summer break from school. The guys were nice, they told us what to expect, we had one week with them before they too left to go home. They told us that they had been living off toast and tea for two months because she serves molded out of date food. She would cook us the same meals every day: breakfast was toast, lunch was fried egg, sausage, and beans, and for dinner either breakfast again or spaghetti. We did not need to be told how dirty everything was because when we cleaned the kitchen my eyes wandered from one disgusting mess to another. From bowls of rotting fruit to dried egg yolk inside the dish cabinet. My stomach sank.

Ross and I had some down time later in the day so we brought our computers inside to use the prehistoric DLS internet. We were only online for 30 minutes before she made it very clear that she does not want us online nor does she want our computers in the house at all. Her dislike of technology also explains why I have limited pictures of this experience

It gets better! The broken bed in our room made us miss sleeping in the Kangoo. The walls were neon yellow covered in cob webs and there was a bathroom sink oddly placed in the room. After working with the guys earlier I learned that they do not wash the comforters on the bed just the sheets, therefore I did not want to sleep under the mildew scented bedding. There we were trying to sleep in the cold, sinking into a broken bed, and dreading waking up to serve morning breakfast at 8:00 am.

                                              

The boss overslept, leaving me in the rain outside her window knocking on it to wake her up. Ten minutes I waited and my can do mood slipped away from me. She has a demanding snappy tone about her and she barks orders instead of asking; which I did not respond well to after a sleepless night.

There only a few guest and I have over ten years experience in the food service industry so a few breakfast orders should have been a breeze. I have never seen anything like it....it was like she hated having guest to serve breakfast to. Everything they asked for was a hassle or she would gripe about how needy they were being. She advertises a full traditional Irish breakfast and here she was offering bacon and eggs. The worse part was she was not bitching at the guest, she was taking her attitude out on me.

There was a request for yogurt and she pulled out two tubs. As she pulled pack the seals she noticed mold on the top of each; so she took a spoon and scrapped it off and placed it on a plate for me to serve.

The final strike

Breakfast was over, I cleaned the kitchen, put the dishes away, and reset the tables. It was almost 11:45 am time for guest to check out. The boss requested that I go tell the guest in the sun shine room that it was time to check out. These were the same guest that the boss had me lie to yesterday about the shower being broken in the sunshine room, the nicest room she has, because she did not want two men to sleep in the suit together. The men were return guest who had stayed in that room last week, that is when she noticed they may have been gay and one of them smoked. After raising the price on them and the lie about the shower, they still wanted the room. Now I was being told to kick them out also. I did not think so! I went over leading her to believe I was asking them to hurry up. I ended up telling them I am sorry she is so rude after I was asked what was up her ass. Then the truth came about. She does not change the bedding in between different guest staying. She serves moldy spoiled food to her guest for breakfast.  She yelled at Ross and I for having our computers in her house.  We were only permitted to eat toast unless she cooked us something else which would have also been rotten food.  There is quite a bit more bullshit but those are the highlights. My husband and I have only been here 36 hours and I dont think it is going to work out. Damn it felt good to say that! I had made up my mind through ranting to the shocked guest that we were leaving.

The Escape

This is not a farm like we intended. Her cows are for selling she doe not even milk them. We were not going to learn anything about farming or Irish cooking so it was pointless for us to stay and be verbally abused. 

So after three days we decided to go into town for lunch to eat some real food( which pissed her off so much she was slamming shit) and while we were out we planned our escape....

When we returned from lunch Ross pulled the Kangoo right in front of our room door.  I took a quick shower and packed our stuff. Ross went inside to stall her while I loaded the car.  She had asked him to cut the lawn and when he walked back inside she asked..." Are you finished already?" Ross said, " No we have changed our minds. This is not going to workout for us because you are rude and we came here under false pretenses.  Perhaps if you did  not yell at us we would not be going.  We gave you plenty of chances to be nice and make us think you were tolerable but it is obvious your not so we are leaving.....NOW"    

She tried saying, " But I dont mean to be" blah blah blah.  And we peeled out of her drive way. It was not the experience we expected but it was one we will not forget.  

Lasting Memories in Lurgan, Ireland

August 11, 2013

Sunday supplied the perfect amount of sunshine, just enough to make ya want to go outside. We decided to take Kevin up on his offer to take us to his son's Gaelic Football game, that happened to be the championship of the season. Gaelic football seemed like a blend between soccer and basketball. You have to dribble the ball off your foot after every fourth stride you take while running the ball down the field.








There is a netted goal box as well as a pair of field goal pylons. Scores made in the netted goal are worth 3 points and scores made in between the pylons are worth 1 point. The game requires constant movement of all the players. While I am sure the strong winds felt good after all that running it surly was an obstacle for the players to overcome. After two halves, about 45 minutes each, the game was over. Although our team was not victorious, learning about a traditional Irish sport was a win for Ross and myself.

August 13, 2013

Today was our first and last day as Smuggler Fish & Chip Shop employees. We had one shift to learn all about the business of running a fish and chip shop. We did not want to be late but were not given a time to arrive. We thought 9:30 am would be good so we did not miss the preparation work involved to before open at 11:00 am. Both wearing our navy blue Mr. & Mrs. Courage tee shirts with notebook and camera as well, we marched into the the shop ready to learn. Our uniform was completed after receiving our black and white stripped apron.

Their industrial potato peeler

                                           

Big bin after being peeled.
Small basket after being chipped.

Kevin walked us through each step involved in preparing the batter, how to fry the fish, and how to prepare the chips(aka french fries). He was not shy about sharing tricks of the trade that he has learned over the last 20+ years in the business. He allowed Ross to ask him questions about budgeting, reasons he used specific ingredients over other, and about their initial start up cost.

Next it was time to go through the motions and get our hands messy. We watched Kevin demonstrate the first batch then we gave it a try. There really is nothing to the actual process, frying food is fairly simple but knowing the whole operation of running your own successful business takes time. We are grateful for the experience and hope to apply out knowledge one day by owning our own little fish and chip business in the USA.

Finished Product

August 14, 2013

On our last outing with Kevin & Trish they took us to see the Moran Mountains, Kilkeel, a small retired fishing village, and to Castlewellan Forest Park. The plan was to drive us through the mountains so we could see the picturesque views but clouds and rain were limiting our visibility.

Kilkeel Port

Making our way out of the mountains we stopped at a port area were Kevin & Trish said they used to order their fish from. They explained to us due to over fishing the port is no longer in operation. We grabbed a bite to eat and a few drinks at a charming Irish pub.










                                              

The Peace Maze

Later on they took us to Castlewellan Forest Park, which was my favorite part of our outing. There were a number of activities permitted on the park: running, walking, bicycling, canoeing, and fishing. There was also a BMX bicycle track and a garden maze. The garden maze was a fun challenge! We stayed together, taking turns being the leader, attempting to make it to the liberty bell. It took me about 25 minutes before the short cuts through the bushes started looking enticing. With completion of the maze in mind and my patients wearing thin I decided to use a cut through.....bad idea!!! If I had just stayed with the group an few moments longer I too would have felt the excitement of completing the challenge; but no I cheated and got lost while they found the way.....life lesson reinforced!

Castlewellan

                                       

Castlewellan Pond

We walked toward the castle on the grounds. It look like a remodel of a old castle, Trish believed that people currently live in it. We walked around the pond, a total of 3 kilometers, as the rain stopped and started, but we did not care because we were protected by the branches of the trees.

We had not intended on staying in Lurgan for nearly two weeks but we knew we had to stay as long as it took to receive my new lap top. My dear sweet brother-in-law shipped us a goodie box that took 7 days to arrive. When it came it was like Christmas!! A new computer to replace mine that crapped out on us a while back, a few of our favorite snacks, and art supplies for sketching and documenting our journey. We would not have changed on minute of our time in Lurgan; especially those spent with Kevin & Trish. We cannot thank them enough for everything they shared with us!!

A Giant Adventure

August 7, 2013

Giants Causeway, County Antrim , Northern Coast of Ireland

                        

Riding in the car while someone else drove was a nice change for Ross today. We were able to sit together in the back seat and chat about the beautiful landscape as we rode to Giants Causeway with Kevin and Trish. The drive should have only been 1 ½ hours but it had been 15 years since they had made the trip themselves. Trish started out driving but after making a few circles and thoroughly showing us Bangor, Ireland Kevin took the wheel. In her defense the coastal roads are not marked clearly or often so I don't blame her for the 6 hours it took just to get there; especially because the views were amazing and getting lost worked as a good icebreaker giving us something to laugh about.

We arrived at the Giants Causeway with plenty of time to explore because the park didn't close until 9 pm for summer hours. The cost of admission was 8.50 euro per person of which Kevin paid because he causally stopped Ross's hand holding cash from reaching the teller before his.

Ross, Trish, & Kevin listening to the audio guides

Grabbing our audio guides we began the downhill stroll to the causeway. We were blessed with a beautifully sunny day and a nice breeze that was a delight when walking back up the hill from the causeway. On our way down we learned all about the legend of how the giants steps were made.

Kevin, Trish, & Myself

The story goes:

Finn Mccool (Fionn mac Cumhail) an Irish Giant existed on an Antrim headland and one day when going about his day by day business a Scottish Giant named Fingal started to yell insults from over the channel. In fury Finn lifted a hunk of earth and tossed it at the monster as a test, the earth settled in the ocean.

Fingal countered with a rock tossed once again at Finn and yelled that Finn was lucky that he wasn't a skilled swimmer or he would have been beaten so badly he could never battle again.

                                 

                                        Right: Rocks look like the face of Finn laying down.
                                        Left: The rock look like an organ or chimney stacks

Finn was infuriated and started lifting colossal bunches of earth from the shore, tossing them in order to make a pathway for the Scottish titan to come and face him. However when he completed the process of making the pathway he had not slept for a week. So instead devised a cunning plan to fool the Scot.

Finn disguised himself as an infant in a bed and when his enemy came to face him Finn's wife told the Giant that Finn was away and showed him the child dozing in the cradle. The Scottish titan became apprehensive, for if the child was so big, what size might the father be?

In his scurry to getaway Fingal sped again along the pathway Finn had created, shredding it as he went. He is said to have fled to a hollow on Staffa which is right up 'til today named 'Fingal's Cave'.

                                               

Although the story was enchanting we learned more about the scientific explanation from the numerous helpful causeway employees. The causeway consist of 40,000 hexagonal basalt columns that were made about 60,000 years ago during a volcanic eruption. The eruption occurred when the continents still formed Pangaea so there is evidence of parts of the causeway that have been found in other countries no longer connected to Ireland.

The hexagonal shape of each column was created by rapid cooling of the basalt by the sea. The tallest columns reach about 40 feet tall and if you look closely thousands of tourist have wedged coins in between the pillars after making wishes. We emptied my change purse making wishes as well as decorating the columns.

Ross just wedged our coins in between the layers of basalt

                                                

We worked up quiet an appetite climbing on the giant steps. Next to the causeway is a historical hotel and restaurant were we ate an early dinner and quenched our thirst at the bar. Ross and I took notes from the legendary Finn Mccool on trickery and devised a plan to pay the bill before Kevin could. As I dug in my purse for my chap stick I cleverly grabbed our wallet and passed it to Ross under the table. He excused himself to the restroom and sneakily paid the bill on his return.

See how tall the columns are!

Humble Pie with a side of Friendship

August 4, 2013

We have officially left the Republic of Ireland and now are back in the United Kingdom; back on the pound sterling :*( But we are happy to reunite with some friends we made while in Spain, Kevin and Patricia. In Calpe be we were introduced to them by our dear friends Joann and Allen and to our surprise they extended an invitation to visit them in Ireland. They own a fish and chip shop in Lurgan, just outside Belfast, called Smugglers; so once we were headed north we gave them a ring and decided to meet up with them.

Kevin & Patricia

                                        

The Irish are known for their boundless giving and warm personalities. It is believed that their struggles during famine and during the troubles lead to such a beautiful characteristic.  Let me tell you a first hand how delightful they can be. 

We drove straight to Smugglers and were greeted by Kevin with a boastful hello and a warm smile. He informed us that they had a property for sale and we were welcome to stay in it as long as we would like to. Kevin rang Trish, “They are here!” he exclaimed. He closed the doors to the shop and drove us to their family home. We met their two boys, I should say men because they are not children. They offered us coffee and we talked about our adventures since leaving Spain. We told them about our idea to open a fish and chip food truck once we are home and they offered to bring us into the shop and show us the ropes.

Keep in mind while we were in Spain we only spent about two hours having drinks with them. There kindness and generosity is more than humbling. Kevin drove us to their property for sale that we would be staying at, he told us he would be back with clean sheets in a few hours. The property was much more than we expected. It was a two story 3bed, 1bath townhouse; the kitchen had dishes for two, a kettle, and there also was a washing machine. It was the Ritz compared to the Kangoo.

Finally some clean clothes!

As soon as we unloaded the car Ross and I took advantage of the bed and settled in for a nap. Waking up a few hours later to Kevin knocking on the door with clean sheet and two arms full of groceries. He hooked us up with: coffee, ham, lettuce, tomatoes, jam, cheese, cokes, chocolate fudge bars, bread, butter, milk, fruit, cookies, body wash, and toilet paper. Did someone call in room service? Overwhelmed by their continued kindness we told him we would stop by Smugglers for dinner because we had be anxiously anticipating their fish and chips.

When driving through Ireland we often see small gatherings of horses, cows, and donkeys.  On our way to dinner we could not help but stop and said hello to a cute donkey. He walked right up to Ross and stuck his head over the fence for some love. He was so sweet, with each pat on the head he tried to get closer and closer to us.

Our donkey friend.
We named him Chalky

                                 

We walked into Smugglers and a young girl immediately brought around two huge plates of their specialty, fried cod and freshly cut chips, aka french fries. The food was outstanding! While we ate we discussed the challenges and overhead costs we would encounter opening a fish and chip food truck in the states. With bellies full we went to pay and were turned away. “ Your money is no good here” we were told. They invited us out for drinks after closing time and we defiantly took them up on their offer. Our intention was to cover their tab to show appreciation for all they had done for us but Kevin knew the bar keep and he was not having that. Again we were humbled by their actions.

We drank the evening hours away, chatting them up and asking them loads of questions. Drinking Guinness and shots of Jameson together, in the states we call it “double fisting,” in Ireland they call it crazy! Especially because of the low limit for drinking and driving. With perfect timing, as we were finishing up our last round the bar keep yelled to Kevin, “ Your cabby is here!” Kevin and Trish thought it best for us all to share a safe ride home because we had all indulged in the drink. Pulling up to the townhouse we pulled out the wallet to pay.....shocker!! they did not let us pay.

Cliffs of Moher: "That's Inconceivable"

July 30 & 31, 2013

When traveling along the coast of the Republic of Ireland many things become routine like the rain, sheep, and pubs. In each place we visit we look for something that makes it unique. One thing that breaks up the repetition in my writing about Ireland is the dramatic beauty nature offers.

Dingle Harbor

                         

Ross & Fungi

Dingle is a small fishing town with more pubs than there are people we were told. There is even a pub inside the local hardware store and it opens at 9:00am. The towns main attraction lives in Dingle Bay; Fungi the dolphin, who has been the local mascot since 1984. They have boat tours with a money back guarantee if riders do not see him. There also is a statue in his honor in the middle of town. NatGeo Traveler named Dingle the worlds most beautiful place on earth a few years ago. That was no surprise to us after visiting Slea Head; which is the most westerly point in all of Ireland. It is also were we camped for the night over looking the Atlantic Ocean and the Blasket Islands.

Slea Head

The rain has been relentless but I find it to be rather cleansing. Once we arrived in Doolin we searched for a place to bath. After a few failed attempts we got lucky when we asked the receptionist at a B&B if we could pay to shower. It costs us 3 Euros each to bath even though there was no hot water; but cold showers don't bother us anymore.

We then drove to the Cliff of Moher, aka “The Cliffs of Insanity.”Avoiding the pay parking lot at the cliffs we drove past it searching for a free place to park. We winded along the narrow road that eventually brought us to Moher Hill, home to a farming community and a stone mine. This was defiantly the road less traveled but we were successful in avoiding the charge at the tourist parking lot. After about a 5 minute walk through a cow pasture we were standing at the edge of the cliffs in front of the remains of an old lighthouse.

Big cow on Moher Hill

Picking clovers in front of the lighthouse

I had been quiet all day for no apparent reason. I was staring at the iconic view of the Cliffs of Moher and there was no one else around. The wind was blowing and it was sprinkling. As soon as we sat on the bog grass with our legs dangling off the cliffs tears began to stream down my face.

 I guess I am home sick, or a little depressed. How could someone living the dream like I am be upset about anything? I know it sounds silly but I am struggling with how fleeting moments are in life. One second your high on life, living in the moment and then in a flash it is gone. It is not healthy that I only feel happy or content when life is one exciting or worrisome moment after another. Why can't I just be happy doing nothing?

 Ross's personality is so consistent, he does not express the highs and lows of his emotions. He says he has them but he can quickly rationalize the moment and instantly he is content. How have I become bored with our routine? The thought alone makes me even more upset because we are living life with very little to worry about and we have the freedom to do anything we want each day. As weird as it sounds, I think I miss being stressed. I am so use to worrying about everything that when life limits the things I should worry about I feel lost. Ross explains to me that he puts little value in worrying because the older you get the more you realize that when you look back on these moments you will wish you didn't waste it worrying. Enjoying each moment is really the only thing that matters.

After drying up my unnecessary tears we headed back to Doolin for a drink. We asked the bartender what her favorite whiskey was, she recommended Crested Tin, so we ordered two. Clinking our glasses together we drank to being together on this amazing journey and to the highs and lows we will experience throughout life as husband and wife. As we drank the pub became crowded. People were rushing in to hear the rhythmic Irish music created by two violins, a banjo, and a pair of spoons.