The Emerald Isle

Last week I was at a conference in Dublin, a special treat.

While I agree with the common belief that Dublin is nice and the people are friendly, I admit --- I struggled to understand language. For example, when the bellhop asked me, "Are you finished with that," I understood through his brogue that he was asking, "Are you friends with that." We were talking about a rental car at the time: the resulting conversation was pretty entertaining.

This conversation happened at the end of the trip after a free day I spent with colleagues. After a few days of work in Dublin we were ready to break away from the urban scene, so we pooled together on a car rental and headed for the hills.

With a manual drive and right-side steering, no one was really rushing to be behind the wheel, so for better or worse I elected to drive. That made the day a little more mentally stimulating than I had in mind, but my colleagues were very understanding when I stalled the engine, ran a little too close to the hedges, or swore a blue streak. More than once.

We had lovely weather - a mix of sun and cloud. An "Irish heat wave" as one local called it, with temperatures in the mid-twenties... enough to give me a light and unexpected sunburn.

We stopped at the beautiful Powerscourt Gardens for a wander:

The rose gardens were in full bloom - a garden so beautiful that it made even me want to drop everything and become a gardener:

Then it was up and over the Wicklow Mountains for rugged and expansive views:

Of course, enjoyment of Ireland wasn't only visual. A stop earlier in the week at the Jameson Distillery in Dublin warranted a sampling of whiskey:

We had to find some way to recover from all the Jameson and Guinness: a few brave souls, plus me, joined Sightjogging Dublin for early morning runs around town. On two mornings during the conference, we ran through many of the areas around central Dublin on Sightjogging's City Highlights and Waterside tours. Thank God for jet lag - it's way easier to get up at the crack of dawn if you're body is already confused and angry with you to start with.

I left Ireland with still plenty to explore. And if I take a few language lessons, I'm sure my next visit will be better still.

Thoughts from June

Skiing season is over and mountainbiking has begun. Despite a slow start to the weather (and a tentative approach to my bike) we've had a few great days of riding between Vancouver, Squamish and Whistler. And the more I bike, the better I'll get, right? I could use a confidence boost before every ride, but by the end of the day I'm glad I went.

Last weekend we were in Whistler, and while Scott took a day to go biking with friends, I played tourist with visitors from Mexico. A train journey from the city; ziplining, spa-ing and good food - and so much fun! It's always a pleasure to see my home province through the eyes of a first time visitor, and remember what a remarkable place it is.

This week, I switched roles - this time it was me playing 'first time visitor' on a trip to Dublin, Ireland. There is nothing like a dose of that wide-eyed feeling of travel: of learning, of confusion, of connection - to remind me why I love what I do, and how travel opens doors to learning about cultures, history, environment and more.

More on Dublin later, I promise - right now I'm in transit in Heathrow, and I have a plane to catch!

Mexico!

I've been to Mexico City a number of times, and while I can find the chaos of the streets overwhelming, the energy of the city is endless and ever-changing, giving every visit a fresh and new perspective. As my visits have been as a result of business trips, the contacts and friendships that have resulted provide a unique and intimate access to a culture and city that I would otherwise know very little about.

With this, I convinced Scott to join me on my most recent visit, and it was an added pleasure when our friends Daniela and Manuel not only offered to host us at their home, but also take us on a weekend visit to Tepoztlan, a resort town an hour south of Mexico City.

Some of our highlights included:

The lovely groomed gardens of Carmelita and Eduardo, whose home we stayed at in Tepoztlan:

Scott's first taste of chapulines, or crickets, in a taco (he actually enjoyed them much more than the expression on his face would indicate):

A visit to Luchas Libres, or Mexican wrestling, which actually resembles cartoon gymnastics more than actual fighting. We had second row seats!

Fisk and Lola, Daniela and Manuel's two miniature schnauzers, who were always happy to see us when we came home:

Lunch at Cafe Tacuba in the Zona Historico, where we shared Agua Fresca of melon juice and I had the best Tamale I have ever, ever eaten:

More photos can be found on Flickr (click on the slideshow on the upper right corner of the blog) - enjoy!