- 10:00
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Its October,
Halloween awaits us and we’re all looking forward to break out our funky
outfits for the zombie walk. In the meantime the preparations are continuing for that, a
little bit of fun won’t hurt anyone so my friends and I decided
to go to the Oktoberfest. These fests have been happening in Dublin for a few
years now but I've never really had the chance to check it out so it was now or
never to make it to the docks.
When we
reached there, to our surprise there was a long queue and
while we waited we got to talk with a few people about the festival and learned
that it’s a German event which started about 204 years ago when there were no
beers. We were quite taken aback by this bit of information as it was contrary
to what we were seeing in front of us. Braced for more facts like this to be thrown
at us, we finally entered the festival.
There were
almost 30 food stalls making for a great way to try various foods. Abundant
selection to choose from crepes, German sausages, and ham burgers to pastries
and candies. If they all sound good to the tummy then surely the live traditional
melody played was pleasing to the ears, a match to the food and the mood. For us it
was a monstrous yet fun party and couldn't get enough of it, enjoying the rides they’d set up for everyone. After further interaction with fellow
festival goers, we came to know about some lesser known facts about the Oktoberfest.
It was a
special occasion for us, to be a part of the Irish lifestyle with a tinge of
Bavarian culture. A place for friends to gather, to reconnect as well as
socialising with other people. A refreshing event with an opportunity for experiencing
a mixture of tradition, fun, food and entertainment and not to forget lots of
beer. It was
unforgettable and will be for in my memories to muse over for the foreseeable
future.
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- 17:29
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In the past few months there have been
quite a few open-air cinema events held here in Dublin but unfortunately, I
only found out about them recently and invited my friends to go together to
their last screening. It was the all-time classic, GREASE! I've seen it four
times before but that night was an unforgettable experience unlike the average,
everyday cinema.
We decided to meet up at the park an hour
before the movie started, hoping to find a good place to sit. The giant screen
was beckoning at us as we were waiting outside in the queue. The moment we got
in, we realized that the park was crowded by both couples and groups of friend’s
and was obvious that all of the great spots had been taken but we eventually
settled on one. We were hungry but thankfully there was an Irish market in the
park just for that day and ironically they were selling falafels, we later went
and got our free ice-cream provided by the event planners.
The weather was quiet warm that morning but
gradually got colder and by night time it was freezing. Almost everyone brought
blankets and picnic baskets with them while we on the other hand completely
forgot about them so we ended up sitting on our jackets in the freezing cold
but luckily it didn't rain that night. The view was breath taking to say the
least, you can only imagine the contrast between the green grass of the park,
the lighting and the huge screen.
Everyone was talking, taking pictures but
the moment the movie started, everyone went so quiet you could've probably heard
a pin drop. For some like my friends, it was their first time watching this
movie while for others it was clear that they were big fans and had seen it many
times before. How did I know they were fans and seen it before? Well, whenever
there was a song, everyone would sing along. The best part was after every song
finished, some whistled while others applauded which made that night all the
better, the only thing missing was the standing ovation. The movie ended around
9.30pm, sadly it was only two hours long. All my friends loved it, who wouldn't its grease! Unfortunately there won’t be another open-air
cinema this year L but can’t wait for next year and hope you
guys can join too.
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- 11:51
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My friends and I decided to take a three day vacation to one of the most
beautiful cities in Europe, Edinburgh. The first day we had breakfast in PAPII,
a very nice cafe located in Hanover Street, where they make the best coffee. We
then visited the Royal Academy and the National Gallery of Scotland featuring
one of the finest collection of artworks in the world. Later that day we went
to one of the most stunning gardens, the East Princess Street Gardens, which
overlooks the beautiful central Scotland, it is quite the tourist spot.
The second day was dedicated to find out how whisky is made, we did so by going to a distillery where we got to observe the procedures involved in its production and also to recognize a good whisky just by its colour. We got to taste the four different flavours that represent the Scottish cities: Lowland, Highland, Speyside and Islay. Our tour concluded with a souvenir, a glass of whisky which has special measurements.
Edinburgh is known for its stunning architecture, a bustling
way of life, impeccable dining options, an incredible history and is also considered one of the most haunted cities in
Europe, with a past of murders, witchcraft and plague. A city that witnessed
both horror and beauty. In the evening we went to a free ghost tour, we walked
for an hour and a half listening to sinister and ghostly tales that transported
us back to the terrifying past of the old city.
My favourite part of the trip was the Harry Potter
history tour. It began in the most popular location "The Elephant House
Cafe” located at 21 George Street, where J.K. Rowling began writing the Harry
Potter books, it was full of tourists enjoying delicious coffee and cake with
family and friends. Our tour concluded at the Balmoral Hotel where the
final book was completed.
For those who love their night-life like us, we went to “The Pub Crawl” tour where
we got to visit 6 of the the best pubs and clubs here, that included free shots, free
entry, queue jump and drink discounts. We met and partied with a lot of people from all over the world, from different nationalities Irish,
Scottish, American, Brazilian, Mexican and Guatemalan. This trip was one of the
best.
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- 11:41
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Last week I was at Odessa, an amazing place. The whole environment sums up to a great meeting experience. Comfortable, clean and not to mention the awesome view from the balcony, a great way to enjoy Friday evenings combined with a few pints and some snacks.
Couple of friends who hadn't met in four years chose this venue and evening as a way for them to meet again and catch up with each other, it was a great to hear their story. Later in the night we met with the most adventurous backpacker from Stuttgart who shared his experiences, things you should and shouldn't do while you're hitch-hiking around Europe. From the tips that he shared a few basic ones stood out like if you have a specific destination to get to in your mind then head to the gas stations right away rather than wasting time on the roads, with respect to appearance you have to look smart and come across as a nature lover, not look tense but instead seem positive and relaxed.
Then the topic drifted towards the transport system in Europe and an Irish lady joined the group along with her friends, she'd lost her voice and could barely speak despite that she enthusiastically spoke about her travels with Ryanair. She mentioned the so called the “golden era of Ryanair” when flight tickets could be bought for as low as 1 euro back in 2009 which only made me realized that I missed out on it completely but looking at it from a non-European perspective, the transport here isn't as expensive compared to my home country(Brazil) where the only way to get around is by expensive planes or buses that can take up to 50 hours depending on the trip - not even trains. It was bit of a shock to hear that in order to protect the business of the railways and trains in Germany, the government did not allow buses to operate between cities within the country.
As you can see Travel was the leading topic that night, but not the only one. Following the saying living and learning, the adventurous hitch-hiker was briefly explaining how Porsche AG, founded in his home town – Stuttgart, was bought by Volkswagen. Various other conversations continued on through the night, everyone shared their stories and were having a great craic in the heart of Dublin. The night left us with the feeling of excitement to explore the world, meet new people and luckily I am part of a group that always will provide a platform to do so. Stay tuned on the blog for more stories such as this until then share, like, subscribe or comment below.
- 10:37
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Let me start by saying that
Dublin is a wonderful city yet Bray is a completely different story, a unique seaside
front experience. Our journey started with an hour Dart ride from the city
centre, we ended up taking a lot of pictures of the beautiful sceneries through
the window and met a lot of friendly passengers.
When we finally did get there,
it was a reminiscing moment as it reminded me of home. We walked along the beach
until the Bray Harbour rocks. The beach was very inviting in the sunny weather,
but unfortunately the water was freezing cold, therefore we decided to go ahead
with the climb.
Along the footpath beside the beach, between Bray Harbour and Bray
Head we found a beautiful gazebo sadly there weren't any concerts that day
nonetheless the place was remarkable. While the children played and everyone
chilled, we enjoyed the warm weather and ice cream, what more can anyone in Ireland
ask for?
As we continued walking, leading to the top of the mountain were
two paths, one a cliff walk, the other was the stairs. We chose the cliff walk,
it was a little hard at first so half way up we decided to have a picnic just
to take in the view, catch our breaths and relax before continuing up the stony
route.
After our little picnic, we finished our
journey with a two hours walk through the trail between
the big mountain and the sea it was exhausting but it’s nothing when compared with
the astonishing view of the whole city from the top, the boats in the
sea, the herons on the rocks and the mesmerizing horizon. We concluded our night by visiting the fifth most famous McDonalds
in the world, which happens to be located in Bray.
It was truly a day to
remember, I recommend visiting this wonderful city to everyone but take your
jacket with you because it’s very windy. All you need is a group of friends as
they say the more the merrier. So I encourage you to create your group on
CouchJumping and enjoy the green Ireland. Until next time J
- 16:05
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There are many events that involve going out doors and engaging in some sort of strenuous activity, and these events among others are what makes what we do here at Couchjumping all the more enjoyable. However sometimes you feel like saying screw going outside! Instead you might prefer to stay in with a bunch of classy people and watch some old school British Sci-fi that blurs the line between great television and down right tripe!
I am a huge fan of Doctor Who and since the new series has kicked in for the foreseeable future, I will be spending my Saturday nights with my backside firmly on the couch. However this doesn't mean I'm in anyway being a recluse or anti-social. We all have shows/movies that we are passionate about, you know those movies when someone says they haven't seen it, we have a minor surge of disbelief flow through us and think this person can't be serious.
I am a huge fan of Doctor Who and since the new series has kicked in for the foreseeable future, I will be spending my Saturday nights with my backside firmly on the couch. However this doesn't mean I'm in anyway being a recluse or anti-social. We all have shows/movies that we are passionate about, you know those movies when someone says they haven't seen it, we have a minor surge of disbelief flow through us and think this person can't be serious.
Anyway being a fan of something like a TV show can bring a lot of people together. For example for the Doctor Who 50th anniversary back in 2013 myself and a friend went to see the special episode in the cinema, because why not, and not only was it the biggest gathering of the so called "whovians" I had ever seen but it was also the first time I have been in a cinema and there was standing ovation in the middle of the screening, yep that's good television alright. Needless to say the atmosphere in the theater was absolutely electric and probably one of the most memorable nights of my life.
So last Saturday myself and a few friends decided that we would pick up a few beers, order a pizza and watch the glory of Peter Capaldi's eyebrows as some plot happens. Not only was it a good way to chill out after a hectic week but the anticipation of a new episode and even re-watching old ones can invoke many conversations, debates and even arguments.
As usual share, subscribe or comment below on your experiences as a fan of Doctor Who.
As usual share, subscribe or comment below on your experiences as a fan of Doctor Who.
- 09:47
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