World Heritage Sites

I made a list this morning of all the UNESCO World Heritage Sites I've visited, for no particular reason. There are 830 properties on the list, and I've visited... 24 of them. I guess I'd better get cracking.

I was suprised to see so many Italian entries on my list. Though I guess it makes sense, since I was playing tourist the entire month I was there, as opposed to working all week and having fun on the weekends like almost every other place I've traveled to.

FRANCE:

• Paris, Banks of the Seine

GERMANY:

• Old Town of Regensburg with Stadtamhof

INDIA:

• Agra Fort, Uttar Pradesh
  
• Fatehpur Sikri, Uttar Pradesh
  
• Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu
  
• Taj Mahal, Uttar Pradesh

ITALY:

• Historic Centre of Rome
  
• Historic Centre of Florence
  
• Historic Centre of Naples
  
• Historic Centre of Siena
  
• Piazza del Duomo, Pisa
  
• Portovenere, Cinque Terre, and the Islands (Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto)
  
• Venice and its Lagoon
  
• Vatican City
  
• Archæological Areas of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata
  
• Assisi, the Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi and other Franciscan Sites
  
• City of Verona

LUXEMBOURG:

• City of Luxembourg: its Old Quarters and Fortifications

UNITED KINGDOM:

• City of Bath
  
• Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites
  
• Tower of London
  
• Westminster Abbey, Palace of Westminster, Westminster School and Saint Margaret's Church

UNITED STATES:

• Olympic National Park
  
• Statue of Liberty

And yes, I'm still bitter that I let them talk me out of Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland.

Back to Ireland

I just got confirmation this morning that I am headed back to Ireland in two weeks. I'm only staying for four weeks this time, which is perfect. I'll leave the Friday after Thanksgiving and return the Friday before Christmas, so all the holidays will be preserved. And in the meantime, I'll be in Ireland! Yay!

I have been bothered by how little pleasure I took from the first trip, and wanting to have a do-over to enjoy it more. Ireland is incredibly beautiful and feels very comfortable, but I was so sad in general that I hardly enjoyed it. I was completely exhausted by the time I got there. Six months in Hyderabad followed by unending movement around Europe before settling in Cork really took its toll, and all I wanted to do was endure the trip so I could get the hell home.

This time, I've had a nice break from travel and I'm feeling excited and well-rested and it's only a month anyway. Happiness all around.

speechless

For the past two days, I've been dealing with a totally unexpected, from-left-field, seemingly insurmountable obstacle to my India trip. The one scheduled to begin Saturday morning. And now it's official. It's insurmountable. I'm not going.

I am angry about many things, but mostly at the complete incompetence that got us here in the first place. Everyone on my immediate management chain actually seems to worship me more now that I'm not going than they did when I said yes in the first place, and I love them all the more for being in my corner and never wavering in my support. But the company? COME ON. My last day in the office was supposed to be TOMORROW. Isn't this cutting it a little close?

I have no words.

Jackasses.

Okay, one.

Up, up, and...

I'm back with an exciting newsflash: I'm heading back to India! Woo! I don't have specific dates, but I'm leaving in a few weeks for Hyderabad and I'll be there until the end of January.

Those who remember how miserable and homesick I was during the second half of the European assignment will be happy to know that I've learned from that experience and negotiated myself some trips home this time. I'll be coming home for a week to ten days for Thanksgiving, then again between Christmas and New Years (which coincide with K's birthday and our ninth anniversary). Plus, the stretch of time between trips home gets progressively shorter as the assignment goes on.

The work I'll be doing there is totally cool, though the more I think about it the more I'm stunned by the magnitude of what I've signed up for. I've done a lot of start-ups, but I've never actually run a facility soup-to-nuts in a daily basis, and that's what I'll be doing here. And since I'll be doing it during the time of the year when business explodes and our biggest challenge is hiring and training new people fast enough to keep up, it should be a wild ride. Plus: Hyderabad!

I'll be there for Diwali again, which totally gives me a happy. I need to find a reason to go back for Holi someday, but until that happens then Diwali remains my favorite Indian partytime.

I swear, this time I will take weekend trips to Cochin and Goa and at least one or two of the World Heritage sites in India that I haven't already visited (top contenders: Ajanta Caves, Elora Caves, and Hampi). I proved in Luxembourg and London that I can have an enriching personal experience while also working my ass off, and I'm going to make the most of it this time. India, woo!

Thirteen songs that will forever take me back to Cork Ireland and May 2006

I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker by Sandi Thom. Wonderful and horrible at the same time. The song is barely 2.5 minutes long and is musically so all over the map as to be a complete mess, the sentiment is tired to say the least, and let's not forget that never in the history of ever have there been any punk rockers with freaking flowers in their hair. But whatever, the song is still catchy. I hate myself for getting it stuck in my head.

Is it Any Wonder? by Keane. Never heard Keane before. I like him.. them... whatever.

Sin Sin Sin by Robbie Williams. Never heard Robbie Williams before either. This song moves along fine until it's suddenly all about Jesus. Or maybe it's about Jesus all the way through and I just don't notice. Still, "We're made in his image, baby" is about the best line of a pop song ever. It's the "baby" that does it.

I'm Gonna Be by The Proclaimers. I was surprised to find a "Best of..." CD for The Proclaimers. I thought they only ever had the one song, but it turns out I was wrong. This wasn't even their biggest hit around home. I expected more rivalry between Scotland and Ireland, but in fact the Irish always seemed to be happy when the Scots get their due. However, every time I hear this song now I'll be thinking of the morning radio show filk about Munster Rugby that the local station played so proudly after defeating Leinster. Wonderful terrible stuff.

You're All I Have by Snow Patrol. If there's one song that will always take me back to my trip, this is it. It's one of those songs that was everywhere, all day, every day. Every store, every restaurant, every radio station, everywhere was playing it. They're an Irish band that got together in Scotland and their single was #1 throughout the UK. It's totally forgettable pop, and probably would have made no impression whatsoever if things hadn't come together in space and time so perfectly.

Country Girl by Primal Scream. Never heard Primal Scream before either. I expected something a bit more Primal, but I think I like them.

SOS by Rihanna. Run screaming from this song. There's sampling, and then there's stealing, and then there's utterly destroying something fantastic by distorting it to meet your own lame agenda. I'll let you decide which this is.

Hips Don't Lie by Shakira feat. Wyclef Jean. I'm completely confused about why this is a (the?) World Cup Song. To me, such a song should involve themes of togetherness in a global community, triumphing / winning, celebration, etc. This song is about... Shakira. Me am confused.

Put Your Records On by Corinne Bailey Rae. Now we're finally getting to the part of this mix tape where we keep the songs I actually *like*. Good single from a good CD. I think I like Corinne Bailey Rae. I want to buy her a cup of coffee and have girltalk.

On the Radio by Regina Spektor. I heard this song on the radio and thought "hmph, what a strange little ditty". Two nights later, I was frantically googling everything I could think of to find out who the artist was, what the song was, and where I could hear more. It's one of those ones that creeps up on you. Still, Regina Spektor deserves many fine things, including some of your money. Check her out; you won't be disappointed.

Futures by Zero 7. This track is very mellow and trippy. The CD is surprisingly diverse, though there's plenty of trippiness there. I'm always taken aback by bands that alternate vocalists, especially male/female ones, but it works for these guys.

The Emperor's New Clothes by Sinead O'Connor. You can't go to Ireland without Sinead. I picked this song because I like it so much, even though it's so unlike most everything else in her library. Sinead's wonderful.

Everyone by Van Morrison. Ditto Van.

I didn't include any Coldplay, because, dude, it's Coldplay. But OMG they were everywhere too. At first I thought it was funny that Coldplay was playing on the radio every time I drove by an Emo petrol station. But then I realized that was because Coldplay is always on. Somebody made a deal with Lucifer, I'm just sure of it.

Home

I forgot to say that I'm home from Ireland. Whoopsie. I got back a little over a week ago, and was mainly relaxing at home until my return to work yesterday. I'll have a lot more to say soon. I lost my posting chi a few weeks ago, but it's coming back slowly.

Interestingly, the hardest part about returning has been a lingering habit of driving on the wrong side of the road. I never did it in Ireland, but I think it's because I was engaging the "OMG Driving in a Foreign Country" part of my brain at the beginning until it eventually just became comfortable and natural. And now it won't stop. I hate that.

Fota Wildlife Park

For the past few days, I've been mentally composing a lengthy post about how Ireland kind of, well, blows. Except now I need to take the unprecendented step of recanting things I haven't even written yet, because as-of today ALL IS FORGIVEN. Owing to the first piece of gorgeous weather in, well, ever, and owing to the Memorial Day holiday that everyone at home is enjoying, I gave myself a half-day off from work and went to visit the Fota Wildlife Park. And lo, it was good.

This is a Ring-tailed Lemur. And he's just hangin' out. Less than ten feet from me. I want to move in to the wildlife park; it is the best.place.ever. You know, my cat Kenzie sits like this, and he looks about as dumb. I feel the urge to lecture him about his posture.	I love the guy on the left, who's staring right at me while showing off his flexibility. Or stretching so he doesn't pull a hamstring when he leaps out to kill me. Either one.
The cheetahs were the only animals I really felt sorry for, because they were inside a fence. Because, cheetahs.	Classic. This is a Lion-tailed Macaque. He was fishing.
These guys are called Black & White Colobuses. But I call them Fringe Monkeys. These guys are waiting for he Stevie Nicks look to come back in style, because then they will rule.	This baby loves me. Or wants to eat me. Hard to tell. They are Siamang.
A 'roo. Lounging. As they do.	This guy was sleeping peacefully, then got spooked by something and hurled himself to his feet in that "what? what? I wasn't sleeping at all!" sort of way. As you do. You can see he still has bedhead.
Teeny tiny penguins. I wanted to take them home with me.	Still do, in fact.
Zebra!	Zebra with an itch! OMG so cute!
Most of the giraffes helped themselves to the well-positioned branches.	Others insist on doing things the hard way.
Classic giraffe headshot	This is just here to show an example of how the areas were designed - almost no barriers.
Of course, that means that some animals, like this Guanaco here, can hop the fence and put themselves down right where people are trying to walk. Because if there's one thing you can count on, it's animals from the camel family being contrary.	Baaaaaaaby bison. And just as ugly as mama.
These totally freak me out. The species is called Mara. And they were everywhere in the park. Every animal area had at least a handful of these guys hanging out, trying to blend in.	They are guinea pigs with the body form of a hare. That shit just ain't right. Let's move on.
But nothing's more disturbing than a Capybara. Largest of all rodents. Weighs up to 140 pounds. Described by those in-the-know as "giant amphibious guinea pig."	Let's step away from the scary beast and soothe ourselves with a nice peacock, mmm'kay?
It's a Scimitar-Horned Oryx. It's too bad he couldn't look at me and show his profile at the same time, 'cause their horns are wangin'. They go almost all the way to his tush.	And just for fun, we'll close with an animal that looks cool but whose species I've forgotten. Sorry, vaguely deer-like thing! I'd bet money that my dad could step in here and tell us all what it is. Oh daaaaaaad...?

I am Gwen DeMarco!

I just realized that I am Gwen DeMarco (or rather, Lt. Tawny Madison, but let's not be picky). And you know, I'm pretty much okay with that.

All this year, I've been working on a single project at work - the opening of a new office in Ireland for my company. It's my first time working inside our European organization, though I've known most of the players for many years. I am often the only American in the room, but not always. Most discussions usually have equal numbers of Germans, French, English, and Irish nationals, with a few Austrians, South Africans, Scots, and assorted other nations thrown in for good measure. For a long time it seemed like everyone understood each other okay, but as time goes on and the stress continues to build, the communication barriers have gotten more and more pronounced.

Lately, we've slipped into the habit of me summarizing everyone's statements - basically, translating English into English - as we go. Anytime someone finishes speaking in a meeting, the conversation halts while everyone turns to me to summarize, then the next person speaks, I summarize again, etc. Often, everyone will turn to me with blank faces, which turn into "a-ha" faces and nods all around once my summary is complete. Which basically means my job is to repeat what has just been said, despite the fact that everyone just heard exactly what I heard, after which everyone suddenly understands! I am Gwen DeMarco! I AM GWEN DEMARCO!

Hear me roar.

Up Munster!

All attention in Cork right now is focused on the city of Cardiff in Wales, where the state rugby team (Munster) is currently playing against the French team Biarritz in the Heineken Cup, which is the major European rugby final. I've never seen people so crazed over rugby before. Munster is always a big deal here, but the last few days there's been talk of little else. It's so all-pervasive that a few days ago I had to consciously stop myself from buying a Munster flag at the store, just because it seemed like the right thing to do.

If I was a bit braver, I'd be watching the game in a local pub while knocking back pints of Murphy's and growing increasingly bleary and emotional as the game goes on. But I'm just a little bit afraid of this level of enthusiasm in general, and rugby fans in particular. So instead, I am huddled in my room watching the game on RTE.

I've never seen a professional rugby game before, and I am simultaneously fascinated and horrified. I remember people in college playing rugby, and I am aware that it's known to be a violent game, but HOLY SHIT these guys are NUTS! They monkey pile on top of each other, stand and climb and walk on top of the other players, clash head to head without any protective gear or seeming sense of self-preservation. I have never seen people sacrifice their physical beings with such fervor. They're insane. It's a total free-for-all. We're only 15 minutes in, and I can't imagine what it'll be like later, after they've all gotten worked up and desperate and tired. And I can't wait to find out, even if it makes me squirm and gnash my teeth.

C'mon, men! Kill 'em! Mash 'em to a pulp! Up Munster! Go! Go! Go!

Er, sorry 'bout that.

Ballinspittle

Now my project has launched, and K. has finally arrived, and I've stopped working 14+ hours per day, I've suddenly noticed that I'm working in a fairly pretty country. Who knew? We took a short drive this afternoon, my first journey beyong the daily commute. Just to be on the safe side, we stuck to one road and only traveled a short distance down through Kinsale and to the ocean shore just beyond Ballinspittle (maybe 50km each way). Still, it was awful purty, and so I bring you four quick snaps from a road trip south of Cork.

Ocean, yay! It's been a long time since I've seen the Atlantic. We didn't go down to the beach or walk on the sand, but instead stuck to the rocky trails nearby. Some people were actually swimming and such, which, brrr.

We took a short walk down this rough trail that you can just barely see off to the right of the image.

Just some pretty fleurs growing out of the rocky hillside. Maybe it's one of those things where you had to be there, but I still like the look of all the textures in the image.

I love the mix of colors in this one. If anyone can tell me the names of the vibrant yellow flowers that grow in such profusion along the hilltops and roadsides, I'd be most grateful. They're so bright it almost hurts to look at them.