Swanny
Matt Swann Joined: February 22nd 2008
Logged in: February 5th 2012
Logged in: February 5th 2012
Travel Blog Posts
Me and Tower Bridge
Well, I am back in Nashville. But, I still have two more entries to put up on this blog. I took one last trip and went to London and Germany. It was great way to finish "my exile abroad" (as John Adams called his in HBO's John Adams). I am still waiting on the results of my exams and coursework (I will not know till June 30th so never complain that your teacher or professor is a slow grader because I know a couple of people who are slower than molasses in an igloo). Anyway, I had a great couple of days in London and saw a lot of interesting things and historically important sites in London. Furthermore, I saw two shows on London's West End, Avenue Q (it comes to Nashville in October...yeah!!!) and Blood ... read more
Upper Lake Glendalough, County Wicklow
And I am....not quite....not quite......and.... done! This morning I had a three hour exam for my Unionism Under the Union course on a Saturday (Yeah!). There is nothing like Unionism to wake one up in the morning. I wrote on Female Unionists for my first essay question, opposition from conservative Protestants to the Act of Union in the 1790s for my second, and Ulster Unionists in the Great War for my third question. And everyone who just read that is now asleep. Anyway, I wanted to post some pictures from trip to Dublin and County Wicklow including the monastic site of Glendalough. Furthermore, I have some pictures from my trip to Castle Rock (the village where C.S. Lewis spent his holidays) beach and the cookout in the student village. So, I have two weeks before I ... read more
Come on in!
Well, my time in Northern Ireland is gradually coming to an end. I apologize for completely ignoring April, but I was busy finishing papers with one on the Cold War, one on 19th Century Orange Parades, and one on the changing views of commemorating the Siege of Derry. I have finished my classes after twelve weeks which went by quickly. Currently, I am enduring the revision week and exams weeks (I have an exam on May 7th, 15th, and 17th so wish me luck). In the past weeks, I have been enjoying the pleasant weather and traveling to places like Cork and Blarney in the Republic of Ireland, Omagh in Northern Ireland (County Tyrone), and seeing different parts of Derry. I hope you enjoy the pictures and videos.... read more
This means Galway in Gaelic
Well, I took a two night trip to Galway (the city of Tribes) in the Republic which is considered the art center of Ireland and called one of the sexiest cities in Europe (which is good to know). It is not a very large city but there are a few things to see and more outside the city. I enjoyed just walking by the sea and walking through the town square (Eyre Square) which is home to a monument of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy who visited Galway shortly before his death. On my second day, I went to the Aran Islands (to be more exact, I went to the largest of the three islands, Inishmor). On the Aran Islands, everything is in Gaelic and everyone speaks Gaelic and English. For example, I stopped at a store ... read more
Me and Edinburgh Castle
Well, I am back from my trip to Scotland and I really enjoyed it. I visited the city of Stirling, Edinburgh, and a little time in Glasgow. I also spent some time in the smaller towns of St. Andrews and Doune. Some of the highlights include visiting Doune Castle (the castle where they filmed Monty Python and the Holy Grail), walking the Royal Mile, Stirling Castle (the home of many of the Stewart kings of Scotland including Mary Queen of Scots and her son James the future James I of England), Edinburgh Castle, the British Golf Museum, the Old Course of St. Andrews, eating some Haggis with "neeps and tatties," and enjoying a deep fried Mars Bar (a local delicacy). I hope you enjoy the pictures. Thanks Matt... read more
Happy St. Paddy's Day
I went to my first St. Patrick's Day parade today, so it seems fitting that my first one would be in Northern Ireland (don't hate me). It was really interesting and a lot of people were packed in to see the parade. I went with Minda, Sarah, Kelly, and Ronald and we were all in our green. I have some pictures and hopefully some video. Well, I am off to Scotland tomorrow. I hope you enjoy the pictures and videos. Thanks and have a brilliant St. Patrick's Day. matt... read more
County Donegal
A few days ago, I went for a run and attempted to run into County Donegal which is apart of the Republic of Ireland, so I could officially say that I ran into another country. Well, it was a great success, but I quickly ran back into Northern Ireland. Today, I went for an exceedingly long walk into the Republic. When you enter the Republic, the signs quickly change with some of the road signs in Irish with English translations. Furthermore, the speed limits are in kilometers and not miles as they are in the North. Eventually, I found myself in a rural town called Burnfoot (which adequately describes my feet at the time). I got to see some of rural Ireland (lots and lots of sheep and the pleasant smell of the country). Some children ... read more
Me and 12 year old whiskey
Now, I know what it is like to be Charlie in the Chocolate Factory, but this time it happens to be a whiskey distillery. In fact, the worlds oldest distillery. This Sunday, I went with Ronald and Minda to Bushmills, a very small town outside the surf town of Portrush. We arrived at the distillery and took a tour of the Old Bushmills Distillery. Founded in 1608 with permission of King James the I after the infamous Flight of the Earls in 1607, the Old Bushmills Distillery has been providing high quality Irish whiskey (Just a reminder: evidently, you do not want to get Scotch or Scottish Malt Whisky and Irish whiskey mixed up because Scottish Malt Whisky has a smoky flavor and is distilled twice while Bushmills Malt Whiskey is distilled three times and lacks ... read more
The poster at the Nerve Center
Welcome to another exciting blog entry! Last night, I went and auditioned for a play at the Waterside Theatre in Derry. It just happens that the play is Hamlet. Well, I tried. I guess I will see what happens with that. Afterwards, I bought a ticket for Hayseed Dixie. They are a Bluegrass/Rock band that is a 'Hillbilly Tribute to AC/DC' because they do covers in their own style of AC/DC. I first heard about them on the Rick and Bubba show. Now that they are on their World Tour, I thought I would see them in Derry. I think it is funny that their world tour consists of many European cities along with Nashville and Maryville, TN. At first, I sat down in one of the 15 or so chairs that they had, but as ... read more
Giant's Causeway
I cannot believe it. Well, it has been a little more than a month since I left Nashville and arrived in Derry, Northern Ireland. Now, I have started this blog to share my experiences and photos. Hopefully, I will update this blog regularly. Enjoy, my photos from the past month. Photos include my time in Belfast, my second trip to Belfast, Derry, Portrush, the Causeway coast, and one night in Coleraine. Enjoy.... read more
