Lonely in Limerick

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Well, I've been here long enough that my own thoughts are in an Irish accent. That is to say, about 12 hours. I arrived this morning after a sleepless flight, and checked in at our hotel - the Clarion Limerick. Hard to miss, really. We saw it from miles away and just headed in the general direction of the modernist tower over the Shannon.

I don't think the Irish breakfast agreed with me. I'm a bit sick today. I must say, their bacon is phenomenal. It's like thick-cut ham. I filled up on the breakfast buffet so that I wouldn't have to worry about lunch.

After breakfast, I took a short nap and then cleaned up and headed out into Limerick. Luckily there are handy brown signs directing the aimless tourist like myself to the various places of interest. Apparently it's the most crime-ridden city in Ireland, and I wasn't sure if I could tell a bad neighborhood from good, so I was a little worried about walking into the wrong neighborhood. But I figured if I stuck around central Limerick and stayed around people, I'd be fine. Just like Boston.

Everything really does look distinctly Irish here in Ireland, with the green hills, the little old houses lining the streets, the pubs. I even saw part of the old city wall, though as I was trying to "blend", I didn't stare up at it too much. Of course, I blew my cover when I got to King John's Castle as I'm sure that the locals don't go there much. *grin* I don't know why I have this compulsion on vacation to look like anything but a tourist. I think I did succeed though, wearing pinstriped trousers with a black sweater, I looked like any of the other office girls on the streets. Meanwhile, there were some crazy people wearing shorts - hello, it's not that warm. It is warm though, much warmer than New England.

I took some time to check out my namesake, the River Shannon. It's dark and fast, and wild in parts. I wish I could just go walking along it for a few miles but not too far after my hotel, it turns into a ship-wreckyard.

So, King John's Castle was built by the Normans in the 12th century. Prior to that, the area was inhabited by vikings. The castle was built in a fashion influenced by experiences in the crusades, very modern for its time, and good thing because it was needed for defense even up to 1691, during a pivotal battle between the Jacobites and the Williamites. I had only an inkling of this war before coming here. Thanks to the multimedia center, I'm now a bit more educated.

I might be getting a bit blase about ruins. As I walked down from the ramparts through a tower, I thought to myself "gee, these worn rock steps look just like the worn rock steps from ... "

Well, there certainly seems to be a lot of history in West Ireland, with Robin Hood apparently being in the area (?), and one of the oldest pubs in Ireland here as well (The Brazen Head, apparently a popular tippling spot for vikings), and lots of beautiful old churches. Meanwhile, my hotel is one of the most modern buildings, so tall it is visible from anywhere else in Limerick and right on the Shannon.

I followed a young American couple around the museum, which made me feel even lonelier. But it also was comforting to be near people. There were not a lot of people at the castle. The other people were an older English couple. And two other Americans, father & daughter. The daughter said "Aren't I silly, being a grown adult and just getting so excited over a castle?" Don't be ridiculous, hon. I have a medieval studies minor for a reason!

It's not as fun to be travelling alone. I keep thinking of what Alli and I would do if she was here to buffet my spirits. I'm so afraid to make a fool out of myself that I'm afraid to open my mouth, even go into a store to shop. This is the "culture shock" I always get when travelling to any new country. It will go away in a few days. I can't seem to get over or around it, and I'm not sure why it happens.

Oh yes, the fellow employee I met on the plane just called. We're going to go out to "have a pint", though neither of us are sure what that means. I like being with him (though I just met him in the check-in line for our flight) because I don't have to worry about myself when there's this big confident American guy next to me.

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