The Cliffs of Moher

  I think there are four movies that define my cinema education as a child: Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,  Cool Runnings, Dunstin Checks In, and The Princess Bride.  Oh, how I loved the Princess Bride.  As a teenager, I once found two friends as passionate as I and we quoted the entire movie from beginning to end.  Pathetic?  Maybe.  But really satisfying.  And it was fun.  So when I found out that the actual "Cliffs of Insanity" were in Ireland, I did a little giggly dance of excited.  "Really???  Are you sure?  I get to see them?" :)  And for those of you who have never seen the movie, that is your homework for this weekend.

They are taking a boat across the ocean after kidnapping the princess and discover someone following them.  Worried they'll be discovered, this is the conversation that follows:

  INIGO

             Look! He's right on top of us. I
             wonder if he is using the same
             wind we are using.

 VIZZINI

             Whoever he is, he's too late --
             (pointing ahead of them)
             -- see?
            The Cliffs of Insanity.

 VIZZINI

 Hurry up. Move the thing! Um ...

             that other thing. Move it!

             We're safe -- only FEZZIK is
             strong enough to go up our way --
             he'll have to sail around for
             hours 'til he finds a harbor.

And this is what they were talking about! I'm told it looks much more dramatic if you take a boat out on the water, but we didn't have time for that this time.  Next time, definitely.

It was VERY windy.  A little nerve-racking to be honest, the wind threw off my balance a couple times, and that's not exactly the best idea when walking next to a cliff...

 

Ok, this is funny!  This sign was at the end of the pathway, well, the end of the first pathway.  I got to the end, and there was this sign, a small rock wall, and something else about Danger or Do Not Enter, didn't seem important at the time.  It seemed that 75% of the people who walked there just hopped the wall and continued on the next path.  The next path had the best views anyway.  So, mob mentality got to me and I joined the masses. But I lived to tell about it, so in the end, that's the important thing.

At one point, I'm walking along the edge of the cliff and I turn to my right and see a cool rock formation.  Then I turn to my left... and see a field with cows.  I have no idea why someone had a field of cows at the top of the cliff, but I found it very entertaining.

 

Laurie trying to get as far over the edge as possible without taking the strap off his neck... pretty sure red flashing lights and warning sirens would go off if you did that and held the camera over the side...

And my view down from that same spot:

 

Well, what an experience!  That's Ireland, folks.  In all its glory and beauty.  Hope to be back soon.

Ireland - a sight to see

Travel for me is 98% about the people and culture.  But every once in a while I come across a breath-taking view, an unbelievable sight, something that looks like it belongs in a painting or a movie... and then I love to stop and sit, reflect on the beauty in the world, and try to show that the best way I know how - photography.

Annie and I took a bus tour from Galway to see the Cliffs of Moher (if you've seen The Princess Bride, these cliffs were featured as The Cliffs of Insanity) and today I want to post the views from the trip to and from the cliffs.  Tomorrow I'll post the cliffs themselves.

This is what I imagined of Ireland, why just staying in the city for the whole trip simply isn't good enough.  And our journey begins:

 

It was cold and rainy.  And WINDY.  Very windy.  Most of us fell over at one point unless we properly braced ourselves against the wind.  Now, when I travel, I often have trouble getting photos of myself and whoever I'm traveling with because I don't want to just hand my camera to a stranger walking by - "Here's a camera worth several thousand dollars.  You can try to take a photo of us or you can walk away with it while we pose here and let you get away.  And by the way, you know how to get this thing in focus, right?"  Ok, so that's a bit of an exaggeration, but you get the point. So I try to keep my eyes open for competent camera users I'd trust.  Sign number one - I saw this kid with a Nikon camera.  3 points in his favor :)  Sign number two - posture when he took pictures.  He actually created a tripod for himself and held still and all that.

Sign number three - his equipment was entry level (D5100 and a kit lens) but his composition and the photos I saw were phenomenal.  Showed me he knew how to use it, not just have it. And when I finally decided to trust him was when he stood in the middle of the road because that was the only place to get the angle he wanted.  Sound like anyone else y'all know??? ;)  I fully support risking your life for the perfect shot.  Anyway, handed him my camera so Annie and I could be in a photo together with the beautiful countryside behind us.  It was cold and rainy and extremely windy, so everyone else had gotten back on the bus and was watched us from my right.  Laurie struggling a little bit figuring out how to get the photo in focus with my d800, but I was so impressed that he recognized the difference and wanted to try again! Ended up with some of my favorite photos from the trip.  Annie and I are laughing because the wind is knocking us off balance and trying to steal her hat.

There are a couple other photos I liked from this trip, but my wi-fi is struggling, so I'm going to leave it at this for now and come back later to add a few more.  It's interesting going to McDonald's more than ever before in my life - in Europe, that's one of the best places for internet connection, but I still find it difficult to want to spend that much time there.  Oh well!  Enjoy the photos, and watch for the cliffs tomorrow.