“There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign.” – Robert Louis Stevenson

Friday, June 27, 2008

Dublin 2

As I walked home tonight, and was about to turn into my hostel, which is right on the river and very close to Temple Bar, I discovered a woman's bum, peeing in hostel doorway, with a little creek running all the way down the sidewalk. Exasperated, I threw up my hands, and then her friend yelled at me, so I decided it would be prudent to keep on walking.

There were crowds of Spain supporters dancing in the square and singing the Beatle's Yellow Submarine, as the police "Garda" looked on amusedly. One woman with fancy silver shoes had a skirt so short, I wondered seriously for a length of paces if she was even wearing one beneath her coat. She didn't adjust it once--how do they stay in place? The bar downstairs was playing a U2 cover. That's quite common here. As is wearing green. Too many tourists!! (And what a hippocrite I must be since I am one, too.)

Now I am sitting in the hostel lounge, surrounded by young drunk Americans fixatedly talking about their mutual home in Michigan, somewhere on "the thumb". The conversation changes to skiing, camping and hunting in Montana vs. Canada, as you do. I wonder cynically how many Irish they have actually met? They are thrilled to be going to Amsterdam tomorrow. I find many Americans fixated on this city because of so much tight-laced restriction and stiff-necked prohibition at home, though haven't actually been there myself (or had a particularly determined desire to go). One staggering stoned lady determindedly fluffs up the plastic plant, propping up the wires to be more perky, leaf, by leaf.

Such is Ireland?

3 comments:

Rama said...

You should go to Amsterdam someday. It's beautiful, though I preferred Antwerp myself. Did you see the Book of Kells?

Natalya Marquand said...

Jed Rovin said on the facebook note:

Ah....Natalya, you are too young to be a cynic. You must know this is what you will find at Temple Bar and in the summer. And you must come to America, so that we can show you that we aren't all that bad. We are starting to export some of the lame ones so we can have our country back. Lol. And you must go to Amsterdam for that matter too. Besides all the nonsensical reasons that no doubt your American friends went for, it really is a beautiful city. Great architecture.

Actually, I am back in Miami, Ty was living in Dublin a few years ago and I was in London but we are both back now and Sasha is in Los Angeles. How goes it for you? You sound to be out and about a bit. What are you up to other than gallavanting around Dublin? the rest of the family? Drop me a line and fill me in.

Natalya Marquand said...

Hi there! This is just one rambling from my blog: http://natalyamarquand.blogspot.com, and facebook automatically adds it. They're not all this cynical! :)

I loved Dublin, and I love people watching even more--so Temple Bar is certainly one of the best places for it, and there was just a good mix of interesting things that night that I decided to share! And I do like Americans, this was just me at my most sarcastic! I studied in Beloit in WI, so I know they're not all like this-- and really, I was just portraying them badly--it was interesting conversation, but a little bit ironic. And I will get to Amsterdam someday... I went to other places in the Netherlands in 1992, and I'm sure it'll be great.

As for right now... I'm in transition from Myanmar to Azerbaijan as a teacher... parents are still in Dubai and Andre's in London.