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Countries, Europe, Ireland

Holiday Snaps: Easter Ireland

12th April 202012th April 2020 funtime65

Thoughts of Ireland are never far from my mind but never more so than at Easter.

Easter was our time, my Mum and me.

When she would drive us over to see her Mum and Dad and sister in Co. Donegal in the north-west of the country.

We would have some adventures on the way.

Such as the time when we ended up on the Scottish island of Arran. Because she was too busy talking.

And did not listen to the steward, and went into the wrong queue.

I’d keep up the tradition of going to Donegal http://www.govisitdonegal.com at Easter when I relocated to Ireland and County Wicklow http://www.visitwicklow.ie.

And we would always stay in the town of Ballybofey near to her home hamlet of Brockagh.

Mum, having been brought up in the only hotel in the hamlet, was always a stickler for standards.

But she was always treated as a returning heroine by Jackson’s http://www.jacksonshotel.ie manager Barry.

I never had the heart to tell her that Irish hoteliers treat every guest the same way.

Of course neither of us are able to visit Donegal just now.

Where Dad is seeing out eternity with the rest of her family.

But it is reassuring to know that Donegal hasn’t forgotten us.

Donegal’s delights

With my friends at Harvey’s Point https://www.harveyspoint.com sending on their Easter greetings.

*Tranquil: Harveys Point.* http://www.booking.com

And Niall and the team are naturally showing that Donegal optimism.

With an offer for when we get back travelling again.

The award-wining Harvey’s Point is offering 10% off gift vouchers which can be redeemed in full against future stays.

We’ll maybe not tell her though that it was another Ulster county Monaghan which laid out the red carpet for us.

When the Scary One only brought us there a weekend early.

Visit https://monaghantourism.com/plan-your-visit/ and https://jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com/monaghans-country-roads/

And Easter elsewhere

There’s a meme going around just now.

Where Maria Von Trapp is being carted away from the hills (black humour will help us through this crisis).

Drink it all in

The Austrian hills are, of course a shifting landscape and beautiful either in the snow https://jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com/dresdens-renaissance-martin-luther/europe/soll-mates/ or when the glades are verdant.

I was all over Austria last year walking with Top Flight for Schools https://topflightforschools.ie… and drinking https://jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com/2020/03/26/hungry-and-thursday-the-off-sales/!

This being rural Austrian Tyrol https://www.tyrol.com it’s all about the eggs.

There are two kinds – the decorative ones and the chocolate ones. The decorative ones are blown beforehand so they are a hollow shell.

No yolk

The locals then use ferns and small flowers.

They are attached to the egg, before it is coloured or stained and then removed to leave a pattern.

The best bit though is that they are then used in an adaptation of a favourite childhood game.

Eierpecken is an Austrian pastime where the eggs are knocked together, just like conkers?

Visit www.blog.tirol/en/2018/03/diy-naturally-dyed-easter-eggs/ and here: www.pinterest.ch/pin/554998354055595995/
Austrian Tirol: www.visittirol.co.uk

Swiss roll

I like the way the Swiss roll.

And if you thought it was schnapps, schnapps and more schnapps you would only be half right.

Heaven with Hell

The beer, they go in for a brew called Hell, ain’t half bad.

While they also serve whisky at the top of the Jungfraujoch railway https://www.jungfrau.ch/en-gb/jungfraujoch-top-of-europe/ and https://www.myswitzerland.com/en-gb/.

And https://jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com/dresdens-renaissance-martin-luther/europe/swhisskey/.

And delivery of Easter wine is very much part of their seasonal rituals.

The big cheese

It was started as a religious, social and calming offering back in 1575 in Verbier and has continued ever since.

*Let t*he train take the strain: In Switzerland

In the past the parishes or the bourgeoises bequests in kind and in money.

In return for being the ones to offer the distribution of wine, cheese or even bread during Easter.

Nowadays, it encourages families and friends to get together for a feast.

So channel your inner Swiss today when you feast on wine, cheese or even bread during Easter.

These are the Swiss wines to look out for https://swisswine.ch/en/news/amazing-swiss-wine-regions-discover
Verbier: www.verbier.ch/en/index.htm

Countries, Culture, Europe, Food, Food & Wine

Rome on €50

9th April 20208th April 2020 funtime65

Rome wasn’t built in a day… if it was there wouldn’t be so much to enjoy.

But if you’ve only got one day (and maybe the next morning)…

Then what to see and what to miss out?And how to do it for less than €50 spending money.

Bohemian Trastevere next door past the Circo Maximo is a better bet.And I recommend the welcoming and economical Hotel Trastevere although remember there’s a €4 a night city tax.

Walk the walk

*A family thing happened on the* way to the Forum

It’s free and it’s fun… to people watch, window shop and you can take pictures at your leisure.

You’ll pay for the privilege of eating and drinking near St Peter’s Square and the Trevi Fountain.

Instead grab a pezzo (slice of pizza) on the go for about €3, fill your water bottles from the ornate water taps that proliferate around the city.

Rather than buy it from the shops.

Or just go into a grocery or supermarket and buy a picnic of bread and cold meats. For about a fiver.

This is free

Walking boy the Colosseum and The Forum never loses its appeal but you don’t have to go in, the audio guides will only tell you what you can find out online anyway.

And he’s free

Il Papa’s home. Photo by Valentin Onu on Pexels.com

Book an audience with the Pope. It’s Mass but he plays to the gallery and the backdrop of St Peter’s can’t be beaten.

If you can’t get an audience, and you’ll need to book in advance, then attend Mass in St Paul’s Basilica – you’ll be in there anyway.

Or any of the churches in the city, they double as art galleries.

Other frescoes

The Sistine Chapel is a truly wonderful work of art but frescoes can only really be enjoyed if you’ve got time, space and quiet.

Besides every church in Rome has a stunning fresco.

The best fresco, of course, is in the Pantheon, the 7.8m diameter hole in the dome, because God made the view.

It changes every day.

When it rains on Rome stop whatever you’re doing and rush to the Pantheon.

Spend a penny

No, not that penny, although I can recommend the toilets in the oh-so English Barrington Tea Room, near to the Spanish Steps – Byron, Keats and Shelley lived around her.

More Babington Wee Room, if you like.

No, spend a penny by throwing one over your shoulder into the Trevi Fountain.

It’s a cliche, and a superstition but it’s everything that people say it is.

Of course, they know you’ll come back to Rome… how could you stay away?

Skulls and bones

When you’ve seen everything else – and definitely make time for the Castel Sant’Angelo (€10.50) https://www.castelsantangelo.com which is next to St Peter’s Square where rich Papal history was played out.

It also adorns the walls – then head for the Capuchin Crypt http://www.cappucciniviaveneto.it (€8.50), Piazzaa Belerini.

And join the monks at prayer.

I walked past a real live Capuchin monk on my way in before being reintroduced to some real dead ones.

You know, the 3,700 whose skulls and bones were used to build the Crypt’s four chapels.

There’s even a clock mode out of a monk’s boners, although the twist is that he doesn’t have hands.

Time stands still in here. But not for us.

They have left us a message. ‘What are you now, we used to be. What www are now, you will be.’

Que sera, sera?

Flights

Photo by Kristina Paukshtite on Pexels.com

Aer Lingus http://www.aerlingus.com and Ryanair http://www.ryanair.com both fly to Rome.

Where to stay

I found Hotel Trastevere, Via Luciano Manara, 24A. Visit http://www.booking.com. With a 15% reduction down from €121 to €103.

Save your money

Your protector at the Castel Sant’Angelo

Save your money

€10.50: Castel Sant’Angelo

€8.50: Capuchin Crypt

€5: Bottle of wine

€1: Souvenir fridge magnet (it’ll cost you much more t the airport)

€0.50: For the Trevi Fountain. Listen, it can be a one-cent bit, but I’m just keeping it at a nice round number.

€7: For an al fresco spaghetti carbonara (it’s a local Roman speciality) deal with Peroni in Trastevere.

€2.50: For sweeties for the family/work… they’ll suss out though if it slips your mind and you to bluff it and get Haribos back home.

€10: For the disfigure and displaced around St Peter’s Square.

= €50.

Culture, Deals, Food, Food & Wine, UK

I belong to Glasgow

30th March 202015th April 2020 funtime65

I belong to Glasgow
Dear Old Glasgow toon
And there’s nothing the matter with Glasgow
Even if you’re ball ain’t roon,
Murty’s take on the auld Glasgow music hall song.

Growing up just a Johnny Sexton (or back then more a Mike Gibson) kick over the stream (or burn, as we call them in Scotland) to the Glasgow High playing fields.

I would often jump over into the grounds and practise kicking over the posts.

*Robbie Burns is watching: George Square*

No, I didn’t become the next Andy Irvine (I am Scottish after all), but I did go onto play at school, report on the game, and become a lifelong fan.

For 51 weeks a year the oval ball game plays second fiddle to football in Glasgow but on May 25 it will have to share centre stage.

When Celtic Park will host the Pro 14 Final, Celtic will be contesting the Scottish Cup final with Hearts the same day at Hampden Park.

HOW TO GET THERE
Ryanair www.ryanair.com and Aer Lingus www.aerlingus.com both fly to Glasgow.

WHERE TO STAY
I found a standard room for two at the ibis Glasgow City Centre – Sauciehall Street (it’s actually just two minutes from Sauciehall Street on 220 West Regent Street).

For two nights from May 24-26 from €320. Visit www.booking.com.

*And, of course, the chippier, the Chip* *Chik* Inn in the West End https://www.chipchikinn.co.uk

Curry favour

WHERE TO EAT
Glasgow’s national dish is not haggis as you might have been told but ‘a cheeky wee Ruby’, no she’s not a good time girl from the Gorbals. A ‘Ruby’ or ‘Ruby Murray’ is Jockney slang for a curry.

And the best place to go for a ‘Ruby’ is the West End. Try the Shish Mahal www.shishmahal.co.uk 60-68 Park Road or the Koh-I-Noor www.hoh-i-noor-glasgow.com on 235 North Street.

And did you know that the Chicken Tikka Masala was invented in Glasgow.

When Ali Ahmed Aslam, the owner of the above mentioned Shish Mahal improvised by putting tomato soup and some spices into a chicken curry.

For a Glasgow bus driver who had complained that the original offering was too dry?

Not to be confused with the Chicken Tikka Mo Salah which has Egyptian spices and is served in Liverpool!

Best bar none

WHERE TO DRINK
The Park Bar, 102 Argyle Street is a popular hang-out for Heelanmen and women, or Highlanders to you and me.

Serving tips: don’t wear ‘colours’, that’s hats and scarves with the colours of your sporting team, greens and blues are particularly divisive on account of the two big soccer teams Celtic and Rangers.

A pint of heavy is what we know as a pint of ale or Smithwicks and even if it is pronounced the same they spell whiskey without the e. It tastes just as good though.

Best value

The Horse Shoe Bar, 17-19 Drury Street www.thehorseshoebarglasgow.co.uk, down an alleyway, or close.

Near to Glasgow Central Station, is where Rod Stewart goes to drink when he is in town.

Of course the island bar is why it’s called the Horse Shoe Bar. Upstairs you can get a three-course lunch for a fiver… you don’t believe me?

It’s all good wholesome stuff.

I’d opt for the soup of the day (tomato is a favourite) followed by the sausage and mash or Scotch pie, chips and beans.

While for dessert (get away, it’s called puddin’ in Glasgow) then it’s vanilla ice cream or a caramel apple betty for me.

Glasgow greetings

Slainte, enjoy the rugby if you’re there for that, or if you’re just in Glasgow for other reasons then have a rerr time.

Tell me how you get on and we can share.

And say hi to my maw!

Uncategorized

Rome on €50

4th August 201910th August 2019 funtime65

Rome wasn’t built in a day… if it was there wouldn’t be so much to enjoy.

But if you’ve only got one day and maybe the next morning then what to see and what to miss out?

An how to do it for less than €50 spending money.

Obviously you have to sleep somewhere, and I do recommend the welcoming and economical Hotel Trastevere although remember there’s a €4 a night city tax.

Walk the walk

It’s free and it’s fun to people watch, window shop, and you can take pictures at your leisure.

You’ll also come upon piazzas you wouldn’t if you were on a public or hop-on, hop-off bus.

Eat al fresco

*Step this way: The Spanish Steps in Rome*

You’ll pay for the privilege of eating and drinking near St Peter’s Square and the Trevi Fountain.

Instead grab a pezzo (a slice of pizza) on the go for about €3 andfill your water bottles from the ornate water taps that proliferate around the city.

Rather than buy it from the shops.

Or just go into a grocery, or supermarket, and buy a picnic of bread, cold meats and fruit for about a fiver.

You’ll get a decent bottle of wine for about the same (there’s also the Campo di Fiore food market for a more authentic experience).

The Pope is free

*What time is Mass? Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com*

Book an audience with the Pope. It’s Mass but he plays to the gallery and the backdrop of St Peter’s can’t be beaten.

It you can’t get an audience, you need to book in advance, then attend Mass in St Paul’s Basilica – you’ll be in there anyway.

Or any of the churches in the city. They double as art galleries.

Other frescoes

*Look up: The Pantheon in Rome. Photo by Kyle Killam on Pexels.com*

The Sistine Chapel is a true wonderful work of art but frescoes can only really be enjoyed if you’ve got time, space and quiet.

Besides every church in Rome has a stunning fresco.

The best fresco, of course, is in the Pantheon, the 7.8m diameter hole in the dome,.

Because God made the view.

It changes every day.

When it rains on Rome, stop whatever you’re doing and rush to the Pantheon.

Spend a penny at the Trevi Fountain

*Water, water everywhere: At the Trevi Fountain, Rome*

No, not that penny, although I can recommend the toilets in the oh-so English Barrington Tea Room, near to the Spanish Steps.

Byron, Keats and Shelley all lived around here.

More Babington Wee Room, if you like.

No, spend a penny by throwing one over your shoulder into the Trevi Fountain.

It’s a cliche and a superstition but it’s everything that people say it is.,

Of course, they know you’ll come back to Rome.. how could you stay away?

*This way: There’s no shortage of statues in Rome*

Skull and bones

When you’ve seen everything else – and definitely make time for the Castel Sant’Angelo (€10.50) next to St Peter’s Square where rich Papal history was played out.

And it also adorns the walls.

Before you head for the Capuchin Crypt (€8.50), Piazza Belerini, and join the monks at prayer.

I walked pas a real-live Capuchin monk on my way in before being reintroduce to some real dead ones.

You know, the 3,700 whose skulls and bones were used to build the Crypt’s four chapels.

There’s even a clock made out of a monk’s bones, although the twist is it doesn’t have hands.

Time stands still in here. But not for us.

They have left us a message: ‘What you are now, we used to be. What we are now, you will be.’

Que sera, sera!

Save your money

*King of the Castel: At the Castel Sant’Angelo*

€10.50: Castel Sant’Angelo.
€8.50: Capuchin Crypt.
€5: Picnic or pezzo (€3 and €2 for a Peroni beer).
€5: Bottle of wine.
€1: Souvenir fridge magnet (it’ll cost you much more at the airport).
€0.50: For the Trevi Fountain. Listen, it can be a one-set bit, but I’m just keeping it at a nice round number.
€7: For an al fresco spaghetti carbonara (it’s a local Roman specialty) deal with Peroni in Trastevere.
€2.50: For sweeties for the family/work… they’ll suss out though if it slips your mind and you try to bluff it and get Haribos back home.
€10: For the disfigured and displaced around St Peter’s Square…. they deserve it.
= €50.

Travel Facts:
Flights: Aer Lingus and Ryanair both fly to Rome. Visit http://www.aerlingus.com www.aerlingus.com.com and www.ryanair.com for best offers.
Where to stay: I found Hotel Trastevere, Via Luciano Manara 24A, Trastevere on www.booking.com with a 15% reduction, down from €121 to €103.
I spent the day and night at the end of a Via Francigena pilgrimage, 100kms from Viterbo into Rome with www.ViaFrancigena.com

And check out that walk into Rome… https://jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com/small-roads-lead-to-rome/ And some tips in When in Rome… https://jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com/2019/08/04/holidos-and-donts-when-in-rome/

And if you like Italy, why not check out My Anasa. https://my-anasa.com?

This article was first published in the Irish Daily Mail.