Ireland Files 3. Delightful Derry

DERRY

The Walled City, Londonderry, City of Culture,City of Two Churches, Doire.

So many names for one troubled but beautiful city.

The Guild Hall. Once was bombed, all good now!

Taken from the Gaelic Doire meaning Oak tree or grove, this town has seen more than its fair share of “the troubles”. Not dissimilar to Belfast, the divide persists and the murals paint the sad history.

The two murals that affected me the most were side by side. The first was of a young female member of parliament who whacked a fellow but objectionable parliamentarian in the head for saying something inexcusably misogynistic. She spent six months in prison for the crime as when questioned in court about it she was only apologetic she hadn’t killed the .. (insert bad word). My kind of girl!! A fierce woman. Grrrr.

The other mural made me cry. A young girl on her way to school shot by a policeman. She was the 100th victim of the troubles. Her traumatised father spent every remaining day of his life in front of the mural talking to her. Tragic.

Derry has come a long way since then and this is their beautiful peace bridge linking the city over the River Foyle

FLEADH CHEOIL

I arrived in Derry just in time for the last night of this festival. Pronounced Fla Co (or something like that), it is a traditional music festival usually held in Ireland (the south that is). This a huge deal!!

For the first time this tradition has crossed the troubled border for 8 days of musical culture happily coinciding with Ireland’s year of The Gathering. Ireland she be calling her people home. I be hearing the call to be sure, to be sure. Derry is reputedly the home of one of my forefathers so it is a very happy accident that I am here for the final evening of this most historic of occasions.

The streets are electric! Food, stalls, marching bands and sensibly designated drinking areas with crowds swelled to over 430,000 of the 300,000 expected. All the bars have traditional music going inside and out. Spontaneous gatherings of musicians occurred everywhere. It seemed like every second person had an instrument strapped to their back. One of the most heartening things is how many young people were on the streets sharing their prodigious skills.

The next day I had a wander around town chatting to the people. The extraordinary thing was the mood of the town. Given the history, the expectation sadly had been pessimistic. Violence or trouble of some kind was anticipated. Instead the entire week was joyful and trouble free. The city awoke the day after the grand finale with a new positivity for continued peace and hope for the future. It was a privilege to witness and be in some small way a part of.

WALKING THE WALLS

A bit mystified by the city walls and totally over reading tourist brochures I opted to do a walking tour. So glad I did. The tour comes highly recommended by travel experts and with good reason. Informative, funny and tragic tour conducted by passionate local guides. A crash course in ancient and modern history from which I got most of my information for this post. My apologies for any factual inaccuracies. My group was blessed with the wonderful Girvan who thinks he has the best job in the world. As well as his job as tour guide he gave us some worldly spiritual advice. He told us that not matter how sad the occasion, always look for the funny side! Hear hear.

CHURCHES

In order to show no bias (however I just can’t bring myself to call the town anything but Derry) I visited the Protestant, Anglican (also known as the Wee Church) and the Catholic Church. So much trouble over bloody religion and state.

The Wee Church

NEXT STOP DONEGAL COUNTY

A few more pics

Prepared for trouble but trouble stayed away

Long live and love the Fleadh

A beautiful mural designed by a joint collaboration between Catholic and Protestant school children. The Oak Leaf symbol of Derry combined with a Peace Dove. Out of the mouths of babes…..

Venice – Water water everywhere not a drop to drink.

Water water everywhere, not a drop to drink.
There’s always Aperol and lots more!

Ciao Venice

The image I had in my mind of Venice was of dark spooky narrow watery alleyways. I’ve watched way too much TV. To be sure there are lots of those but the Grand Canal is a vast expanse of water busy with boating traffic. A city without any form of motorised road transport is a special experience. Even the shop supplies are ferried as close as possible and then hauled by muscly men (hard to watch) up stairs, down stairs along narrow paths on trolleys. They yell “attention” in that musical italian way to get people out of their way. I’ve a fairly good idea of what would come out of an Australian’s mouth in the same situation.

Ahoy Matey
A ferry is the most pleasant way to get around once you’ve worked out how to navigate the complex (and expensive) system. 7 Euro per trip anywhere or one of their ticket deals. Either way it is a lot of money but the only other options are even more expensive. My companions got a water taxi for 100 Euro. Ouch! Romantic Gondola rides are 80 Euro during the day and 100 Euro at night. If you want a singing Gondola add 100 Euro. I eventually did a singer-less ride on my last night with a group of four so it was a not too expensive Venetian treat. I love travelling by water but I always get what my nephew has coined “sea wobbles” for a few days after.

Michael pronounce “Mickeller” our happy English-less guide. He smiled a lot!

Get lost in Venice
The best way to really get to know Venice is to walk the myriad back streets with no destination in mind. I had seriously sore feet at the end of the day but it was rewarding. Away from the grand canal the crowds thin, the prices drop and the shops get more interesting. Mask shops selling original hand painted designs, jewellery, galleries, boutiques. All a bit more special but a lot less mass produced crap.

It’s all about the art!
Venice is a veritable cornucopia of art. The number of galleries almost matches the number of churches. My visit also coincides with a big art festival The Biennale which is mostly near my accommodation but also scattered around the city. My favourite exhibits were the ones I stumbled upon by chance when on one of my aimless wanderings. In five days I went to more than fifteen venues. So many highlights. One of the great things about The Biennale is they weren’t precious about photographing the art so it was open season.

Peggy Guggenheim Museum offering

Denatured busy Judith Harvest – glass blown honey pots

Asian art at the Kenyan Pavilion

Kenyan Pavilion

Bubistorie – Damiano Casalini

ABC
Venice has no fewer than 56 churches. My guide book has that many listed but I’m told there’s more. That’s a lot! I visited a few but only one floated my Venetian boat.

Madonna dell’Orto
There were two reasons I chose this church. One was because along my way there was a Palazzo with a camel on the wall (love my camels) and secondly because of a famous statue called the Miraculous Madonna by a local sculpture that the natives pray to. Love a good local miracle statue too. There was a book that you can write in and ask her for something so I asked for world peace. When it happens you know who you can thank.

Either side of this church was another two fantastic art exhibitions that made the visit even more worthwhile.

Emily Young We are Stones Children

Palazzo Ducale – neck brace required.
This magnificent pink palace off Piazzetta San Marco is an outrageous price at 16 Euro but worth the visit regardless and gives you access to other parts of the square. The walls are positively lathered in masterpieces by Venice’s most famous artists amongst elaborate wood work and carvings and is a photo free zone. The saddest part of the tour is in the dungeons and going across “The Bridge of Sighs” where the prisoners reputedly sighed as they got their last look at Venice before being led below to the claustrophobic dank dark confines of the cells. Ugh! The tour takes about 2 to 3 hours depending on your propensity to stop and really look at the work. This is when you need a neck brace because nearly all the art work is on the ceiling. We were fantasising about having trolleys to lie on and then glide effortlessly about the rooms. At the very least at that price perhaps they could hand out vouchers for a chiropractor or have one of those neat cheap Asian massage parlours at the exit. Alas none to be found.

Sigh

Honourable food mentions
GamGam in the Jewish Quarter. Unbelievable Kosher food with something for everyone, Vegos and Carnivores alike and brilliant staff.

Osteria Al Cicheto
Down a little alleyway just near the train station this little eatery made our night. Serving delicious Cicheto, tapas like snacks, and a very fine array of local wines at really reasonable prices. The owner took the time to explain each dish and wine to us. My new Intrepid team and I absolutely gorged ourselves, cleaning him out of cicheto, and were quite merry when we left for a mere 25 Euro each. A normal non gluttonous person could have had enough at about half that!

Look for the sign

Traditional Venetian Dishes

Venetian Sardines. Sarde Soar. Lots of people hate sardines but these tasty little darlings may make you change your mind. I tasted a few versions all over the city but the one thing they have in common is they are fresh sardines, lightly fried with sweet caramelised onions and currants.

Squid in its own Ink. A local favourite often coming with slabs of polenta. Black gooey yummy goodness. Close your eyes and swallow. I had the best one in little pizzeria off St Marks square with yet another affectionate waiter who gave me four free drinks. Happy happy.

Lions
Lions lions everywhere, some with wings, some with swords and mostly just looking fierce. Most royals throughout the world love to use the lion as their symbol but here it is over the top. It is the symbol in Venice of one of their patron saints. I have never seen so many and in the absence of having things to hug it has become a bit of an obsession of mine to photograph. And here I thought lions were from Africa. Silly me.

Murano
Glass glass glass everywhere. All throughout Italy “Murano” glass products real and fake are flogged to us willing tourists but Venice is its island home. A long ferry ride takes you across the water to Murano of proud and sometimes rude artisans. After an hour or so it all starts to look the same but there are some really lovely genuine pieces there if you are willing to take the time. Glass glass glass glass glass.

Giant glass thingy

Burano
This island is two long ferry rides from Venice. Home of the master lace makers and the most colourful buildings. It is also now the home of my very expensive and handy water filter bottle that I’ve had my whole trip and managed to misplace somewhere dazzled by all the colour. Bugger!

Things I missed
The other million churches and galleries.
Lido – The beach and salty sea was calling but at a reputed 17 euro a deck chair I declined. Not sure anything can measure up to the Sorrento and Amalfi coast water experiences and I don’t want to sully it.

A few more pretties

Anyone who’s anyone wears stripes in Venice. My smiling friend Michelle xx

Girls bucking the male dominated trend in a back alley

Most of the decent greenery is vertical.

Finally something huggable

NEXT STOP GUBBIO

Holy Cow – Valencia

The coolest way to get to Valencia is on a Very Fast Train. For a country in a financial slump they at least have their transport sorted. All the trains, trams and buses are clean and punctual but the VFT is queen. Ours clocked 301km but it happened on my way to the dining car so I only managed to snap the pic at 300km.

My tour leader David’s parents own a restaurant in Valencia so of course we head there. His wonderful Dad picks up our suitcases in his car so we can walk through the city unencumbered. Our first stop is the markets which reminds me a bit of the Queen Victoria Markets in Melbourne but in a much older building and with more exotic offerings. David had to get saffron for the restaurant so at least we made ourselves useful.

The beautiful restaurant, El Huerto meaning the Vegetable Garden, is in a building older than the settlement of Australia! Humbling. Spoilt rotten again, honourable mention to the best salad I have had the whole time I’ve been away and the mandarin sorbet with vodka. Ooh la la.

Valencia Cathedral – Holy Cow!
I almost opted out of this as I have had just about enough Jesus for a while until I heard these guys had the Holy Grail. Holy cow! So off we go. The holiest of grails is housed in a glass case in its own little chapel within the cathedral. A stained glass grail image window shines down on us from on high while angel music is piped in. The pamphlet I later buy for 15 cents tells me that this dead carpenters cup from 2000 years ago is carved out of a big piece of agate, has a gold base with 28 pearls AND 2 emeralds. The pamphlet also tells me “that nothing can be said against the idea that it was utilised by The Lord during the first Eucharistic consecration.” Ok then I won’t say anything! I just might be thinking a few sceptical thoughts. Eighteen Euro will buy you your very own imitation Grail. I was sorely tempted but I just don’t have the room in my bag. Damn, oops sorry for swearing, oh bother.

Jardines del Turia
Holy Grail aside, a city is a city is a city. Until we found this place I could have been in any city in the world. Valencia is Spain’s third largest city and thoroughly modern.

Valencia used to have the Turia river going through it. Now it has the Turia Gardens. Apparently they had flood problems back in the 1950’s so that was quits for the river. Diverting and filling in a whole river seems a tad extreme, however sarcasm aside, it is a most excellent park. We were fortunate to be here on Labour Day so the vibe in the city was high. It was a glorious sunny day and we walked from the city centre down to the Arts & Science Museum for an hour or so. The Valencians were out in force enjoying their park. Jogging, cycling, soccer, dogs, kids playgrounds, ponds, sculptures, cafes and loads of plants to keep me happy.

Purple flowering Polygala, Jasmine, Oleander, Bismarck palms, Acanthus, Oranges, Lemons, Hibiscus, Olives, Dragon Tree (Dracaena Draco) and roses roses roses galore. The wife and I had a Sound of Music moment in the roses. All thoughtfully planted in sweeping collections to maximise the impact.

BUT the star of the show is the Ceiba speciosa or bottle tree. Related to and resembling the Baobab tree, Adansonia. Common in Madagascar & Africa, we have a lone species native to Australia. This guy has nasty thorny spikes on the trunk, so definitely no climbing. It looks great as a single specimen but is particularly striking here planted in a grove.

Expats
Silky Oak – Grevillea Robusta
Another Aussie having a good time here. Looking great next to more fragrant White Cedar.
Callistemon Viminalis – Weeping bottlebrush
We keep seeing these in Spain and they seem to be very at home as they are covered in flower. They’ve used them here in hedges.
Peppermint Gum – Eucalyptus nicholli.
I could be wrong about the exact species but it looked like it and smelt like peppermint so close enough.

Museu Faller Fire Festival
Every year in Valencia since the 18th Century they burn stuff in a festival called Les Falles. Just after St Patricks day in March, it is celebrated on St Joseph’s Day. Named for Jesus’s earthly daddy. Originally the people made puppets or “Falla” depicting people or situations they disliked and later burnt. I enjoy the idea of the impermanence of the works. Creating something just to burn it. A giant citywide cathartic sacrifice. The festival continues to this day on a much grander scale. Since the 1920’s one falla that is considered best in show or the “ninot” is saved from the fire and kept in the museum. Creepy, grotesque, funny and poignant, the Fallas are amazing. The artwork on the advertising posters alone is brilliant. I was disappointed at the end to find there is no gift shop as I was hoping to pick up some prints. Entry is only a couple of euro. Bargain.

La Playa
One does not go to Valencia for the beaches. Our hotel is there, lucky us. It is a funny area. Funny strange, not funny haha. The beach is about 200 metres wide, the sand is more than a bit grotty and there are large deposits of sand up to 500 metres away on the road from storms. There were tractors up at dawn shifting it all. The area is part resort, part marina, part ghetto. The beachfront has numerous restaurants serving disappointing food but is full of Valencians enjoying their beachfront. As long as they are happy! Valencia is reputedly the home of Paella and I had the worst one ever here. Big heads up to The Balcony restaurant in Byron Bay for their paella, still to be matched. Just like our beaches.

NEXT STOP BARCELONA (and my Intrepid tour is over, on my own for a while after this).

That is not a helmet from Star Wars, it’s the Arts & Science Museum

Very Fast Train. Vroom vroom.