The Dominican Priory of Kilmallock, one of the finest medieval ecclesiastical sites in Ireland

Settlement in Kilmallock began in around 600 AD, when St Mocheallóg founded a monastery on a hill one mile north-west of the current town. This monastery gave the town its name, as Kilmallock derives from the Irish Cill Mocheallóg (the Church of Mocheallóg).

The town is one of Ireland’s best-preserved walled towns, and it contains a wealth of stunning medieval buildings and features.

These low foundations are all that remains of the early medieval monastery founded by Mocheallóg

Perhaps most impressive of this array of medieval architecture is the magnificent Dominican priory that sits on the banks of the River Loobagh. The priory was founded in 1291, though it was extended and altered through the centuries. It contains some of Ireland’s best examples of medieval architecture – such as the ornate five-light east window - and a large number of sculptures of human heads (possibly representing benefactors of the priory) can be discovered throughout the buildings. It was founded with the support of the powerful Gilbert Fitzgerald. His tomb lies in the sanctuary beside the high altar of the priory, an honoured place reserved for the founders of monasteries.

Medieval sculpture inside the Dominican Priory

The Fitzgerald family are entwined with the story of Kilmallock. This Anglo-Norman family dominated southern Munster for nearly three centuries. From their base in Kilmallock, the Fitzgerald Earls of Desmond (the title derives from Deas Mumhan meaning South Munster), controlled Limerick, North Kerry, North and East Cork and West Waterford.

The Earls of Desmond gradually became independent of English authority and became almost de facto sovereigns of southern Munster. Like many other Norman families, they intermarried with the native Irish and adopted Irish language and customs. This changed with the rise of the Tudor dynasty in England. The most immediate impact of the Tudor dynasty and the Reformation was that the priory was suppressed by Henry VIII in 1541.

Although the Dominicans retained a presence here for a further two centuries, the position of the monastery was never secure in the turbulent times which followed.

The priory was still home to a community of monks in 1645 during the Confederate Wars, when it was visited by the Papal Legate, Cardinal Runnicini. Tragically, in 1648 it was attacked by the parliamentary forces of Lord Inchiquin and two monks were put to death in front of the altar. However despite these shocking events, monks continued to live and work here until well into the 1700s, often under the threat of religious persecution.

The medieval Collegiate Church of Saints Peter and Paul

King's Castle

As well as the incredible priory, Kilmallock has a number of other medieval buildings to discover. King’s Castle is one of the most notable. This fine example of an urban towerhouse dates to the 15th century. It is likely that it was originally built as the fortified home of a wealthy merchant or noble.

Some of the other medieval buildings include the remains of a 16th century stone mansion house, the medieval collegiate church of Saints Peter and Paul and of course the well-preserved stone walls that surround the town.

A visit to Kilmallock is highly recommended to anyone interested in the story of Ireland’s medieval past. If you plan to visit, we have a free downloadable audio-visual app (iOS and Android) that helps to lead you around the town, please see here for a preview.

The Stone Mansion (foreground) with King's Castle further down the street

The well preserved medieval town walls

I really hope you enjoy our blog. If you'd like to discover more stories about Irish history, archaeology and culture and if you'd like to support us you can download audioguides from my website www.abartaheritage.ie, where we have 25 guides that tell the story of Irish heritage and the majority are absolutely free to download.

If you’d like to keep up with daily images and information about Ireland’s fantastic heritage sites please consider following Abarta Audioguides on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

SNewsNet.com posted a podcast interview with Pete Takeda, the author of the book. The interview dates back to January of this year, but is still interesting for those of us who are still discovering the story.

The text on the page gives another brief introduction to the story and then has the audio file available to listen to directly in your browser, or if you'd prefer to listen on your iPod you can also download it.

I've also been alerted that I'll be receiving a copy of the book to review, so hopefully after Kili I will have that available as well. In the meantime watch for a couple of other book reviews coming very soon.

Thanks for the link Jon!

I was privileged to teach a class titled Introduction To Multimedia for the third straight year at this year's Foundry Photojournalism Workshop which was held in Istanbul June20-26.

As a couple of my class attendees are in the process of shopping their projects to publishers, I'm unable to publish them until they're made public by their creators. However, I am able to show an image from each project along with a description.

The attendees were Brenda Bravo, Pierre Claquin, Yagmar Dolkun, Pedro Gomes, David Hagerman, Jeroen de Kluiver, and Roubina Margossian.

1. Brenda Bravo: Kadikoy Underground Puppetry

Photo © Brenda Bravo -All Rights Reserved
Brenda's project documented an underground puppetry group in Kadikoy, from applying their make-up to walking in the streets performing to crowds. Apart from recording ambient sound of the performances, and of the street, Brenda also narrated the piece which was titled Kadikoy's Underground Puppetry. Her subjects attended the final show wearing the same make-up they use during their walk-abouts in Kadikoy.

2. Pierre Claquin: Leaves of Tolerance

Photo © Pierre Claquin -All Rights Reserved
Pierre's project was titled Leaves of Tolerance, and documented Nick Merdeyan (the self described Lord of the Leaves) who, from a small store in Istanbul's Grand Bazaar, produced artistic masterpieces of Islamic calligraphy on leaves, dried according to a proprietary process, and sold all over the world. Merdeyan, an Armenian Turk, narrated the piece showing his Islamic, Christian and Judaic motifs using Qur'anic script, underlining the similarity of the three Abrahamic traditions.

3. Yagmar Dolkun: Live Broadcast

Photo © Yagmar Dolkun -All Rights Reserved
Yagmar's project was on CNN-Turk, which took us into the back room of the television station before going live with a sports program. Yagmar chose to produce the piece in black & white without any narration, leaving the images tell the story, and relying on a mesmerizing music loop. The project can be seen by clicking here.

4. Pedro Gomes: Esmeray

Photo © Pedro Gomes -All Rights Reserved
Pedro's project documented Esmeray, a transgendered actor, a sex worker, a feminist, a Kurd and a home-keeper. Inspired by the NY Times' series One In 8 Million, Pedro interviewed Esmeray, and followed her through the day. He photographed during her theater perfromances, at a feminist meeting and later on at her home. Pedro's wife, Asli Maci, provided the excellent voice-over narration.

5. David Hagerman: The Ferry Boats of Istanbul

Photo © David Hagerman -All Rights Reserved
David chose to document the ferry boats of Istanbul as a symbol of this city. The ferries are part of the daily life for many Istanbullu, and beyond providing a commute alternative, also provide an escape from the daily tribulations of the city. A travelogue of sorts, David used ambient sound recorded on the ferries, the sound of their motors, the din of the passengers and a couple of short interviews.... one with a young man who claimed that "girls are like grains of sand".

6. Jeroen de Kluiver: The Alevi

Photo © Jeroen de Kluiver -All Rights Reserved
Jeroen documented the Alevi in black & white project. The Alevi are a religious sub-ethnic and cultural community in Turkey. Its tradition is related to Shi'a Islam and Bektasi Sufism, and its worship takes place in assembly houses rather than mosques. Jeroen photographed and recorded a ceremony known as cem, which features music and dance and during which both women and men participate.


7. Roubina Margossian: Symbolism In Religious Tradition

Photo © Roubina Margossian -All Rights Reserved
Roubina is one of the recipients of a scholarship to attend the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop. She produced an audio slideshow titled Symbolism in Religious Tradition, focusing on a religious service in an Armenian church. Narrated by Father John of the church, Roubina's fondness for photographs of reflections is evident in the project!

Here's another post on Matjaž Krivic's work. This time, it's Mali that he shares with us in this lovely audio-slideshow-movie (he calls it multivision...not a bad name.).

Matjaž just returned from an overland road trip from Slovenia to Nepal via Senegal (Dakar to Katmandu), which took him 13 months of living and photographing out of a 4x4 Nissan Patrol.

For 20 years, he globe-trotted the world capturing the personality and grandeur of indigenous people and places, and found the time to be awarded many prizes, and recognized in various venues and exhibitions. He traveled in Yemen, Mali, Tibet, North and West Africa, Iran, Mongolia, China, Nepal and India.

The spectacular music accompanying the slideshow is Dunya Salam ("world of peace") by the legendary Senegalese singer Baaba Maal. An excellent choice!

So choose full screen, turn up the volume of your speakers and enjoy the show!

I haven't posted an update on the North Pole teams in awhile, but we've got a good update today from ThePoles.com where they are reporting that Alain and Dixie are steaming towards the finish line. You'll recall that these two started off in Sibera, and have traversed over the Pole to reach Greeland. They are currently 1302km into their expedition with a mere 354km to go before they reach their final destination. They've picked up speed over the past few days as well, as their sledges have lightened up and good weather has made for better travel.

Thomas Ulrich and Børge Ousland are also making great progress as the two arctic legends attempt another journey together. They reached 86° 4’ N and are reporting lots of open water in their area. Their expedition, unlike most, BEGAN at the North Pole, with the idea that they would then travel by skis, kayak, and sailing ship over more than 1500km as they head to Franz-Josef Land, in Siberia, then continue on to Cape Flora, then sailing back to Norway, where they'll trek to Oslo on foot.

Unfortunately, things aren't going so well for Rosie Stancer who has been trying to close in on the Pole, but suffered setbacks yesterday due to open water and negative drift. After struggling with high winds all day, and moving in a more westerly direction to avoid rubble, Rose made camp only to discover that she had not gained any ground for her efforts. Hopefully today she's making up for lost time, and is making her way North at a good pace.

The Neolithic passage tomb of Seefin stands on top of a 650m high mountain in North Wicklow. It dates to approximately 5000 years old and appears to be part of a series of tombs, as a number of other peaks in the area like Seefingan and Seahan also have similar large cairns covering passage tombs. This would have been an incredibly difficult undertaking in the Neolithic period even though there is an abundant supply of stone on top of the hills. The peaks of these hills are all around 650m – 750m above sea level, so why would they have constructed these elaborate and large stone tombs up here? When you arrive at Seefin it immediately becomes apparent. The views are just simply spectacular and some of the finest vistas you can ever enjoy in Ireland. The whole of South County Dublin and Wicklow opens up around you, rolling hills, well ordered fields, shining lakes all stitched together like a neat quilt. It is almost like those who constructed the graves wanted to claim ownership of all they could see. That by placing their ancestors far above the low lying lands of the living, the shades of their forebears could watch over them from their tombs.


But who was buried at Seefin? The tomb was excavated by R.A. Macalister in 1931, however he reported finding no artefacts and stranger still, no human remains in the tomb. Perhaps then the remains had been removed in antiquity, by the decedents of the tribe if they migrated from the area they may have wanted their ancestors with them.

 Perhaps in some remote period the grave had been desecrated with all traces of the those interred removed and destroyed, or perhaps no-one was buried in the tomb at Seefin in the first place, maybe the tomb was merely a symbolic marker in the landscape and never a final resting place? Or perhaps the remains were there and Macalister missed them? Whatever the case, it is certainly strange that 5,000 years ago a large community worked together to construct an elaborate tomb, that was then left empty. Perhaps in the future, a small investigation of the unexcavated tomb of Seefingan might provide the answer.

 The tomb at Seefin is a large stone cairn, measuring around 25m in diameter and about 3m high. You can see a number of large kerb stones around the base of the tomb defining its outer edge. The tomb has a passageway around 10m long and opens into a chamber with five compartments. According to Macalister there are two decorated stones at the entrance, but perhaps because of the very strong light when we visited on the 13th July 2013, we couldn’t make out any megalithic art.

View down the passageway

Getting There

Seefin is in County Wicklow, roughly half way between the Sally Gap and Manor Kilbride on the R759. If you are travelling from Dublin go on the N7 and exit onto the N81 at Citywest. Turn left onto the R759 and continue along this road. The turn off for Seefin is on your left immediately before the large entrance to the Kippure Estate and Kippure Bridge. The turn off is only a small lane so expect to miss it and you can always turn around in the entrance for the Kippure Estate.

Drive for a few minutes up this steep track, if you come to the fences and warning signs for the Army Rifle Range you have gone too far, simply turn back and park your car in a handy lay by. Be sure to approach Seefin from the South (as the Army range is to the North but is well marked by a fence and signs), follow the track through the fir-tree forest plantation.

The first stage of the track up the hill

At this point the track briefly disappears, kept to the left of the fence and continue climbing

The view back down the track from around two thirds of the way up

The track was rough and steep and haunted by swarms of hoodlum horseflies but bear with it and keep climbing up. When you get to a fallen fence where the path seems to disappear, cross to the left hand side of the fence and keep following the fence up. After a total climb of around 30-45mins (we took it very handy as it was so hot and it took us around 40 mins and we’re by no means athletes) you’ll find the tomb on the summit, our first glimpse of the tomb had a crow rather ominously perched on top of it, very atmospheric!

Our first glimpse of Seefin, note the crow perched there like some kind of ominous sign

Enjoy a well-earned rest and take in the simply wonderful views. We were obviously gluttons for punishment, as we decided to take on Seefingan, the twin peak that is also crowned with a Neolithic passage tomb identical to Seefin.

Seefin from Seefingan

Unlike Seefin however, Seefingan is still unexcavated, and appears as a simple large cairn of stones. It’s well worth the walk as you can enjoy even more spectacular views as Seefingan is around 100m higher above sea level than Seefin. It’s very easy to get to, just follow the rough path  to the north-east through the bog (jumping the odd minor crevasse) for around 20mins or so and you’ll arrive at the tomb.

The cairn on top of Seefingan, almost identical to Seefin but never excavated so no visible features

The climb was made easier for us by the exceptionally dry weather, I think given the nature of the ground, that the path could become quite dangerous in wet weather so please do wear good boots and appropriate clothing if you are attempting it on a less than perfect day. If like us, you are going up on a nice sunny day I recommend insect repellent, those horseflies were merciless thugs and I’m still scratching a number of bites now.
Above all though, please do be aware of the Army Rifle Range and respect their warning signs!

For those interested in prehistoric archaeology, or those who love a bit of hillwalking, or those who just want to see some of the finest views in Ireland, Seefin is a real must-see.

I do hope you enjoy our blog, we are trying to cover as many sites across Ireland as we can. Please do consider supporting us as we need all the help we can get and we'd really appreciate it. You can support us by sharing our blogposts or by downloading one of our audioguides from www.abartaaudioguides.com, they are packed with original music by Enda Seery and sound effects to make a fun and immersive way of hearing the story of one of Ireland’s iconic heritage sites. They cost just €1.99 and you can enjoy them from the comfort of your own home or at the sites. If you want to try them out before you buy we have a number of guides available free to download, including the incredible Rock of Dunamase, Kells Heritage Town and an audioguide that describes all the archaeology discovered during work on the M6 motorway between Kinnegad and Galway, it’s the story of a landscape through its archaeology.

If you’d like to receive daily updates about great heritage sites then please consider following us on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.

Robert and Robin Axel are two pals from my college days. They're married and have two sons, both in college now. I think the first time I was ever traveled outside of the U.S. was when Robert and I hitchhiked to Mexico during the summer of 1967. That's a whole other story-- for another time-- and today I want to introduce you to Adam, their older son. He's a senior at University of Central Florida, a political science major with a good head on his shoulders. Like his parents, he's an enlightened liberal and, in his own words, "a strong advocate for the tight Elite grip on the U.S. as well as the World to be removed. Power should truly be in the hands of the people and not in an elite minority." What started out as a summer vacation and wild adventure, turned into Adam immersing himself in the society and culture of a country few college students could ever even find on a map. Adam got back a couple days ago. I don't know anyone else who has ever been to Ghana and Adam wrote some notes while he was there and is allowing me to publish them. It's not about the best hotels and restaurants and tourist attractions.

I am in a small village called Kwamoso in the Akuapem Hills Region. The village is extremely rural with no electricity or running water. Compared to middle class America these people are dirt poor but they are Ghana's middle class. They live in houses literally made out of mud with tin roofs. In many the mud walls are coated with a layer of cement but not all. The poor live in houses with straw roofs and the mud walls look like they are crumbling. The people are really nice and friendly. The family I am staying with always has my meals (breakfast, lunch, & dinner) ready for me & won't even let me help clean up.

Two girls from Britain are staying at the same house as I am although I haven't met one yet because she has been traveling. In the area there are about 10 other volunteers and we all meet up at night. This weekend they are all traveling to a beach a few hours away but I have an appointment to meet the Tribal Chief of Kwamoso on Saturday so unfortunately I cannot go. I am glad that there are other volunteers because it is hard to have a conversation with the locals in my village because the ones that do speak English don't speak it particularly well.

There is a school across from the house I am staying in so there are always tons of kids running around. They stare and point at me and call me "obruni" (white man). Many are amazed and run up to touch me to see if I am real. None of the locals speak English unless they are talking to a volunteer. They speak their local language so I never know what is going on. Although most people are really nice they constantly talk about me because I will hear "American" or "obruni" throughout conversations. It is really annoying at times but I should get used to it. The other volunteers say the same thing happens to them all the time.

During the week I get woken up around 6am for breakfast although I am awake much earlier from the roosters and sheep. The family I am staying with wakes up around 4am. I then go to work between 7 and 8 am and make mud bricks and help with the construction of the homes. Habitat for Humanity runs the program. It is hard and messy work and you get covered in mud. The sun here is incredibly hot and if you don't wear sunscreen you can be sunburn in 10 minutes.

I work until around 11am or 12pm because that is when they usually stop for the day because of the extreme heat. On my first day at work the other workers did not understand why I was wearing shoes. One who spoke a little English said that if he had shoes he would never dirty them and wear them   for work. Most people do not have shoes. Earlier today I saw about 20 kids at another school playing soccer bare foot. I find it really sad.

People spend the day outdoors because it is even hotter inside the houses. They cook over fires and wash their clothes by hand in basins. There is an outhouse and a small room with a bucket which is my shower for the next 6 weeks. The outhouse is really disgusting and I was told at night before going to the bathroom to shine the flashlight down the hole to scare the cockroaches as they tend to climb up the top at night. The bugs are really crazy looking and big. I saw a millipede the size of the lizards in Florida and saw a lizard here that was yellow, red, and green. The village has chickens, goats, sheep, turkey (I think it was a turkey), pigs, and cats running around all over the place. The food is really good and the fruit is so fresh. The area I am in is real beautiful and is in the hills and is covered in green.

I am using the Internet at a town that took me about 35 minutes to get to. I had to take a tro tro (small packed van) and 2 line taxis to get here and it cost a little less than a dollar for the whole trip. American money is worth so much here and everything is really cheap. You can get a hotel room for less than $5 US.

Everything is so different here and it makes me feel so lazy. The women carry everything on their heads and I've seen some carrying loads of wood and huge things on their heads. I have no clue how they do that. The strangest thing that happened to me so far was when the man whose house I was staying at was showing me around the property; he went and walked around holding my hand. The people are so friendly that you will see a lot of grown men going around holding each others hands just as friends.

I have to be very careful with what I eat and about getting bitten by mosquitoes. About 2 weeks ago one of the volunteers had malaria and another had typhoid. They are better now and still here. Malaria is no big thing here as so many people get it. They basically give you a shot and you're better in 3 days.

Somehow cell phones work in the village I am in. Although they don't even have electricity I have better cell phone service than I do in Roosevelt (N.J.); I don't get it. I bought a prepaid cell and can receive cell phone calls. Whenever I need to charge my phone I take a tro tro to this guy's house who works for the organization I am volunteering with because he has electricity. I use the cell to keep in touch with the other volunteers. It is really cheap to make local calls and costs practically
nothing.

(Part 2)

I am in Cape Coast for the weekend which is a little over 4 hours from the village I am living in. All of the other volunteers had already traveled to Cape Coast so I decided to go alone. I arrived here yesterday and am feeling a little guilty because I am staying at a hotel that has electricity and a shower with hot water. Today I toured the Cape Coast Castle and the Elmina Castle which were both used during the slave trade. Tomorrow I will visit Kakum National Forrest which is a rain forest that has a canopy walk (rope and wood ladder that you walk across at the top of the trees).

This area is nice although in the center of the city everyone has a hustle for the white man and it gets a little old after a few hours of it. When I stepped out of the taxi at the first castle about 5 people surrounded me asking me for money for their soccer team and to sign a piece of paper pledging my support. I was told beforehand they do this so when you are done with the castle they will say that you had signed pledging money and harass you until you pay. I refused to sign anything but one person asked me for my name and I was surprised to see him writing it down with a marker on his hand. I didn't think much of it until 2 hours later when I am coming out of the castle and there he is running up to me with this big sea shell which read: To my American Friend, Brother Adams Axel, Have a nice time at Elmina Castle. I was impressed by his effort and handed him 30,000 cedis ($3) but he was not happy and wanted more. I got in the taxi as about another 10 people had gathered all asking me for my shirt, shoes, backpack, necklace, etc.. some even started yelling at me.

Anyway everything is going well. I have interviewed 5 people so far for my research (2 tribal Chiefs, 2 exec branch officials, and 1 local). The interviews with the tribal chiefs are pretty intense. First I have to pay them with either money or wine for their time and then do all of these interesting rituals with them. The first Chief I interviewed made me take huge shots of this strong gin or whiskey and then made me pour glasses for his entourage.

I have adapted pretty well to my living conditions and it has become a normal thing to take bucket showers with lizards in the dark. The one thing I have not completely gotten used to, and don't think I will in the next 4 weeks, is the bathroom. The other night there were at least 20 huge cockroaches all over the room climbing out of the toilet. I didn't need to use it but the other volunteer did and had to spend 20 minutes trying to brush them away in the dark.

I am finally being called Adam now instead of Obruni from a bunch of the children I spend the most time with. Everyone loves my camera and when people see it they run over to be in a picture and when I'm taking pictures there are always kids trying to jump into it. I gave the family I am staying with a photo album of pictures from America and they love looking at it and are really interested in the country. Everyone thought (his family's) two little dogs (Baby and Onyx) were monkeys.

I am always asked to bring people back to America with me. They will say something like "please sir bring me to your country". Today my taxi driver was trying to get me to marry one of his sister's friends and bring her back with me. A few people asked me if there are black people in America and almost everyone has the perception that everyone in America is rich and are shocked when I tell them this is not the case. I have only met 2 people who like Bush and everyone else hates the bastard. I have no clue what is going on in America except that someone in Florida was eaten by an alligator and "somewhere in Florida the votes are still being counted"... lol. I think there are newspapers with International coverage but I have not been that interested to find them. I am guessing the usual is taking place: people are dying in Iraq, people are still dying in New Orleans, Big Brother has your phone tapped, Cheney's friends are buying new mansions and islands with blood money, and Bush is at the ranch sitting on his thumb. If this is not the case please correct me but I am pretty confident in my assumption.

(Part 3)

Having a great time. I am in Accra with the other volunteers. Every month there is a party for all of the volunteers all over Ghana and last night it was here. My interviews are going well and I have done 10 so far. Hopefully next week I will meet with a couple of members of parliament. A few days ago I traveled to Boti Falls with a friend and we saw 2 water falls and hiked to a cave and the Umbrella Rock which is a huge rock in the shape of an umbrella. I climbed this rickety ladder to the top of the rock and the view was amazing. It had a similar feeling from when I was at the Grand Canyon. From up there it was like "wow I'm really in Africa," looking over the forest and mountains.

Construction work is also going well and I am enjoying it. From Monday, June 5th to June 9th I will be traveling to the North with a few friends. Our main objective is to get to Mole National Park and spend at least one night there. Right outside the hotel are watering holes and elephants, baboons, and other animals get really close to you. We have a few other stops along the way and I think one includes a huge Mosque made out of sticks.

I have become really close with a few of the kids in the village as well as with a few of the local school teachers. They have given us all nicknames and mine is acoodapanu (not sure of the spelling). They say it means "man sitting under tree drinking palm wine." One of the teachers is really funny. He thinks because I live in America I know 50 Cent and wants me to introduce them.

My friend Hugh and I each put in around $25 and are sponsoring this little girl Efia to go to school. She was adopted 2 months ago and the woman who adopted her barely has enough money to feed her, let alone send her to school. There really is no point in sending kids to the public schools here because they are so bad and the kids learn nothing. The $50 covers half the year and she will start school this Monday. Her new mother and her came up to us and would not stop thanking us. They were so happy it was a great feeling. The last couple of days I have been teaching her a little English. When I get home I will try and organize something to put money together to take care of the rest of the school year as well as sponsoring this kid Isaac who currently attends the public school. He also doesn't have the money to go to the private school and he is so bright he deserves the chance at an education. It is really sad how some of the kids live including Isaac. He, along with 3 other boys, live in this really small empty room with only 2 small pieces of this thin foam to sleep on. Despite the living conditions they are always happy and it is really inspiring.

Luckily I have not gotten sick yet and I hope I don't. The guy who had malaria had a relapse and was back in the hospital for 4 days and on oxygen for a day or so. I have been being really careful. One of the volunteers is leaving this weekend so I think we are all going swimming today at a pool and will probably then head back to the hills afterwards. Tomorrow I am planning on renting mountain bikes and going on a 3 hour trail which I've heard is beautiful. My friend had emailed me last week and informed me that Bush's' approval rating is now down to 29%. Any news like this I highly encourage to be sent to me ASAP.

The other night I was at a bar with a few friends and this guy walks in blurting out all sorts of crazy things. We didn't know if he was drunk or crazy or both. But anyway, it amuses me to have strange conversations with random people once in a while so we begin talking. He tells me that he is the "INFO MAN" and he can share as many "tid bits" of information as I would like. He is stumbling all over and keeps yelling how he is the "Info Man and it is "his pleasure" to speak with me. He buys me a beer and then tells me that he is the Information Minister and although I doubt it, it is somewhat believable because his English is really good. When he tells me this I immediately think of my research and attempt to grill him with questions just in case he is who he says he is. He is way too drunk to obtain any valuable information from-- except that he is the "Info Man" and he loves sharing tid bits of information with me and that he is in control of the information. It was hilarious and the other volunteers could not stop laughing. When he finally stumbled out of the bar he left us with these wise words "make sure to sleep with your ears outside." The owner of the bar informs us after he leaves that he really is the Minister of Information and he normally is very quiet and had just come back from a party. It is really ironic that I bump into this high government official which would have been great for my research but he was too wasted to say anything worthwhile.

(Part 4)

I am on my way to Adu Foah (a beach about 4 hours from Accra) and I stopped at an Internet cafe in Accra before catching a tro tro to the beach. I have been having a great time and have had some interesting experiences since the last time I wrote. Two friends and I rented mountain bikes a few days ago. By mistake we were given an advanced trail instead of the beginners trail which we had requested. We did not realize this until we were flying down steep cliffs, dodging huge holes, and pedaling through sand and tiny paths through corn fields. In summation it was INSANE and probably somewhat dangerous. Much of it felt like complete torture especially the never ending vertical inclines-- although the scenery was amazing and now that it is over I can say I am glad to have experienced it.

The little girl started school on Monday and seems to love it as she is always smiling. I taught a couple days this week and it was definitely an experience. I taught stage 1, 2, and 3 English and math. It is completely frustrating but somewhat rewarding when a student actually understands what you have just spent 2 hours teaching.

The other night I told ghost stories to the kids and think I scared the crap out of them. I had to keep telling them afterwards that it was just a story and there is no axe murderer wandering the village slaughtering goats and killing little boys at 3 am every night. That probably wasn't such a great idea. We took them into town yesterday for minerals (soda) which is thrilling for them because they never leave the village and their families don't have the money to buy minerals... as well as the fact that there is no electricity to keep anything cold in the village.

One of my house mates, Izzy had a couple of terrifying experiences that I think are worth sharing. She was in the loo (damn Brits call the bathroom the loo) and in the middle of her business a cockroach violated her. Without getting too graphic, the cockroach climbed up the toilet while she was on it and crawled around her private area. Another night she was in the loo a snake with a white head popped its head under the door but luckily did not crawl all the way in. The next day she asked about the snake and everyone kept saying "there are no snakes, no snakes, no snakes." I think it is considered a bad omen to talk about snakes. But anyway she finally found a few people who told her there are poisonous snakes with white heads. They claim that the first bite paralyzes you and then the snake eats you. I don't know how believable this story is but I don't really want to meet this man-eating snake to find out.

Two other volunteers have malaria but, on the bright side, the guy who was hospitalized is now better and feeling good. I had made an appointment to interview an assembly member and was told to meet him the next morning. The Reverend I am staying with told me he would wake me up in the morning. I am thinking 6, 7, maybe 8 am. At 3:50 AM! he is at my door "Adams get ready to leave." I couldn't believe it; I thought it was a bad joke. So at half past 4 AM! I am catching a tro tro in the dark to go ten minutes down the street. Anyway the interview went well except for one awkward moment when I was asked to buy him a motor scooter. I have done 13 interviews so far-- 2 local gov, 2 exec branch, 2 chiefs, 6 citizens, and 1 farm owner. I have made arrangements to meet a big shot business man at his mansion when I get back from traveling and have finally got in contact with a Parliament Rep who is hopefully setting up meetings with 2 parliament members as well. I then need a few citizens from the city and I think I will be good to go. I met a police chief last night and took his contact info but am not sure if I will interview him or not. I don't know how well he will receive questions on corruption when the police are the most corrupt of all.

On Sunday I will be leaving the beach with 3 volunteers and heading off for Northern Ghana and will be traveling until next Friday. The village I am living in is starting to feel like home and I will def miss it. If Cheney has a heart attack or Bush develops malaria email me at once.

(To be continued)


UPDATE 2009: Less Than Total Immersion

Today's NY Times recommends Ghana as the place to experience the joyous African experience-- although maybe not Accra. They recommend Cape Coast, although the primary Cape Coast experience doesn't sound exactly joyful... unless you're Jesse Helms or Jim DeMint.

As I left the market behind, the traffic and crowds died off, and the closer I came to the castle, the more somber the mood felt. Ahead of me, visitors clustered close together and slowed their steps almost to a shuffle. Even the young men who had gathered at the castle gate to solicit donations for fictitious youth soccer teams spoke in hushed tones. I realized that I had just walked the same path through town that the captives took, force-marched and traded to the British for guns, liquor and other goods, and then funneled into ships.

After his visit to Cape Coast Castle last month, President Obama said that he was reminded of the Buchenwald concentration camp. It’s an analogy many have made; I have been to Auschwitz and Buchenwald, and I, too, felt the similarity. As I walked through the arched gate into the long corridor leading to the castle courtyard, I was confronting the physical evidence of tangible evil.

The castle, an imposing stone fortress of ramps, stairs, parapets and holding pens, is a Unesco World Heritage Site and draws not only a steady stream of tour groups but also many visitors, including large numbers of African-Americans, traveling on their own. The castle boggles the mind with the businesslike efficiency of its neatly laid out spaces: the dark caverns of the men’s and women’s dungeons located deep within; the bright, airy residence halls on the upper floors for the administrators and paid workers; the high ramparts lined with enough cannons to repel an armada. Kidnapped Africans were held for months at a time in the most hellish conditions. Many died in dungeons so crowded that they could not lie down.

Those who survived left through the Door of No Return-- a small wooden door built into a stone archway that led to waiting ships. I paused there, overcome by emotion. It was difficult, almost terrifying, to step through this door despite the fact that no slave has been forced through it for two centuries.

If you are a regular viewer of The Rest of Everest you probably heard Jon's announcement a few weeks back that he is returning to the North Side of Everest this year. In just a few days actually, as he departs on Sunday, April 1st. He has more details of the trip in this week's video podcast on what we fans can expect.

For starters, there is a whole new webpage you'll want to bookmark that will be updated throughout the trip, with blog entries, images, audio files and more. We'll hear from Jon while he meets up with some teams on the North Side and Ben, the lead climber on the Rest of Everest video podcasts, will be checking in from time to time as he goes for the summit of Shisha Pangma this year. It sounds like we should be treated to some great stuff.

Also, in this bonus podcast, we learn about climbers Brian Oestrike and Justin Hewitt who are taking on Everest this year for a good cause, namely to raise money and awareness for lung cancer. The charity they are climbing for is lungevity.org and you can follow their whole climbe at ClimbForCancer.Blogspot.com.

Good luck to Brian and Justin on the their climb for a cause, and have fun in Nepal and Tibet Jon. We can't wait to see what kind of new adventures you have and look forward to you sharing them with us. Be safe guys!

Two of the expeditions that we've been following closely this fall season in the Himalaya have come to an end, closing the season at last. With autumn drawing to a close, and heavy snows falling across the region, there will now be a break in the action while we wait for the winter expeditions to arrive on the scene in late December or early January.

One of the late-season expeditions that has been so intriguing this year as been Chad Kellogg and David Gottlieb's attempt to summit Lunag-Ri, the tallest unclimbed peak in Nepal at 6895 meters (22,621 ft). When last we checked in with the team, they had retreated from their first attempt after a large chunk of ice or rock had struck Chad in the shoulder, causing an injury that would prevent them from continuing upwards. The boys went back back to Base Camp and regrouped for a second attempt, which proved to be just as challenging in hits own way.

It took them about a week to get organized for another attempt and they set off once again along a different route that they hoped would allow them access to the summit. Temperatures were starting to drop and snow remained an obstacle, but Chad and David were optimistic about their chances. They proceeded upward and were making steady progress when Gottlieb realized that he couldn't feel some of his fingers. Removing his glove, he could see that frostbite was starting to set in and further examination showed that six of his fingers were in danger. It was a simple choice at that point. Time to abandon the climb and return home.

The two men descended back to Base Camp and on November 6 they started their trek back to civilization. For now, Lunag-Ri remains unclimbed and a lure to other mountaineers looking to make a first ascent.


Meanwhile, ExWeb is reporting that the Korean team on Lhotse was making a final "fast and light" attempt on that mountain at the end of last week. The team was turned back on their initial summit bid two weeks ago due to heavy snows. They hoped to give it one more go and if successful, they should have summited over the weekend. There is no news yet on whether or not the succeeded, but considering how uncooperative Lhotse has been this fall, it seems unlikely. If news of the teams success comes my way, I'll be sure to share it here.

ExWeb also has follow-up information on the French climbers who were evacuated from Annapurna a few weeks back. We knew at the time that they were suffering from frostbite, but we didn't know the extent of those injuries. Yannick Graziani suffered only minor issues and is now on the mend but Stephane Benoist is facing much worse problems. He has been flown home to France where his injuries are being treated, but it now seems he'll face the amputation of one of his feet and the tips of several fingers. Thankfully the injuries weren't more life threatening but this was still quite a price to pay.

In a sign of things to come, ExWeb also says that teams are now starting to gear up for the winter season, with one team already aiming for an attempt on Nanga Parbat, one of only two 8000 meter peaks that have yet to be climbed during the winter season, the other being K2. It should be interesting to see what lies ahead.

'Baginbun – where Ireland was both lost and won'

In a little departure from our usual historical sites, this tranquil looking beach is Baginbun, the scene of epic high drama in 1170 AD. While the first Anglo-Norman invasion landed at Bannow Bay in 1169, the second wave landed here at Baginbun just south of the Hook Head Peninsula in Co. Wexford in early May 1170. The invasion consisted of just around 80 men, but they were led by Raymond le Gros, a man with great military skill and cunning. Raymond had chosen Baginbun as he knew that there was an ancient Irish promontory fort that could serve well as a temporary defensive camp before he moved on to attack nearby Waterford.

Raymond knew that Waterford would be well defended and he also needed supplies for the invasion, so he decided to coax the Waterford men out to fight on his terms. He had his men raid the surrounding countryside for cattle, they drove the massive herd back to the ancient promontory fort where the Normans had established their camp. This enraged the Waterford men, and they quickly gathered their forces to attack.

It is estimated that between 1000–3000 Waterford men marched to Baginbun to kick these cheeky invaders back into the sea, and when they saw the tiny size of the Norman force they must have felt confident of victory. However they reckoned without the cunning of Raymond le Gros, he ordered his small force to attack the large army of Waterford, and then he ordered them to quickly retreat, feigning panic. The Waterford men were jubilant at the site of the fleeing Normans and charged after them along the narrow promontory. When they were committed to the narrow pass Raymond had the massive herd of cattle stampede into the ranks of the onrushing Waterford men, scattering them and causing panic and devastation to their ranks. His men followed hot on the hooves on the cattle, cutting down the now panicked Waterford force in droves. They captured a large number of men, Raymond had hoped to use them as bargaining chips to gain ransoms from Irish chieftains but he was to be disappointed. It was recorded by the Norman Chronicler Gerald of Wales, that a fearsome female Welsh warrior, Alice of Abergavenny, was enraged by her husbands death on the battlefield, she took an axe and beheaded seventy of the Waterford men in revenge for her husband, and threw their bodies off a cliff.

The bloody scene was set for the Norman assault on Waterford. It just goes to show that even a tranquil a spot as Baginbun can often have a dark story to tell.

Baginbun is located at the very southern tip of the Hook Head peninsula. It is about 2kms south of Fethard on Sea on the R734. The promontory has restricted access but the beach is open to the public. If you are in the area, why not visit the Bishops Palace in Fethard on Sea. This is located on the outskirts of the village, and dates to the fourteenth century. There is an earlier motte (a type of Anglo Norman fortification) located behind the palace.

Many of you probably remember the book and TV series Long Way Round in which actors Charlie Boorman and Ewan McGregor rode their motorcycles around the World. They started off in London, proceeded across Europe, and some very desloate areas of Asia (Russia, Mongolia, etc.), hopped a ferry to Alasksa, and cruised across the states. Well, now they're off on their next adventure dubbed Long Way Down.

This time they'll be riding to the southern most tip of Africa, departing once more from London. The show is set to air on the BBC in September, and hopefully will be picked up again and shown in the States as well. The first series, which is available on DVD was a lot of fun to watch. The two movie stars are long time friends, and you could tell they had an amazing time on their journey together. If you haven't seen the show, it's well worth the 15 bucks they're asking for it.

Of course, they're not the first to do this, as Lois Pryce whose book I recently reviewed has also done this epic trip on her motorcycle, and chronicled her adventures on her website. Still, I'm looking forward to seeing what Charlie and Ewan have in store for us.

Thanks Gadling!

One Day on Earth Participant Trailer from One Day On Earth on Vimeo.

On October 10th, 2010, thousands of people from every nation around the world will film their perspective and contribute their voice to one of the largest participatory media events in history. The event will result in a feature documentary and online video archive that will showcase the diversity, conflict, tragedy, and triumph that can occur in one day on earth.

The more people are involved, the more accurate and comprehensive a record of the planet that is created....so check it on One Day On Earth

On one of my first trips to Tokyo many years ago, a local colleague of mine wanted to take me to Chinese food. I was a bit disappointed, as I didn't exactly go all the way to Japan from Singapore to eat Chinese food. But to my surprise, it was delicious. It wasn't really Chinese food though; it was basically Japanese food made to look like Chinese food. But it was good. And now we have something similar at this new place on the 35th floor of the Mandarin Orchard Hotel (333 Orchard Road, 6737-4411), where Sichuan food is done with a Japanese approach.

Basically, this is an outpost of Iron Chef Chen Kenichi's Shisen Hanten restaurants in Japan. And if one comes here expecting Sichuan food, then disappointment is inevitable, as it really is Japanese food. That could not be more epitomized than in that dish above, which is supposed to be shui zhu yu, but clearly is nothing like the bright red concoction that one gets at proper Sichuan restaurants. This one was clear, and more importantly, featured an amazingly tender and rich cod (think: gindara) that just blew me away, especially when paired with that savory broth (yes, one can actually drink it, unlike the proper Sichuan version!). No, it wasn't really spicy, but one just had to grab one of those dried peppercorns and chili pods to remind you of the explosion in your mouth that one is supposed to get. They had a wagyu version of that dish as well.

I loved it, and it was a bit of an odd - but good - feeling to be eating mapo doufu over pearly polished koshihikari rice. To be sure, the prices were through the roof, as they were at least three or four times more expensive than eating at a typical Sichuan place around here. That was clearly due to not just the quality of the ingredients, but also the service and decor of a very upscale fine dining restaurant (the opulent jellyfish-like chandeliers were just borderline gaudy enough to stay on the elegant side). I'll pass on their non-spicy ganbian sijidou next time though; that one will have to be saved for the day that Hometown reopens, whenever that is.

As some of you know, I am a regular contributor to the Let's Roll blog over at FlightNetwork.com, an excellent online resource for finding cheap flights to just about anywhere. On the blog, we are aspiring to deliver some fun, interesting and compelling travel-focused content, and from time to time I'll be sharing links to some things that you might find interesting on the site. Here are a few that are worth a mention right now:

• 2013 Holiday Gift Guide For Travelers
• 5 Must-Have Items For Cold Climate Travel
• TripAdvisor Reveals Top 10 Destinations For 2014
• Why Your Smartphone Can't Replace A Dedicated Camera For Travel
• Singapore Airlines Ends Longest Nonstop Commercial Flight

Hopefully a couple of those will spur your interest to click on over and see what we're up to. The Gift Guide in particular has some great suggestions for travelers, just in case you're looking to find something for the holidays. In case you haven't been looking at the calendar, Christmas is closer than you think! 

I'm immensely gratified that since inception in mid-January 2007, The Travel Photographer blog has now received a total of 1,000,000 visitors!

What originally started as a lark has taken a life of its own, and The Travel Photographer blog seems to have its comfy little place place amongst other photography blogs. A million visitors is a drop in the ocean for blog behemoths, but for this one-man blog, it's enormous.

I sometimes hesitate in calling it a blog, because in reality it's more of a compilation of photo-essays, galleries (my own but mainly by others), multimedia, occasional geo-political rants and diatribes (some serious others downright silly), opinions (some ridiculous and others touching a nerve or two) and whatever else took my fancy.

However, nothing is more gratifying that getting emails from photographers expressing appreciation for being featured on The Travel Photographer....and responding as best I can to requests for advice and guidance virtually every day.

I hope the best is yet to come as Sinatra and Bennett told us....but in the meantime, I've got to run...I can hear my blog yelling "Feed Me!".

 

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Tullaghoge in County Tyrone has to be one of the most atmospheric and evocative sites that we have visited for this blog. At first glance the site looks very much like a large ringfort – a common type of settlement site in the early medieval period. It has a large earthen banks topped by a ring of trees, however the ditches are far too wide to be defensive and the commanding views over the landscape of Tyrone suggest that this was a place of important ceremonies and authority.

The name Tullaghoge comes from Tulach Óg meaning The Hill of Youth. The site has never been archaeologically excavated so the exact age and function of the initial activity at Tullaghoge is unknown. It is likely to date to some time in the early medieval period, between the seventh and ninth centuries. Historical records tell us that the site was originally associated with Uí Tuirtre of Airgialla, and then became the possession of the O’Hagan family. They lived at Tullaghoge and became the hereditary guardians of the symbolic site. The O’Hagans were clients of the powerful O’Neill dynasty, and during the middle and later medieval period, it was the O’Hagans who had the honour of inaugurating the O’Neill chiefs, proclaiming them as ‘The O’Neill’. 

Image from IrishArchaeology.ie

During the crowning ceremony at Tullaghoge, the King elect was seated on a stone inauguration chair known as the Leac na Ri. He swore oaths to rule by Brehon Law (the ancient laws of Ireland) and to give up the throne if he became too old to rule. New sandals were placed on his feet by the chief of the O’Hagans and a golden sandal was ceremonially thrown over his head to indicate he would continue in the footsteps of his ancestors, and then the new king was handed the ceremonial rod of office. The primate of Armagh would then anoint and crown the O’Neill as chief and king. This image from around 1601, depicts the coronation ceremony at Tullaghoge (image sourced from this great blog article http://irisharchaeology.ie/2013/08/sacred-trees-in-early-ireland).

The last O’Neill to have been inaugurated at Tullaghoge was the famous Hugh O’Neill in 1595. Hugh was the powerful Earl of Tyrone, and he led a massive rebellion against the Crown forces in Ireland in an attempt to stop the plantations of Ireland and the erosion of the powers of the Gaelic chiefs. This series of conflicts became known as The Nine Years War. After some initial successes, like the Battle of the Yellow Ford, by 1601 the Gaelic Forces had suffered a heavy defeat at the Battle of Kinsale. Lord Mountjoy led the Crown Forces here, to the Royal Inauguration site of Tullaghoge, and smashed the Leac na Ri, the sacred inauguration stone of the O'Neill's, thereby symbolically breaking the O'Neill sovereignty. At the time it was recorded that Mountjoy 
‘spoiled the corn of all the country...and brake down the chair wherin the O’Neals were wont to be created, being of stone planted in the open field’. 
Fragments of the Leac na Ri were said to have been stored in the orchard of the glebe house of the local protestant church until 1776, when the last of the fragments were taken away.

The O'Neill's never returned to Tullaghoge to claim their lordship as Hugh O'Neill fled Ireland in the Flight of the Earls in 1607. Eventually though the O’Neill’s would return to power albeit in a more indirect way, Hugh O’Neill’s daughter Sorcha married a Magennis who was the ancestor of Lady Glamis. In 1900 Lady Glamis had a daughter, Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, her daughter Elizabeth currently sits on the British throne.

 
The site was said to have been completely abandoned by 1622 and today it is an incredibly atmospheric place to visit. When you enter the centre of the enclosure and are shut off from the modern world by the trees and earthen banks, you can really get a sense of the history of Tullaghoge, a place of celebrations, ceremonies, inaugurations and gatherings for centuries.

Tullaghoge is just around 4km south of Cookstown in County Tyrone, off the B162 (Cookstown to Stewartstown Road), and you’ll see signposts for the site. There is a small area to park at the base of the hill, and a well made stone path leads nearly the whole way to the site. At the end of the path just pass through the small kissing gate. 

If you would like to support us please download an audioguide from www.abartaaudioguides.com. There are currently fourteen guides available with four free of charge and the rest costing just €1.99. They are full of original music and sound effects and are a fun and immersive way of hearing the story of some of Ireland’s most iconic heritage sites and places. They are as enjoyable at the site as they are from the comfort of your favourite armchair at home, so why not try our guide to Viking and Medieval Dublin to hear the story of the birth of a city? Or try our FREE guide to the wonderful heritage town of Kells in County Meath or the Rock of Dunamase in County Laois. Follow the links for a free preview or to access your guide.

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Those were better than I thought they would be (214 East Coast Road, 6247-7477). Granted, my expectations weren't very high in the first place, but either way, they generally did it right by doing it without breading nor excessive amounts of meat. My only gripe was that the hottest "blazin" sauce really wasn't that hot...it was just your standard issue buffalo wing heat rather than the Atomic sauce that Wingstop offers.

The Chaco takes up about 60% of Paraguay and has less than 3% of the population. It is desolate and beyond what we think of as backward or "civilized." It is in this vast and remote region-- no towns, no roads, people don't even speak Spanish here-- that Bush is rumored to have bought his gigantic estate. When rumors first started surfacing about it people assumed he would be using it as a backup in case he had to escape the war crimes charges that could well come after he is out of office. In Latin America the suspicion is that he was making a play for the area's huge acquifer which is said to be more valuable than an oil field, at least for those who think in terms of generations when doing their financial planning. That the two Bush daughters have been down here a few times has added fuel to the fire. I reported the rumors at Down With Tyranny but I wasn't certain it was actually true, even after reading quotes from the governor of the province and other Paraguayan public officials.

Since I got to Paraguay I've been trying to track down the ranch-- with no luck. Some people swear it is true--as did the Paraguayan consul in the U.S. I had spoken to-- and some say it is just a fake rumor. In any case, everyone agrees it would be virtually impossible to find out for sure because the region is so vast and remote. The desk clerk at the Sheraton suggested I hire a private plane to find it since there aren't even roads, let alone buses.

Yesterday I called the U.S. Embassy and had a long, friendly chat with a diplomat. He doesn't seem too enamoured of Paraguay, although he reckons it's better than Pakistan. He complained that Asuncion is remote and cut off from the rest of the world. He also said that they checked and that there is no Bush ranch and no secret U.S. military base. Of course if it were secret, he would hardly be advertising its existence. He suggested I read a State Department statement about both. The official U.S. line is that the Bush ranch is some Cuban disinformation propogated by Prensa Latina.

People tend not to believe anything diplomats say that serve the national interests they represent. Under Bush the credibility of the U.S. State Department has fallen to new lows. Their claims are utterly worthless. That doesn't prove that there is a Bush ranch, however. Is it possible that the daughters were here because one of them works for UNICEF? I doubt it. And even the diplomat admitted to me that she was up in the Chaco visiting backward Menonite communities. It doesn't add up.

I spoke to the wife of a Brazilian general who told me that the base is real and that the ranch has been "100% confirmed" by the Brazilian military intelligence. Is she a good source? She has less reason to lie than the U.S. State Department.

I don't think there's much more I can find out about this whole thing from here. I keep reminding myself I'm on vacation and that I need to get to Tierra del Fuego. I'm going to take a bus to Encarnacion on the Argentine border, cross over to Posadas, the capital of Missiones Province and sniff out the possibilities of going down to Esterios de Iberrà in Corrientes. This is supposed to be the Western Hemisphere's version of the Serengeti. It is a vast, sparcely populated swamp. I don't know what's wrong with me.