Gaelic sports time

I finally tried my hands at hurling and Gaelic football, the all famous Irish games. FYI have not yet found single Irish who does not enthusiastically discuss them.

I started my time with hurling. For those who do not know this sport. The goal posts are a combination of soccer and american football goals. You get more points if you get a goal in the soccer goal net and one point if it goes between the two very high parallel bars.

The game is a mix of cricket hitting and in over the ground field hockey. I really had to forget cricket style hitting as the stick is held in exact opposite way (left hand up and right hand down the handle). Overall it was a fun to play as the cricket training hit in and I made some wonderful shots in. Running with ball and stick on the other hand was not my forte. Balancing the ball on stick while running and avoiding people takes lot of concentration. Sometimes I would even forget where goals and other players are located.

Gaelic football had similar goals and scoring. Yet it was a combination of volleyball style passing, basketball style traveling and soccer style kicking. There were lot of other small and complicated rules but I can tell you about them when we play. Yes and I got two goals in the match which we won 9-4 .

Overall the experience was awesome. The one fact I really liked was the passion that Irish have for their traditional games. There is no money in playing these games and they are not even played internationally. Yet people love to play and support them.

Traveling the unknown path

Being new to the city and low on cash I decided to walk the distance(Total 14 kms... yes it is my own version of Harshal vs. The machines and I won) from my place near UL (University of Limerick) to the Limerick City Centre for some specific shopping(badminton racket) and finding Garda office for immigration appointment next day. 

I planned to take the pictures of anything interesting I find on the road. The first picture was the beautiful grass and trees in UL. For person like me who calls himself environmental and always loves green. This place is heaven there greenery and grass everywhere. I can just fall asleep on the grass in the shadow of a tree for hours.

Limerick Garden

Once I had started my walk on the road I saw these Tall flagpoles and I was curious about the flags flying up there. I had seen lot of thin metallic flagpoles in India and USA and they all had one thing in common. There was a rope that allowed the flags to be raised and taken down. I could not find any rope and I would definitely try to find out and share how or if they do it. 

Limerick flagpoles

As this was the first time going towards the city and with a paper map which was drawn by a friend, I was looking for a sign that I was going the right way. One such sign that helped a lot was this one telling me I was entering into a cultural city. Yet when I got into Limerick I found huge signs posted on pillars about Limerick the city of sports. 

I was a lone wolf (UL wolves) and so I spent most time looking in the map so that I was following the road (which was stupid as it turns out the road I followed was straight). I finally reached the city centre and took the pictures of a city map and my new bucket list in Limerick for my next travel. 

It took me a look into 10-12 sports shops before I found my badminton(Yonex Nanoray) in Gleesons sports shop....FYI do not ask for route to Gleesons as you may end up in a bakery or a market or even a shoe store before you get to the sports store. Best is to ask them where the biggest sports store is located and if it is called Gleesons. Garda office on the other hand was very easy to find. 

On my way back I was looking at the cultural clues but what I did find was the wall art I liked a lot in USA. 

Maybe on my next trip I will find a lot of more interesting things to show you all. Keeping fingers crossed for the next journey as the temperature is dropping.  

Ireland - the land of pubs and parties

If you been to Ireland before ipso facto you already know everything in the blog below. If you have not been here yet you have good things to hope for. I have been to a lot of universities in India and in USA but this was the first campus that I found bars inside the university campus. Most places here are always full of activity and parties almost every night.

If it is drinking you want, or maybe just socializing or even use of your dancing shoes. You just need to walk towards the campus and you can have them all. If you are an Indian then Irish pubs are no different from their India counterparts. You will find the odd drunk guy dancing comically in the center, and maybe the couples on the sides making their own steps as they go. You will also find the loners contemplating their decision to join the crowd or mingle in the background with other loners.

College tales

College ki vo saari baatein, ban chuki hai ab yaadien.
Class jab chalu ho pati, kitab hamari band ho jati.
Assignments ho ya drawing, dost karte plotting ploying.
Karte the bas thodi shararat, aur phir patakte koi harkat.

Naadani thi aankon mein, shaitani tha sabka dimaag,
Jaane chahte padhne par, phirte the hum behisaab.
Canteen mein ho khana, Class mein jaake phir sona. 
Ghar jaate hai khehne ko, humne nikalna tha gumne ko.

Highway par hoti thi chai, aur dhabe par sasta khana.
Pani mein khelne jaate the, raet par kuch likh aate the.
Cricket humne bohot khela, aate the sab jaise ho mela.
College se pehle ki sab baat, chalti rehti thi puri raat.

Din vo ab sab kho jayenge, Raat ab tanha ho jayengi.
Shaam akele bita karengi, dophar ghar mein bitengi.
Dost ko dhundne lagenge, par unse na phir milenge.
Mauka hai ab ye masti ka, padhne ka aur hasne ka.