We already had tickets to see Damien Rice in Brooklyn that night, but when Spoon announced a special intimate show on the same evening, we made the decision to see them instead. Fortunately, I was able to easily pick up…
The Madfather…
Whenever Paul Weller is in town, we make a point of going to see him. It’s truly a treat to see such a huge talent at one of our favorite venues, The Union Transfer in Philadelphia. Doors opened at 8…
Muse
When Muse announced a special promo show in NYC, we knew we wanted to be there. We also knew that it was going to take a miracle to get tickets to see them in such a small venue. As a…
Damo in NYC & Philly
Miami…
Courtney & Ashley came home for spring break on March 13, neither had big plans for the week off, other than Courtney having a job interview on Tuesday. She was feeling a bit down because this would be her last spring break,…
Scratcher
It all began with a cryptic tweet by one of our favourite Irish singer/songwriters… What could he possibly mean by stating that something would be going on Monday night? A group of us decided we would certainly find out. If…
Christmas 2014
Our Christmas celebration was very understated this year, just the four of us at home. As usual, there was plenty of good food and drink, and lots of great music on vinyl as well as cd. A few days before…
Leif Erikson
Interpol closed out their US tour with another date in Philly at The Union Transfer. Ashley was back at school and unable to accompany us, but Kevin & I were in attendance. It was a chilly rainy evening and we…
Winterpol…
Last night we attended the concert that almost wasn’t. Interpol, a band that we’ve seen many times in the last ten years, was in the midst of their fall tour and were leaving Columbus, OH after their show there on…
At the Apollo…
So, it’s been 4 weeks since I last saw Damien. Actually, his was the last concert I’d attended until last night, when Kevin and I both went to see him at the The Apollo Theatre in Harlem. This was the first…
Damien Rice
There are no words to adequately describe how thrilled I was to learn that after 8 very long years, Damien Rice was finally releasing a new record. My excitement grew exponentially when I learned that he would be playing a…
PJ in CVG
Our last Pearl Jam show was three months ago. When they announced the midwest fall tour dates, we decided that once again, we would attend the tour kickoff, if possible. An early birthday gift to me, the first show was in Cincinnati on October…
They want our souls….
One thing that I am absolutely thrilled about is the fact that we have passed down our love of music, and live shows, to our kids. Ashley seems to have really latched on to many of the bands we like,…
Changing it up…
So, it’s been a while since we’ve returned from our Euro trip, but I would still like to keep this blog going. Soon, there will be changes in design, name and obviously, since we are not in Europe right now,…
Why Go?
I guess the answer to that question is because we had to. It was an amazing trip, and we were sad to leave Ireland, but we did miss the kiddies and the pups. We woke up shortly after 5am to…
Our last day in Dublin
After visiting the Hard Rock, we continued walking through Temple Bar and retraced some of the route we took on the hop on hop off bus tour. We revisited Christ Church, St. Patrick’s, Kevin Street, and then walked to Dublin…
Hard Rock Cafe
On our last full day in Dublin, we decided to revisit places we’d been as well as see some that we’d missed. One of the places we had yet to visit was the Hard Rock Cafe. It is less than a…
LDS > MAN > DUB
After breakfast in the club room at the Marriott, we went back to our room, got our stuff together and walked over to the train station. We could have flown back to Dublin from Leeds, but there were only two flights…
Live at Leeds…
The show was billed as An Evening with Pearl Jam which meant there was no support band, it would be three hours of live Pearl Jam. We had general admission standing tickets and found spots toward the back of the floor.…
You can’t be neutral on a moving train…
The day had finally arrived, our 30th Pearl Jam show, the impetus behind our trip to Ireland and England, was here. We very quickly got ready as we had packed up our bags the night before and checked out of…
King’s Cross
We left Green Park and headed over to King’s Cross Tube station, which is conveniently located next to the King’s Cross National Rail Station, from which our train to Leeds would leave the following morning. We found the area where the…
24…
Since we had very limited time to see the sights in London, we did as much as we could in 24 hours. Up first was the Tower of London which normally opens at 9a.m., about one hour before most other…
London calling…
We flew Aer Lingus from Shannon to Heathrow… the flight left just a few minutes late but we landed in London on time. Once again, we arrived in a new country without any local currency in our pockets. Since the…
Shannon…
We purposely stayed in Ennis on our last night in Ireland due to its close proximity to Shannon airport, from where we were flying to London the next day. Here is a quick recap of where we’ve traveled thus far.…
Hurling…
After spending close to two hours at the Cliffs, we got back into the car to make the 45 minute drive to Ennis, where we were staying that evening. The drive was uneventful, though we did get stuck behind a…
The Cliffs of Moher
Once we had decided that we were definitely visiting Ireland, we knew that the Cliffs of Moher was on our must-see list. After a gorgeous, yet very long drive, we finally made our way to Liscannor, where the Cliffs are…
Off to County Clare…
After another fabulous breakfast thanks to Brian, we reluctantly packed up the car, sad to leave Dingle, but excited for our journey to see the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare. Kevin chose to wear one of his Soundgarden t-shirts,…
Dingle miscellany
After we returned from the Blasket Center, the sun was out in full force. We spent the afternoon walking around town, picking up our laundry, shopping and enjoying pubs in the village. Here are a few photos taken that afternoon.…
Slea Head Drive
After breakfast, we decided to visit The Great Blasket Center in Dunquin, the western most point in Ireland. To get there, we traveled along the Slea Head Drive, a circular route that begins and ends in Dingle. We made multiple stops…
Castlewood House
We’d read the reviews in travel books and online forums and simply could not wait to stay at this here. The reception area is very welcoming, there is beautiful art throughout the house. (Miro prints in our bedroom, along with…
Dingle in the rain…
We pulled in to Castlewood House shortly after 1p.m., and as suspected, our room was not quite ready. Brian, our host, informed us that it should be done in about 10-15 minutes and we could wait if we’d like. Instead,…
A confession…
I admit it, we planned a good deal of our trip to Ireland around available dates at Castlewood House in Dingle. In all honesty, I cannot recall exactly where I first came across this guesthouse. My best guess is that I…
The drive to Dingle…
After a very leisurely and delicious breakfast at Brook Lane, as well as a nice conversation with Una, we packed up the car and were ready to leave Kenmare at about 11a.m. The drive to Dingle takes just under 2 hours,…
Kenmare
Kenmare was the next stop on our tour of the south west, and we had a reservation for the Brook Lane Hotel, located at the very beginning of the Ring of Kerry. Once again we programmed our destination into our…
Killarney National Park
Before leaving Kinsale, we walked around the village one last time and stopped at the Post Office to mail the few postcards we’d written in Dalton’s the day before. Then it was back into the car for the 2 hour drive…
Kinsale
After crossing the river, we proceeded to Kinsale, a drive that took approximately 40 minutes. We were staying at Acton’s of Kinsale, a hotel located on Pier Road in a location known as World’s End, named as such because way…
We’re moving?
After spending the day in Cobh, we got back in the car to make our way to Kinsale, another harbortown on the southern coast, and the place where we were staying for the next two nights. But, before detailing our…
Titanic
When we first decided that we were going to Ireland, one of the places we decided we must see is the seaport town of Cobh (pronounced cove) for a couple of reasons: firstly, we love the water and any village…
Why should I Cahir…
After breakfast at Aulber House, we packed our bags into the car, and hit the road. This time, our first journey of the day was very short, a drive of only about 11 miles. We were on our way to…
One day, two castles…
We made it safely to Kilkenny where we visited Kilkenny Castle, a castle built in the late 1190’s. The Office of Public Works is an organization that has taken control of and maintains / preserves historic sites throughout the country. These…