I wanna be a part of it

Sorry, guys, no time to write really. I am spending so much time standing in line here in New York that I have little time to do anything- and certainly no time to update this thing.

Guess that you will hear from me when I hit London in a couple of days, if I am not hiding under the bed to avoid reality that is.

House on the Rock

On Sunday we went to one of the weirdest places in Wisconsin- if not the World. House on the Rock in Dodgeville is an eclectic selection of things, to say the least. The founder of the house moved there in the 40s in order to build his dream house. People heard about it and started to come for a look. In order to discourage them he charged an admission fee which was high for its time. It didn't stop them but it did mean that he never had to work again.

The actual house is a maze of living rooms, sofas and fireplaces all in dimly lit spendour.



Beyond the house is the actual collection which goes from a papier mache octopus lifting a blue whale in the air- more than life sized, the whale is the largest 'sea creature' in the World. It is hard to describe- as is the whole house- and even harder to photograph. And believe me that we tried!

There is a streets of yesteryear display of full sized houses. But my favourite is the infinity room

a long corridor tapering to a point, suspended in the air and sticking out over 200 feet from the cliff face- it does tend to wobble when filled with people in an alarming manner. But it offers great views of the countryside



The original owner of the house eventually sold it to a friend of his but they continued to expand the collection until his death and beyond. They have the World's largest carousel and it doesn't contain a single horse!

And more than enough scary dolls



There was a mannequin orchestra, full animated, a knitted village, a room full of doll houses, a further room full of toy zoos. It was all a little mental. And exhausting by the end.

On the way to Dodgeville we stopped at Mt Horeb, the self styled troll capital of the World. Not sure about that but this little Norwegian-based town did have some great trolls dotted around the town. I would post a photo of a great wooden troll statue but blogger won't seem to let me and I have exceeded my flickr limit again this month. Bummer.

So Sunday was a busy day and we rewarded ourselves with a lie-in on Monday. That is not to say that we didn't do anything yesterday, on the contrary, we went to the Miller Brewery in the afternoon. Our guide was not the perkiest guide around and we were a bit upset when he left 11 of us standing out on the street when the door to the beer cave closed and we were unable to get in. But there was some consolation in the fact that the tour was free and so was the beer at the end. They even let us send some postcards for free.

Last night we got some ice cream from Dairy Queen and watched the planes leave Milwaukee airport before going to play some really bad bowling. The bowling alley was interesting- it was the first one that I have ever been to where you have to add up the scores yourself. It was partway through the first game that we realised we didn't really know how the whole scoring thing worked. Ah well, we had fun and who cares who wins anyway?

A Trio of Fun

We did three things today. Three things! On a Saturday. On a rainy Saturday at that. Yes, we were pretty impressed with ourselves. Me and Gareth went out the back door of his apartment last night on our way to the bar. Ahead of us on the pavement were a mother and her kid on bikes. They slowed down and then stopped to admire our pumpkins on the front doorstep. We just swaggered past in a self congratulatory manner and had a couple of pints to celebrate our artistic endeavours.

But today was mainly a pumpkin free day. Well, we saw loads but were not actively involved with them in any way. Today we went to Milwaukee County Zoo. I had a moment of disappointment when I found out that all the giraffes were in Ohio on vacation. But the other animals more than made up for them.

Check out this lion...



what do you think had caught his attention? Passing wildebeest? Aging and drooping gazelle? Small kids gazing innocently on with their parents? Yep, much to our amusement it was the last one. The kids looked so wonderfully bite-sized and tasty that at one point the lion hunkered down ready to pounce. Good job that he changed his mind, though it would have been funny to have watched him hit the glass wall. Can't imagine that he would keep his king of the jungle crown with those antics. Guess he just got bored in the end though

these spider monkeys were kinda cute



we watched some prairie dogs pop up and down in their holes and I had a sudden urge to hit them on the head with a large padded hammer and watch the points mount up.

The rain today had two benefits- the first being that the zoo was nearly empty and the second being that it kept people out of the way of my photos as they all cowered in the monkey house out of the wet.

After the zoo, we went to the Jelly Belly factory- home of the gourmet jelly bean (well, actually I think that the main home is in California but this was closer). We went on a free tour and got free beans and cuddles

a very perky lass narrated our trip around the warehouse and handed out the free bags of beans at the end of the tour- I think that she might be my new favourite person.



After stuffing our face with jelly beans we went home and Gareth cooked a proper roast dinner- complete with yorkshire puds- yum!

The dog was pretty interested too.

Jupiter the dog is an interesting solution to a problem of my sis-in-law's. Krista is allergic to animal hair so she just got herself a hypallergenic dog- being that xoloitzcuintles don't have any hair.

After dinner we went to see the new Wallace and Gromit movie which was very funny. Now we are taking a much needed rest (and I am retyping this blog entry because the original was lost when the power cable fell out of the back of the machine- dammit!). Now what can we do tomorrow?

I'm not saying this is an obsession but...

...tonight we went out to carve more pumpkins with some friends of Krista's..

my cat, my brother's owl and my sister's tin man

Gareth and Krista's doorstep in artful black and white



The full gory colour of a pumpkin filled doorstep

I just want to point out that the middle one here- my spider- was done free hand (even if that was because I couldn't manage to tape the template to the pumpkin).

And that's about it- I am totally pumpkined out until next year. Unless something really cool catches my eye, that is.

Size Matters

One thing that I like about being in the States, which would wear off eventually if I lived here, is the difference in dress sizes. Back home I would like to drop a couple of dress sizes and here I am exactly the number I would like to be back home- maybe it is cheating. But I do make up the difference in my shoe size as my feet increase two sizes when I cross the Atlantic. Well, they don't actually change size but the US sizes are different. One thing that doesn't change, either here or at home, is that my choices are still limited, whether I am looking at clothes or shoes.

Shame really.

Plus, I still haven't quite got over the fact that I can wander into shops here without being chased out by a Korean girl terrified that I might want to try and fit my vast Western body into her petit Korean outfits. More than once I have stood in a clothes shop in Korea only to have the shop assistant grab the clothes out of my hand and put them back on the shelf- even when they were actually my size.

Clothes shopping has never been my idea of a fun day out but I think that I prefer it here to Korea.

Museums and more pumpkins

Continuing in my impersonation of someone who regularly updates their blog, I thought it best to update again today. Today we did something quite daring indeed- we caught public transport here in the States. It was a learning thing since me and my sister are alone tomorrow morning and might need to find our own way into town.

We went to Milwaukee Museum today- it has an excellent butterfly house



as humid as a summer's day in Korea, the butterflies fly freely around the room and land where they want

here are a couple that landed on Gareth's arm for a bit of how's your father! We looked at a LOT of other stuff but this was my favourite. I went to my first IMAX show too- cool.

Then we came home and Krista carved her pumpkin

Now I had better stop typing as everyone is trying to watch TV and I am sure that the tap of keys is getting on their nerves.

Happy Days in Milwaukee

There can't be a lot of places better to watch the fall come in than here in Wisconsin. The trees seem to be changing colour almost in front of our eyes. And Autumn brings more than just beautiful foliage--- here in the US it is truly the season of the pumpkin!

Yesterday we went to see the Museum of Art here in Milwaukee. It is an awesome building with a bit of a surprise built in

At various of times of the day you might hear a little fanfare from the museum- this is your cue to stand back and watch the action. The graceful wings are slowly lowered until hugging the main building- a short trumpet burst later and they start their trip back up to the sky. I have never seen anything quite like it and the people are justifiably proud of it.

We didn't actually go into the museum proper as it felt like nothing could compete with the show that it had put on itself. We did venture over to the kite shop



and admired them but didn't join in. We drove around and saw my first Milwaukee pumpkin patch (warning- for any of you who may not be all that into pumpkins, there are going to be many squash related photos coming up today and maybe other days too)



Not wanting to rush into anything, we decided to wait until today to buy our own pumpkins. I have never actually carved a pumpkin before- as kids we were given swedes to carve a few times but pumpkins were well and truly on the luxury shelf. So today we went off into the country in search of the perfect pumpkin patch. We started at Holy Hill

a church on a hill which offers great views over the countryside

great views but not much in the way of pumpkins- it was time to enlist the help of our cultural guide, my sister in law, Krista. She expertly guided us to the perfect place as you can see

The English amongst us were a little nervous at the prospect of the whole carving thing and so we put it off for a while and headed out for steak. And not just any steak, steak the size of several cows- barbecued to perfection by us on large barbecue tables in the middle of the restaurant. The other patrons seemed at ease as they slopped a large piece of steak onto the barbie, sprinkled seasoning and wiped a paintbrush loaded with butter across the top. We giggled a bit and barbecued by time more than knowledge. Turned out good (and we all have half a steak each for tomorrow!) and gave us the confidence to give the pumpkins a go.

I am going to be straight with you here- we did buy carving kits and use stencils- even so we were more than impressed with the results. Gareth had chosen a very big specimen, Penny and I less so. I had also picked up a small addition just because it was cute. Unfortunately, Krista was unable to join us with the great carve up in the kitchen but no fingers were lost and no blood spilled

This is my finished fellow. We were all very proud of our efforts and popped them all on the doorstep and started the photo shoot

From left to right, the first two are mine, the next is Penny's and Gareth's giant pumpkin is over on the right. Even as I type this, they are sitting out on the street, hoping to avoid any prospective pumpkin smashers.

Uffda, what a week!

It has been a grand week here in the ol' US of States. I am now in Milwaukee after scooting through Minnesota and Chicago.

I spent last weekend with Katie in Red Wing and then onto Mankato to meet Chris. I was thrilled when his sister-in-law told me that Mankato is the 'big city' in Little House on the Praire, which made me see it all in a different way. Chris enlisted my help to make Korean food- could have been the last mistake he ever made. We made bi bim bab- which always looks so easy when the ajummas in Korea grab a handful of veggies out of tupperware and through it all in a bowl- I didn't realise how much prep went into it. Despite my best efforts, it tasted good. Then we went back to the bar.



It all ended a little late really but it was good. Chris woke me up the next day after I had failed to realise that my alarm clock was still on LA time. He dropped me off at the bus office and off I went to Minneapolis to get my next flight. Being one of only two non-Americans in the airport (and quite possibly the entire state) I was pushed to one side (along with the Chinese guy next to me) and taken through the whole security procedure in a different line to anyone else. No biggie but I did feel a little victimised as all the Americans waltzed through and I had to wait until a security guard was free to put my stuff in a special red box and escort me through. After all, I had ticked 'no' to all the terrorist questions on my arrival card.

Never mind, I had plenty of time to get the flight and eventually I got to Chicago where Erin picked me up from the airport. I met Erin in Dublin, many years ago, when she managed our sister hostel.

We haven't seen each other since 2001 in Dublin so we made up for lost time with a Jack or two in the bar that night. We also went out for my first genuine Chicago pizza- a strange invention, about an inch thick, with a crust on top- something Erin had never seen before either. The next day Erin took the day off and we went into Chicago and had a grand old day at the Field Museum near the lake. That night we only had a couple of beers.

Next day, Erin went off to work and I went into the city- after a well deserved lie in- to explore. I went back to Borders bookshop (where, high on a wave of ill-inspired confidence, I had bought a Korean cookbook the day before) and onto the John Hancock building- big building!



Big John, as the tourist literature insists it is known (or the top of the Cock, as my mate told me it was called), is a large old building. Chicago is home to the World's first sky scraper (it was ten stories) and now houses Big John, formerly the tallest building in the World. On a clear day, such as the one on Friday, it offers fantastic views across the city and the lake



The largest lake that I have ever seen stretches into the distance (307 miles long and 118 miles wide, greatest depth is 281 metres, 12 million people live long the shores, the only one of the great lakes wholly within the US, fifth largest lake in the World and the largest lake in the World that is contained in one country- now that's big!)

It was a gorgeous day. That night Erin drove me to Milwaukee airport where I was due to meet my brother and sister. Unfortunately my phone had run out of battery so I didn't get the message from my brother that told me my sister's flight had failed to leave Newark. Fortunately he still came to retrieve me from the airport. Penny, however, was stuck in a hotel in Newark for the night and the next day she flew to Milwaukee via Houston, Texas (don't ask me, I am sure that it made sense to someone somewhere). We were reunited in Milwaukee yesterday afternoon.

We went to the pub. After several months of hardly going to the pub at all, I arrived to my eighth night in a row. Ah well, it is not like we drank much. After failing to be IDed in Minnesota, I was thrilled when I had to hand over my passport in Chicago. Entering the bar, feeling like a spring chicken, my ego was deflated when I realised that they ID anyone who looks under 35.

Overall, it has been a great week catching up with people and the weather has been good enough to match my mood. I look forward to a couple of weeks with my family before me and my sis head to NY.

The Midwest (and some photos)

I am now in North Makato still in Minnesota. How have I ended up in such strange places on my trip? Aha, so this is what 'off the beaten track' looks like on the US backpacker trail.

I am staying with a mate, Chris, who I knew in my first year in Korea, having left behind Katie and Brent, who I knew in my second year in Korea yesterday. Chris took me out to show me the best of Mankato Monday nightlife. We drank beer, ate burgers and played pool- well, Chris played pool whereas my wild flailing around with the cue could hardly be described as such. We spoke Korean all night- again, Chris spoke Korean while I just said 'ye' a lot. It was fun though. Chris is at work now so I am making free with his computer- wonder if he has anything interesting on it??

I am hoping to make it to Chicago tomorrow to meet up with another mate, this time someone I knew in Dublin, though I haven't managed to get hold of her yet. I do try and give people some warning that I am coming but it still seems to end up with a phonecall the night before.

Since Chris has kindly let me use his computer today I thought that I would put some photos on here for you all- finally I hear you sigh

This is a waterfall in the rainforest just outside Suva in Fiji. Yes, I could have gone swimming there if I had remembered my swimsuit

This little fellow was my roommate for a night on the Coral Coast in Fiji. The reassuring noise of geckos eating mossies really helps me to sleep at night

this is Navala village in Fiji where all the houses are the traditional bures

It appears that these guys have the hard task of drinking kava with tourists all day

My tour guide asked me if I wanted to take a photo of the guys cutting sugar cane. I asked if they would be angry- he said that they would love it- you can see some of them smiling and waving so I guess that he was right. Just after this photo they all waved their machetes and posed but I was too busy laughing to get a photo- shame

tomatoes at Nadi market

My toy giraffe that has accompanied me all the way so far, surviving dog attacks on the way, has a well deserved break by the pool in Nadi Bay Hotel

Angela, Cath and Sam during our unscheduled stopover in Auckland. No one seems that bothered at the delay

The view from the hostel when we did finally make it to Rarotonga

Cook Island dollars! Most of the money used in the islands is NZ dollars but they have a few of their own coins and they are worth looking for!

Ah, the clear water of the Pacific as it laps the shore at Rarotonga

Here is Cath in the convertible that we hired on Rarotonga in order to going posing around the island

This is me and Chris last night, taken in a bar with baseball on the telly- nice!

Me and Katie at the weekend in a bar that made us all play Bingo (or Bargo) for free but we didn't win

Me, Snoopy and Katie in the Mall of America

Moorea Island just off Tahiti

Hibicus- common everywhere I went in the Pacific. In Fiji you wear one behind your left ear if you are single and right if you are taken. It is reversed in the Cook Islands and I have no idea what the deal with the flowers is in Tahiti as everyone was speaking French!

Right so, that gives you an idea of what I have been up to though it was tricky to get a collection of 560 photos down to just these few. I guess that I will do a best of the rest roundup when this journey is all finished in a couple of weeks.

Enjoy