Back to Berlin

A section of the Berlin Wall
(C) fifiheavey

Big pressure this week.            

I return to Berlin.

Four years ago I flew into Berlin not expecting anything great and with my own preconceptions about the city and the country. But it astounded me, the history was amazing, the culture intriguing, the people fun and helpful and the entertainment – out of this world.

Me and a Berlin bear
(c) fifiheavey

Berlin surpassed Paris as my favourite place in Europe and I have been singing its praises ever since.

This week I return to the once divided city.

But this time I am not alone, I will travelling with a friend (cousin to be exact).

I have told him Berlin is amazing, the craziest place on earth, the most interesting location in the world ... etc etc

(C) fifiheavey

And now I have to make it live up to that huge reputation. There is a whole lot of pressure on me and on this unique city. If we return and he is not bowled over by Berlin and all the wonders it holds – my reputation could be ruined.

Its gonna be easy though right? 

There are so many things to see and do, so many historic sites, buildings, streets, museums. 

The Berlin Wall, Brandenburg Gate, Unter Den Linden, The Reichstag, Museum Island, Checkpoint Charlie, Topography of Terror ....

Brandenberg Gate, Berlin
(c) fifiheavey

“I don't really do the tourist thing” he told me.

Uh Oh.

So he will be expecting the strange and wonderful, the quirky, the unknown.

Still Berlin should be able to deliver. I just stumbled across craziness on a daily basis in Berlin four years ago. I didn't have to go looking – they were right there on tap.

But em... if you had to go looking, say for strange unique things to see and do – where would one look? 

I am open to all ideas!

My back up plan: Get him drunk on authentic German Beer and turn him into a history craving tourist!

Craziness on tap - looking forward to hangover free German beer!
(C) fifiheavey

Hutt River Principality

Australia is full of surprises, the land down under has a different landscape, different species and most certainly a different way of life.

But I had never expected a principality - a royal family, a new currency, a different country within a country.

Entrance to Hutt River Province

The Principality of Hutt River, about 300 miles north of Perth, Western Australia achieved legal status as an independent sovereign state in 1972 having annexed from Western Australia in 1970.

The principality was founded on 21 April 1970 following a dispute over wheat production quotas. The Casley family failed in their bid against the quota, so resorted to the British Treasons Act 1495, which they felt allowed them to secede and declare independence from the Commonwealth of Australia.That loophole has obviously since been removed.

The family succeeded and Leonard George Casley was elected administrator of the new state by his family.After the government threatened him with prosecution, Casley styled himself 'His Majesty Prince Leonard I of Hutt' to take advantage of a Commonwealth law that a monarch could not only not be charged, but that anyone who interfered with his duties could be charged with treason. (They changed this law too surprisingly!)

The principality looks no different from an ordinary Outback farm, the state is about 75 square kilometres (19,000 acres) in size. They have their own currency Hutt River Dollar, stamps and passports. I was only delighted to get my passport stamped! Tourism is their biggest economy.

Hutt River coin

His Royal Highness Prince Leonard I of Hutt is an amazing man to meet, quirky and strange, the tall thin old man is obviously very intelligent and loves to share his unique story with tourists. He is very proud of how he used the law to annex his family's land. He was a genius – I am sure many other countries wish they could have thought of it before him!

In 2008, the Council of the European Union issued a memorandum identifying Hutt River passports among known "fantasy passports ... issued by private organisations and individuals" to which a visa should not be affixed.

A cultural stop in the Hutt River Province
(c) fifiheavey

But Prince Leonard has several documents from countries all over the world which he claims accept his state - he also has a letter from the Queen of England!


The Prince and his impressive Principality shows that it really does pay to read the small print!
This is one crazy pit stop that should not be missed on your tour of Western Australia.

Celebrating Irish Food

We do love potatoes!

Unless you are Irish, you probably don't come to Ireland for the food.

If you are a foodie you travel to France, Italy, Spain, Greece - countries renowned for food. 

But this is changing.

Ireland is one of the best producers of lamb and beef in Europe, we are an agricultural based country. We are also expertly located for fine fish and our vegetables are some of the most organic, sweetest produce in the world.

So why are we not pulling in the punters for our food? Is it that we can't cook? Of course not. 

We are just too easily influenced.

Galwayfoodfestival.com

A recent Lonely Planet guidebook on Ireland said you could order a panini in almost every town in Ireland - it is more accessible here than in Italy!

For too long we looked upon our own traditional foods as poor. It has taken us a long long time to get over the famine, to look past our poor decrepit history, to see the positive in the bare meals our ancestors survived on, but I think we are beginning to understand.

Food Festivals, celebrating our splendid produce, our traditional feasts and our cultural knowledge are springing up all over the place.

Galway Food Festival Brochure
(c) fifiheavey

The inaugural Galway Food Festival, which I attended over Easter attracted an estimated 30,000 visitors to the city, offering more than 70 food-themed events, from cooking demonstrations to foraging trails. And the majority of those visitors were foreign tourists, many quite surprised by what they were seeing, hearing and of course tasting.

More than 50 restaurants and outlets took part in Galway, with some reporting an increase in turnover of over 80% - what a result in a recession. What an inspiration for other towns and cities.Food festivals have “sky rocketed” in the last two years, according to  Fáilte Ireland. In that time the list of Irish food festivals across the country has gone from around 15 to 40. Irish Food Tourism is growing and rightly so.

Demo on how to cook the perfect steak
(c) fifiheavey

We visited a food demo on 'Cooking the perfect steak' at the festival. The cooking part took only a few minutes. First we heard about the history of beef in Ireland and why it is among the best in the world.

Our beef is among the best because of our strategic location and surprisingly our terrible weather. 

(Next time you curse the rain think about a nice juicy steak!)

Happy cow!

The secret ingredient to the perfect steak? 
Salt?
Pepper? 

Oil?

Nope the secret ingredient is:

A happy Cow!

Of course there were oysters galore, muscles, fish of every size and colour alongside beautiful breads, homemade lemonade, sweets, nuts, deserts and BBQ goodies.

The Food Festival was a delight.

A success. More of these please!

Something missing ...

“Where is the table? There has to be a table.”

There was no table, the room was completely empty.

The iconic painting of The last Supper - see the table?!

Imagine visiting Disneyland and not seeing Mickey Mouse, flying around the world to visit an authentic Irish pub to hear the Guinness has run out, find out people in Texas don't wear cowboy hats or take a trip to Lapland and see no snow?

It would be disappointing wouldn't it?

Now I didn't place all my hopes on seeing a table, I hadn't dreamed about it for years, this wasn't the main attraction of the trip. But still I expected it, and it wasn't there.

And I was disappointed, really disappointed – a lot more than I could have expected.

The sign to the Room of the Last Supper
(c) fifiheavey

It was a beautiful sunny day, we were inside the walls of Jerusalem. The walls were the same colour as the buildings, which matched the colour of the ground. There were so many buildings, so many laneways, so many people bustling. Without a guide we would have been lost.

But all of a sudden we were outside the room of The Last Supper (also known as The Lord's Supper, the Mystical Supper, the Cenacle and the Upper Room) it was here that according to Christian belief Jesus and his apostles had one of their final meals before his crucifixion. It is from this meal the Eucharist derives.

The Supper was a feast of the Jewish passover.

Supper - made up of food and drink needs a ....?

Table.

We waited outside the room for the large groups of tourists to pass through. I had the image in my mind – you know the one, long table with Jesus and the twelve apostles. I imagined a long mahogany worn down table with a long runner and candles. Obviously not the original – just a symbol.

Inside the Room of the Last Supper.
(C) fifiheavey

But the room was empty. As a result of arguments between the Roman Catholics, Orthodox Christians, the Jews and the Muslims each of the religions have a small symbol/carving/area. But aside from that the room is empty. Could they not have just agreed on a table?!

I did not know until the guide explained that the room is directly over the tomb of King David. That was a pleasant surprise. It helped to combat my disappointment – but only just.

The women's section of the Tomb of King David.
(c) fifiheavey

How can you have a supper without a table? Even when I explained my trip back home my family and friends had expected a table there. I understand that each of the religions have their own beliefs and are entitled to them, but it didn't suppress my disappointment.

Luckily the rest of Jerusalem made up for it – and the believed site of the crucifixion, the hill of cavalry, the tomb of the resurrection were all mind blowing.

As I stuff myself with Easter eggs this Bank Holiday Weekend, I will cast my mind back to Israel, to my amazing journey there.

Table or no table, even with all the conflict and the religious turmoil, Jerusalem is a special place, a spiritual destination no matter what you belief in.

Tipping is always accepted

Tipping is not mandatory but is accepted worldwide.

I will repeat: Tipping is NOT mandatory but is accepted worldwide.

"Do I have to tip here?" a friend asked a waiter while dining on a holiday in America.


"It is expected," the waiter replied.


"So is good service," my friend returned with a sarcastic tone.

Tipping is not customary in Ireland or in the majority of Northern Europe. It is of course accepted and by some staff even, expected. But it is not customary.
When service is good, better than expected, excellent and personal,  I tip, as do many others. Often we just round things up to the nearest euro, or obvious figure.

But I despise the expectation of tipping.

In America and Canada, it is tradition. Many waiting staff, bartenders etc are earning below the average wage and so tipping brings their wages up to standard. It makes sense really, and a lot of times the price before tipping is very good value.
So tipping is fine there, until you are unsatisfied with your service, had a very unpleasant waitress, had to wait a long time, etc. In America and Canada - you are still expected * to tip. That annoys me.

The act of tipping should be at discretion of the patron being served. But in the States it is not, it is just expected, good or bad - hand over your cash.

I was on a tour in Europe a few years back with some Australians, the tour leader told the group as they arrived in France "you will be expected to tip in restaurants here." She lied, well she withheld the truth what she meant was "As a tourist who does not speak French, you will be expected to tip in restaurants here."
The same can be applied to most EU countries.
Tipping is always expected by tourists - but it is at your discretion.

If a group of Americans sat down to lunch in Ireland and did not leave a nice tip at payment, the staff would be insulted. If the group were Irish, they would not pass any notice.

Also I find quite funny that the higher price bracket you climb in Europe, the more expected* the tip is. If your lunch costs €10 in a cafe no need for a tip. If it costs €35 then a tip is anticipated - like you have not paid enough in the first place.

Tipping is a lovely gesture. I worked as a waitress in Ireland - and I understand the importance of the extra change, the appreciation that is parcelled with it.

But it should never be expected or forced, it is always at your discretion.

*Not mandatory

“If you tick yes – you can't scuba dive”

We had a very rough boat trip from Koh Samui to Koh Tao in Thailand. Almost everyone on the boat got sick and those who didn't were hanging on for their dear lives on the upper level trying not to get thrown over board.

Ningaloo Reef dive, Australia
(c)fifiheavey

I didn't get sick – but I was shook up when we pulled into the glorious scuba diving island of Koh Tao. My partner however did get sick, at one stage he contemplated jumping over board just to stop the horrible motion – but land was in sight so he clung on. When we walked into the the Easy Divers center, he was still yellow, still clinging to his belongings like someone off a ship wreck.

The lovely lady told us to fill out some forms quickly before we collapsed into our beach hut.

As he could not speak, grunt or even stand straight I took over the form filling duty.

To help me hasten she told me “If you tick yes to any of the questions, we can't let you scuba dive.”

I wanted to scuba dive – so did he.

So I ticked No all the way down both sheets, filled out names, address, numbers, emails and set off to across the white beach to settle for the night.

For the next two days we did theory classes, passed out tests and then set off into the water.

In those perfect tranquil turquoise waters we passed our 18m scuba diving lessons and received our licenses. The fish, the coral, the sharks – it was all amazing and despite our quarrellings on dry land – in the silent under water we made the perfect partners. This was our couple hobby.

Ningaloo Reef dive, Australia
(c)fifiheavey 

It was another six months before we got the opportunity to scuba dive again. This time it was on the Great Barrier Reef – off the coast of Cairns, Australia. We booked on to an overnight ship and were prepping to earn our 36m scuba diving license. We were terribly excited about the night time dive.

There were no rough waters to contend with – so once on the ship, we had to fill out the obligatory forms again and this time he was well able to sort out his own. Except on this occasion there was no kind advice on offer.

In the box saying Asthma – he ticked yes.

The instructor nearly lost his life. He told us “you can't scuba dive if you have asthma.”

My partner replied “I can, because I have a license for 18m.”

“But you need to breathe – you could die down there” came the chilling response.

I wanted to help, but all I could think was what if he did die – his mother would kill me!

In the end the instructor agreed, but not before a test dive and a new form where the No box was ticked beside Asthma query.

During the first dive, I have never been so nervous, I was all over the place. I never concentrated on my own process at all, I kept watching him, every two minutes I signaled ok? And he responded. I was up and down in the water because I could not keep myself steady.

Is everything OK???

Before we went down the 36m, the instructor warned us “You will feel a lot more pressure down there, if anything goes wrong – we know nothing about your asthma ok?”

Never mind him – I was crazy with nerves.

About 5m on the descent, I felt a tug on my hand as I watched him ascend.

Heart in mouth – what was going wrong – could he not breathe – was he dying???

No.

He just had to equalize.

We did pass the 36m license and everything went according to plan – but we have not been scuba diving since. He is mad to do it – but he needs a partner.

And this partner needs time to breathe!

Sharks were the least of my worries scuba diving!
(c)fifiheavey 

Titanic Belfast Museum

I cannot tell you HOW excited I was when I received links to the "sneak peak" inside the six story Titanic Belfast museum which opens on March 31.

The amazing exhibition which opens to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic took over three years to build - the same length of time it took to actually build the Titanic Ship.
Take a few minutes to think about that - think about technology, modern machinery, equipment and our perceived intellect. And in the early 1900s they built the beautiful, majestic (slightly flawed!) ship to transport almost 2,300 passengers to America in the same amount of time to build a museum.
My thoughts: This exhibition/ museum/ banquet/ conference centre is going to be epic!

According to the press release 80,000 people have pre-booked tickets to see the museum - so I better get my skates on! People from over all the world will descend on Belfast in April to commemorate the greatest ship.

The magnificent sweeping staircase give the Titanic Suite (caters for 1,000) that awe-some effect. But there are nine other galleries to give you an insight into the whole Titanic experience.

A replica of the grand staircase boasted by Titanic.© Pacemaker 

Gallery 1: Boomtime Belfast - step back in time and get acquainted with Edwardian Belfast.
Gallery 2: The Arrol Gantry and Shipyard Ride - Visitors take a metal elevator up the Arrol Gantry, the enormous steel structure built to facilitate the construction of Titanic and her sister ships. Believed to be the first of its kind, the ride is a five-minute journey in a six-seater car that rotates and moves up and down along a circuit accompanied by CGI, audio and special effects. - How exciting!!
Gallery 3: Watch as they launch the Titanic!
Gallery 4: The Fit out - experience the reality of the inside of the RMS Titanic through a 3D Cave
Gallery 5: The Maiden Voyage - photos from the event.
Gallery 6: The Sinking - Enter a darkened tunnel where the temperature, soundtrack and images all evoke the
tragedy of Titanic's collision with an iceberg and subsequent sinking, with the loss of 1,500 lives.
Galley 7:  The Aftermath - The inquiries, lifeboats and Harland & Wolff following the sinking.
Gallery 8: Myths & Legends -The movies, the books and more
Gallery 9: Titanic Beneath - Explore the ship wreck and the debris left behind.

Titanic Belfast visitors will get to see what life was like on board the ill-fated ship.© Pacemaker 

I feel exhausted thinking about it all - but it has been a trip I have been waiting a long time for.

The world’s largest Titanic exhibition expects to give you the sights, sounds, smells and stories of Titanic, as well as the City and people which made her.Visitors will learn about the construction of RMS Titanic and the wide and rich story of Northern Ireland’s industrial and maritime heritage.

Raise a glass  to a new era for Belfast and Northern Ireland.