The Irish night out that was organized by our nice hosts from Léargas took us to the oldest pub in Dublin – to Brazen Head. I visited it first two years ago but then we just had a drink there and looked around and I took some photos.
This time we were offered a big dinner with a story-teller and Irish music. The story-teller was fabulous and he entertained us with different Irish legends about fairies and leprechauns and what happens to those who don’t take it seriously. So if you want to survive in Ireland you must definitely get on well with fairies and never cut down their trees or steal their pots of gold which usually are hidden somewhere at the end of the rainbow. I have tried to accept these rules so far and I hope that the fairies are on my side. And all that story-telling gave an idea to write a project about different stories and legends of different countries – let’s see if that plan works out but if it does it could be something that I would like to do. The evening ended with our hosts singing us Molly Mallone and everyone who knew the words sang together with them. It was a short Irish night out but it was grand and after that Sean came to meet me and we walked back home.
I must say that the seminar in Dublin was the best of all the contact seminars I have visited and hopefully, I also got some useful contacts to go on with.
Some memories from my first visit to Brazen Head in 2014 summer.
Wow – a seminar in a castle and not just in a castle but in a castle in Dublin, in Clontarf Castle. I have been trying to connect my work and my life, more of course in my dreams, a little bit less in a reality but for the first time I managed to do it properly – I applied for a grant for a contact seminar in Dublin and I got it. It was probably the one and the only Erasmus+ VET seminars that they have held in Dublin and I was lucky to find it at the right time. When I found it in September, it wasn’t such a right time because at the same time there were lots of different things going on and I kind of wrote this application standing behind my desk, with my left hand and talking on the phone or something very similar. But anyway, it worked.
The seaside region looked really nice, even from the window of the bus and it’s again such kind of a posh place to live. I love Dublin because of all these differences you can find from different parts of the town. For me, of course, the seaside regions seem the most attractive but it has always been like that with every seaside place I have been. And in any case I caressed the lions, maybe it doesn’t only work at Trafalgar Square but with any other lions as well. I really want to come back here and I can confirm it with whatever it needs, so caressing the lions is just one of these little cute beliefs that you can just do, when you want to send your wish somewhere out there 🙂
When you are Estonian and you live in Haapsalu, everyone knows that you are sharing your hometown with the White Lady. The White Lady is our own ghost who has been living in the Castle walls for centuries and only on one August night when the full moon is in the sky, she appears on the window of the Chaple to seek for her lover. And for that rare appearance, our town has started a tradition of White Lady Days, when the whole main street is a big market, musicians are playing on different stages and in the back gardens, you can find small garden markets and theatre groups performing. All the cafes are full of people and at night you can go the see the performance which of course, takes place in the Castle Yard.
Years and years ago, when the Episcopal Castle of Haapsalu was the residence of the Bishop, there were only religious men, called Canons living there and it was not allowed to the women to enter the castle. But the Canons were young lads and so it happened, that on of them fell madly in love with an Estonian girl from the neighborhood. As they wanted to be together, they had made up a plan and the girl, dressed up as a choir boy, stayed in the castle, helped in the stables, sang in a choir, because she had a marvellous voice and at night time met her lover. For some time they were happy and safe but of course, their happiness was discovered and the church laws were very strict. So the poor girl was immured into the walls of the Chapel of the dome Church and the boy was thrown into the dungeons of the castle to starve to death. And every year, in August, when there’s full moon, she comes back and shows herself on the castle window to see if her lover has come. If you don’t believe it, you have to come and see it with your own eyes.
Dublin Accent 