Learn to play the bagpipes: Update on #13

You know you want to learn to play the bagpipes.  Have you considered going to a bagpipe summer school? 

Canada's Prince Edward Island has the school just for you:  The College of Piping and Celtic Performing Arts.  Affiliated with Glasgow's College of piping, this school people come to learn from all around the world.  New Zealand pipers, Japanese pipers, Kuwaiti pipers, Singapore pipers, and yes, even Scottish pipers have learned here.

The College of Piping also has classes in Highland and Step Dancing, and Drumming.  Prince Edward Island was originally inhabited by the mi'kmaq, and the 2006 census identified 90 people who still speak mi'kmaq.  The population identifies itself mainly as Scottish, English, Irish and French (in that order), so the Celtic influence on Prince Edward Island is strong.

Price Edward Island may be just the place to connect with your inner Celt, and learn the pipes.  I'll be learning to play sometime soon, so I expect you will be sitting down for a piping session with me.

If headed to piping school please checkout these cheap flights to Canada.

#22 Go Mumming in Newfoundland

Winter does not seem like the time to visit Canada, but there is more than one reason to make the trek north in the coldest, longest days of the year.  My last winter suggestion for the frozen upperlands was to visit in the winter to experience the Northern Lights.  But, there are even stranger things happening in Canada in the winter than the wondrous Northern Lights.

Newfoundland is home to a 200 year old Christmas tradition:  Mummers visiting from home to home, or as it is also called among the Newfoundlanders "belsnicklers."

Here in Salem, I organized a Mummers Festival in 2008, but this is not the same as a spontaneous event with masked marauders knocking on your door and taking over your home with a party, demanding to be fed and given drink.

In St. John's there is an annual Mummer's Parade, and it certainly would be worth it to watch the parade, but I want to go mumming in Newfoundland!  I want to dress up and go house marauding creating parties as I travel with friends.  Who would not want to do that!?  It must be on your "bucket list" of things to do before you die.

You will need a ticket to Canada first, if you are going in the fun, festive, albeit cold winter season.  Check out the cheap flights to Montreal.

#21 Guinness, Guinness and more Guinness

As strange as it may seem to someone in the United States, the number one tourist attraction in all of Ireland is a brewery.  Of course, this isn't just any brewery, it is the famous Guinness Brewery, and the Guinness Storehouse (as it is called) is high on my list of places to go before I die.

The fact that it is in Ireland is reason enough.  The fact that it is a brewery is enough reason for me to want to visit.  The Guinness Storehouse rises high on the list apart from these reasons.  Its storied history is the reason a stop at St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin is in order.

The founder Arthur Guinness heard a sermon from John Wesley one Sunday, and it became inspiration for his life's work.  As Wesley often enjoined people "Earn all you can. Save all you can. Give all you can.  Your wealth is evidence of a calling from God, so use your abundance for the good of mankind."  Arthur Guinness went on to practice this command of Wesley's.

He gave large sums to the poor, and helped found Sunday Schools.  This same ethic was passed on to the generations of Guinness family members who took over the company.  During World War II sent every British soldier a can of Guinness with his Christmas meal.

In the late 18th century when the polluted city water was dangerous for one's health, and the country was in a Gin Craze it was the drinking of Guinness which helped stem the tide of sickness and of severe alcoholism.

You'll need a car to get around Ireland, and can find a great deal at this Dublin airport car hire.  Perhaps we'll meet at the Saint James's Gate Brewery.  Its on my bucket list.  Is it on yours?

#20 - County Donegal and a real Irish pub

I want to go to an Irish pub - a real Irish pub.  I am sure I will need to go County Donegal to accomplish this task.

Wednesday Night I was in Boston in an Irish Pub.  Boston is home to a number of good Irish pubs, but when it comes to Irish pubs I am sure I have not really been to one yet.  I want traditional Irish music with fiddlers, and accordions, and tin whistles, but I am sure that will still not be a real Irish pub.

What I will be missing is the Irish language, and for this reason going to rugged northern reaches of Ireland and County Donegal to see the stone circles, the dolmens, the castles, the cliffs, and of course - the pubs is on my list of 1,000 things to do before I die.

This list of 115 pubs is a good starting place for finding your way around the pub life of County Donegal.  You will also need a car, and can find a good deal at this Dublin car rental company.

Donegal is about three hour drive from Dublin.  Along the way you can take a detour and climb Saint Patrick's mountain in Murrisk, but be sure to visit the rugged, beautiful coastline, see the castles, and most of all do a pub tour for the music of Ireland, and the music of the Irish language.  This is on my list of things to do.  How about you?

#19 - Compete in the World Bog Snorkelling Championships

My business partner Gareth posted something about this on Facebook today, and the post reminded me that it was something I've been needing to add to my list of things to do before I die.  Check out the Youtube embedded video below, and consider what a great accomplishment and wonderful life goal it would be to train for and compete in the Bog Snorkelling Championship in Llanwrtyd Wells, Wales.  You just might want to add it your bucket list of 1,000 things to do before you die.

#18 Stone Brewery (Accomplished!)

Visiting friends and family back in my home area of North San Diego County, California I stopped for a tour at Stone Brewery in Escondido, CA.

They have been in their newest location for a few years and it is impressive.  Fine gardens are found at the entrance from the upper lot, and outside the classy bistro.  Even the men's bathroom is a work of art.  Yet, strangely their facility does not even have their name on it.  So, you had better know the address when you pass by.

The micro brew world has taken off in America, and nowhere is this so evident as the San Diego area, which boasts over 30 craft breweries.  It has become a haven for fine, innovative ales, and the big daddy of the craft brewers is Stone Brewery.  A craft brewer with equipment this large, and making this much beer is a beautiful thing in a world of cheap, watery American beer.

The 45 minute tour begins under the pirate flag, and ends with a sampling of four beers (small samples mind you.)  The tour is interactive and allows for questions about the brewing process.  Hops are passed around to smell, the malted grain is passed around to taste.  The brewery is immaculate, and large.  This is an impressive operation, and they highlight fun mixed with a good smattering of irreverence, and education.  Our tour guide, Daniel offered all of that.

Beer Advocate describes Stone Brewing as the "All time top brewery on planet earth..." having received the highest rating ever.  So, if you like a good ale, this is the place to visit.  I went with my friends Steve, Justin, and Jim.  They agreed.  It was a rippin' fun tour.  You should add it to your list of things to do before you die.

#17 - The Gaint's Causeway

The giant's name was Finn McCool ( Fionn mac Cumhaill in Irish).  There are variations on the myth, but the story is that he was challenged to a fight with a Scottish giant, and built the causeway to Scotland to battle the giant Benandonner.

Now one tale says that McCool fell asleep and his wife had to cover him with a blanket to pretend that he was her baby, and when Benandonner saw the size of the baby he fled and tore up the bridge to Scotland behind him.

This geological phenomenon is a classic example of the truth being stranger than fiction.  This area of over 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, some almost 40 ft. high, is one of the great wonders of the world.  This is Northern Ireland's most visited tourist site, and was voted 4th on the list of natural wonders of the UK by a Radio Times Poll.

Other basalt columns can be found around the world, such as the Devil's Postpile near Mammoth Mtn, California, but the location of the Giant's Causeway on the edge of the Irish sea in Northern Ireland places this higher on my list than the others.

You will want to rent a car if coming from Dublin.  The Giant's causeway is 3 miles north of the village of Bushmills, or about 3 and a half hours north of Dublin.  This Dublin car rental will give you a good deal.

The Giant's Causeway makes my list of things to see before I die.  How about you?  Is it on your bucket list?

#16 - Climbing Croagh Patrick (Murrisk, County Mayo, Ireland)

In a world of pilgrimages, this may not be among the greatest tests at 2533 ft., but it certainly packs a spiritual wallop.

This mountain in Murrisk, Mayo County, Ireland 5 miles from the town of Westport is reputed to have been a place of worship for 5,000 years.  Now, whether that is true or not pales in comparison to the legendary connection to Ireland's patron saint, and one of my heros:  Saint Patrick.

Patrick of course, was not Irish, but rather was a missionary who felt called to the foreign land from his native Britain (today's Wales.)  So, some of my friends celebrate Saint Patrick's Day as a Welsh holiday.  Here's my song to commemorate Saint Patrick.

This is the most important Catholic pilgrimage in Ireland.  Nearly a million visitors scramble up the scree scattered slopes each year.  Some even do so barefooted, though the Catholic Church does not recommend it.

Tradition and a bit of rural myth tell us that in 441 AD Patrick fasted for 40 days upon this mountain, and banished the demons and the snakes from Ireland.

The walk up the mountain includes a statue of Patrick erected by a Westport pastor in 1928, and 7 stations of prayer on the way to the summit.

I am not Catholic, but my interest lies in remembering one of history's greatest missionaries, and prolific church planters, as well as following in the footsteps of one of the most influential Welshmen in history.

If you make this trip you will need a car.  Croagh Patrick lies 228 km west of Dublin.  You can get some of your best deals at this Dublin Airport Car Hire.  Then you'll be off to walk the steps of Patrick in County Mayo, Ireland.

It makes my list of things to do before I die.  Does it make yours?

Canadian Northern Lights: Update on #12

For those of you following my list of things to do before I die.  You will have seen that I want to go to the far reaches of the northern hemisphere to see the aurora borealis - commonly referred to as the northern lights.  It is #12 on my list.

The northern lights require darkness.  From mid-August until April is typically a good time to catch the Northern Lights depending on how far north you are.  The best viewing occurs at the darkest and coldest  times - January being a peak month for viewing the aurora borealis. 

Ontario even boasts a scenic drive dedicated to the Northern Lights among other natural wonders.  Visiting the northern lights in the dark seasons in Canada will require bundling up in warm clothing.  You will be visiting one of the world's colder climes during the colder months.  So, be prepared when you catch a cheap flight to Canada to pack for cold weather, and don't forget to bring your camera.

#15 The Passion Play at Oberammergau

I first heard about this town in Germany, which performs the Passion Play about the crucifixion of Christ once every 10 years, and has been doing so for hundreds of years when I was in junior high.  Since that time I have wanted to go to Oberammergau.

This year marks the 40th running of the Passion Play.  In 1633 the town made a vow to God.  They would perform the Passion of the Christ once every ten years if they would be spared from the ravages of the bubonic plague.  The town was spared, and they have been performing the Passion Play every ten years for almost 400 with breaks, which occurred only for wars.  From May through September the Passion Play is performed daily, and is viewed by half a million people.  There will be 110 performances in 2010.

I am not sure if I will make this decade's performances, but Oberammergau is a miracle story - and not the least of the miracle being that they kept their promise for 400 years.  This puts the Passion Play at Oberammergau high on my list of things to do before I die.