We're well on our way to our busiest year yet at the company. So that's a very good thing. So much so there's been a requirement for more staffing to keep everyone sufficiently rested and keeping our flight hours well within the regulations.
For those that have started already and are just starting... Welcome aboard! It will be a pleasure working with all of you in the near future!
Most recently, my trips have taken me to a couple of new places, including the Bahamas and Cuba. I was also fortunate enough to head across to Ireland. In Cuba, we stayed at an all-inclusive resort near Varadero. I met TONS of Canadians down there on vacation. After all, it's about that time of year!
I got to fly with our Operations Manager and discuss some of the future of the company and some changes / progressions we'd like to make. All things in good time though. Once we get our staffing levels up and they can really sit back and evaluate where things are at and where we'd like to take them.
In Ireland we visited the Bunratty Castle and Folk Park. A castle built in the 1400's and abandoned after a war around 1700 where it was heavily damaged. During the 1950's a family restored the castle and its grounds and converted them to a tourist attraction. Similar to some of the historic sites in Canada, such as Lower Fort Garry, Fort Edmonton, the Citadel in Quebec, etc etc.
It was a whirlwind tour to Ireland. The routing took me from Toronto, to Nashville, to Nassau, to Varadero, to St. John's, to Shannon, to St. John's, to Minneapolis, to Edmonton, to North Bay, and finally back to Toronto. Just over 32 hours of flying.
Here's some photos from the trip...
SH-60 Seahawk in Nashville
It was night in the Bahamas and when we landed in Varadero, so I couldn't get any photos really. But the resort in Cuba during the day was gorgeous!
Here are some photos from the Bunratty Castle and Folk Park near Shannon Ireland...
Drainage Grotto Near the Castle
The home of a Fisherman. All of the homes here had a thatched roof like this one.
It works very well, it was raining that day, and the inside of the homes was very dry.
The thatching on the roof is about a foot thick as you'll see here.
People appeared to be quite a bit shorter back then! The beds were VERY small!
Living the simple life
Washing Machine
Appears it was a Washer-Dryer Pair!
A rooster and his ladies! This poor guy didn't know what time it was! Crowing all day!
The Blacksmith Shop
Cannons in the Courtyard of the Castle
The Castle
Themed Banquets are still held a few times a year at the Castle in the Main Dining Room
The Castle Gate
The Lower Armoury
The Dining Hall where dinners are still held. The small door in the back, barely 3 feet high is the entrance to the dungeon.
After being drug down the stairs. The prisoner had the shackle placed around their neck and was kicked from this ledge down into the pit... 15 FEET!!!
When the person died, someone was lowered in by rope to retrieve the body.
The Earls Bedroom
Controls for the drawbridge
The dining hall from above
The Great Hall on the second level of the castle.
The stairs were extremely narrow and extremely steep!
ALL of the stairways in the castle were like this... There was barely room for one person to sneak up or down. Very steep and difficult to get used to!
The kitchen. Looks like a good meal!
I'll have the Turtle Soup!
One of the bedrooms.
The great hall was adorned with these tapestries.
Up to the Roof
The Irish Countryside
Must have been a wealthy family. They had a loft!
This poor fellow wasn't so lucky...
Some Gypsy Carts in the Castle Grounds
Apparently Ireland has a significant Gypsy Problem. Even today!
While we were there, a Halting Site (Gypsy Camp) was shut down due to unsanitary conditions and many people were displaced. There are sites all across Ireland and some in the UK. Usually on the outskirts of towns and cities. They can be the home to a great number of people bringing with it a huge number of problems. They are recognized as the most discriminated against group of people in Ireland today.
Well until the next update! Happy (con)trails!
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