Leinster sous la neige

Voici un extrait du journal ce matin à propos des conditions météorologiques:

"Il y aura du gel tous les soirs, mêlé à des averses de grêle, de verglas et de neige.

"Il y aura une période de grésil et des chûtes de neige importantes, avec des températures comprises entre moins 2C et moins 9C, avec des températures au sol tombant aussi bas que moins 13C.

"Les zones à haut risque sont le Leinster, où entre 5-10cm (2-4 pouces) de neige va tomber. Louth et Dublin pourraient voir 10-20cm (4-8 pouces) et ça pourrait être plus élevé dans les montagnes de Wicklow."

Il n'est tombé que quelques centimètres durant la nuit. Mais, on entend toujours le grésil tambouriner dans les fenêtres. Les écoles seront assurément fermées aujourd'hui et, possiblement pour le reste de la semaine. Les enfants vont s'amuser davantage dans la neige que dans la pluie. Les traversiers vers la Grande-Bretagne sont annulés. Les routes sont enneigées et glacées car la neige fond durant le jour mais aussitôt le soleil couché, tout se transforme en glace. Et, comme il n'y a pas d'équipement nécessaire pour nettoyer les routes...

Nous allons donc rester bien au chaud dans la maison à regarder des films de Noël...

...

Sous la neige qui tombe, le traîneau vagabonde

Semant tout autour sa chanson d'amour

Au royaume du bonhomme hiver...

Forecast - 8 inches of snow !!!

	Monday Night Chance of Snow. Scattered Clouds. Low: -1 °C . Wind ENE 32 km/h . 40% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 5.02 mm). Windchill: -5 °C .
	Tuesday Chance of Snow. Partly Cloudy. High: 2 °C . Wind ENE 36 km/h . 30% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 4.10 mm). Windchill: -5 °C .
	Tuesday Night Chance of Snow. Scattered Clouds. Low: -2 °C . Wind NE 21 km/h . 30% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 5.37 mm). Windchill: -6 °C .
	Wednesday Chance of Snow. Scattered Clouds. High: 1 °C . Wind NNE 18 km/h . 30% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 2.18 mm). Windchill: -6 °C .
	Wednesday Night Chance of Snow. Scattered Clouds. Low: -4 °C . Wind NE 18 km/h . 30% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 3.08 mm). Windchill: -5 °C .
	Thursday Chance of Snow. Scattered Clouds. High: 1 °C . Wind NNE 18 km/h . 20% chance of precipitation (trace amounts). Windchill: -6 °C .
	Thursday Night Chance of Snow. Scattered Clouds. Low: -10 °C . Wind SSW 25 km/h . 20% chance of precipitation (trace amounts). Windchill: -12 °C .
	Friday Chance of Rain. Partly Cloudy. High: 3 °C . Wind South 21 km/h . 20% chance of precipitation (trace amounts). Windchill: -9 °C .
	Friday Night Chance of Snow. Overcast. Low: -2 °C . Wind SW 39 km/h . 30% chance of precipitation (water equivalent of 1.58 mm). Windchill: -9 °C .
	Saturday Chance of Snow. Overcast. High: 3 °C . Wind Calm. 20% chance of precipitation (trace amounts). Windchill: -1 °C .
	Saturday Night Scattered Clouds. Low: -2 °C . Wind Calm. Windchill: -6 °C .
	Sunday Clear. High: 4 °C . Wind ENE 14 km/h . Windchill: -2 °C .
	Sunday Night Chance of Snow. Scattered Clouds. Low: -2 °C . Wind WNW 36 km/h . 20% chance of precipitation (trace amounts). Windchill: -8 °C .

rêves

mes rêves sont remplis de croissants et de café au lait... de promenades et de randonnées... d'art et d'aventures...

nous partons pour paris dans une semaine.... hourra!!!

Corkagh Park

We have found only recently about Corkagh Park.It is a vast green space not far from where we live. There is a very nice playground for kids of all ages; a fishing lake with several platforms along the shore to cast your line; a path leads to a rose garden and an arboratum commemorating the Irish diaspora following the Irish Potato Famine around 1850.

Also, there is a pond where ducks and other flying friends like to be fed. We emptied an old box of Weetabix to fatten up ducks and swans while avoiding the omnipresent seagulls.

I forgot to mention the pet farm. I will tell you all about it in a future post.

cold snap

we had been told that it snows rarely in ireland. so it came as a surprise when we woke up this morning to find the ground covered in snow. we had a good laugh this morning when we read the irish times warning households to be prepared for cold and wintery conditions this weekend with temperatures plummeting to as low as minus three degrees! these are extremely cold conditions in ireland. our little canadian kids enjoyed the beautiful conditions this morning -- sun and snow with temperatures around zero -- who could ask for anything more!

première neige

un de mes moments préférés de l'hiver, c'est la première tombée de neige. comme les années précédentes, les enfants se sont levés ce matin en criant "maman, papa, il neige! il neige! venez voir." tranquillement, nous sommes descendus pour trouver le sol couvert d'une belle couverture blanche. les enfants ont mangé rapidement et puis ils ont mis leurs pantalons par-dessus leur pyjamas pour aller jouer dans la neige sans tarder. sous peu la rue était remplie de petits enfants qui se lançaient des boules de neige et qui construisaient des bonhommes de neige. vive l'hiver!

soccer

in an effort to overcome cabin fever, we registered the boys in soccer. it is brazilian soccer and the classes focus on developing a skill set. the kids in these classes are really impressive! even though our boys have been playing soccer for years, they are learning so much from the brazilian approach. watch out kingston, next summer they'll be be a force to reckon with!

Jenkinstown Forest Recreation Area

Le guide nous a suggéré d'aller prendre le pique-nique tout près de la caverne à Jenkinstown,

dans une réserve forestière où l'on prend soin de cervidés.

Nous somme arrivés à l'heure du lunch pour les chevreuils eux aussi. Les gardiens nous ont gracieusement offert du pain et des pommes pour nourir les bêtes qui

s'entassaient à la barrière.

Plus tard, nous sommes allés nous promener dans une forêt magique. Nous avons grimpé dans les arbres, couru dans les feuilles et même découvert une cachette utilisée par les fées des bois.

Par cette journée d'automne idéale, les parents étaient convaincus que les enfants étaient bien heureux de ne pas être dans une salle de classe.

Enfin, les plus braves ont traversé une ancienne fondation sur un mince tronc d'arbre.

Le temps s'est momentanément arrêté par cet après-midi ensoleillé. Le paradis terrestre était à Jenkinstown.

Dunmore Caves

Last Friday, we joined other homeschoolers for a tour of the Dunmore Caves. Not only are they interesting for speleologic reasons but also have significant historical importance.

In order to get inside the cave, we had to go down more than 700 steps.

Luscious vegetation grows all around this deep black hole, as if it is being swallowed by darkness...

Irish bats fly to the caves for hibernating. They hang upside down from October to March. Unfortunately, we did not see any of them as they hide in other sections not accessible to human visitors. But as a proof, our guide pointed

us to bat poop on the floor...

The historical importance of Dunmore comes from the fact that people living in the area one thousand years ago used the caves as a shelter and even for food storage. While the Vikings raided the island. Women and children came here to hide from the "enslavers". Many skeletons were found hidden deep inside a nook. The most common explanation is that the Vikings lit up many fires to smoke them out. Many silver coins from York, a viking village in England, were found. The Vikings didn't use wallets to carry their silver. They would use bees wax to stick them inside their beard or under their armpits. In the heat of a battle, wax would melt and coins would fall...

About 10 years ago, a guide found a treasure hidden simply under a rock. A silver bracelet, silver coins dating some fifty years after the initial raid and silver cones, made out of a woven thread of metal.

Inside, there were many interesting features such as this huge stalactite. Notice that it is not pointy like it normally should. That's because, one hundred years ago, some explorer wanted to keep it as a souvenir by removing it with explosives, the method of choice at the time.

On the ceiling there are many straws. All are exactly 6 millimeters wide, the same size as a water drop. It takes about 100 years to grow 1 cm longer as deposits of minerals slowly build down the straw.

We also saw Casper the friendly ghost, the massive Pillar from the Town Hall and a bison.

Then we had to climb all the way up the 700+ steps...

Imaginosity

Pendant que Rachel s'envolait vers Washington, nous sommes allés rencontrer d'autres familles qui font l'éducation à la maison dans un musée pour enfants de Dublin appelé Imaginosity. Les enfants peuvent s'amuser en prétendant être un garagiste, un médecin, un restaurateur ou un facteur... Il y a un studio de télé, une scène de théatre, un site de construction... De tout pour tous les goûts. Les activités les plus populaires demeurent le sous-marin, la simulation de conduite automobile et l'arbre à escalader.

Les enfants se sont tellement amusés que nous y avons passé toute la journée!

Nous y retournerons dans deux semaines, car Claudie, une Française qui habite en banlieue de Dublin organise ces sorties. De plus ses garçons Emile et Nestor ont le même âge que Colin et Alexi... Je crois qu'on n'a pas fini d'entendre parler de ces deux-là...

crisps

en irlande, les "crisps" -- communément appelés chips au québec -- sont très différentes. on retrouve des crisps aux fromage et onions; au steak et aux onions; au cocktail de crevettes; au poulet; au bacon; au canard; à la sauce worchester; et ce sont les sortes les plus conservatrices. voici d'autres sortes plus exotiques...

il n'y a pas de crisps barbecue, pas de crottes de fromage, pas de doritos regulier (les sortes de doritos sont plus exotiques) --- et rares sont les crisps ordinaires....

donc, en revenant de washington, j'ai ramené un sac de crisps barbecue et un sac de crottes de fromage pour les enfants. pouvez-vous imaginer passer un an sans crisps? c'est pas evident!

norman rockwell

one of my favorite moments in washington has been the unexpected discovery of norman rockwell, the artist. i was familiar with the name, but not much more. i was touring washington with a lady from australia who loved norman, so we ended up going to a special exhibition of his work. the paintings were on loan from George Lucas and Steven Spielberg's personal collection.

norman rockwell was a 20th-century american painter and illustrator. he made cover illustrations for the saturday evening post for over 40 years. his works are generally idealized or sentimental portrayals of american life.

apparently, according to wikipedia, rockwell's work was dismissed by art critics in his lifetime who felt he wasn't a serious painter. rockwell's art is sentimental, and critics considered it overly sweet. i actually appreciated that sentimentality in his work because it takes you back to a different time.

it seems ridiculous to me that he would not be considered a serious painter because he is such a talented artist. he was a methodic artist and there was such thought behind each one of his paintings. he would hire models and stage pictures -- down to the exact details that he wanted. then he would sketch the pictures in black and white multiple times, to see the play of lights and shadows. then, he would paint.

his paintings are absolutely mesmerizing. the colors in his paintings are absolutely breathtaking. they are so vivid and bright, they leapt off the canvas. his attention to details was impressive. his paintings had such depth and perspective. i wanted to buy a postcard or a souvenir at the shop to take a piece of the exhibition with me, but a copy of the images didn't convey the same aw as actually standing close to the paintings and seeing all of the detail. also none of the copies came close to the original vivid colors. with that in mind, i am posting a couple of pictures of his paintings. if ever you have the chance to see a norman rockwell exhibition first hand, take it. it is absolutely moving.

i now consider norman rockwell as one of my favorite artists. discovering his art was another of my pleasant surprises in washington.

transit

je suis en transit pour l'irlande... j'ai hâte de voir mes petits...

obama and me

yesterday, i went to eat at one of obama's favorite restaurants in washington: ben's chili bowl. a typical greasy burger joint. i was surprised when i entered because there are lot's of pictures of famous people in the restaurant. it turns out, obama even took nicholas sarkosky there!

it was quite an experience. there was an incredible line-up. there must have been 60 people ahead of me. music was blasting. at the grill, there was a dozen of workers dancing and singing. they were having a ball. they had their system down packed. it took under 10 minutes to be served. i couldn't believe it.

i ordered the same thing obama orders. a chili cheeseburger. normally i wouldn't like chili served in a burger, but i figured, if it's good for obama, it's good enough for me.

to be honest, i wasn't expecting much. it's a greasy burger afterall. but it was absolutely delicious. i was wowed!

if you go to washington. this place is a must. thanks obama!

washington

washington c'est une très belle ville. propre, calme et statuesque. tous les musées et bâtiments importants sont proches l'un de l'autre alors c'est une ville très facile à naviguer. il y a plein de musées. c'est définitivement une ville à visiter avec les enfants.

quelques photos prises avec mon ipod.