Blog entries for ppraznik227

Is there a ladies section?

ppraznik227 — Fri, 09 May 2008 15:08:07 GMT

When traveling through the misty countryside of Ireland, we decided that we were a bit parched. So a pint sounded good. Luckily we were near the town of Kilkenny. Upon arriving in the town, the rain started to come down so it seemed like an even better idea to stop in the pub for a pint. We found an interesting church that just happened to have a pub next to it so it seemed like a good idea to stop there and wait for the rain to stop.

Upon arriving my travel companion, Aaron, struggled to get his wet, pull-over wind jacket since I had successfully retracted myself from mine, I asked what he wanted to drink.

As I walked up to the bar, I noticed that the pub was full of very crotchety old men who looked as though they had been living there for years. Now at this point I was used to locals looking at us as if we were aliens coming to attack their village. The place reeked of regulars so they knew when there was a stranger amongst them. As I walked up to the bar to order, there were several small TVs hung above the bar with the latest or at least to them, Montel Williams.

I must step back to when I left Aaron wrestling his jacket. He had heard one of the older gentleman make the comment, "what is the world coming to when the ladies start ordering and buying the drink". I didn't hear this comment only Aaron did.

Meanwhile back at the bar, I have been standing there for awhile waiting to order our drinks. Clearly, the bartender has seen me many times but has not proceeded to take my order. As I wait, I finally catch his eye which he cannot deny serving me. He comes over and I tell him our order. As he pours our drinks, an older man sitting at the bar gets up in a huff and grumbles out the door. Not really thinking this is a big deal, I ignore the man. As the bartender comes back with my drinks, he leans over and says to me. "You know that this is is a gentleman's bar". You have not only broken the code by coming into to the bar instead of the ladies lounge on the side there but you also order the drinks for you and your gentlemen friend but you also bought them.

Wow, I didn't even think about that. Its no big deal for the ladies to buy a round back home. As I looked around the bar again, I did notice the heavily populated male bar room and noticed a sign to the left that said Ladies Lounge. I went to the lounge and felt like a shunned leper.

Hurriedly I drank up my drink and got out of there. Not because I was scared or uncomfortable but the fact that I was ignorant not knowing I was not allowed in the bar. I hate to be the tourist that sticks out but that day I stuck out like a sore thumb.

Moral of the story is to pay attention to the culture of the country you travel to and what might be okay in the big cities will not be okay in the smaller villages you might visit.

Carribean Experience in Frankfurt, Germany

ppraznik227 — Thu, 08 May 2008 20:29:24 GMT

Last year on the way back from a long 15 hour grueling train trip from Prague, Czech Republic back to Amsterdam, Netherlands, my boyfriend and I decided to stop in Frankfort, Germany and spend the night.

Seeing how it was a Sunday night in March, we didn't figure there would be much going on but it was better then sitting on the train doing nothing.

After a hearty dinner of pork knuckles, Kostricker beer, wiener schnitzel and apple wine, we headed out into the cool night air. As we walked along the cobblestone streets in the old part of Frankfurt, we noticed that the options for grabbing an after dinner drink. Surprisingly the only place we found open was a Caribbean Frozen cocktail place. So we turned to the Caribbean for a good time in Frankfurt. These frozen concoctions were sweet and flavorful not made of mixers at all.

After having three drinks, we ended up hitting a bar called HOT which turned out to be a heavy metal bar. I knew it as such when I saw a tshirt that screamed "Tonight there is Going to be a Jail Break"....suddenly I felt I was back home but the mullets here were much cooler.

Talk Derby to Me - A Weekend Full of Highs and Lows

ppraznik227 — Wed, 07 May 2008 17:17:23 GMT

My friends and I packed into my Ford Focus Friday morning to drive to Louisville, KY to partake in our first Kentucky Derby. After the 7 hours of driving in off again/on again rain showers we crossed the bridge to Louisville enveloped in blue skies and sun.

Since we had to wait for my boyfriend's cousin to get there from Chicago (he was our connection to the free accommodations and derby party), we decided to hit the Pre-Derby Festival by the river(cross between church festival and Summerfest). The reason being was the B-52s were playing a free show. And they were great. They played a lot of their new songs but also played the songs we love like "Rock Lobster" and of course, "Love Shack".

Next morning brought a chilly but clear day which was good since the forecast had called for rain all day. But as a precaution, I wore my galoshes, with the dress and hat I made for the Derby. Upon arriving to the location where the bus would take us to Churchill Downs, we were bombarded with Jello shots galore and a beer...what time is it 9:30am? Us Milwaukee-ans, asked, "why didn't we start drinking earlier". Loaded on the bus, Jello shots were flying as our captain literally threw them out to whoever could catch them, considering there were over a 100, he needed to get rid of them.

After a short ride our bus dropped us off at Papa Johns Stadium, where A cup girls suddenly turned into double DD's due to the baggies of alcohol that they were stuffing into their bras. Myself, I was able to put some mini bottles in my galoshes. Once everyone had their items concealed, we proceeded to walk to Churchill Downs and pay our $40 ticket fee. Once inside we went to the infield where we set up camp.

Then I set out to place my bets and grab my first mint julep ever. Now I know people say they are nasty but I didn't find it that bad, in fact, I was able to get 5 down that day.

You may ask what I did at the Derby...my answer is "I don't know." I guess I indulged in some sins- drinking and gambling all day with the occasional wait in the bathroom lines which surprisingly moved very quickly. But otherwise, I don't know what I did. People would come back and say they saw this or that or did you go to the 3rd turn or whatever fun was going on but I couldn't make it. I was glued to the large tv screen in the field to watch the next race.

All in all it was a good day until the final race....perhaps it was the excitement and anticipation for the final derby race...or perhaps it was too many mint juleps but the buzz and joy of the day came to a crash when the race was over and I saw and found out the details of Eight Belles. How could it be? I just saw that horse race past us minutes earlier. And so my Derby experience ended with sobbing and anguish for that poor horse. And I know why they did what they did and all that...but its still so sad to actual see the drama unfold.

The day was good and I had fun except for the end. Buzz kill, for sure.

Kentucky Derby 2009? Perhaps but I think this time I'll sit in the stands.