Leeds United vs Arsenal @ Elland Road

Sunday was the day I had been waiting for all my life. Andy, Evan, Amy and I made our way out to Elland Road to see Leeds play Arsenal. Wow! What a day! We so easily got caught up in the emotion of the fans, the singing and chanting and devotion to their team. And then there was the football. A rough game, but with plenty of skill as well. Leeds went on to win 1-0 and the fans left happy. Not even pouring rain, darkness, and the cold could dampen our spirits on the walk home.

Leeds 1 (Olivier Dacourt55) defeated Arsenal 0

Leeds

Paul Robinson, Gary Kelly, Lucas Radebe, Jonathan Woodgate, Ian Kelly, Erik Bakke, Olivier Dacourt, Lee Bowyer, Jason Wilcox, Mark Viduka, Alan Smith

Arsenal

Alex Manninger, Sylvinho, Tony Adams, Martin Keown, Oleg Luzhny, Patrick Viera, Lauren (Kanu 74), Robert Pires, Ray Parlour, Sylvain Wiltord, Thierry Henry

Crowd: 38,084

Massive, Beefcake & Me @ Elland Road

Reef @ Leeds Uni

On Thursday, Amy and I went out to Leeds University, just behind the pub, to see Reef. It’s the fourth time I’ve seen them and, once again they put on a great show and the crowd reacted accordingly.

The Crap Facts

This is my 187th concert.
Leeds Uni is the 49th venue I've seen a concert in.

Leeds is the 36th city I've seen a concert in.

West Yorkshire is the 6th state I've seen a concert in.
England is the 5th country I've seen a concert in.

This is my 4th Reef concert.
Reef are the 1st band I've seen in 3 states.

Drogheda, Ireland to Leeds, UK

Sunday’s weather was cold and wet. We went to a place known as the Hill of Tara where St Patrick played a significant role (I think) in an Irish war. I officially declare this place to be the coldest in the world. The freezing winds and driving rain went through your clothes as if they weren’t there. 

I couldn’t have been happier to get in the van and head to our next stop, the town of Trim. The plan here was to see a castle, but upon arrival we found the site closed, so off we went in search of lunch. We found a pub where the locals took a shining to this group of 20 odd and made our short stay so very pleasant. 

This is where our weekend ended. We went from here to the airport and all went our separate ways. I flew back in the pouring rain to Leeds, while Amy stayed with Kern, Reggae and Marie in Dun Laoghrie as she is meeting her father the following day to travel through Northern Ireland.

St Patrick, Hill Of Tara, Ireland

Drogheda, Ireland

On the Saturday we started off by going to Monasterboice High Cross. This is a ruined abbey in the middle of nowhere. I’m unsure of the significance but what remained was picturesque and quiet moving. Newgrange was next. This is a burial site northwest of Drogheda. Unfortunately there we too many people in our group (apparently bookings are required) so only some of the group saw it, while the rest of us went to a nearby pub and had lunch. We went back to Drogheda and did our own things for the late afternoon. Dinner was had at the Westcourt Hotel, a rather swank place where the food was great. Afterwards it was off to another pub, again to continue the celebrations.

Ruins of Monasterboice, Ireland

Cross of Monasterboice, Ireland

Leeds, UK to Drogheda, Ireland

Amy came back from Spain in time for the 2 of us to fly over to Ireland on the 3rd, to have a weekend with friends and celebrate Reggae’s 29th birthday. We were met at the airport by Creany and caught the bus into town from here. After a drink at the pub and a wander around town we were met by the others in the 3 minivans to head on up to Drogheda where we were to be based for the next 2 nights. 

We arrived in Drogheda and checked into the Green Door Hostel and immediately went to a restaurant for dinner. We ate Italian at Sorrento’s before moving on to Weaver’s Pub. It was here that others caught up with us and a good night was had by all. In the early hours some kicked on to a nightclub, but Amy and I headed home instead.