Good bye to the Murdochs, the MacDonalds, the Camerons, the McLeod’s and all the other Macs and Mcs and hello to the O’Reillys, the Houlihans, the Barrys, the Brennans and of course the Fitzpatricks, Reddigans and Murphys………feels like I’m home……even though at times I can’t understand a word they’re saying!  Jim reminded me that this is what he felt like when he first came to Newfoundland and met my father who said “My God Donna, he’s awful quiet.”  And when I told Jim what Dad said his only response was “I can’t understand a word he’s saying”……..and all these years later neither can I.  But I’m working on it!

We took the bus from downtown Glasgow for our two hour drive to Cairnryan from where the ferry to Belfast departed.  Just under 2 1/2 hours later we arrived after a smooth sailing and took a taxi to our air bnb……and what a place it was!  It used to be an old bank manager’s house and Damien, our host, has turned it into an air bnb which is full of collectibles and most of them are from Catholic Churches.  Once again it was like stepping back in time with Jesus, Mary and  Joseph statues all around the place……as well as crucifixes, holy water containers, chandelairs and other collectibles.  Damien has always been a collector but informed that although this stuff is not worth a lot it is a shame to let it go into the landfill so he picks up pieces whenever he can…….very interesting indeed!  I would like to know more about Damien but didn’t want to be too nosy so didn’t ask a lot of questions. He impressed as a very kind man, quite gentle and his air bnb profile says he loves to travel and likes to host travelers and offer them a good deal, which he certainly did!   The place is over a hundred years old, very clean and all the rooms had king sized beds with Victorian furniture.   Although there were other people there when we were, we never saw a soul or a body – it was that kind of place!

Anyway………back to Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland and home to the Titanic as well as to approximately 340,000 people. Once again we decided to do the Hop On/Off bus because we didn’t have much time here and wanted to learn a little about the City.   Most of what I knew was related to ‘The Troubles’ Belfast has seen and this is actually what it is called, meaning the period from 1969-1998 during which over 1,600 people were killed in political violence.  The peace agreement was signed in 1998, thank the Lord, and since then investors’ confidence have boosted the economy and tourism has taken off.  Being a tourist I tried not to focus on those sad days but it was difficult as you can still see the scars of those years all around you in the murals as well as the newspaper articles related to on-going lawsuits from times gone by.  The people here were very friendly and helpful whenever we got a little lost and I sure do love that accent!   We had good food, lots of great walks and on our last night some excellent music which was a combination of traditional Irish, soul music and Van Morrison, or ‘grumpy Van’ as he is known by the locals!  I also had the best oat cakes I have ever had and I have had some excellent oat cakes in my day.   Jim was disappointed he could not find Irish stew – well that’s not exactly true as we found it at Kelly’s pub but it was sold out – must have been good!

The first two pictures below are related to ‘the troubles’,  the third one is about the Titanic and the last one is the Church across from our air bnb………and there are so many churches!   Another thing we noticed were the kids walking to school in the morning all in their uniforms.   This was something I hated as an adolescent, ie. the uniform, but seeing the teenagers here all in uniform brought me back and as a more ‘mature’ individual these days it doesn’t seem like a bad idea afterall.

After Belfast we headed up north to drive the Antrim Coast and surely there’s no place on earth more beautiful.   It’s approximately 120 miles from Belfast to Londonderry  if you go the coastal route and all of it is absolutely stunning.  We were very grateful that we were not driving the coastal route during the tourist season as it’s a slow road but not single track like it was in Scotland.   On the way we stopped at the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge which has its own piece of history and is quite the tourist attraction.   For over 200 years, until 2002, fishermen hung rope across the 65 ft expanse from the mainland to a tiny island where they would check their salmon nets.  Planks were then laid across the rope so they could cross and of course there were no railings to prevent you from falling the 90 feet to the cold and rough waters below.   Today of course this is not the case but it still is a rope bridge, but a very secure one, and during the summer months approximately 2500 people cross it each day.   When we were there it was steady but nothing like that number, thank God, because if you hadn’t booked in advance there are days when you can’t cross due to it being sold out in advance to bus tours and on line sales – what a disappointment that would have been if you came all that way.  The guy working there told us that during the summer they have 2,500 people a day cross that bridge…….and at about 7 pounds a person that brings in quite a chunk of change!

Next stop was the Giant’s Causeway, another main tourist attraction on the coast of Atrim that is famous for its basalt columns that have been formed by volcanic eruptions more than 60 million years ago.  Visiting the Causeway allowed us to have an hour plus walk around the top and then descend down into where the rocks were.   It was quite busy when we were there but once again we were thankful we were missing all the summer crowds.  Here’s a few pictures that do not do justice but it’s the best I can do.  You, however, can google for more info and better pictures!

After our hike at the Giant’s Causeway we journey on along this magnificent coast making our way slowly to Londonderry, otherwise known as Derry in these parts.  We arrive just before dark, check into our hotel and pour ourselves a beer/glass of wine and chat about what a great birthday gift the day had been………..for me……..another year wiser I hope!   Fortunately there’s a restaurant with good reviews within walking distance so we head there and had a great meal……can’t remember what Jim had but I had the salmon which was delicious!

Early the next morning we walked this walled city, population around 85,000, and once again are reminded of its history and ‘the troubles’, especially Bloody Sunday which occurred  on Jan. 30/72 when British soldiers shot 28 unarmed civilians during a peaceful protest – 14 of them died.   While we were there the papers reported that ongoing lawsuits are still being settled because of this unprovoked attack.  We also had the joy of walking the Peace Bridge which opened in June 2011 and certainly gives hope to the residents of Londonderry that change is in the air.   We can only hope but there are some rumblings of discontent because of Brexit and the devisiveness that this has caused.   The pictures below are of the walled city(notice the cannons) and the peace bridge.

Our time is getting short in Northern Ireland so we wind our way back to Belfast, turn in our car without any scrapes or dents and go for our final supper in Belfast which I have already mentioned with the reference to ‘grumpy’ Van.  The next morning we’re off early to catch the ferry back to Cairnryan and the bus to Glasgow.

And that’s it folks…….another great journey the majority of which was paid for by the Rotary Club’s trip of the month which Jim won…..and we added to.   The people of Scotland, and Northern Ireland, were fabulous and Jim kept reminding me by saying “people are so polite here” and they love Canadians and kept telling us of cousins they have there and how they want to visit.  Our last night in Scotland we decided to spend at Imax to see Bohemian Rhapsody(Freddie Mercury/Queen) which we totally enjoyed and would definitely recommend.   We followed this with a pub dinner and an early bedtime as we’re off early in the morning to the airport.  As always it’s great to get away but wonderful to come home and so looking forward to seeing Andrea at the airport as well as other family and friends and O’Reilly.  A few weeks later we will also be seeing Kathleen and these two little munchkins………feel so blessed and obviously the luck of the Irish is still with us!