Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

To many, Ireland and Northern Ireland are synonymous. Yes, much of the landscapes and cityscapes are similar however, the pride of alignment with Britain is everywhere. As a matter of fact, the currency is the British Pound (or Sterling), making it a little inconvenient when going back and forth to Ireland where the currency is the Euro. Belfast felt a little grittier than Dublin but we always felt welcomed and safe.

Belfast

Growing up in the 60’s through 90’s near Boston with its thick Irish heritage, all we ever heard about Northern Ireland was fighting, the IRA and bombings taking place over the separation from the Irish Republic, keeping the Protestant religion dominant and siding with the King. This is very much a part of Northern Ireland’s history. We took a City Sightseeing Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour in Belfast with a wonderful tour guide. In Belfast everywhere you look, there are murals and statues paying tribute to this tumultuous time – The King and Queen and many of the martyrs of this time – Bobby Sands, etc…

I had never heard about the “Peace Walls” that the guide pointed out and was very surprised that these walls are still used today to separate neighborhoods by religion, keeping the gates locked over night to decrease “trouble”. Maybe the gates were necessary one time when fighting was intense, but now they somehow seem wrong to me. These walls are covered with murals that commissioned artists paint each year. We watched the move “Belfast” when we returned home which depicted the type of brutality that citizens were imparting on each other, thus the need for the walls. The guide informed us that within the city of Belfast, the Catholic vs. Protestant is still apparent, however, not so much in the suburbs.

The Titanic Museum

We visited the Titanic Museum, which is more about the shipbuilding than any artifacts. It does have the names on a wall of those lost on the fated ship. I was surprised to see some of my family names on both sides listed here. I’ve always found it unsettling that my grandmother came over to the U.S. on a different White Star vessel only a few weeks after the Titanic sank, after watching how the poor Irish were treated in steerage. If she had been on the Titanic I would probably not be around. There was even a photo op to do your best Jack and Rose pose, even though it did seem a bit out of place realizing the tragedy.

Bushmill’s Distillery

Our bus driver took the 14 of us on a tour to Giant’s Causeway and along the way, for a stop at Bushmill’s Distillery. We were a bit early for a tasting. It was a nice site anyway, and we got to make some purchases at the gift shop that came in handy later.

Giant’s Causeway

A bucket list item for many years for me was to visit Giant’s Causeway on the northern coast of Northern Ireland, and it was so worth the wait! The natural basalt columns that form the cliffs and outcropping of rock in this area are breathtaking. There is a gorgeous nature walk up on the cliffs with beautiful vistas of the ocean on one side and farmland on the other. Another option is to take the shuttle that runs back and forth. We walked up the cliffs and down the extremely steep stairs along the cliffside which was way outside of my comfort zone. I ended up tweaking my knee a little on the way down but was fine.

Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge

A few miles away from Giant’s Causeway is the Carrick-a-Rede Rope bridge that connects the main land to a small rock island. A couple of folks in our group chose not to cross the bridge, and some of us may have drank our nips procured at Bushmill’s prior to crossing. It was definitely not for the faint of heart or those with acrophobia. The bridge did give a little bounce in the middle causing our group to yell at Jim, the resident class clown, to stop, however, he wasn’t even on the bridge when they felt it. All in all, this was a great day with beautiful sunshine and lots of outdoor hiking. If this is something you choose to do, just realize that it does take some stamina and physical exertion.

Pubs

We found plenty of pubs in Belfast to check out. We went to a great pub, Kelly’s Cellars, that had a traditional feel inside and a beer garden atmosphere outside.

Brennan’s was right near our hotel and we had a great lunch here.

One of my mother’s favorite sayings when she thought one us kids were being less than truthful, she would call us “Fibber Magee”. When I saw the sign for this pub, we had to go in. It was nice inside and opened up to Robinson’s Bar on the adjacent street, Robinson’s. We just walked in and out though as we were done for the night!

Hercules Bar was a cozy spot for a big group to grab a pint.

For our last night, Jim and I found a quaint little restaurant that had great reviews to have a dinner for just the two of us – The Lantern. It was adorable and the owner/chef was very friendly and spent some time chatting with us. Food was great!!

From Belfast, we rented a van for the 8 of us who were continuing from the wedding together. Jim and I picked the van up at Belfast’s International Airport to be returned at Dublin International Airport en route to Scotland.