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Published: April 26th 2011
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Good morning to everyone, I hope you all had a fantastic Easter! I definitely missed you all, but I had a pretty neat weekend; my first real trip in Ireland! Me and a few friends decided to go up to Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK and do a tour around some of the cities. It was definitely filled with a lot of excitement (which I’ll get into later) and some of the things we got to see were breathtaking. You can genuinely see why people are so fascinated with Ireland and why the country is so steeped in mystery and legend. Its coastline and country are some of the most beautiful places I have ever travelled to in the world and I think I am absolutely falling in love with Ireland! The city is great and I’m having a lot of fun, but I could wander around the country forever and be content. I have taken some amazing photos; unfortunately I can only post about 100 (I took over 300, I kid you not) so I hope you enjoy them!
So first on our journey was Belfast; it’s the largest city in the North (the capital as
well maybe?) and it definitely has the most history in terms of the conflicts of the north. For those of you who aren’t really familiar with the conflict, also called “The Troubles”, it is essentially a war spanning 400 years between the Protestant and Catholic communities of the North. The basis of the conflict is between the Protestant unionists who want to maintain under British rule and the Catholic nationalists who envision a free and independent Ireland. This war has been devastating to the North and if you’ve been watching the news, you’ll see that the conflict is still alive and well.
Anyways, so we did a neat black cab tour that took us to both communities where we were able to see the actual wall that divides the communities and some of the murals and memorials dedicated to those lost on either side. It was an incredibly profound experience and we were speechless at some of the stories told to us by the cab driver, who actually drove one of these infamous cabs during the worst of the conflict in the 60s to 80s. On a lighter note, we explored some of the nicer areas of Belfast and
Reppinggg
Another Eder stayed at our hostel, how cool is that saw the impressive City Hall, their cathedral district and where the Titanic was built. The next day we drove to Londonderry the famed “Walled City” and took in some more murals and the impressive defensive walls in the inner city. However the conflict we had taken in the day before became all too real; we were actually locked out of our hostel for several hours due to a bomb threat in the building next to us. The police handled everything fine and there was really no danger since it was inactive, but it was still a very real reminder that unrest is very much alive and well in the North.
We got to take in some of the beauty of the coast along the scenic coastal route, as well as visiting the Giant’s Causeway, the rope bridge and Dunluce Castle. The rope bridge was particularly exciting, because the day we went was brilliantly clear and sunny and you could actually see Scotland across from us. The views were magnificent and it was definitely a weekend to remember. I’m sure you’re all just anxious to see some of these pictures, so here they are and I will post my next
adventures soon! Love,
Xoxo Sarah
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micky
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Fabulous pics Sarah!!!!! You look fabulous and happy!! So glad for you, there is such a huge world out there and so many pics to take. Keep them coming, its what I look forward to. Many thanks. Hugs and kisses.