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Published: March 27th 2009
Bogside Murals
They were all painted by 3 local artists (the Bogside Artists) in the 90's and 2000's to commemorate the events during the Troubles.I woke up in the hostel on Monday super early, even without an alarm. By 7:00 I was up, showered, dressed, and going over my plan. The “breakfast” that the hostel advertised to be complimentary, actually consisted of 3 different kinds of cereal and a carton of whole milk in the fridge. No one was around, so I munched on some muselix then had to wash my bowl out afterward. It was the most normal breakfast I’ve had here yet. I still had to get to an ATM to get pounds to pay for the room. I decided that I could take a little time that morning to see one of the 2 biggest sites in Derry. In the city, there’s a very famous walk of murals. In the 1990s (to present), a young artist from Derry decided to memorialize the drama and violence of the era. Most of the violence was in Belfast, but Derry was not spared. The famous Bloody Sunday massacre happened there - there was a peaceful protest being carried out and a bunch of British soldiers (who were opposing the IRA) fired into the crowd. They claimed there were snipers in the crowd, but the story
from the locals is that there were no snipers. 14 civilians were killed that day in the park. There’s a very touching memorial to them in the park. The murals are pretty creative and pretty impressive. The weather was so overcast and rainy that it somehow felt appropriate to be walking down a row of sad remembrance.
I stopped at an ATM and ended up taking out too much money (now I’m coming home with pounds and shillings - what the hell is a shilling anyway?) and made it back to the hostel in great time. I paid for my room and was in the car driving away by 9am. Too bad the museum wasn’t open, because I feel like I really didn’t get the whole story. The Derry museum opened at 9:30, but I didn’t want to wait around - I had a big day planned! Looking back (20:20) I really should have stayed. Next time…
I stopped at the famous Giant’s Causeway on my way to Belfast. It’s a national heritage site and claims to be the #1 visited site in all of Ireland. It was pretty cool, but I don’t know if I’d go that
far. There are so many beautiful sites in Ireland, I don’t know how you could pick one out. It’s on the Northern coast and stretches all the way to Scotland. There are matching formations on the coast of Scotland, and I guess they stretch all the way across the sea to there. The legend is that there was a Celt (pronounced Kelt - Ce is a hard c in Gaelic) who challenged a rival leader from Scotland. He built the causeway so the other leader could walk to Ireland for the battle. However, when the Scottish leader was crossing the causeway, the Irish leader saw how big he was and ran away. He went back to his wife and she disguised him as a baby. When the Scottish leader got there, he saw how big the baby was and turned and ran back to Scotland, saying he didn’t want to meet the father of that baby. He ripped up the causeway on his way back to prevent the Irish leader from following him. In reality, it’s a very unique formation of lava. Something about the way it flowed out then cracked when it hardened - it’s basically big steps. Very
interesting. It’s kinda out in the middle of nowhere. It was so ridiculously cold and windy I could barely stand it. Instead of walking the ½ mile or whatever it was down to the causeway, I took the 1 pound shuttle (2 pounds on the way up). It got a little sunnier while I was down there but the wind was insane!! I was literally blown backwards at times. I walked around, took some pictures, and was ready to go. I had just missed the shuttle to go back up, but by that point had adjusted a little to the weather, so I decided to just walk back up (at least it was sunnier now). On the way back up, though, it started raining. Not only did it rain, but it actually started hailing. And it wasn’t that cute little hail that sometimes fall - a novelty. It was pelting down being driven by the force of hurricaine winds. It actually hurt quite a bit! There was no where to run for shelter - I was halfway up the hill with a cliff on one side and a drop off on the other. All I could do was batten down
my coat and press on. The backs of my legs were on fire from the pellets - I was sure they would be covered with bruises. It reminded me of being in a paintball match without a gun, just like at OIS. I made it to the top in short time and hurried inside for safety and warmth. I was a bit wet, but not too soaked. I stopped in the little tea room and such a perfect cup of vegetable soup. Grabbed a café latte for the road and I was good to go!
The drive to Belfast was pretty uneventful, and at that point it was only another hour or so. I made it to Belfast around 1. I still didn’t really know what I wanted to do there, but had a rough sketch. The only bad thing I’ll say about my book is that he tends to emphasize things like “go to the market and talk to people” or “take a cab ride and engage the cabbie in conversation”. Most places there’s enough other stuff to do that you can just ignore that crap, but he really didn’t have much else in Belfast. The one thing
that I was most interested, and came most highly recommended, was going to the City Hall and taking a tour. I had planned my visit so I could actually do this. But when I got there, the City Hall was still closed for renovation (until May I guess). There goes my tour and learning about the history and politics of Belfast. And the only other place for me to get a dose of Belfast history was the museum, which is also under renovation until June. You’ve got to be kidding! So I opted instead for the hop-on hop-off bus tour. What a lie. There was no hopping on or off. It was a rapid drive through the city, occasionally stopping at sites like the parliament building for a pic (who cares!) but whizzing right by the really interesting sites like the gate to the Protestant section (covered with barbed wire and broken glass, it closes at 8pm and opens at 6am every day), or the bakery where the IRA leader and UVF leader ran into each other and shook hands, the first step towards peace. It was really annoying. The tour guide glossed over the history of the place and
Motorman - 2001
Inscription: "Free Derry ended at 4am on 30th July 1972 when thousands of British troops in tanks and armoured cars invaded the Bogside and Creggan 'no-go' areas. During Operation Motorman, they tore down the barricades with bulldozers. The Artists chose the image of a soldier battering down a door to express the sheer ferocity of the onslaught. With its contrasting light and shadow, the mural becomes a powerful statement against war." instead talked for 5min about shopping and tried to make some lame jokes. Overall it was extremely disappointing and ate up most of my time in Belfast. It was so cold and rainy that I was freezing and wet by the end (I had opted for the open top part of the bus so I could take pictures). I couldn’t even go downstairs on the bus because the speaker wasn’t working down there, so if you sat there you couldn’t hear anything the guide was saying. I can’t believe people sat there - it would be like a really fast drive throughout greater Belfast without even stopping anywhere. What a waste. I hope they got their money back. I felt like asking for mine back too since it sucked so much.
By the end of the disappointing bus tour, I was left freezing with little more knowledge about Belfast or Northern Ireland than I had when I came. I was so cold, though, that I couldn’t even imagine doing the walking tour that my book recommended. It may have been a short 10-min walk back to the section of town with the murals, but it would have been the
most agonizing 10-min of my trip. I decided to skip it and made my way back to my car. I had parked in a car park, which, by the way, is where a lot of the bombs were during the Troubles - they would set a bomb off in a car in the middle of a car park aka parking lot. I pulled out exactly 3hrs and 4min after I pulled in, which meant I’d have to pay for 4 hrs instead of 3. While it pained me to have to pay an extra $3 for 4mins, I couldn’t bear the thought of doing ANYTHING else in Belfast for 56min. I gladly paid to leave and was on the road by 4:15. And that was my brief afternoon in Belfast. The only other thing I had done there was go to the visitor center (and buy some stuff) and pop into some old pub to use the bathroom. Oh and I bought a sandwich to go. Not the highlight of my trip.
The one big difference I noticed between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is that there is a lot of litter and graffiti in the North.
The Peace Mural - 2004
Inscription: "This mural shows a dove and an oak leaf, as symbols of hope for the city's future. The dove is the name of St Columba, the city's founder, who is said to have built his monastery in an oak grove. The background mosaic of the colours of the spectrum expresses what the Artists mean by peace." Especially in Derry, where there were phrases spraypainted on every building and garbage littering all the front yards. Most interestingly, I kept seeing “RIRA” spraypainted on a lot of buildings. I googled it, and it turns out RIRA stands for Real IRA. In the 1990s, the IRA became more political and less of a terrorist organization. After the big ceasefire in 1997, some of the provisional IRA tried to convince them to renew the attacks, but were shouldered out instead. They went on to form the RIRA (the founders were Bobby Sands’ sister and her husband). Any violence you hear about after 1997 is from RIRA, including the most recent deaths in March 2009. Wikipedia has a very interesting article about them.
I made pretty good time back to Dublin on the highway and checked into my hotel, the Ardmore. Turns out that this freakin hotel was not on the bus or shuttle line to get me to the airport, even though there were plenty of reviews professing how easy it is to get to the airport. Well, maybe if you pay for a $40 cab ride. Holy crap. I called up Hertz, and it turns out that I
was supposed to bring the car back on Mon by 10am, not Mon night like I thought. I was already charged for the 24hr period until Tues at 10am, which worked out perfectly since my flight was at 9:55am on Tues. I now had transportation and free parking, plus it only cost me an extra 12euros! Way cheaper than a cab. I got settled in my room, and after a slight debaucle with crappy wifi connection necessitating I switch rooms, I was situated and starving. It was almost 8pm, but I was ready for dinner and a last Guinness before I left Ireland.
I had eaten a lot of “Irish” food while here (which, it turns out, is mostly potato-based). I had awesome fish and chips, amazing shepherd’s pie, yummy potatoes colcannon (mashed potatoes with kale and cabbage), Irish stew, Irish breakfast (with their unique “bacon” which is basically ham), and black and white pudding. I was still missing a couple of Irish items, so I picked out a recommended local eatery and was going to try some boxty for dinner (which the Irish girl who worked the counter had never even heard of. I think she was a
Bloody Sunday memorial
Dedicated the 14 people killed that day, and 1 who died of wounds. Many of them were aged 17yrs. little slow though…). Gallagher’s Boxty House is so busy that even at 8:30 (very late for food there as most places don’t even serve after 9), there was no room for a party of 1 until 9:30. And no take away either. So I made a reservation for 1 and went to the closest pub I could find. I grabbed a table in the corner, had a yummy Guinness as an appetizer (I drove down there so couldn’t have too much fun), and enjoyed some great Irish music while I caught up on my blog (I think I was writing about Saturday at that time).
When it was finally time for dinner, I packed up my computer and headed back to the restaurant. The dinner was fantastic! A boxty is basically a potato crepe with whatever filling inside. I had one with filet mignon inside. Mmmm…. I also ordered the champ, which is mashed potatoes with spring onions. That was awesome also. I had a side of coddle, which is a soup with bacon in it, much like vegetable soup. That one wasn’t so tasty - the bacon they use is the fatty back bacon and it was just
Bloody Sunday
Where all the people were when they were killed or wounded. too fatty for my tastes. The rest of the meal was terrific, though, and by the time I had finished, it was past 10:00 and I was fading fast.
I drove back to the hotel and attempted some quick re-packing. My intention was to get up at 6am, have breakfast, and make my way to the airport with plenty of bumper time for my 9:55am flight home. Let’s just say it’s a good thing I did all my packing the night before. Not a single hotel in Ireland had an alarm clock (even the B&B). I had figured out how to use my computer as an alarm clock, so I was ok. I plugged in my computer, set the alarm, and quickly crashed. What I had forgotten is that the plugs in Ireland also have an on-off switch, usually reset to off by the cleaning staff. I woke up to light coming in through the window and in a huge panic because it felt pretty late. I was greeted by a dead computer and I ran around the room until I could find the time. Seeing that it was 7:45, I had limited options for the morning. I trashed
Troubles memorial
Dedicated to the IRA fighters who lost their lives -- seen as heroes. A line on the memorial reads: "Let Our Revenge Be The Laughter Of Our Children." the idea of breakfast, took the fastest shower on earth (didn’t even close the curtain!), brushed my hair (thank GOD I had gotten it straightened before I came!!), and ran out the door, panting. It’s also extremely lucky that I had the car, and that I wasn’t relying on public transportation because I never would have made it. I may have had plenty of time until the plane took off, but most airlines have a deadline of when you need to have your bags checked in, and I couldn’t remember if it was 45min or 90min. Eek, I was cutting it close.
I hit some construction on the way, but made it to the airport in pretty good time. I dropped off the car and checked in. Then the long wait begins. I was hoping that they had overbooked the flight and that I would get bumped and get to stay in Ireland another day or two, but no such luck. I made it onto the plane, and we took off about 30min late (easily made up in the air).
The flight was great! In seat entertainment, personal outlets (which died about 1hr into the flight grrr), and
Giant's Causeway
Very interesting formations a meal that was on par with diner food and quite tasty. It was a nice 7-hr flight, with 3 movies and some tv shows. We arrived in NY 15min early, and I was finally home! (sort of) My niece Keely picked me up and we stopped at a pub for lunch and a Guinness. I should have skipped the Guinness because it was nasty. It wasn’t poured right, so maybe that’s why. To pour a proper Guinness, you have to pour half of it, then let it sit, and then pour the other half. This girl just poured the whole thing. It had an awful head (not thick enough), and was very harsh. The Guinness I had had in Ireland was smooth and creamy. If this is what Guinness in the states is like, I don’t think I want any. They say that the cans and bottles of Guinness draught (the ones that have the little widget in there when you shake them), taste just like Guinness in Ireland. The widget releases nitrogen when the can/bottle is opened, and produces the right amount of head and creaminess. I’ll have to give it a try because I’m pretty wary of
Giant's Causeway
You really can't appreciate how cold and windy it was... ordering from a bar again.
I took a nap at my sister Netty’s house, grabbed my car from my friend Rob’s house, and was on the road Tues night on my way back to my parents’ house in Gaithersburg. And here I sit.
Ireland was a great trip. Out of all the countries I’ve been to (13 I think), I would have to put it in the top 3 (Greece and Norway are the other 2). I would go back in a heartbeat. The country is beautiful and the people are warm and inviting. I think if I go back, I’d spend a little more time in the North, especially Donegal for the scenery. Renting a car is a must. The driving was amazing (if a little hairy at times). The food is nothing special, but the Guinness….ah the Guinness. I had a great 8-day trip to Ireland. Thanks for coming along! Another couple of days and I’ll be home!! Even though it’s just Pensacola (which hasn’t really grown on me), it’ll be nice to be back and get back into a normal routine. Until next time…
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Ellen
non-member comment
Irish Food isn't bad!
I love your blog on Ireland! Even I have learned a few things - and I have been there more than 40 times. I disagree on the food, though. I am developing a foodie tour of Ireland, the Discerning Foodie http://www.lynotttours.com/i-foodie.htm Thanks again!