Ireland 2019 Day 2


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Published: August 29th 2019
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View of CarlingfordView of CarlingfordView of Carlingford

Carlingford, Ireland
We're up at what the Irish call "half seven"; i.e., 7:30. Excellent buffet breakfast at the hotel, then on to the coach. (Tony is very insistent that we are riding on a coach, not a bus.) We met our driver, Darius, briefly yesterday. He's Polish and seems to enjoy our ability to carry out simple conversations in Polish.

We head north, paralleling the Irish coast, although the sea is not often in sight. It's about 20ºC and overcast but the forecasted rain has happily not materialized. The
Irish countryside is beautiful, a patchwork quilt of various shades of green that mark the boundaries between farms, crops, and mountainous areas. The rolling hills in the distance are reminiscent of the Gatineau. Stucco and brick houses predominant. Many of the homes boast lovingly planned and maintained gardens.

Tony provides wide-ranging commentary as we drive along. He condenses two thousand years of Irish history into about 30 minutes, ending with the background to "the troubles": i.e., the cycle of sectarian murder, mayhem and politics between Ireland's Catholic and Protestant populations. On a happier topic, Tony is quite proud of Ireland's "farm to fork" initiative, which keeps track of the provenance and history
Exhibit in D'Arcy McGee MuseumExhibit in D'Arcy McGee MuseumExhibit in D'Arcy McGee Museum

Carlingford, Ireland
of foodstuffs. We also discuss the fact that the Republic of Ireland is a bilingual country, with the first official language being Irish (Gaelic). In fact, all official signs display Irish first and English second. Tony claims that about 25% of the population can speak Irish fluently. It is a compulsory subject in schools. Tony also gives us a lesson in Irish English. For instance, no one says "top o' the morning". Instead the Irish say "How you're on?" meaning "How are you?" Irish words that can get you into trouble; "craic", pronounced "crack", as in "The craic was mighty last night," which means "We had a lot of fun last night."

Our first stop is Carlingford, the birthplace of one Thomas D'Arcy McGee. There is a small museum dedicated to McGee's life and accomplishments in Ireland and in Canada. It's funny to come across a picture of Ottawa's Darcy McGee pub at the corner of Sparks and Elgin. Like many small Irish towns, Carlingford has a ruined castle or two. The major one here, in decidedly desperate condition, is St. John's Castle.

Leaving Carlingford, we drive along an estuary where on August 27, 1979 in an attack known as the "Warrenpoint ambush", 18 British soldiers were killed by an IRA bomb. A gun battle ensued between the Provisional IRA and the British Army, in which one civilian was killed. On the same day, four people (including the Queen's cousin Lord Louis Mountbatten) were killed by an IRA bomb on board a boat near the coast of Sligo, on the other side of Ireland. Another reminder of Ireland's recent violent past.

We cross into Northern Ireland (more commonly termed the "North of Ireland"). These days, there is only a sign to mark the border. At this point, we actually enter the United Kingdom, and kilometres become miles, euros become pounds, etc.

We pass through a small city with a small-town feel named Newry and then stop in Downpatrick, the burial place of St. Patrick. We visit a museum dedicated to the famous saint who brought Christianity to Ireland in the 5th century AD. There is a video chronicling his interesting life, although many aspects of his history are only guessed at. Outside the museum is the Monk's Garden. We climb to the Down Cathedral at the top of the hill. An ancient and picturesque cemetery has a huge engraved stone marking Patrick's mortal remains. It is intentionally so big that no one can make off with it. We visit the simple but beautiful cathedral. It has lovely stained-glass windows. Funds are being solicited to renovate the pipe organ, claimed to be one of the best in the country.

We're on our own for lunch, but there's not much time. We join a subset of the Labradorians and gobble lunch at Doc's Fish & Chips.

Our next stop is Strangford, which apparently hosted scenes from Game of Thrones. The coach drives right on to a ferry to cross Strangford Lough (i.e., lake, although actually it's a narrow arm of the sea). Great views of the town from the water. On the other side lies Portaferry. We continue our drive along Strangford Lough, featuring a series of picturesque towns. It is low tide and many boats sit high and dry on the mud flats, waiting for the waters to return.

Finally, about 4 pm, we enter the outskirts of Belfast. The coach takes us first to the Northern Ireland Parliament building, a huge edifice on an even bigger tract of land. Canada's gift to Northern
View of PortaferryView of PortaferryView of Portaferry

Portaferry, Ireland
Ireland when the Parliament was opened were the lamp posts that line the expansive road up the hill to the front door. If you look carefully at the lamp posts, you notice that each bears a moose head. Love it! Heavily armed guards keep a close eye on things, even though parliament hasn't been in session for 2 1/2 years. Tony is visibly a bit nervous, because, he says, the coach has "registration plates" from the Republic.

We then make our way to the Belfast city centre. It's a great mix of new and old architecture. Tony points out that the older buildings have bomb-proof walls or else no windows on their bottom floors, reflecting past violence. Newer buildings are made of glass and steel as in most modern cities.

Eventually we arrive at our hotel, the Europa. It is spacious and modern, but with a heritage undertone. Just to show how subtle political things can be in Ireland, the hotel wifi password is "Hastings1066”.

Another good table d'hôte at the hotel for dinner. We aren't quite ready for bed yet, so we meander across the street where a series of pubs awaits. We are trying to decide which one to patronize when Violet runs into one of her Sawmill Creek buddies on the street! Talk about a small world. As we are chatting with them, a group of our Newfie friends wanders by. They are headed for Brennan's, just up the street because they hear there is entertainment there. So we join them and have a great time chaffing beer, singing along to songs we barely know, and reminiscing about our trip to Newfoundland.


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30th August 2019

Sawmill Mermaids/Creekies
Isn’t it wonderful running into a friend when holidaying abroad? Who was it, Violet? ?
30th August 2019
Exhibit in D'Arcy McGee Museum

Blog..
Thanks once again David for allowing me to tag along on your trip. Hi Violet... Who from the pool did you see?
30th August 2019

Wonderful, as usual
Oh Dave. You really should write a book! You absolutely have the talent to draw people in! I am right there with you! Love, love, love your blogs.

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