For The Love of Travel

Another gorgeous day to wake up to…sun was shining at 7am! Took the opportunity to drive off early from Derry and when reaching Whitepark Bay, ohhh! reminded me so much of Aussie beaches…made me feel a bit homesick. And that cute picturesque little hamlet nestled in the cliffs around the corner? Portbradden.

Had to take a detour to Ballintoy harbour…..just because….

In relation to the first image (below)…can you see Carrick-a Rede Rope Bridge in the distance – look at the point between 9 and 12 (on the clock)….first erected by fishermen in 1755, suspended almost 100ft above the Atlantic Ocean. Atlantic salmon were first fished at Carrick-a-Rede and Larrybane in 1620 but it wasn’t until 1755 that the first rope bridge between to the rocky island of Carrick-a-Rede was erected to reduce reliance on a boat to reach the island. In the 19th century more than 80 fishers, 21 salmon fishers and 10 fish carriers were working in the parish of Ballintoy. Catches of up to 300 salmon a day were common until the 1960s. Centuries of salmon fishing are now just a memory. Fishing pressure at sea and river pollution led to a decline in salmon and the last fish was caught at Carrick-a-Rede in 2002.

Next image…does “Game of Thrones’ mean anything? Series 2, Episode One…the road Arya takes to escape King’s Landing…ok, so the pic is taken during the day and there is no mist and foreboding…but I love the bendy beech trees! The beech trees planted back in the 18th century by the Stewart family to impress visitors heading to Gracehill House… and still stopping people in their tracks today.

Took the coastal road via Cushendall and loved the Carnlough harbour on arrival…because of its quaint and oldy-worldy feel; and further on, loved this incredibly groomed hedge that appeared out of nowhere…

Carrickfergus Castle (constructed by the Normans 849 year ago) has been an imposing monument on the Northern Ireland landscape whether approached by land, sea or air. It’s still standing tall and proud having been through a lot: sieges by the Scots, Irish, English, and even the French, and it served a key military role until 1928. But despite all that, it’s one of Ireland’s best-preserved medieval structures.

It was fab weather to put droney up to photo the castle and surrounding town.

Woke up to gorgeous sunny weather this morning and I immediately thought…must “Walk the Wall” first thing. The Derry Walls were built 1613-1619 to enclose the new Plantation city of London-Derry, controlling trade as well as fortifcation. (The Plantation of London-derry was where the City of London was granted confiscated lands to establish a Protestant, English-speaking colony. The goals were to strengthen British rule, secure the area against rebellions – following the Flight of the Earls, and introduce English culture and Protestantism. The city of Derry was heavily fortified, becoming the first newly built city in Ireland and a bastion of English settlement. The Walls have never been breached, withstanding besieging armies in 1649 and 1689. During the recent Troubles, they became part of the Peace Wall, separating communities and were refortified with military watch towers. In 1995, they were reopened to the public.

A walk around the top of the ramparts, provides an elevated promenade to see how the city has developed out beyond the Walls. The Derry Walls are approximately a mile in circumference and take in both the highest and lowest points on what used to be the Island of Derry.  

Do we need an introduction to the Derry girls?? After that, its St Columb’s Cathedral (the oldest surviving building in Derry, constructed between 1628-1633); and the Guildhall – a neoGothic civic building completed in 1890 located near the river Foyle. It is characterized by its large clock tower and vibrant stained glass windows.

Loved the stain glass…so intricate and reflecting the history of the time (as always)…these particularly took my eye on the ground floor of the Guildhall.

On the first floor, there are amazing stain glass windows commemorating the coronation of King George V, funded by a group of Derry citizens of the time. But a video is playing to the side of this wonderous artwork, about ‘Sunday Bloody Sunday’ – where British troops shot and killed 14 unarmed civil rights protesters in 1972; and the efforts made by people to address the wrongs; the enquiry announced by Tony Blair and the findings about the deaths announced in 2010, as ‘unjustified killings’. Quite the juxtaposition of events and history. Really appreciated this ‘curation’.

On to Dunluce Castle….one of the most picturesque and romantic of Irish castles. The iconic ruin bears witness to a long and tumultuous history. First built on the dramatic coastal cliffs of north County Antrim by the MacQuillan family around 1500, the earliest written record of the castle was in 1513.

It was seized by the ambitious MacDonnell clan in the 1550s, who set about stamping their mark on the castle under the leadership of the famous warrior chieftain Sorely Boy MacDonnell during an era of violence, intrigue and rebellion. In the 17th century, Dunluce was the seat of the earls of Antrim and saw the establishment of a small town in 1608. The castle was abandoned because of the impoverishment of the MacDonnells in 1690, following the Battle of the Boyne. Since that time, the castle has deteriorated and parts were scavenged to serve as materials for nearby buildings.

Loved the views from the castle, over the water….reminded me a bit of the ‘Great Ocean Road’ experience in Victoria, Australia.

Had a delicious lunch at the Bayview Hotel, Portballintrae and drove a couple of kilometres to see Salmon Rock Beach….waaahhh! The waves were amazing, the blue of the water was amazing..and Runkerry House on the other side of the bay was gorgeous. Built in 1885 by the influential McNaughten family, its now been subdivided into luxurious apartments. I hadn’t been planning to go there, just happenchance. I love that on a holiday.

Arrived at B&B accommodation in Londonderry early and the wonderful Emmett and Katie allowed me to stow my luggage in the suite. Staying up the hill from the ‘Bogside area’, called that because it was built on reclaimed marshland—a “bog”—that was once part of the River Foyle. It lies just outside the historic City Walls, known as the “cityside,” whereas the area across the river is called the Waterside. During the plantation of Ulster in the 17th century, this area became a residential area for workers, particularly growing in the 19th century as Catholic residents were often discouraged from living inside the walled city.

Stilll very much a working class area and as I drove around the streets, I could tell that poverty still exists here, big time – e.g. extensive tagging; boarded-up buildings; broken windows; featureless pebblemix-clad houses with no gardens; bars on windows and doors of businesses; well-stocked supermarkets replaced by smaller convenience stores – very depressing!

You may remember the period of the ‘Troubles’, a violent, 30-year ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted from the late 1960s until the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. The conflict primarily involved republican paramilitaries (mostly Catholic, seeking a united Ireland), loyalist paramilitaries (mostly Protestant, wanting to remain in the UK), and British security forces. Well, the Battle of the Bogside (August 1969) is often cited as a key catalyst for the conflict’s escalation, leading to the deployment of the British Army.

In memory of those times, a group of artists, from 1994 to 2008, painted a total of twelve murals in the Bogside, which they collectively named The People’s Gallery. The Gallery spans the entire length of Rossville Street, which runs through the centre of the Bogside. Took myself off to see some of the street murals and the historical events they depict.

The first mural contains portraits of the 14 civilians who were killed by the British Army on ‘Bloody Sunday’ in Derry on 30 January 1972; the second, ‘Spirit of Freedom’, commemorating the 10 Republican hunger-strikers who died in 1981.

Another artist also commemorates the 14 civilians killed by British soldiers during a civil rights march in 1972, the central image of Gerald Donaghey, one of the teenagers killed; the second mural ‘Goodnight Sisters’, commemorates Nell McCafferty, a prominent journalist, activist and feminist – with the wall below ‘Two Nations One Struggle’ (depicting the flags of Palestine and Ireland) – representing solidarity between the two causes.

The first mural, ‘Mothers and Sisters’, honours women who supported and advocated for Republican prisoners during the 1981 hunger strikes; the second mural commemorates the beginning of the struggle in Derry for democratic rights, involving both Protestants as well as Catholics (inspired by the civil disobedience campaigns of Martin Luther King).

It was deeply sobering to revisit the pain and suffering endured by Derry people on both sides of the community.

Visited ‘Queen Nails’ in Derry city for a much needed manicure….quite a shock re the state of uncleanliness of benches and table equipment. I did notice that staff were disinfecting equipment they used directly on client nails, so that was a relief. But I did cause a bit of a ‘commotion’ both with staff and clients, when I politely requested that the desk section and LED lamp be cleaned before they started with me…difficult bloody Aussie! Anyway, took a couple of minutes and done!

After that experience, decided I needed a glass of ‘millionaire’s mouthwash’ from the ‘Wig and Gown Champagne Bar and Restaurant’ @ the Bishop’s Gate Hotel I noticed when I parked my car. So glad I ventured in.

The mixologist behind the bar, Gerry, introduced me to An Dulaman – the first gin distilled in Donegal. He told me it takes it’s name not only from an Irish folk song, but also one of the seaweeds that features in it’s botanicals. The botanicals include five local seaweeds (dulaman, sugar kelp, carrageen moss, dulse, pepper dulse) and six more traditional botanicals (juniper, orange, lemon, coariander, angelica and cassia). It comes in a great bottle, said to be reminiscent of those found along the coastline from the wrecks of the Spanish Armada. Gerry did a great selling job, and I decided to try it – OMG, super yummy, with a lemon tonic and a twist of lemon. Unfortunately not exported to Australia, so Blue Sapphire will continue be my gin of choice.