Belfast and the Wild Atlantic Way

I thoroughly recommend a visit to the Titanic Experience if anyone is visiting Belfast and I think every tourist in Belfast was visiting it when I was (apparently there was a cruise ship in port). A very well put together exhibition, that even included a ride that made you feel like you in the docks as the ship building happened. It was rather sobering though to hear of how hard life was building the ships and then how low the survival rate was for third class passengers when they Titanic sink. But thankfully it did lead to lots of changes in laws that I'll be grateful for in a few weeks when I'm cruising the Norwegian Fjords.

After lunch in the city and a lovely chat with a local 79 year old lady who insisted I sit next to her in a cafe, I went on a Troubles tour in West Belfast. For the first 1.5 hours our guide was an IRA member who had spent 16 years in gaol and he showed us his side of West Belfast and shared his perspective. Then we went through a "peace gate" and changed to a Unionist guide and got his perspective for the next 1.5 hours. It was a very sobering tour. I had no idea parts of Belfast were still so strongly split, they have two totally separate communities next to each other and the six gates in the peace fence are still locked from 7pm to 6am each night. In the rest of Belfast there is no such division. Until Brexit led to too many claims, people such as my first guide could easily get an Irish passport instead of a UK one. There have been some interesting discussions on the radio about whether there will be a vote to reunite, following on from the recent UK election. 

Over breakfast on Thursday morning I discovered the "Wild Atlantic Way" and decided that some scenic driving would be better than a visit to the Freedom Museum in Derry given Wednesday had left me a bit depressed. It was beautiful! I drove to Malin Head, the northern most point in Ireland and saw so much beautiful scenery despite the periodic rain showers. Google Maps also managed to take me up a farm road that led to a gate but my reversing skills in my little Suzuki Swift got me out quickly. 

I then headed for the far west coast, which was even more stunning, as I drove through so much Glenveagh National Park. 

After a night in Donegal I headed for my first yarn stop, Donegal Studio. They produce some beautiful weaving but I was disappointed to hear they purchase their wool on the international market as the local wool is now considered too coarse as people want soft yarn instead of wanting it to be more robust and water proof.

The staff there sent me off on a scenic drive along the coast, to walk to Slieve League the tallest cliffs in Europe and a drive through a beautiful valley. Where I happened upon another wool mill, with a similar style of yarn.

 After lunch I headed four hours south to a small village near Doolin, rest to visit Inis Mor, the largest of the Aran Islands.

St Patrick's Trail

The forecast for today turned out to be true, lots of rain. So I decided to take the scenic route to Belfast, via Downpatrick. I saw lots of greenery, tractors and a few cows.

To my disappointment there were no signs when arriving into Northern Ireland. Instead Google maps suddenly started talking to me in miles and yards and then I saw a Give Way sign instead of a Yield sign and realised I must be in Northern Ireland. 

I followed St Patrick's Trail for a while but didn't see any pilgrims walking it, not that I would blame them for having a rest day today.

My goal was to visit the St Patrick's Educational Centre, which was quite interesting.

These pigs went with a story of St Patrick praying for food on his journey from Ireland back to England and were very cleverly made.

When I came out of the centre the rain had eased so I decided to walk up the hill to the cathedral, to see the grave of St Patrick. Of course it poured for most of the walk but I figured it was a once in a lifetime opportunity, so some rain shouldn't stop me?

Dublin

Trinity College has been a beautiful place to stay while I adjusted after the 30+ hour journey to get here. Though after taking my luggage up three storeys of stairs, to find that the key didn't work was a little frustrating. But not as frustrating as discovering the toilet didn't flush and eventually having to drag it all downstairs, across the campus and thankfully only up 1.5 flights of stairs to a new room. 

They're very innovative apparently, even having paper bath mats.

Though I'm not sure why they're growing a selection of weeds at the main entrance? 

The Book of Kells was really interesting to see but no photos allowed. The Old Library  was interesting but had hardly any books as it's being renovated. I loved the huge globe, even if Tasmania is covered in cloud. 

I've learnt lots of history, from a walking tour and the Museum of Archaeology was quite interesting. Who knew that bogs could preserve items so well? Though the preserved people were a little creepy to see. 

On Sunday I visited Immanuel Christian Church, where I listened to a Sydneysider give a sermon on rest, very appropriate for the beginning of my holiday.

At the supermarket I was initially confused by why the alcohol section was cordoned off but then realised it's hours aren't quite as long as the supermarket's. 

I've also been impressed with the labelling of Irish grown food. But not as much I like listening to the Irish people speak 😄.

Tomorrow I head to Belfast, hopefully via DownPatrick, if I don't get lost. 

Emu Bay Rhododendron Garden

A lovely trip to Burnie today with my friend of 41 years, Linda. The Autumn leaves at the Emu Bay Rhododendron Garden are beautiful. I even got to use my knowledge of Chinese provinces to help us find our way around as there are Chinese, Japanese, Nepali Bhutanese and North American sections. 

We then went in search of a streetside baked goods stall my friend Sharon had told me about. We can recommend the caramel hedgehog slice! It was yummy and great value at $5 for eight pieces. 

On the way home I had a stop at Anvers for hot chocolate and watched them making their Winter special, chocolate covered marshmallows (not yet for sale) and discovered they're now giving away their samples in little bags. Similar to the bags you get when you buy a takeaway hot chocolate.

I'd never stopped at the Big Spud, so decided to do that and was disappointed to discover no vegetables for sale. 

My final stop was Ashgrove, which Facebook tells me I last visited exactly three years ago. The fancy new building is nice but I miss what it was like twenty years ago when I lived on the NW coast and would often stop in for free samples and discounted offcuts.

Santiago De Chile

I had great plans to do lots of sightseeing in Santiago and have a day trip to Valparaiso but unfortunately my first meal in Santiago, eel and chips did not agree with me so my plans changed.

I managed to fit in two walking tours for tips with Where's Wally guides. They were very interesting but it was sad to learn of all the suffering that occurred during the Pinochet years. Santiago does have some beautiful buildings and it was good to learn more about them.



The main cemetery is very beautiful and treated like a park by the locals. The children's section is decorated for the holidays, though seeing all the deaths from 1972 is a stark reminder of Chile's history.







These door handles, symbolizing people power and recycled in the new arts centre are full of history. Created as part of a community building project for a UN meeting in 1971 they were turned upside down during the Pinochet years, when the building was the base from which many people disappeared.



Unfortunately I also managed to be on a subway train when someone jumped in front of it to commit suicide and experienced my first subway evacuation. But I also had some great times hanging out with the people from my Patagonia tour. And I spent an hour and a half just chatting with a friend of a friend outside a subway station. Interactions with locals, especially my friends, new and old has definitely been the best part of my travels this year.

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