Day 23 – August 9 – Northern Ireland

With the Squash tournament concluded it’s time for H & D Tours to get underway. We weren’t sure how many days the tournament would run, so we saw as much of Belfast as possible knowing that once Ron had his Gold Medal that we’d start the rest of our tour.  Normally Jeff does all the tour planning but now he’s collaborating with Marsha, as they have done before on a couple of trips to Hawaii and a few to Vegas.  We’ve listed off some of the places we’d really like to see and now we’ve built a rough itinerary around the list.  We know that we won’t be able to see all of Northern Ireland and Ireland, so we’ll pick out a few places and leave the rest for our next trip.

We had our last breakfast at the Stormont Hotel and once again resisted the temptation to have Bushmills Whiskey on our porridge.  We’ve gotten to know the breakfast staff, which are primarily college students, a little better than when you’re only staying a couple nights and it makes it fun learn a little bit more about their lives and plans for the future.

We head north from Belfast towards the Antrim Coast.  The major motorway begins to narrow as we get into more rural areas.  Our TomTom GPS with John Cleese’s voice continues to entertain us as we drive.  One example is when we are approaching a significant turn on our route.  John will instruct us “Prepare to turn Left in 800 metres … or as we used to say – half a mile … if it wasn’t for that little bastard Napoleon!”.

The roads narrow as we get further away from the urban centre and shoulders are unheard of

 

Along a narrow 2 lane road the traffic comes to an abrupt stop without any clear indication of what has caused it.  Suddenly, a farmer comes running out of his yard in his gum boots and we discover that one of his calves as gotten loose and is curious to see what’s on the other side of the road. After about 5 minutes he manages to corner it long enough to get a hold of it and lead it back into his yard.

Farmer tracks down one of his rogue calfs

One of the other drivers gets out to lend a hand

 

Soon we’re back on our way to the Giant’s Causeway.  Paul had suggested that we have lunch at the Causeway Hotel and order the “Causeway Steak”.  However, Ron and Jeff discovered that not only had the hotel changed hands since Paul had been here but the chef had also moved on so the steak was no longer on the menu.  It appeared that a tour group had booked the entire restaurant for lunch, so it looked like we might have to wait for some sort of ‘barley lunch’ later in the afternoon.

The Giant’s Causeway just appears out of the side of the hill

The Giant’s Causeway is one of those miracles of nature that is just as well explained by local folklore as it is by a geologist.

Legend has it that the causeway was built by the giant Ulster warrior, Finn MacCool.  He knew there was a rival giant, Benandonner living off the coast of Scotland on the island of Staffa.  Finn accepts a challenge from Benandonner and built the stone bridge to Staffa so he could spy on him.  When he sees how much bigger Benandonner is he retreats back to Ireland.  Benandonner sees the causeway but no sign of Finn, so he walks across the North Channel to Ireland.  Finn has had a chance to come up with a plan.and upon hearing Benandonner approach he quickly dresses in baby clothes and crawls into a very large cradle.  When the Scottish giant enters the house he finds Finn’s wife and demands to know where Finn is.  Hi wife tells him that Finn’s not home but if he isn’t quiet then he’ll wake her baby and then his father will be very angry.  Benandonner, having never actually seen Finn MacCool, sees the size of the baby and realizes that he doesn’t want to tangle with the father of a such a large baby.  So he makes a haste retreat back to Staffa, destroying the causeway behind him.  To this day you can still see remnants of this geologic formation under the sea, all the way to Staffa.

From this height it looks like small blocks a child might play with

 

There are a number of very interesting formations, the Pipe Organ,

The “Pipe Organ” at the Giant’s Causeway

 

Ron standing in the Giant’s boot

the Giant’s Boot

Jeff relaxing in the Giant’s boot

and of course a virtually endless supply of hexagonal basaltic columns of varying heights.

The blocks come in all shapes and sizes and of varying length

 

For your entrance fee they give you an audio guide to allow you to hear about the different features as you walk around the site.

Jeff relaxing on a column

 

They also spin some yarn about this area being created 50 Million years ago as the result of volcanic activity creating a large basaltic lava plateau.  Just like we see cracks in mud as it dries the cooling basalt created these columns.  It’s also interesting to note that in many cases the bottom of the column is convex and the resulting top of the column below is concave, resulting in a form of “ball ‘n socket” connection between the columns.  It also makes it perfect for holding water on the top of the columns.

The top of some are concave and hold the rain water while others are convex

 

Although this natural wonder is crawling with tourists, it is certainly well worth the trip.

Our next stop is the Bushmills distillery in Bushmills, Northern Ireland, just a short drive from the Giant’s Causeway.  Little did we realize at the time but once Deana had experienced Irish Malt Whiskey, the economy of Scotland was going to take a significant hit from the resulting drop in sales of Scotch Malt Whisky.  A young fellow gave us an excellent tour which included a wonderful sense of humour.  Before taking us into the area where the “Spirit Safe” monitors the quality of the spirit coming from the stills after it is distilled, he tells us that this is the only part of the process that has to be “manned” all the time, by the Spirit Safe.  We then enter the room only to discover that there is no one there.  Not missing a beat he simply starts into the narrative that is normally given by the Spirit Safe and he has likely heard hundreds of times. Next we entered the warehouse, where the casks are stored, he begins by apologizing for having to subject us to a commercial message about the distillery and offering inducements for us to make a purchase at the end of the tour in the store.   They also had a very interesting display showing the effects on the colour of the whiskey based on the amount of time and the type of cask the whiskey is aged in.

…. after the tour we are treated to a taste of their finished product.

We learned that there are 3 things that distinguish Irish Malt Whiskey from Scottish Malt Whisky:

1. In Scotland peat is used to dry the malt, which is simply the sprouted or germinated barley.  At Bushmills they used closed kilns and therefore you don’t get the smoky peaty flavour you often find in Scottish Whisky.
2. The Irish Whiskey is triple distilled instead of the two distillations for Scotch Whisky.
3. Last but not least, the third difference is that Irish Whiskey is spelt with an “e” whereas Scotch Whisky is not.

The girls look pretty pleased with our stop at the Bushmills Distillery

 

With all the distilleries in Scotland, some small islands have as many as 8 different distilleries, there are only 4 distillers in Ireland (Northern Ireland and Ireland together).  Bushmills even has a separate line in the bottling plant that is strictly for handling spirits for other labels.

In this same area, the Antrim Coast, is a narrow foot bridge suspended almost 100 feet above the ocean called Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge.

Approaching the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge on the Antrim Coast of Northern Ireland

 

After a 1 mile walk along the coast, with some spectacular views of the cliffs and ocean you come to the crossing. The bridge spans the 65 foot wide chasm to connect a small island to the mainland.  For 200 years the fishermen have been making this crossing to get access to the island.  They had learned that at this point on the coast the fish would turn the corner and therefore this island was an excellent fishing site.  Today, the walk across the bridge provides you with a better vantage point for watching the seabirds that nest on the cliffs.

Marsha and Ron awaiting our turn to return back across the suspension bridge

 

Did someone say “Please bounce the bridge when I get to the middle?”

 

Looking straight down the 100+ ft to the water below

 

Marsha and Jeff had looked at our remaining time and determined that we would need to make tomorrow a long day of driving in order to get to southern Ireland.  This would mean missing many sights along the Donegal Coast and in western Ireland, but we wanted to avoid driving through places just to say we’d been there but not having time to stop.  So skirted around the heart of Derry (or Londonderry for the Unionists) and headed for a small B&B just southeast of Donegal.

Jeff tried to locate a place to stay that would be close to the Belleek Pottery factory.  Marsha had put this as a “must see” early on in our planning and we found a place that was so off the beaten path that it was used by equestrians travelling through the countryside.  We were a little dubious as we finally drove up the driveway, but the German owners of the property were so nice that they even opened up the kitchen to serve us a fine dinner, long after they normally closed.

The other interesting part of the day was the travelling from place to place on the often narrow roads.  In many places there is no shoulder and in fact the edge of the road is a hedge that has been trimmed back for the traffic and as soon as it reaches a height that won’t touch the trucks and buses it starts to grow over the road.  All this as Jeff continues to get used to shifting a manual transmission with his left hand.  He admits that on more than one occasion he reached with his right hand for the gear shift, only to find the door handle.

Day 22 – August 8 – Belfast

Well today is the big day, Ron’s Gold Medal squash match.  The finals are played on “the glass court” which has much better seating.  Ron played Andreas a police officer from Germany in the Final, the best of 5 games.  Ron took the first game with a few points to spare and we began to relax.  Then Andreas took the second game in a close game.  Ron came back to take the 3rd so we were just one game away from the Gold.  But Andreas wasn’t going to go down that easily and he took it to the 5th and final game.  So the Best of 5 became a single game, winner take all.  Ron was on a bit of a roll and appeared to have Andreas on the ropes when he lost his service just few points from the win.  Normally Ron’s fitness would help him as the match progressed.  But in this match Andreas’ multi-sport discipline was helping him stay even with Ron.  Ultimately Ron bagged the last 2 points to claim the match and the Gold Medal.

Andreas and Ron after the match

Prior to the games we had seen news coverage featuring the Chair of the 2013 World Police and Fire Games, PSNI Deputy Chief Constable, Judith Gillespie promoting the Games and the spirit of comradeship that 10 days of competition would create.  There was a definite emphasis placed on making people feel welcome and reassuring people that the Games would be safe and Belfast was welcoming the world.  We have experienced first hand the friendships that developed, even at the small venue that hosted the squash tournament.

Judith with the Gold and Silver medalists

Now Deputy Chief Constable Gillespie, or Judith as Ron liked to refer to her, arrived to present the Medals for Ron’s match.  She gave a few words thanking all the participants for traveling to Belfast to compete and then made the presentations. Gold for Ron, Silver for Andreas and Oscar from the USA picked up the Bronze.  After the medal presentation Ron was given a beautiful tie that carries the crest of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) for “Mr. Congeniality” for lack of a better title.

Paul and Ron with his Gold medal and PSNI tie

We celebrated for a while with a few of the participants for a while and then headed back to our hotel.  Each day we saw the long driveway, called Prince of Wales Avenue, that leads up to Stormont, the Northern Ireland Parliament Building, named after this area of Belfast.

View of the Parliament building is framed by a line of trees that are 200 ft apart at the entrance and 250 ft apart as you rise up the hill to give the illusion that the building is closer than it really is.

The distance from the gates to the Parliament building is a mile with a sharp incline as you approach Lord Edward Carson’s statue located in the round-about just before you reach the impressive building.  We went through the security gate, well away from the building itself, then walked through the front doors, which had a commanding view out over Belfast and the surrounding countryside.

Looking down from the front steps past the Lord Carson statue along Prince of Wales Avenue

We were treated to a wonderful tour of the building by one of the resident librarians for Stormont.  The Government of Ireland Act of 1920 established the “home rule legislature of Northern Ireland” until is was abolished with the introduction of Direct Rule and given increased powers as the Parliament of Northern Ireland by the Northern Ireland Constitution Act in 1973.   The Building is relatively new with construction starting in 1922 and completed in 1932. After seeing so much history that occurred centuries ago it feels a little different to be viewing history that is even younger than our Provincial Legislatures at home. The Parliament of Northern Ireland was originally described as being “bicameral” in that there was both a House of Commons and a Senate.  The House of Commons chamber is on one side of the main rotundra or Great Hall and on the other side is the Senate (which was abolished in 1973) chamber which now used as a Committee room for the Northern Ireland Assembly.  The House of Commons chambers were completely destroyed by a fire started by an electrical fault in 1995.  When they completely rebuilt the Assembly they took the opportunity to create a layout that was less confrontational. Unfortunately, pictures are not allowed in the Assembly, even though the proceedings that take place there are streamed live on the internet.

Memorials to two members of the Parliament

Although this building represents Freedom and Democracy there are still reminders that the route to today’s peace has not been smooth sailing and some have paid the ultimate price.  Even though they have never worn a uniform or bared arms.

Main foyer of the Parliament with the statue of Lord Craigavon the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland

The Great Hall is dominated by a very large gold plated chandelier that was a gift from King George V.  Our guide told us the story of how the chandelier was originally a gift from the Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany and hung in Windsor Castle. The eagles are a classic example of German influence.

Central chandelier in the main foyer

Gold plated eagles featured in the chandelier

During World War I it was removed from Windsor Castle and placed in storage and was never returned to the castle.  I guess this was an early example of the now popular term “re-gifting”.

Artwork for the Games from students at Jordanstown School is featured in the Parliament building

From Stormont we caught a cab downtown.  Ron and Marsha had arrived a day earlier than us and after registering for the Games they had done a little sightseeing.  We got dropped off at the Crown Liquor Saloon which dates back to 1826 when it was known as The Railway Tavern.

The Crown Liquor Saloon in downtown Belfast

The bar was a little unusual in that around each of the 10 tables along the outside walls was a 5 ft. high partition that created a small booth or “snug”, with its own little door.  In the center of the room and along the bar people could stand or lean on high tables.

Inside the Crown Liquor Saloon with the individual “snugs” (booths) in the foreground with the ornate tin roof above

The word is that originally the working class would stand to drink their pints after work while the booths were taken by the managers and supervisors.  Another story has it that the “snugs” provided some privacy for those people might not want to drink quietly and unseen.  Particularly for those people who may have held certain opinions regarding “public houses” but still like to have a drink, as long as no one saw them taking a drink.  As we sat in our secluded snug in the corner it was easy to imagine how these might have been the place were groups met to plan out revolutionary conspiracy, even long before the Troubles.

Deana, Marsha and Ron in their corner “snug” at the Crown Liquor Saloon

The original gas lanterns in each booth are still there.  Maybe the tin roof was installed in case one of the gas lanterns got a little out of control.  Each booth also comes with a button that rings a small bell to indicate that you’d like to order another pint.  Of course we only learned this after we rang it a few times and one of the waiters popped by to ask if we wanted more.

We watched a patron carefully balance his pint on the narrow ledge

The Gold medal hanging from Ron’s neck (and the WPFG t-shirts) made for an easy conversation starter and we met many other competitors as we made out way across the street to the Europa Hotel.  We met a few players from a Women’s soccer team from Toronto that got annihilated (their words) in their games against some Latin American countries, but were still having a great time enjoying this wonderful city.  The Europa Hotel has the dubious distinction of being “the most bombed hotel in Europe” and possibly “the most bombed hotel in the world”. During the Troubles it was bombed 28 times.  In 1993 it was so badly damaged by a bomb placed by the Provisional IRA that it was sold for just £4.4 million. When it reopened in 1994 belonging to the Hastings Hotels group there was no evidence of its troubled past, except perhaps the series of pictures that line the walls of a large spiral staircase that rises off the lobby floor to take you to the convention rooms above.  In December 1994 President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hilary stayed in one of the large suites which then became known as The Clinton Suite.

A borrowed picture of the Europa Hotel

We wandered a bit more, found a few souvenirs and then got caught in a torrential downpour.  We managed to find a cab and made our way back to the hotel for a nightcap.

We have thoroughly enjoyed the our time in Belfast and we’ll definitely put it on our “visit again” list.  We wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Belfast for people making a visit to this part of the world.

Day 21 – August 7 – Belfast “The Troubles”

Ron got off to a great start this morning at the World Police & Fire (WPF) Games and didn’t need to go to five games to win all of his matches.  There were some close games, but we figure he was just trying to keep the audience engaged ……  After 3 matches he qualified to play in the Final.  There was some talk of playing the game in the afternoon, but his opponent from Germany was also playing badminton and had to go to a different venue for those games.  So the final will be played tomorrow morning. Once again, one of the local players (well his wife that is) offered to wash Ron’s kit for him so he’d have fresh clothes to play in tomorrow.  We’re pretty used to doing our own laundry in the room, but you just can’t get cotton to dry overnight.

One of the Belfast Tourist Guidebooks that was provided to the participants of the WPF Games listed a number of Tour operators but “The Black Cab Tour” (touringaroundbelfast.com) indicated that they Qualified Blue Badge Guides.  Our guide in Edinburgh, Kenny, was a Blue Badge Guide so we figured that was a pretty good endorsement.  We contacted the cab company and arranged to meet a cabbie in front of the steel gates of City Hall.  The tour would be approximately 90 min and the cost would be £10/person.  We met “Bob” (not his real name) at City Hall and we drove to the area where much of “The Troubles” began.

To help keep things straight we’ve tried to memorize:

• Unionists / Loyalists (Protestants) – identify with William of Orange (thus the colour Orange is important) and Orangemen’s Day, July 12, which also happens to be our Anniversary – fly the Union Jack to show that they want to stay attached to England as many of them were transplanted here (and came to be known as planters) from Scotland and England starting as early as 1609, living on land confiscated from the native Irish and therefore are not of Irish decent originally
• Nationalists / Republicans (Catholics) – identify with Green which has long been associated with Ireland – fly the Irish flag – would like to see Northern Ireland become a part of the rest of Ireland, an independent country from England and therefore not a part of the United Kingdom
• Ulster is another term you hear frequently.  Originally it was 9 counties at the northern end of the island. The Government of Ireland Act of 1920 took 6 of the 9 counties and placed them in Northern Ireland and the remaining 3 counties were assigned to Ireland.  The fact that 2 of the 6 had Catholic Nationalist majorities would suggest that not everyone was going to be happy with where the lines were drawn.

Flag of Ireland – Green for Ireland – Orange for William of Orange and the White for Peace to bring them together

What is interesting is that the tri-colour flag flown by Ireland today (and the Republicans) as their national flag was originally created as a gift by a group of French women sympathetic to the Irish cause in 1848.  It was presented to Thomas Meagher, who was the son of the Newfoundland-born mayor of Waterford.  The Green has been described as being representative of the Gaelic tradition of Ireland. The Orange relates to William of Orange (Protestant) King William III of England, Ireland and Scotland. The White is meant to convey the hope for Peace between the two of them.

Mural for William of Orange – Protestant King of England, Scotland and Ireland

Our cabbie started in the Protestant area by turning off Shankill Road and up Shankill Parade where he parked the cab and started to tell us about “The Troubles”.  We walked around a new development to reach Hopewell Crescent to get a closer look at some of the murals that have been painted on the sides of residential buildings. There are various dates suggested for the beginning of “The Troubles” as Bob refers to them.  Often the deployment of British troops in August 1969 is seen as the definitive date, but there were many incidents that took place in the mid-1960’s that started “The Troubles”.

I will not pretend to have an even cursory understanding of the very complex situation that exists here.  But we took the tour in hopes that we might at least gain a better understanding of the contributing factors.  Some of the events took place centuries ago, in fact later, as we tour southern Ireland we hope to make it to Kinsale and learn more about the Battle of Kinsale in 1601 and how it is related to what we see today.

The domination by Protestants in Northern Ireland, backed by England, led to a revolt by the Irish nationalists who were generally of Catholic decent.  As early as 1964 there was a civil rights movement seeking to end discrimination against Catholics by the Protestant, Unionist dominated government of Northern Ireland.  When you listen to the issues they were fighting, it reminds you of the civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King in the USA, around the same time. They were looking for:

• an end to job discrimination – especially government jobs
• public housing allocated on the basis of need rather than religion or political views
• an end to playing with electoral boundaries to ensure the Unionists won (although I think this happens everywhere, still today)
• reform of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) which was almost 100% Protestant and accused of using excessive force against Catholics
• repeal of the Special Powers Act – that allowed the police to detain, imprison, disperse assemblies without warrant and the Catholics claim that those powers were was used almost exclusively against republicans

At one point the flying of the Irish tricolour flag was banned by legislation that prevented displaying of a symbol that was likely to inspire trouble . . . although it is said that the Union Jack was never taken down for the same reason

Many of the murals depict events in history from centuries ago, such as the William III poster for 1609 and the Red Hand of Ulster.  Although the Red Hand has become synonymous with the Unionist campaign it originally represented the Irish province of Ulster.  One of the stories explaining the red hand in the center of the flag comes from a mythological tale of two clans wanting to claim the land on a far shore. It was decided that the first clan leader to touch the shore would win it for his people.  The two chieftans headed off in their boats with their men working their oars as hard as they could.  As they neared the shore, the leader of the slower boat pulled out his sword, chopped off his hand and threw his hand onto the shore before the other chieftan could land his boat, and thus the handless chieftan won the land.

Mural depicting the legend of the Red Hand of Ulster

One of the murals on Hopewell Crescent has a hooded UFF Member centered on the wall pointing a machine gun of some sort at you.  As we walked from left to right of the wall, Bob noted how the gunman appeared to be pointing at us the entire time.  Optical illusion …. Yes …. but effective.

View of the masked gunman from the left

View from the right, the gun looks like it’s still pointing at you

The mural commemorating Stevie “Topgun” McKeag, Military Commander, 2nd Battalion, suggests that this is a regular army in what Bob describes as an attempt to legitimize their position. However, they were simply titles they gave themselves.

Mural commemorating Stevie “Topgun” McKeag

Deana looking at one of the gates in the “Peace Wall” that is still closed nightly

For every case that Bob provides for one side of the conflict he is able to give another example of the same thing occurring on the other side, so it is very difficult to determine whether Bob grew up on the Catholic or Protestant side.  In one case he provided an example of one of these self appointed military men riding his motorcycle over to the Catholic side, waiting for a woman pharmacist to close up shop. At which point he shot and killed her and then jumped on his motorcycle and fled back to the Protestant area.  Not exactly your typical military operation.  It’s easy to see how such an event would provoke the other side to do something similar, or possibly this was in retaliation for just such an event.  Unfortunately, there is no scorecard and no official record to allow someone to declare a Tie, so that everyone can stop trying to “even the score”.

We then made our way down North Howard Street to Cupar Way where we saw one of the gates keeping the Unionist and Republicans apart.  Every night the gates are closed at night and then reopened again at dawn.

View along the Peace Wall on Cupar Way – here it extends at least 30 feet straight up

We drove along this enormous “Peace Wall” along Cupar Way and stopped at one of the areas of that has a little more than just graffiti.  Bob told us of the construction of the wall as a way to keep the warring parties apart and allow the average Belfast citizen the opportunity to carry on a little more of a normal life.  Three years ago both sides got together to discuss putting an end to the closing of the gates each night, but they both agreed that the animosity between some groups on each side was still too strong and it was determined that they would continue to close the gates at night, for at least another 20 years. The amazing thing is that there are 16 other “Peace Walls” like this one in various locations around Belfast.

Ron examining some of the writings and graffiti along the Peace Wall

Almost exactly on the other side of the Peace Wall from where Bob stopped on the Protestant side we found a memorial on Bombay Street to those who have given their life for the Catholic side.

On the wall adjacent to the memorial is a mural remembering August 15, 1969 when homes in Dover, Percy Conway, Cupard and Bombay Streets and Clonard Gardens were attacked and burned and Gerald McAuley, 15 years of age, was shot dead.  Obviously these sorts of events are not easily forgotten and the wounds they cause to the community take generations to heal.

Remembering the burning of Bombay Street and others by the Unionists and the killing of Gerald McAuley

 

Then we look at the list of names engraved on the memorial and the dates go back well before “The Troubles” were to have started in the mid-1960’s, some as early as 1920 just before Ireland earned its independence from England.  In fact, the Parliament of the United Kingdom (Britain) created the Government of Ireland Act in 1920 to establish “Home Rule” for Northern and Southern Ireland.  Home Rule never took place in Southern Ireland due the Irish War of Independence that is suggested to have started on 19th of January 1919 when the Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein refused to send their elected members to the Parliament in London and instead set up their own rebel government in Dublin. It was at this time that the rebels started ambushing police barracks as they were seen as an extension of British Rule.  This civil war continued for several years until 6 December 1922 when Irish Free State Act came into being.  This created an independent Ireland and the next day the predominantly Protestant (non-Catholic) Parliament of Northern Ireland opted out of the Irish Free State, in effect remain as a part of the United Kingdom.

The cages over the patios that back onto the Peace Wall.

 

The people who’s property happened to back onto the Peace Wall have had to take steps to protect their property from things being thrown over the wall.  You can see the heavy steel cage that protects their property.  As we looked at the plaque on the wall of the memorial we learned that not everything can be taken at face value.  If you look carefully you’ll see four names next to 9th March 1972, Gerard Crossan, John Johnston, Tony Lewis and Tom McCann. They are listed in the Roll of Honour, but Bob tells us the story that these four individuals were not shot by anyone, instead they were victims of a premature explosion of a bomb in a house.  So they were likely building a bomb designed to cause harm to the Unionist side or British forces when it exploded prematurely.  If you use Google to search on 9 March 1972 and one of these fellows name you’ll be hard pressed to learn about the premature explosion that Bob told us about.  Most articles just state that they died for the cause, but the real story is corroborated in the CAIN.

A memorial on the Republican side to remember those who died in the conflict, including the four listed on 9th March 1972 when the bomb they were building detonated prematurely

 

The University of Ulster has created the CAIN (Conflict Archive on the INternet) Web Service – Conflict and Politics in Northern Ireland. The website  http://cain.ulst.ac.uk  is designed to provide information and source material on ‘the Troubles’ and politics in Northern Ireland from 1968 to the present.

We drove a short distance from Bombay Street, down Sevastapol Street to the junction with Falls Road.  Here Bob showed us the a large mural commemorating Bobby Sands. You may remember the name Bobby Sands as he gained worldwide attention when he was elected as a MP – Member of Parliament while on a hunger strike in the Maze prison in 1981.  It is interesting to learn that Bobby Sands was born in Belfast to a Catholic mother and a half Catholic/half Protestant father.  As Sands was not a traditional Catholic name they were able to conceal their Catholic background.  Eventually neighbours found out and they were shunned by the Protestant community.  They eventually granted housing in the Rathcoole development.  This 30% Catholic community gave them access to Catholic schools and Bobby played for the religiously-integrated youth football team.  However, after the violence that erupted in Rathcoole in 1966, Catholics were banned from the football club and Bobby and his sisters had to withstand daily pelting with rocks and bottles as they made their way through the predominantly Protestant community to the Catholic school.  Oh yes, and the football club renamed itself “The KAI” for Kill All Irish.  This sort of description helps us to understand why the divide between these two groups runs so deep.

Mural commemorating Bobby Sands and the other 9 hunger strikers who died in Maze Prison, one month after Bobby was elect as an MP to the British Parliament

As members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army they believed that they should be held as Political Prisoners rather than common criminals.  They were housed in H-Block at the prison which meant they were not Political prisoners.  They held a number of protests, including the “Blanket Protest” in 1978, in an effort to regain Special Category Status which would free them from some of the ordinary prison rules.

This mural on Hopewell Crescent celebrated the release of prisoners from ‘ H-Block ‘ in 2000

 

Along Falls Road there are a number of other murals depicting other struggles, including Free Marion Price.

Mural on Falls Road suggesting that Marion Price didn’t deserve imprisonment for her part in 4 car bombings in London

 

Reading the posters you might think that she was imprisoned for standing up the the military aggression of the British Army and Northern Ireland forces.  However, as you learn a little more about her part in the unit that was responsible for placing 4 car bombs in London in 1973, you begin to understand why she was incarcerated.  It becomes easier to see how the people trying to keep the peace between these two groups would be drawn into the conflict.  The Republicans might also suggest that the use of the British Army to maintain peace was just another example of Britain exerting its domination in Northern Ireland, just as it had been doing for centuries.

Our objective for taking the Black Cab Tour was to learn more about the issues behind “The Troubles”.  One thing we have learned is that there is a lot of history involved in creating the situation we see today.  One theme that Bob has frequently repeated is that the people directly involved in the conflict are a fraction of the population.  However, the two sides have managed to involve the majority of the population by their terrorism. Earlier in our trip we visited the Battle of Culloden where in 1746 the Jacobites and the Government troops squared off in marshy field just east of Inverness Scotland.  The battle was between combatants and the general public was not harmed or involved. Here the fight took place in the streets where people were trying to carry on their daily lives.  But as Bob has given plenty of examples where people who wished to have no involvement in the conflict were assassinated on both sides of the Wall simply because they ‘appeared’ to be of a certain religious or political belief or lived in a certain area of town.  Think of Bobby Sands, by all definitions a Catholic yet living in a Protestant neighbourhood. It is likely that his parents saw better opportunities for their children in Belfast if they were seen as part of the ruling Protestant group.  How many more families like the Sands existed in Belfast and may even have been targeted by the IRA.

When Jeff was in Europe in 1982 he took the Tube from his cousins, Peter and Eirwen, into central London for a day of sightseeing on July 20. When he returned to the London suburbs that evening Peter informed him that while he was riding the Tube under Hyde Park a car bomb filled with shrapnel and nails was remotely detonated by the IRA as the Household Cavalry regiment passed by.  Seven horses and 4 soldiers were killed and numerous soldiers, horses and tourists were injured by the shrapnel and nails, intended to wound and maim. This type of attack was an attempt by the Republicans in Northern Ireland to inflict pain on the British Army and by extension the British establishment and the general public on their home turf, in the same way that they perceived the British Army was affecting their home life.  As a result, the Unionist retaliated against the IRA and the British Army and Belfast police were caught in the middle, trying to establish some semblance of peace.

After our tour with Bob we had an excellent dinner downtown at The Chubby Cherub restaurant and had a chance to talk about all we had seen and heard.  Coincidentally we had also received a wonderful invitation to spend the evening with a Belfast police officer and his wife. They have a beautiful house and they immediately made us feel right at home.  We really enjoyed getting to know them better and felt a real friendship develop.  As we talked a bit about our afternoon with Bob we got a glimpse of another facet to the conflict that Bob had not spent to much time discussing.  As the Republicans and Unionists were battling each other the Belfast Police and British Army were trying to maintain some form of law and order.  They were tasked with bringing those responsible for the killings and terrorism to justice.  In the eyes of the law, these people were criminals, but as we saw earlier these ‘”criminals” believed their fight to be political and therefore they deserved to be treated as Political Prisoners.  A difficult distinction for the family of the woman pharmacist who was gunned down by a Unionist as she locked up her shop on the wrong side of the “Peace Wall”.

To complete the picture it is important to note that The Troubles were not limited to Belfast, Derry/Londonderry saw it’s share of strife as well.  The drawing up of the boundary between Ireland and Northern Ireland had followed the River Foyle until it reached Derry where it left the river in order to include all of Londonderry in Northern Ireland.  It’s easy to remember which side prefers Derry as the Republicans did not want to utter the name “London”.  One of the most notable skirmishes occurred on Bloody Sunday in 1972, which started as a civil rights march.

It wasn’t until 1998 when the settlement known as the Good Friday Peace Accord or Belfast Agreement.  The Agreement was made up of two elements: 1) the legal agreement between the two governments (British and Irish) signed by both; 2) a more comprehensive agreement involving the two governments and the eight political parties, including: the Alliance Party, Labour Party, Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition, Progressive Unionist Party, Sinn Fein, Social Democratic Party, Ulster Democratic Party, Ulster Unionist Party.  It was this agreement that paved the way to relative peace in Northern Ireland and the eventual removal of British troops.  In the two years after the Agreement was signed the paramilitary prisoners were gradually released as the groups the represented agreed to the ceasefire.  On 29th of September 2000 the Maze Prison was closed.

For the policeman on the street it is not an easy job when both sides suspect that you might be trying to gather evidence that might incriminate themselves.  As a result there was no safe haven for those enforcing the rule of law.  One example we were given was the need to check underneath your car and seat every morning before you drive to work, just to be safe.  Even if your line of work is not directly involved with either of the factions.  Just by being a police officer you could be targeted by either side.  In another example the IRA had tried on 3 successive days to gain entry to a policeman’s new home under the guise of being chimney sweeps.  The property had been under surveillance for several weeks and the visits were timed for when the policemen would not be at home.  The purpose for getting into the house might never bee known for certain, but it could have been meant as a warning that they were watching.  This would be very unsettling for someone who had originally joined the police force to “help little old ladies across the street” and “apprehend bank robbers”.  Instead, trying to keep the majority of the people of Belfast, Derry and other towns safe from the warring minority was putting your life and your family in jeopardy.  An interesting figure is the number of police officers in the Belfast Police force.  We were told there are over 7000 members and as things start to quiet down they are gradually reducing those numbers.  Imagine the financial burden this places on the Belfast city council to maintain a force of this size.

Similar to our chance meeting with Margaret and Victor in Conwy, Wales, the opportunity to get to meet people who live in the local area is amazing.  We learned more about life in Belfast in this one evening than we could ever have gotten from a dozen books or any tour guide.

We also learned a few local phrases the first of which is local to Belfast due to the Lagan river that flows through the center of the town.  So if you want to say to someone:

“Do you think I’m stupid?” You might say:  “Do you think I came up the Lagan on a bubble?”

And a more common phrase throughout the emerald isle is “What’s the craic?” pronounced “crack”.  This is equivalent to What’s up?  or What’s happening?

All in all a simply amazing day!  Special thanks to Ron for 3 entertaining Squash games to start the day;  Bob for his excellent presentation of both sides of “The Troubles”; and our wonderful hosts for welcoming us into their home and sharing their lives with us.

Day 20 – August 6 – Belfast “Titanic”

Today is Ron’s first round of the Squash tournament at the Belfast Boat Club. In Ron’s pool of the tournament there are Firemen, Police and Corrections Officers from China, England, Germany, Ireland, Spain, USA and of course our hosts N. Ireland.

Ron in his first match of the tournament

We’ve never been to squash at these games before but we quickly learned that there is much more to the games than the competition on the court.

Ron trying to look around his 2nd opponent who hit the ball very hard

The viewing area for Ron’s games is pretty small so we quickly made friends with the others in the tournament and their wives.

Ron and his second opponent

Ron played well, but the best-of-three game format for the opening round didn’t play to Ron’s strength of stamina.  He ended the day 1-2 but is looking forward to the best-of-five format tomorrow.

After Ron’s games were finished for today we headed downtown to see the Titanic exhibition in the Belfast Docklands.

The Titantic Belfast exhibit that was completed in 2012

In 2012 they completed a wonderful exhibit “Titanic Belfast” just in time for the 100^th Anniversary of its fateful voyage. There are two sites in the exhibit, about a 20 min walk apart: the brand new building built specifically for the exhibit and the original dock yards used to build these enormous ships.

Ron relaxing at the river end of the Thompson Graving Dock which was used to outfit the Titanic

A reconstruction of the bow of the Titanic from the original drawings

The Belfast Harbour Commissioners started early in the 1900’s to build Thompson Graving Dock as the biggest in the world.

William James Pirri controlled the Harland & Wolff shipbuilding firm and J. Bruce Ismay was the Chairman of the White Star Line.  Ismay’s goal for his company was to compete against the Cunard Line.  It is said that Pirri and Ismay collaborated over dinner to create the Titanic and her sister ships. Their discussions centered around how to balance Speed vs. Quality of Accommodation.  How did they arrive at nearly 883 ft as the length of their new ships?  Long enough to span the crests of three of the Atlantic Ocean’s wave crests.

This longer ship required the Harbour Commissioners to extend the original length of the dry dock in order to accommodate the new Olympic class vessels.  It became a fitting landmark for what was the largest ships of their time. At the time, H&W employed nearly 10,000 people building ships in the Belfast docklands. To put that in perspective, the population of Belfast in 1900 was approx. 350,000. So the dockyards were a major contributor to the local economy. In contrast to the dockyards, the Linen industry employed 65,000 people, predominantly women, and most of the Linen industry residing in Belfast.

The three pumps that could empty the Graving Dock in 100 minutes. That’s 230,000 gallons per minute

After a 20 minute walk we reached “The Pumphouse” that was used to remove the 23 million gallons of water from the Dry Dock in just 100 minutes. Pretty impressive when you see just how much water that represents. It was amazing to stand at the bottom of the dock and imagine that the Titanic once stood there.  The Titanic was the second ship of three, after the Olympic, to be built, the third was the Britannic . Design changes that were made during the building of the Olympic were incorporated into the Titanic.

Marsha overlooking the Graving dock, notice the tiny staircase at the end of the dock that holds back the Lagan River.

As you stand at the bottom and look up 35 ft to the top of the dry dock it’s difficult to imagine that the Titanic stood 175 ft from the bottom of it’s keel to the top of it’s funnels.

The staircase against the steel plated “dam” holding back the Lagan River. The same dam seen in the picture of the Titanic’s propellers

The Titanic’s propellers next to the steel plated dam holding back the Lagan River

The draught, or portion of the ship below the waterline, would just barely fit in the dry dock when the Titanic was fully loaded.

The small boy in the foreground adds perspective along with the supports for the keel and the gigantic H & W Goliath gantry in the back ground

We then walked back to the amazing building designed to showcase the Titanic. The architect’s general idea was to arrange the floors of the building to mimic the decks on the Titanic.  As you work your way up you move from the boilers to the luxury cabins.  You start by learning a little bit about Belfast in the late 19^th century and this helps to provide some context to how significant the dockyard and indeed these brand new, world-class ships were to Belfast at the time. Then they take you up in an elevator, as if you’re rising up into the gantry. that was used to move the steel and components into place as the Olympic and Titanic were being built, side by side, from the keel to the top of the superstructure. The gantry was absolutely huge, 270 ft wide, 840 ft long and nearly 230 ft. high. The H & W logo is still visible in on the Belfast waterfront adorning their two gigantic gantry cranes named Samson and Goliath.  They stand 348 ft. and 315 ft. high respectively.  Amazingly we didn’t snap any pictures, so I’ve borrowed this one from Wikipedia.

H & W’s Samson and Goliath gantries that are used today

There is even a short ride (like you’re in an amusement park) that tries to give you a birds eye view of the workers as they affixed the 3 million rivets that held the Titanic together. Each rivet was heated in a forge to the point that it was orange hot. The rivet was pulled from the forge and slid across to the person who would use a pair of tongs to pick it up and place it in the holes of the two adjacent plates. A sledge hammer was held on the outside while two men would hammer it from the inside until it was flattened over and tightly holding the overlapping steel plates together. It’s easy to imagine the din that was created as this procedure was being repeated all over the ship. As you continue to the upper floors of the building you start to see more of the opulence experienced by those with the money and time to travel by ship.

The Titanic (left) and Olympic (right) under construction

After viewing the dry dock and part of the Titanic exhibition Ron and Jeff started trying to rationalize the photos of the Titanic and Olympic, side-by-side as they were being built. It was easy to think that both ships they were constructed under the 230 ft. high gantry from start to finish.  Even though the Thompson Graving Dock is talked about as being expanded to accommodate this new class of liner. Initially it appeared that the location where the two ships were started and finished were one and the same, but with the dimensions of the dry dock at 850 ft. long, 128 ft wide and 44 ft deep meant it could only hold the Olympic or Titanic one at a time.  We were able to determine that the ships were built just south of the Graving Dock, slid into the Lagan River and then directed into the dry dock to be “fitted out’.

Just after it’s initial launch the Titanic still needs to be outfitted with the funnels

This old photo shows the Titanic in the Graving Dock with the pumphouse building that we toured on the left

At the end of the tour you move into a movie theatre to view some of the footage taken by the submarines as they explored the Titanic on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, two miles beneath the surface.  After the movie you’re invited down to the glass floor where you can look down as if you’re actually in one of the submersibles hovering over the ship.  A very cool way to end the whole Titanic Belfast experience.

We ate back at the hotel and we were joined by one of the squash players that Ron faced today and his wife.  They are “locals” and it was very interesting to learn a little more about Belfast.

Day 19 – August 5 – Wales to Belfast

In order to catch our ferry from Holyhead, Wales to Dun Laoghaire, Ireland (just south of Dublin) we had to get up early to flag down the 8:15 train. Colin was kind enough to open up breakfast earlier than usual to provide us with a hot breakfast. The intermittent rain of the previous day had been replaced by a solid downpour so we were glad that our B&B was so close to the station. As it turned out there were quite a few people catching the Monday morning train to westward to the likes of Bangor and Welsh towns on the Isle of Angelsey. At one stop, Deana spotted the town with the longest name in the UK, possibly anywhere. Margaret had mentioned it when we were at dinner with them and when it rolled off her tongue it sounded lyrical. This wasn’t too surprising as she had talked about her choir and their frequent trips to competitions. I’m sure the Welsh version (top) could be used as an example of the various pronunciations in the Welsh language: “LLANFAIRPWLLGWYNGYLLGOGERYCHWYRNDROBWLLLLANTYSILIOGOGOGOCH”

Train station sign for the Welsh town with the longest name in Great Britain

Here is the rough translation into English.

As we continued on to Holyhead we met a couple from Williams Lake which is relatively close to home and we compared our travel experiences so far. It was interesting that they echoed comments we had heard earlier, both at home and the first half of our trip, such as “Belfast isn’t safe” or “I’d never go to Belfast”. Although this was definitely a concern that Jeff had during his brief trip to Ireland in 1982, the peace that has been in place for many years now laid these concerns to rest.

Our reason for heading directly to Belfast was to meet our friends, Ron and Marsha. Ron is competing in the 2013 World Police and Fire Games. The only other games, outside of the Para-Olympic and Special Olympics to be sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee. The games take place every 2 years and Ron has competed in Squash at several previous games.

The train station is connected to the docks where the ships leave Wales for various ports around the Irish Sea. We boarded the Stena Line ship for the 2 hour crossing to Dun Laoghaire.

Deana enjoying the standard seating in the Stena line ferry from Holy Head to Dun Laoghaire

We were informed that there would be a 1 metre swell that appeared to be just enough off the starboard bow to cause the ship to develop a predictable roll as we made the crossing. It was mildly entertaining to watch as people walked along the wide corridors, suddenly veering in unison, first 3 steps to the right, catch themselves and then 2 steps back to the left. I guess it was a slow voyage as this entertained us for a good part of the voyage to Dun Laoghaire. Well I guess it was a slow voyage as this entertained us for a good part of the voyage to Dun Laoghaire.

We arrived south of Dublin early in the afternoon to learn that Dublin was in the second day of a bus driver strike. So we found a cab to take us to the Dublin Airport, which is just North of the city.

The interesting part of this half of our trip is that we aren’t taking a bus tour and we won’t be travelling by train anymore. The idea of Jeff driving us on one of our european vacations is not unusual. However, Jeff has never driven on the other side of the road before, or shifted a manual transmission with his left hand. But as Victor told us in Conwy, he frequently drives on the continent and North American and it doesn’t take long to get used to switching to the other side of the road. We picked up our rental and fortunately Jeff’s Hertz Gold status got us an upgrade from a 4-door sedan to an SUV/Crossover. It turned out to be a Nissan Qashqai (soon to be known as Quasimodo) with lots of room.

Our Nissan Qashqai, with a 6-speed manual, diesel engine

We hooked up our Tom Tom GPS, loaded with John Cleese’s voice, and headed off for the drive to Belfast. A few gentle reminders from Deana to keep Quasimodo aligned with the driver’s side close to the right hand lines and it was all good. It was probably good that the first driving was on a freeway with wide lanes and not too many corners to negotiate. By the time we got to Belfast we were used to the new side of the road.

We met Marsha and Ron at the Stormont Hotel. We didn’t realize at the time that the name Stormont also refers to the Northern Ireland Parliament building that is situated across the road.

We headed out for dinner at a local restaurant (where our waitress Leslie, happened to have relatives in our hometown) and got caught up with Marsha and Ron . . . . of course those who know Deana and Marsha will realize that will take at least a couple of weeks.

Day Deunaw “two nine” (18) – August 4 – Conwy

We woke up without feeling we had to catch a train or be anywhere by a certain time …. except to make sure we didn’t miss breakfast.  Colin and Monica ask you to indicate the night before what you would like for breakfast the next morning, in terms of hot food.  That way Colin is able to prepare the right amount of bacon, sausages, etc before you get there.  With only 5 rooms its a little different than some of the larger places we stayed on our tour where they would have warming trays full of the different type of food, including haggis and black pudding.  But this must lead to a considerable amount of wastage so the smaller places tend to ask what you’d like and then serve you a plate with all the hot food.  Cereals, juices, sometimes yogurt and often freshly prepared fruit salads, tea & coffee are always available to help yourself.  But today, after a wonderful day yesterday, we’re content to just relax and take it easy.  We continued discussing some of the topics relating to Wales that we talked about with Margaret and Victor.

View of the highest points of the Conwy wall from our room at the B&B

Today we’re going to learn a little bit more about the history of Wales with a walk around the wall that surrounds the city and a visit to the Conwy ( Con-wee) Castle.  The walk to the castle and the walls, like everything in Conwy, is less than 400 m. from our B&B, so no need to figure out public transportation.

View from the highest point in the Conwy wall with the Castle over Deana’s shoulder

 

The crack in one of the towers in the Conwy wall with the culprit (the railway) visible through the hole

Our guide book suggested a walking tour of the walls around the city so we started by walking to the highest point.  This gave us a great view of both the inside and the outside of the walled portion of the city.  There’s been some precipitation throughout the UK after about a month of dry hot weather earlier in the summer, so there are many shades of green as you look across the countryside.  There’s one point in the wall where one of the towers has obviously cracked as the ground has settled.  Then you look around and notice that the railway tunnel passes directly beneath this part of the wall and then you understand why they might have had a problem.  To resist the “official” Christian worship of English-style Anglican Church the Welsh people joined “nonconformist” congregations such as Presbyterians, Methodists and Congregationalism.

Conwy Castle and the train tracks passing under a section of the town wall

 

Deana walking down the Conwy wall towards the harbour

The “Smallest House in Great Britain”

As we walked down to the harbours edge we saw “The smallest house in Great Britian” with a lady dressed in period costume standing in front of the 72” wide and 122” high structure.  We didn’t actually go in the house but it was an interesting novelty.  From there we made our way to the castle itself.

The statue of “Llywelyn the Great” standing in Lancaster Square, just a few metres from our B&B

Conwy Castle is a little bit different from many of the other castles we’ve seen on this trip.  This one, and several others in North Wales were built by the English as protection from the locals.  In the 13th century, two Welsh princes named Llywelyn created a unified and independent Wales which was not to the liking of England.  Finally, in 1282 the English King Edward I’s army killed the last prince, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd and began building Conwy Castle.

In all there were at least 20 castles that were either built or rebuilt for King Edward I over a 20 year span. One account we say suggested that there are 5 in North Wales that are particularly good and worthy of a visit.  They are Conwy, Caernarfon, Harlech, Beaumaris, Criccieth.  In 1986, the first four were inscribed on the World Heritage List as “a historic site of outstanding universal value”. Touring these 5 castles would be an excellent 2 day trip if you had a rental car ….. we’ll put that on our list for a future adventure!

Looking down into Conwy Castle from the SE tower

 

The interior walls of Conwy Castle from the NE tower

Originally it was started in 1283 and completed fairly quickly, but was remodelled again in the mid 14th century.  Work continued to be done in later centuries and in a few places you can see how the stone inner wall is not directly connected to the stone of the outer wall.  Now it’s possible that when King Edward I originally had his architect design it he made it so that it could be easily remodelled, but I doubt that was part of the master plan.  Some of the fun in poking around these old structures is trying to envision what it looked like in its day and also spotting places where they made changes.

A view of Conwy Castle’s “Great Hall” from the basement. Note the fireplace 10 ft. above Deana’s head and the unique curved shape for this hall

As you stand on the stone floor and look at the tall walls above you, you can often see evidence that you are simply on the ground floor.  From slots in the walls (to secure floor joists) and the fireplaces 15 and 30 feet up the wall you can easily see how the stone walls that remaining are is just the support infrastructure for a multi-floor dwelling.

The one remaining arch of the Great Hall of Conwy Castle

 

Originally Conwy was intended to be the centre of administration for the area but that focus shifted to nearby Caernarfon when it became the shire town.  However, Conwy Castle did play an important role over the years.  King Edward I used it as shelter over Christmas in 1294 and into the next spring, during a Welsh rebellion.  In 1399, Richard II hosted tense negotiations here before he was captured and his tenure as king came to an end, he died a year later.

Deana at the floor level of the Great Hall with the SE tower in the background

 

Something we haven’t seen to this extent in the castles we’ve been to is a series of plaques designed to interest children as they tour the castle.  With their entrance ticket they get a colour by numbers card.  As they progress around the castle they find colourful information boards that teach them something about the castle and the history it represents and then instructs them to fill in the shapes corresponding to certain numbers on their card with a red crayon.  Once they’ve finished all the stations they will have created a red dragon, the symbol for Wales.

One of dozens of interactive displays to provide children with some entertainment while they are learning about history!

 

After touring the castle we made our way to the Castle Hotel which was rumoured to be a good spot to enjoy a pint of the locally brewed ales, with the locals.  The skies also appeared to be threatening some precipitation, so we sought it out for shelter as well.  Shortly after arriving the heavens opened up and so we spent a while watching the people coming into the hotel for refuge.  For dinner we had made reservations at Watson’s Bistro.  We had tried to eat there two nights ago but we couldn’t make a reservation, so we had booked for tonight.  Somehow we ended up with an “early menu” so I’m not sure we got their best, but we enjoyed the Italian restaurant much more.

Day Dwy ar bymtheg “two on fifteen” (17) – August 3 – Conwy Wales

As we’ve travelled around the UK we seen a predominance of homes with slate roofs.  In Culross there were a lot of red clay tile roofs, but this was only because the ships taking coal to the continent needed to have some ballast for the return voyage that they loaded the hold with clay tiles.  There are a number of places in Wales that currently mine slate, but if you go back more than 100 years they were going underground to mine seams of slate.  Colin and Monica helped Jeff determine the available trains that would work for us to visit Blaenau Ffestiniog to see the Llechwedd (lek-weth) Slate Caverns and the Rheilffordd Ffestiniog Railway.

Deana securing her helmet for the train trip underground into the Llechwedd Slate mine.

The word SLATE is derived from the Old French verb esclater, meaning “to split”.  Although it is applied to a wide variety of stones possessing some degree of splitting properties, the world’s finest example is Welsh slate (according to a Welsh publication) – the superb Ordovician blue-grey variety in the Blaenau Ffestiniog area.

In Llechwedd there are 5 beds – known in the mines as veins. The veins are sandwiched between layers of hard chert (we were told this was granite).  The veins of slate do not run horizontally but instead at an angle of approx. 30 degrees, approximately parallel to the slope of the mountain. The company built the tunnel into the mountain so that on one level it would run along the length of the veins.  At the Llechwedd mine there are 5 veins but the tunnels were dug at 16 different levels. The amount of chert between the veins would vary and the challenge for the company was to tunnel only into veins that would run a long distance and not be just a pocket of slate.

The “Surveyor” would walk down the tunnel and mark on the walls with white paint where a 36 ft “chamber” would start and where it would end.  Then he’d measure off another 30 ft. of rock to be left as support, then another 36 ft. for the next chamber.  The 30 ft stretch, although perfectly good slate, was calculated to line up with the 30 ft of support on the level above and below and this would maintain the integrity of the mine.  You didn’t want to have the weight of 30 ft. of “supporting” rock sitting overtop of a chamber that was being hollowed out or it could lead to a collapse.  We were told that there were 256 chambers spread across 16 levels in this mine.

The weighted poles used to “drill” holes through the slate

What was really interesting was the “ownership” of each chamber.  A group of 4 miners would be given a chamber and they were then responsible for working the chamber and removing all of the slate.  This could take up 12-15 years.  Two would work in the chamber and the other two worked in the “factory” on the surface where they were assigned a bench to split the slate.  The workers in the chambers would use a 7 ft. long steel pole with a 10 lbs weight about 12 inches from one end.  The end of the pole was sharpened by the “Smithie” (blacksmith) near the factory and they would drop the pole onto a spot and give it a turn to loosen some material then lift and drop the pole again.  Over the course of 4 hours they would create a whole into the slate (which is much softer than granite).  When the depth of the hole reached the weight they would switch the pole around and use the longer end. In the pictures you can see how clean the holes were made.  Once they had reached the depth they desired they would swab it out with some moss threaded through the eye of an oversized needle and then carefully pack the whole with gun powder.

A bore hole perpendicular to the slant of the slate

Dynamite couldn’t be used because it was too powerful and it would break the slate into little pieces. To make a fuse a piece of string was pulled through a rag full of tar to make it sticky and then it would be coated with gun powder and tamped into the powder at the bottom of the hole.  They’d light the fuse and then yell “RUN” …. or something similar and vacate the chamber into the tunnel for the blast.  After the blast they would return to the chamber and start removing the pieces of slate.  They would pile them on a cart in a “load” that would be a manageable size for transport to the surface.

Our guide describing the technique for boring holes in front of the cart used to transport a “load” of slate to the surface and the other half of the team

The group of 4 men would usually hire a fifth person as a “labourer” to move the slate to the surface and also keep the chamber tidy by removing the chert.  In a year, an average chamber would produce 1,200 tons of slate and 2,000 tons of chert and waste material.  An inspector would regularly come around to each chamber and examine the load of slate and they would haggle over the value of the slate.  We were told that a common value was 12 shillings per load and in some cases they would move 1,000 loads/day to the factory for splitting.  They started work at 7am Monday to Friday and worked until 4:30. On Saturday they finished at 1pm.  On Sunday they attended Sunday school which was their opportunity to learn to read and write.  Literacy was at an amazing level in the slate mining families due to the Sunday schools.  They were expected to attend church 3 times on Sunday and several times throughout the week as well.  In the small town of Blaenau Ffestiniog there were 37 churches and only 22 bars in those days, so that gives you an idea of which one was given greater importance.

Deana walking through the mine shaft, note the smooth underside of the slate on the left and rough rock on the right

Due to the working conditions the fine white powder would coat the lungs of the miners and they generally developed a lung disease called Silicosis, caused by breathing in silica dust. As a result, miners, who frequently started as young as 10 years old, would have progressively diminished lung capacity until they finally died shortly after they turned 40.  Women in the mines were deemed to be bad luck, so they were not permitted to work there.  Sounds like women probably started that myth!

Typical height of the 36′ wide chamber. This one happened to reach the surface so there was a lot more light available

One of the 256 underground chambers, lite up with some different coloured lights for better effects

The chair and simple tools used on the surface to split the slate into very thin, flat pieces of slate.

A splitter separating two halves of the slate block

Typical use of the slate on the roof

Notice the high piles of discarded slate pieces and rock material above Blaneau Ffestiniog

Coal fired steam locomotive to take it’s load to the coast, and back again

Fireman working his fire to get the most of the coal

After the tours we walked back into Blaenau Ffestiniog and took a ride on the narrow gauge steam train towards the coast.  In 1836 the line was completed and began transporting the slate to the deep water port at Porthmadog.  They’ve done a great job of creating comfortable coaches with large windows to give you a wide open view of the beautiful Welsh scenery.  Unlike so many restored steam locomotives that are heated by diesel fuel, this train’s tender was full of coal and the man tending the fire in the boiler was covered in soot.  At one stop he got down onto the track and used a long steel pole to move the coal.  You could see how how hot the furnace was by the orange glow that illuminated his face. The train is somewhat of a novelty but it did afford us a good view of more of the country side and at one point the train passed almost directly above what appeared to be yet another castle, perched on the side of the valley.

Chugging our way to the coast

Time didn’t permit us to make it all the way to Porthmadog, so we turned around at Minffordd for the return to Blaenau Ffestiniog in time to catch the last regular Welsh Highland Railway train back to Llandudno on the north coast.

Unique use of the excess slate to direct you to the “Arts Centre”

From there we walked from Llandudno Junction across the Conwy river with the Conwy Castle rising to greet us.

Deana and Jeff with the Conwy Castle in the background

We went to the pub just around the corner from our B&B for a pint of ale (for Jeff) and lager (for Deana).

The Albion pub, just around the corner from our B&B – no food, just good beer

We’d been there the night before as well, but tonight it was quite busy.  We stood at the bar for a few minutes and then looked into what at one time had been the “Smoking Room” and saw a couple of chairs near a couple in one corner.  We asked if the seats were taken and they invited us to sit down.  We soon learned that Margaret and Victor were Welsh and they had just come to this pub because they enjoyed the locally brewed ale.  They were extremely interesting and we learned a great deal about the Welsh culture and language.  Although the language was in decline the students are now taught both Welsh language and literature as well as English and the language is starting to thrive again.  The cost of having to translate everything into both Welsh and English was similar to the situation we experienced when we lived in New Brunswick and everything relating to the government was recorded in both English and French.  They lived on the island of Anglesey, that we would be travelling across on our way to Holyhead for the ferry to Ireland.  We talked about some of the issues currently facing Anglesey, like the need to refresh their nuclear power plant and the use of wind turbines, like the ones we saw from the train on our way to Wales yesterday.  After we finished our Ales they invited us to join them for dinner at one of their favourite restaurants. in Llandudno.  It was a terrific dinner and then Margaret and Victor gave us a tour of Llandudno and the Great Orme before returning us to our B&B.

It was an absolutely wonderful evening with a truly delightful couple.  We exchanged contact information and offered them a place to stay and a personal tour of our part of Canada.  We really hope to return to this part of Wales at some time in the not too distance future.

Over the course of the evening we also learned a little bit about the Welsh language.

“FF” makes the “f” sound as in “fairy”

“CH” makes the “c” sound as in “cat”

“DD” makes the “th” sound as in “thistle”

Day 16 – August 2 – Edinburgh to Wales

We got up at the usual time and started towards the Waverley train station in Edinburgh. We were early for the 10:50 train to Conwy, (Con-wee) Wales, so we sat in Princes Garden Park next to the statue for Sir Walter Scott, reading in the sunshine rather than trying to find a piece of concrete to rest against in the train station.  Sir Walter Scott died in 1832 and this monument was built in 1840 it was said to a man that “Scotland never owed so much to one man.” To many he is considered the father of the romantic historical novel.

Sir Walter Scott statue

Sir Walter Scott monument

It was a beautiful morning and we watched as the volunteer guide assembled her group for the Georgian Town and Garden walking tour and then headed off.

We jumped on our train with the Britrail pass and found some available seats that would get us to Crewe so that we could change to a train to Chester.  Once in Chester we happened to visit the lady at the ticket window who let us know that there had been a problem with the train coming in from London (we’d later learn that there was some sort of problem with someone stepping in front of the trail and this caused a delay) so we hustled to catch the next train to Chester.

The train gave us an opportunity to reflect on our time in Scotland and the Rick Steves tour.  We definitely felt this was a very a terrific part of our trip.  Roy our guide was extraordinary in conveying a large amount of knowledge in a learnable way.  Not everyone can do this.  We’ve all had teachers who presented the data on a given topic and left it up to us to turn that data into useable information.  Roy helped to bridge that gap between data and information by starting out many discussions with “Do you remember when we talked about …..”.  For many things the measure of how much you enjoyed something is “Would you do it again?”  We would definitely take another Rick Steves tour and if we could pick one that Roy is leading we’d sign up right away. We’ve mentioned previously that the people we traveled with on the tour seemed to have common interests and we’ll certainly consider coordinating a trip with a few of the people we’ve met on this tour.

The ride from Chester to Conwy heads overland for a while before it reaches the coast of the Irish Sea.

Wind turbines in the Irish Sea

There we started to see a very large tidal beach as the tide was out.  In the distance were a number of wind turbines that have been set up in the sea to minimize the impact on existing properties.  Part way along the journey a fellow was getting off the train at the next stop and somehow Jeff learned that he was originally from Vancouver but is living in Birmingham now and he was wearing a golf shirt sporting the name of a Birmingham electrical company so we figured that was his employer. He wondered where we were headed and then asked how a couple from Canada would select this small town as our destination.  Jeff was tempted to say we just threw a dart at a map and it landed on Conwy, but if you know Jeff, that just doesn’t happen that way.  Guide books were consulted, research done for things to do using this as a hub and then suitable accommodation was selected.  Two stops before Conwy Jeff struck up a conversation with someone who was going to be getting off at the same stop so we were confident that conductor had notified the engineer and we’d make our stop.  He’d also learned from the woman a few directions to our B&B once we left the train platform.  The instructions were easy and we located Gwynfryn B&B in short order.

Our B&B in Conwy, Wales

Colin greeted us and carried our bags (which are getting heavier with every stop) to the 2nd floor (in UK/Europe speak that is above the 1st floor which is above the ground floor, where you generally enter the building), Le Rouge room.  It has a beautiful view of the wall that surrounds the town.

Le Rouge room at Gwynfryn B&B

Great big bathroom, with a large tub.

We went for dinner at the Alfredo Italian restaurant just a few doors down from the B&B and managed to squeeze into a seat just by the kitchen.  As the young waiter brought a couple of glasses of red wine and started to put one of them down for Deana he managed catch something and sprayed the glass over Jeff, the guy behind him and and the cash register beside Deana.  We didn’t get excited and this endeared us to the owner we joked with them the rest of the night.  Through the rest of the meal we watched large groups of locals come in and enjoy the wonderful food and atmosphere.

Day 15 – August 1 – Edinburgh

We’ve got a day to ourselves to see the parts of Edinburgh that we haven’t seen yet.  As a few of the things we wanted to see, like the Royal Yacht Britannia and Holyrood Palace were a fair distance from our hotel, we decided to use one of the Hop on – Hop off Tour buses to provide us with transportation around the city while giving us a little more information about the city.

There was the usual information being passed along as we passed through many parts of the city.  Our first objective was to see the HMY Britannia.

A large turnout to see the Britannia for the last time at sea

The ship was commissioned to be built by King George VI, just a short time before he passed away on 6 February 1952.  Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the British throne and she was then responsible for completing the Britannia.  The ship is over 400 ft. long and 55 ft wide.  The Britannia was decommissioned at the end of 1997 and the Conservative gov’t of the time committed to replacing it if they were elected.  Labour won the election and announced that a Royal yacht was viewed as an extravagance that could no longer be afforded in the 21st century and that there would be no replacement.

Deana ringing Britannia’s bell

Jeff on the stern deck

Deana checking out the Rolls Royce that traveled with Britannia in the early years when visiting countries without a suitable viewing car

Edinburgh won the bid to display the Britannia for everyone to see in their newly revitalized dockyard district.  They have done a wonderful job of providing background information with many wonderful pictures displaying the history of the monarchy as it related to the Britannia.  The audio guide provided a great narration as you walked through the entire ship.

Royal dining room capable of seating 54.

Narwhale tusk

Narwhale tusk presented by Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau to the Queen at Frobisher Bay, NWT, in 1970

Britannia’s “living room” that played host to many foreign dignitaries, such as Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela and many others.

Deana checking out how the onboard laundry was equipped to clean and iron the many uniforms the crew was expected to wear. It had sufficient laundry equipment in the case that the ship needed to be used as a hospital ship. It never was.

The engine room was absolutely spotless and apparently this is exactly how it looked everyday, whether they were under power or in port.  US General Schwarzkopf was reported to have been given a tour of this area and then remarked “so that’s the museum, now let’s see the working engine!”

Britannia’s spotless engine compartment

It was interesting to note that there were pictures of both the Queen Mum and Princess Diana in the lower decks with the crew.

Famous picture of Princess Diana welcoming Prince William and Prince Harry on board

After HMY Britannia we Hopped On the bus and followed the tour to the Palace of Holyroodhouse (aka Holyrood Palace).  As this is the official residence of the Monarch of the United Kingdom when they are in Scotland, no pictures are allowed inside the Palace, only the forecourt and the Abbey (what’s left of it).  There is evidence of the original abbey being created on the site in 1128.  James IV built a new palace just west of the abbey in the 16th century.  Over the years additions were made to the palace’s square shape, in particular 1671 to 1679 thanks to the architect Sir William Bruce.

Deana near the fountain in the forecourt of the Palace of Holyroodhouse

Queen Elizabeth II spends a week at Holyrood Palace each summer when there is a formal ceremony where the mayor of Edinburgh gives here a ceremonial key to the city and then she returns it to him for safe keeping.  At this time there are numerous official ceremonies and engagements.

The tour gives you a pretty good idea of the history that has been seen by the tapestries and woodwork that grace this wonderful palace.  The palace has also seen its share of dark days.  In March 1566, Mary, Queen of Scots (we seems to be running into her a lot) witnessed the murder of her private secretary, David Rizzio.  Her husband of just one year, Henry Stewart (Lord Darnley), and several nobles used the private stairs from Lord Darnley’s apartment to enter the Queen’s apartment where she was eating supper with Rizzio and several others.  They dragged Rizzio through the Queen’s bedchamber into her outer chamber and stabbed the Italian 56 times dinner.

The abbey of the Palace of Holyroodhouse, that fell into disrepair after the Scottish Reformation in 1570’s

After the tour exited the Palace we were able to take pictures in the abbey.  The abbey was looted in 1544, during the War of Rough Wooing, and after the Scottish Reformation the abbey was left in disrepair and some parts were actually pulled down in 1570.  But you can see how the palace was simply built around the abbey.

The “new” palace (on the left) was built around the remaining structure of the abbey (on the right)

After the Holyrood we walked up the Royal Mile to see it from the lower end before Hopping back onto our bus to return to the start of the tour.  We then walked along Rose Street where we found a nice pub for dinner.

Unusual building at the bottom of the “Royal Mile” in Edinburgh

In the evening the Royal Tattoo was doing dress rehearsals at the entrance to Edinburgh Castle so we got to see some of the fireworks, from our room at the CastleView House.

A few of the fireworks being tested prior to the Royal Tattoo ceremony that will take place in a couple of days.

Day 14 – July 31 – Linlithgo & Glasgow

Edinburgh Castle from our new hotel “CastleView”

We said our good-byes to everyone on the tour and thanked Roy for an absolutely outstanding job on guiding us around Scotland.  We then moved hotels to the CastleView Guest House on Castle Street, with …. you guessed it, views of the castle, Edinburgh Castle that is.  The Edinburgh Festival is set to start on Saturday, along with the Fringe Festival and the city is in mad preparation mode. The odd street is being closed down to accommodate the various live entertainers and street vendors and the city is real bee-hive of activity.  Although it might have been interesting to be here during the festival, it looks like it is going to be a bit of a zoo and we’re thinking we’re just getting out in time.  After dropping our bags at our new lodgings we headed for the train station and a trip to Glasgow.  Our tour didn’t stop in Glasgow but we’ve heard that it’s worth at least a day trip if that’s all the time you have.  The trains for Glasgow leave at least every 30 min and so we didn’t have to wait long until the train arrived.

Old view of Linlithgow Palace

The Linlithgow news – had to include this

A few stops after we leave Edinburgh the intercom on the train announces that the next stop is Linlithgow.  Our friend Martin had mentioned that he and Byron had spent some time there and really enjoyed Linlithgow Palace.  As well, Martin told us that Blackness Castle is his brother’s favourite place.  So we jumped off the train at the Linlithgow stop and started to explore the town.  It’s a pretty quiet place with lots of character. Small little shops and craftsmen working on restoring a few of the old buildings.  It was easy to find the palace and we got the bus times for access to Blackness Castle at the local TI (Tourist Information).

We wandered into Linlithgow Palace and we immediately saw why Martin and Byron found it such a treasure.  This is described as a Palace not a Castle so you don’t have to go through 7 different lines of defence to see where people actually lived.  There were local school children dressed in period clothes giving tours of the castle, but we got the guide book and started exploring on our own.  This is the perfect castle for exploring on your own.  There seems to be no end of small passageways to follow and just see where they go.  One other noteworthy accomplishment is that this is the birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots.  There is some evidence that there might have been some prehistoric or Roman settlement in this area and there might also have been two Crannogs (see Day 9 when we visited Crannogs near Kenmore) here as well in the loch.

Deana looking out over the Loch and the 2 Crannogs seen along the shore

 

The first royal residence was created here in the 1100’s.  David I was the first monarch to build here and the town developed from this time as well. In 1424 a fire swept through Linlithgow leading James I to tackle the rebuilding of the palace.  The castle’s design is fairly simple, a square with an inner courtyard with a fountain in the center.

The center court with its fountain

Deana just loves the circular staircases …. NOT!

 

 

Now that’s a kitchen stove!

 

Picture two young girls of this era, trying to share a secret …. then note the iPhone and the one in the green is probably standing watch so as to not be caught ‘out of character’

 

A worker applying filler to assist with the restoration work of a stone carving that has suffered at the hands of the elements.

 

On December 8, 1542, Mary Queen of Scots was born at Linlithgow Palace and 6 days later her father, James V dies and Mary succeeds him to the throne.

King James the VI

 

But she only remained here for 7 months and after an arrangement is made in July 1543 for her to marry Edward, Prince of Wales, her mother moved her to Stirling Castle to provide better safety (see Day 13 to see Stirling Castle).

Wood carving of Mary, Queen of Scots on the pulpit of St. Michael’s church, where she was baptized.

 

The South (stern) end of Blackness Castle

After Linlithgow Palace we caught a cab for Blackness Castle on the Firth of Forth. Eddie our cabbie was very informative as we drove the short distance to the castle and pointed out several interesting sights and good restaurants on the 15 drive.  He also agreed to pick us up and return us to the Linlithgow train station. We crossed the very long Firth of Forth rail bridge when we went to St. Andrews to play golf at the start of our trip.  We then travelled on the vehicle bridge after we started our Tour and went to Culross.  We could just barely make out Culross from Blackness Castle as the Firth of Forth is very wide at this point.

Looking North and East from Blackness Castle. Note the two bridges in the upper right corner, over the Firth of Fourth.

 

The center tower of Blackness Castle

Blackness Castle is known as ‘the ship that never sailed’ due to its nautical appearance, long and thin with the short tower closest to the water and facing North is known as the “Stem” tower.  The tallest tower, in the middle, is the ‘main mast’ tower and the one furthest inland is known as the ‘stern’ tower.

Although it was originally built for the Crichton family in the 1440’s, James II seized it just a few years after it was completed and it remained in Crown ownership.  Over it’s life it was used for strategic defence on the Firth of Forth as a heavily armed garrison fortress, then a state prison and then finally as an ammunition depot(1870’s). Originally, the outer wall facing the East, the direction from which ships would approach by sea, was only 1.5 m. thick, in the 1530’s the castle takes on a much more defensive posture and the walls are thickened to provide better resistance, closer to their present thickness of 5.5 m.  Although this was thought of as a palace for the Crichton family, it clearly was destined to be used for defence and as such there was an emphasis on defence over comfort.

This hole is believed to be damage from one of the cannon balls from Cromwell’s cannons.

The castle was viewed as “impregnable” until 1651 when Cromwell’s forces invaded Scotland and pounded the south wall from the hillside, literally behind the castle. The large cannon fire left its mark on the castle.

We then continued on our trip to Glasgow and started with the “Self-Guided Tour” described in the Rick Steves guidebook.

Glasgow pedestrian street

 

One of the first things that strikes you when you walk out of the train station is that this is not Edinburgh.  The guide books tell you of this, but until you see for yourself it isn’t so obvious.  Every second shop isn’t trying to sell you a souvenir and it appears that the people walking the street are locals, for the most part.

An ornate building in the heart of town, with a peacock at the top.

 

The peacock on the top

 

The easy to miss entrance to The Lighthouse.

One of the first stops on the walking tour was “The Lighthouse”.  This houses the Scotland Center for Architecture and Design.  This building had a number of exhibits as you work your way up the floors.  One of the more interesting was the work that has been done creating habitats in Antarctica.  Jeff took the opportunity to climb the 130+ stairs to the top of the “Water Tower” to get a better view of the city.  From here he could see the different architectures from a new perspective.

A view from the top of the water tower at The Lighthouse

 

Old and New

 

Even the Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art can’t just have it’s roman columns, a bronze of a famous father on horseback, without having a little fun with the facade.

The Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art …. with a twist

 

We continued to walk though the streets, enjoying the different views.  Due to our earlier detour to Linlithgow we didn’t have time to visit the Glasgow School of Art.  It would have been interesting but we still got to see just how different this city is.

The city is proud of imprint Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s Art Nouveau influence has brought to the city.  Below, the “Hatrack” Building features the elaborate rooftop iron work that demonstrates the Glaswegian (pronounced like “Norwegian”) architecture.

The “Hatrack” building

The “Hatrack”

 

A short subway ride to the West End of town found the restaurant that Roy had recommended the Ubiquitous Chip. The menu has a line below the “game” dishes, such as venison “ Please be aware that our game dishes may contain shot”.  That gets you thinking…..

The Ubiquitous Chip restaurant

 

The food and beer was good and once the rain showers started it was just a short trip back to the subway and then the train ride back to Edinburgh.