Ireland

Wow what a week it's been since my last blog. The first week of travel since the conclusion of Contiki and it didn't disappoint living up to my expectations and more. First stop was Belfast, flying out on Sunday afternoon before the Queen's jubilee celebrations kicked off around the UK. Despite a delayed flight nothing could dampen my excitement for the week ahead. After a flight shorter than that between Adelaide and Melbourne I had landed in Belfast and had arrived at the hostel we would be staying at in the centre of Belfast, much to the excitement of Kathy, Adrienne and Aaron who I would be sharing the next week with.
That night was spent catching up on recent events before our first day of sightseeing the next day. We started the day with a black cab tour through West Belfast, the area of Belfast where the Catholic and Protestant communities are located and the place famous for the start of IRA troubles throughout the 20th Century in Northern Ireland. As a spare of the moment decision to take this tour it was certainly one of the highlights. It was a real shock to hear stories of civil unrest based almost solely on a minor difference in religious preference. Yet there is a wall which separates the two communities similar to that located in Berlin topped with barbed wire at times, a no mans land and barricades which are closed for a period each night to prevent any traffic between the two areas.

A memorial in the Catholic area of Western Belfast to those who have died
as a direct result of IRA troubles.

It was also particularly interesting to see the difference in English patriotism between the Catholic and Protestant neighbourhoods. In the Catholic area there was not a union jack to be seen, but cross over to the other side of the fence and the area was covered in English flags and Union Jacks as well as Queen Elizabeth paraphernalia. Other highlights in Belfast was the Belfast Cathedral which was housing a wedding at the time, as well as the Town Hall and the port.

After a game of king of beers and a late watching of Despicable Me we were off on our 7 hour bus trip through the Irish Midlands and into Galway, a city of 85,000 in the west of the Irish republic. In itself it was a beautiful city but it was just a place to stop for the night before heading out to the Cliffs of Moher and Burren National Park. In Galway itself there was again a very nice Cathedral and a beautiful walk along the river to get to it as well as a busy pub and club district. The highlight of the trip though was the bus tour we took to the Cliffs of Moher through Buren National Park. In my opinion, these cliffs were the most at awe I've been of nature, along with the Swiss Alps covered in Snow. The coach drive through picturesque surrounds in Burren was nice in itself but our arrival at the cliffs was simply breathtaking and the weather made it even more amazing, with sun and minimal breeze making it a perfect sight. 

Our final stop on our travels was Dublin and unfortunately this stage was slightly tarnished by some poor weather. This was a real shame because it seemed like a city with so much to see historically and from lots of different periods throughout history. It is most famously known as the home of the Celts who were a race which originated from the time of the Romans. This being said we still had a great time, exploring Dublin castle and the Temple Bar district as well as the Guinness Storehouse, one of Dublin's most famous sights. Our last night was spent exploring the bars and pubs of the Temple Bar district. Not only was this our last night together as a group but also the last night out that Kathy would have as she heads back to Australia after 3 months of travel.

Anyway, Im now back to the 'normality' of life back in Bovey Tracey. Unfortunately the weather of late hasn't been great and this is expected to continue for a little while longer. Our game on saturday was rain reduced but we won retaining top spot. I am also entering my second week of work at the Mt Pleasant Health Centre and have an expected 4 games of cricket in the next week, weather permitting.

As hard as it is to believe, I am almost half way through my stay overseas! The time certainly has flown but both Aaron and I have quickly realised how much we have to take advantage of our remaining time left over here. Can't wait to see what the next couple of months have left in store for us.

Until next time,
Watch this space.
Dillon