The Giant's Causeway

Today was much better than yesterday. First we had a tour of Derry (which is what I call it; were I Protestant, I would call it "Londonderry") by a guy who was both entertaining and incredibly moving when talking about "The Troubles" in Northern Ireland and the peace that has lately been reigning. We almost cried, listening to him. Also, his accent was endlessly entertaining. The Northern Irish accent is much stronger than what we'd been hearing so far. He took us up on the old walls of the city, but we only got to see part of them, so Travalon and I vowed to come back.


After the tour, our group drove to the Giant's Causeway, an amazing natural formation of hexagonal basalt pillars each about a foot and a half across, so it looks like a giant stone beehive from the top and a pipe organ from the side.. We climbed out onto it - no big deal for someone used to the rocks at Devil's Lake - and I took lots of photos, one of which turned out really well. The reason it is called the Giant's Causeway is that the mythical giant Finn McCool created it to walk across the sea to Scotland to fight another giant, over a woman, of course.


Back in Derry, Travalon and I took our laundry to a laundrette, where they do it for you, since this town does not have a good old do-it-yourself laundromat. Then we had lunch at a very authentic Irish pub recommended by a drunk guy who had asked us if we were tourists. Because Northern Ireland is not as touristy as the Republic, it seems more real. People were watching rugby and what we call soccer on TVs and cheering on their teams, and the food was much better than at touristy pubs. There is sort of a British veneer over things around here, like the wake-up call and elevator talk in the Queen's English, but underneath things are very, very Gaelic. I would recommend Derry as a great place to visit, despite what I might have said about it yesterday. The people we encountered today were unfailingly friendly and helpful.


Travalon and I walked along the city walls, making the whole circuit, which is about a mile. Then we went to Mass at the Cathedral, St. Eugene's, and it was just like Mass back home, unlike the one we went to in Cork. They had vigil Masses at 6:15 and 7:30. So far my fears about finding Mass here have been completely unfounded - they always have them at wonderfully convenient times. Now we don't have to worry about finding one in Belfast tomorrow.


Famous Hat