Friday, 21 September 2012
Some had little sleep last night (this morning). It is “fresher” week at the university, so the students were celebrating outside. It was very noisy for rooms on the street until 3:00-4:00 AM. There was no relief, even when the cops arrived!
Today we are doing a “day trip”, traveling north to the Antrim Coast.
First, a short stop at Carrickfergus Castle for some photos and a walk around. The castle (built in 1177), had an important military role for 800 years. Besieged in turn by the Scots, Irish, English and French, the castle saw action until 1928.
Just down the road we took a short break at a small convenience store by Carnlough harbor for toilets and a snack. Here was my first cup of Irish Tea with milk. I drink lots of English tea, but never the “English” way with milk—now I am hooked! The Irish drink an average of 4 to 6 cups of tea per day.
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We stopped by the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge for a group photo. The rope bridge is 90 feet above the rocks, linking the mainland to tiny island of Carrickarede. Yikes, I’ll take a pass on crossing that!
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According to Irish myth, a path was laid to Scotland by the Irish giant Finn McCool. Geological studies show that this striking landscape was caused by volcanic activity some 50-60 million years ago. We each had audio guides to explain the history and points of interest along the walking trails, including “sites” associated with the legendary giant Finn McCool.
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Patrick walks into a bar in Dublin, orders three pints of Guinness and sits in the corner of the room, drinking a sip out of each pint in turn.
When he had finished all three, he went back to the bar and ordered three more.
The barman says, "You know a pint goes flat soon after I pull it ... your pint would taste better if you bought one at a time."
Patrick replies, "Well now, I have two brodders, one is in America and de odder in Australia and here I am in Dublin.
When we all left home, we promised dat we'd drink dis way to remember de days we all drank togedder."
The barman admits that this is a nice custom and says no more.
Patrick becomes a regular customer and always drinks the same way ... ordering three pints and drinking a sip out of each in turn, until they are finished.
One day, he comes in and orders just two pints. All the other regulars in the bar notice and fall silent.
When he goes back to the bar for the second round, the barman says, "I don't want to intrude on your grief but I wanted to offer my condolences on your great loss."
Patrick looks confused for a moment, then the penny drops and he starts to laugh, "Oh no," he says, "Bejesus, everyone is fine!
Tis me ... I've quit drinking!"
After dinner, there was a very good Irish band in the hotel lounge. Some of the group enjoyed the music and watching the locals dancing. Two popular songs in Ireland were written by Americans: “Galway Girl” written by Steve Earle from Texas and “Forty Shades of Green” written by Johnny Cash. “Click to Listen”