St Patrick's Cathedral, Armagh

The last ten hours have been extraordinary! Bebe and I set off on a mini-trip at 8:30 this morning (Friday). Richie had loaned us a GPS so armed with that and a map, we headed to Armagh which is the birthplace of Christianity in Northern Ireland. St. Patrick may have first preached at Saul and he may be buried at Downpatrick but Armagh was the center of his ministry.  There are two large churches that bear his name in this town. One is the Roman Catholic chapel/cathedral.

Interior of cathedral

TV screens on massive columns

Celtic designs in floor tile.

Construction began on it in 1840 but due to the potato famine, it was not completed until 1873. It is grand and is modeled after the St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. It sits on a hill overlooking the city of Armagh. We spent nearly an hour there just admiring the grandeur of the place. The ceramic tile flooring has Celtic designs. The stations of the Cross are elaborate. The altar area is magnificent. There is a small worship area to the right of the altar. The only thing that seems incongruent is the addition of several tv screens so that people in the alcove areas are able to see the service. 

We left the Catholic church, drove down the hill to the city centre, saw the spire of the Church of Ireland on a hill opposite from the Catholic church and drove back up. A charming young man with a shock of red hair and friendly green eyes met us in the parking area and asked if we were lost. We told him we were looking for the entrance.  He said he works for the department of tourism (or something like that ) and was not happy that the Church of Ireland charges visitors. He told us that he would say we are with him and we would not have to pay. He did just that. Then he invited us to follow him to the Armagh Library. This is a hidden gem!

Gulliver's Travels

We saw an original of Gulliver’s Travels…complete with handwritten notes by author Swift! There were all kinds of wonderful old manuscripts. He also told us to go to #5 to see the Vicar’s rooms. We opted out of that but were interested to learn that St. Patrick had desired to have a monastery.  He did not want to bring people to Christ without having trained priests to continue that discipleship. His dream was attempted some years later but it did not succeed. Those structures were then made into the Vicar’s rooms.  Brian went on his way and after a while, we made our way back to the Church, not paying the fee.

Exterior of Church of Ireland

View from the Church of Ireland

Interior of Church of Ireland

This structure was less ornate. Of course there were no statues of saints or stations of the cross. There was mention of Brian Boru, early Irish hero, and perhaps a favorite name for Irish  boys (as the fellow we met earlier was Brian) and some artifacts from the fourth and twelfth centuries.  I believe this church has a better view of the countryside. All in all, a very good two hours was spent in Armagh.

From there we drove on and on and on. The GPS was helpful and yet…it didn’t tell us to turn until we were right on the spot! And it took me a while to understand the instructions through a roundabout (1st exit, 2nd exit, etc.) but all in all, we did ok. The roads here are narrow and often there is a stone wall at the edge of the road! Many  times the trees on both sides of the road meet to make canopies. The “s” curves and the “z” curves, the many switchbacks and the “vertical curves” make for slow and intense driving. Occasionally there are walkers with dogs or runners or bicycles alongside the road. I told Bebe I didn’t even know how to describe these roads so that you would comprehend the narrowness as well as the fact that “straight road” is seldom experienced. I finally said…it’s worse than Assisi, Italy…which doesn’t mean anything to most people. I guess the real thing is….it’s Europe!!

 We did have one very near “death experience” early in the journey. I almost missed a turn so when I did get turned….I was in the wrong lane. There was a car coming who screeched on the brakes. I also braked and turned sharply to the left. I believe we missed a head on collision by at least four inches! Whew! Thank you Jesus!  After that, any missed turns were handled by driving on past and then backtracking.

We had packed a lunch so we ate it as I drove. We arrived at Ulster Folk Park at 1:30 pm. This is similar to a Williamsburg with a typical 1850 era Irish village. There are homes with thatched roofs, an old Presbyterian meeting house, a weaver’s home and similar buildings complete with guides in period clothing telling the history. Then you “board a ship” for America. They explain that this small ship held nearly 200 sleeping six to a bed. The beds were all connected to one another and the buckets for "the necessary" were underneath the beds. It was a six to twelve week journey in this cramped, dark, smelly, dirty belly of the ship. The destination was Baltimore or Boston and hopefully they survived on one meal a day of thin broth. I cannot imagine how what shape they would have been in. Twelve weeks of dismal conditions with a very low ceiling so they were stooped over or in the bed for all that time. The stench would have been nauseating. We exited the “ship” to arrive in an American city of 1850. These people were leaving Ireland during the potato famine. The shops and homes of the US were brighter. One guide pointed out that Irish homes were made of stone and American homes were made of timber. We noticed right away that the Irish homes had stone fences…which we see even today all around the countryside. The American fences in the park were split rail. The park was well done and interesting.

The last building had a nice gentleman who was very impressed that we had come all the way from Murlough in one day even stopping in Armagh. At that point in the day, so were we!! The drive had been beautiful. The leaves are beginning to turn but the grass remains "summer" green. I told Bebe that when you drive through this area, you just say "ooohhh" and "aaahhh" so much that they named the towns Omagh and Armagh.

We found the B&B. Bebe had made the reservations via phone and the connection at Murlough House is not very good. She said we were looking for Helen's Bane. We drove up and down the road. Bebe wondered about one place but we weren't sure. Then she put the address in the GPS. We had passed it. Turn around and go back....to Heron's Burn! Wendy and her husband greeted us warmly, settled us in the double ensuite room, brought tea and biscuits, answered our questions about a place for dinner and times to get to our Saturday adventures. We also asked about Derry (Londonderry) as we have decided to stay another day rather than make this drive again. You cannot image how tiring these 70 or so miles have been!!

We took their suggestion and drove down to the Sperrin Restaurant which is also the name of the mountains in this area-Sperrin, not restaurant. We had a good supper and I saw that Strawberry Pavlova was on the dessert menu. I have heard about this "pavlova" so I was eager to try it. Bebe ordered one too! We were not disappointed. Meringue with whipped cream and strawberries!!!