A quiet Sunday....

Since the 39+ beds will be stripped in a few hours and the washers and dryers running full steam ahead, I have come to the basement early on Sunday to do up my little bit of laundry and sit in the library to check Facebook. The server is so intermittent in the flat. It kicks me off every 20 minutes or so and then isn’t available for an hour….goofy but works fine in the basement library!!  And what better place to be than in a room surrounded by shelves and shelves of books…and stacks and stacks in the floor. Kind of reminds me of home!

Later....

Worship at 11 am at Newcastle Baptist. On the way we passed Newcastle Centre where a crowd had assembled. When we got closer, I saw that there was a group of men in formal military attire with flags of various armed forces. Dozens of people had gathered around them and across the street.  Many were wearing the small paper poppy lapel flowers.  Veterans Day, once called Armistice Day, is observed here and probably in all the countries of the allies.

We arrived at the church and parked on the street rather than in the small carpark. We had come early for that reason! As we walked in, Bebe spoke to a young gal verifying the time of worship. She confirmed it was 11 and said she was going down to the ‘remembrance’ and would be back. The service actually didn't begin until about 11:15 to allow those at the remembrance to slip in.   The service was good, worship songs reminded me of melodies connected to the Crusades (middle ages, not Billy Graham). I wasn’t familiar with the lyrics. Prayers of thanksgiving were offered for those who gave their lives in WWI, WWII and Afghanistan.  The young pastor preached an excellent sermon on Mark 5. After the dismissal for worship, a few left and the remainder adjusted for the communion service. The pastor read from Isaiah…portions of four different “songs” of Isaiah. None of the “bread and wine” passages were read. However, it was meaningful.

We were happy to have Cynthia Swavey, recently retired Murlough House manager, share the pew with us! She is just back from a 6 week or so visit to all of her family spread across Canada and the west and Midwest US.  She was happy to be back where there is moisture and mountains. It was too dry and too flat for her in some places!! We chatted a bit and confirmed our luncheon date for tomorrow. We asked her about a place mentioned in the announcements, Mulberry Tree, a restaurant in Seaforde. She thought it was probably open so that was our plan for lunch. They were not open so we returned to Dundrum and had lunch at a small café, The Blue Bay. I had a “Veggie Fry” which was breakfast with mushrooms and tomatoes in addition to sausage and egg and wheaten bread toast and soda bread and potato bread.  Don’t you wish I’d taken a picture of all that bread? Sorry…forgot but it was all yummy!

Bridge to Keel Point...about 1 mile from
Murlough House. Tide is in. (Google photo)

(I had a bit of a scrape parking the car which I will not elaborate on. Just know that the man I hit was surprised that I got out of the car to see about him instead of driving off.  I’ll have some ‘splaining to do tomorrow!!)

Back at Murlough House to say farewell to the Bangor Grammar School group. The drains did not function this morning either. He wasn’t able to contact anyone….ooops!!  I had hoped to walk down the Murlough Lane and take some photos of the bay but it’s overcast and cloudy so that will have to happen on another day.

Google photo of Royal Mail...

Bits and Pieces:

The red vehicle is called the Patmobile. This comes from a children’s animated tv show about Postman Pat who drives a
small red Royal Mail car. I guess his mail truck is called a Patmobile.

Murlough House's Patmobile!

Deirdre and the security officer at County Down Museum both said that their teachers in primary school had taught the geography of County Down saying it was like eggs in a basket. Now picture eggs in a basket…not a flat place in the pile, is there? I’d say that’s a good description!

There is a huge abandoned mansion just off the road bDundrum and Clough. It’s high on the hill and the roof is missing. There is a sign at the road that says, “for sale….once in a lifetime opportunity.” It is said that the mansion has 365 windows….one for each day of the year. I don’t know who owned it but wouldn’t it take a couple of fortunes to restore it?

Downpatrick...

So glad I’m a volunteer…..reason will become obvious in a few sentences. The shower in the flat needs to run a bit to get hot so I typically turn it on and go do a couple of things. I did that this morning. When I returned to hot steamy water, I saw that the shower was filled and overflowing. I turned off the water, cleared the drain and then showered…but had to turn the water off a couple of times as the drain wasn’t clearing. Later as Bebe and I were getting ready to leave, I noticed a bucket in the downstairs hallway sitting area and water splashed all around. I looked up and saw where it was leaking….directly under the boys’ shower room. Checking with their leaders, we learned that the drains in the shower room were not working. So my shower drain is a part of a bigger problem. Bebe and I continued our plan to go to Downpatrick for the day and the leader contacted Sarah, the house manager.

We stopped in Dundrum for cash at the “hole in the wall”. My bank debit card would not work…said it was not authorized. Yesterday my credit card wouldn’t work because it doesn’t have the imbedded chip. I used my Travel Visa and got cash. Even when you notify your bank, getting money in a foreign country is not without some challenges!  Being armed with pounds, we stopped for breakfast at the Dundrum Tea Shop. I had soda bread with bacon. Bacon here is more like breakfast ham.

It's a bright sunny day here, not rainy like yesterday. It's cool but light jacket weather. The roses are still blooming!

We drove to Downpatrick and went first to the St. Patrick Visitor Centre. The long video was unavailable and they had some technical issues with the shorter one. We browsed the gift shop while that was resolved and then watched the ten minute video. Great scenic views on a wide, wide screen…actually there were 5 screens so it was quite a panoramic view. Much of it was shot from a helicopter so there were great landscapes!  From there we went to the County Down Museum housed in a very old gaol/jail. The visitor centre is at the bottom of the hill and the museum at the top. Steps have been installed. I think there must have been ten sets of ten steps each…… At the top, we headed first for the tea shop for a cold drink! Quite a climb!! Out of breath….. So we also had a snack! I had a Fifteen!

Old gaol/jail County Down Museum next to
 modern structures.

We spent a couple of hours in the museum.  The first thing we saw was some gold bracelets…about 3,000 years old…that’s the same time period as King David! There were people in Ireland even before then! The museum is well done. We had only been able to spend about 40 minutes there last year so we were glad to be able to return with more time. The walls pictured to the left surround the 2-3 buildings that make up the jail complex. There is an "exercise" yard also. The walls you see are not a part of the jail building.

As I was leaving the Exhibition Hall on the second floor (3rd the way Americans count), the museum guide asked if I preferred to take the lift (elevator). I said maybe I would. The climb up the steps outside had been enough for one day. She replied, "didn't you think you'd be in heaven after you climbed all those steps?" Well, I hadn't but it certainly was a lot of steps!!

A typical gravestone in the cemetary at Downpatrick

Grave Marker for St. Patrick

From the museum it was up the hill a bit further. We had seen the cathedral last year but wanted another look. We had a nice chat with the gift shop clerk/guide. We also went to the marker in the cemetery for St. Patrick’s grave although it is believed that his grave is actually under the present cathedral which was built in 1787.  In the 11^th century, there were Augustinian canons there. In 1188, a community of Benedictine monks were there at the abbey. People have worshipped in this location since the time of St. Patrick, 432 A.D. and in this building since 1787. This is an Anglican or Church of Ireland ediface. It is officially called the Holy Trinity Cathedral. Anglicans, Roman Catholics and Protestants all seem to claim St. Patrick!

Now we had the descent to the carpark! From there we stopped at MacDonald’s!! We had our first diet coke WITH ICE since our arrival. We got a Big Tasty with fries. Love Deirdre’s cooking but had missed those fries!! For dessert, we had a Cadbury Carmel McFlurry---bet you can’t get that in the US!!

We are having a quiet evening in the flat. The internet keeps going off and on. I had a few more pics but they don't want to load so see the FB page for the ones of the interior of the cathedral. It seems colder inside this evening that it was outside this afternoon. I'm wrapped in two blankets!

The Pit of Despair.....

The salaried staff had a long meeting on Wednesday, not finishing until nearly lunch time. Bebe and I busied ourselves with personal things. After lunch the Bible study group came. Bebe had asked me to lead this week. It’s always a bit slow the first time you lead a group and I hadn’t been able to join them last week. I think it went well. There was a lot of participation. I shared about my experience at the Belfast Street Ministry and my concern for a day laborer here at MH. When we came to the passage “to live is Christ, to die is gain”, I shared about the death of my friend Mary Zechman this week. She has been a wonderful example of faith through suffering to many of us.  Following the Bible study, Bebe led the book discussion. No one had read it so she gave an overview and encouraged them to get a copy. They recommended another one for the next book discussion. However, out of that discussion we learned a bit about our little group. One of the women “winters” in Malta and has for 25 years. She had much insight on the situation of Malta during WWII. Another of the women served as a nurse in what is now Zambia (then N. Rhodesia).

There was a flurry of urgency in getting out the November Prayer Calendar today….although I have been ready with the format for several days. But I worked until 8:30 pm getting it printed, folded and stuffed. The envelopes had to be stamped with the return address, labeled and stamps affixed. Deirdre and Bebe helped a lot with the stuffing process and we got them finished!!  In the midst of all this, supper was mentioned. I suggested that I continue working and Bebe and Deirdre go to Dundrum for either Chinese or pizza. They were up for that! So it was Chinese food for American and Irish women in Ireland!!

After the work was done, we sat and chatted and chatted and then a bit more! Richard was making a cake for Cynthia’s birthday and covered it with marzipan. I had never tasted marzipan so I snitched a bit…oh my….my new love! Yummy!! Michelle skyped from Florida to ask about her knitting project. I could see and hear her but she could only see me. Her daughter (about 12) tried to troubleshoot but no solution. Afterwards I messaged the IT guy, David. He walked me through some troubleshooting but again no solution. It has to do with my microphone but I can’t figure out how to check it…keep getting in a loop of questions with the result being…microphone needs to be checked. Ah, the joys of computing!

Thursday morning was for errands! Dropped the prayer calendars at the post office, went to the Oasis and stripped more beds, washed dishes that were in the warmer, Hoovered (that is vacuumed to my American friends) and returned the larger dinner plates to Murlough House. So many details involved in having three properties with this ministry! 

Deirdre made a great lunch….chicken, mashed potatoes, peas, cabbage and cake! When there are no teams we don’t always have grand meals but today it was!!

Deirdre, Bebe and I went to Newcastle to Lydl’s (grocery). We returned, renewed and checked out more books at the library. I had noticed that the stamp pad in the office needed ink so I set out to buy a bottle of ink or a new stamp pad. I went to four shops and nothing was available. One kind chap offered to order one for me. I told him I would see if we could get one on our stationery order. He said if I ‘still struggled’, I could let him know and he would order it. Interestingly, there are many shops but it’s hard to find a lot of things.

Earlier I had tried to print the Christmas fliers for distribution. The colour on Joan’s printer is not right and they decided they needed glossy paper. I just did the envelopes and will wait for those issues to be resolved.

We had toast and tea for supper with Black Currant jam…my favorite here!! We also had to put away the Tesco order…groceries that are delivered. While I was in the larder I saw a jar of Banoffee!! I didn’t know it was a common thing when I had the Banoffee Pie last weekend. Oh…I must get some of that! The larder has two ways to enter…one is called the Pit of Despair….very steep stairs.

There is a self-catered group coming in on Friday evening so Deirdre, Bebe and I spent the morning getting the kitchen ready. That includes removing foodstuffs from two refrigerators, removing lots of other items, thoroughly cleaning both the kitchen and the washup/prep room and then mopping the floors. Bebe and I also had to carry things upstairs to the apt. kitchen. We are not to use the big kitchen while the group is here. That was a big job!! I had done my ten flights of stairs before noon today!

We stopped at 11 for a time of prayer with Alan and Sarah. It was a sweet half hour. Remember us in your  prayers too!

Deirdre doesn’t drive. She lives near Banbridge and MH provides her transport to and from work so Bebe and I took her home today. She comes for 3-5 days at a time and stays in the apt. It was raining when we took off. The road that doesn’t flood is closed for resurfacing so we had to take the second choice. When we got to Banbridge, she directed me to The Green Bean, a coffee shop. We had lunch…great sandwiches on ciabatta bread, then great lattes and wonderful desserts. We each had one dessert but split it 3 ways so we could taste the carrot cake, the raspberry almond tart and the carmel coconut bars. We passed on the Fifteens. We’ll try them another time.

We had talked about going to the Bronte Interpretation Centre but with the rain, we decided to pass today. There are several sites near Banbridge about the Bronte sisters and their father.

We dropped Deirdre in Banbridge town to meet a friend and then we went to the Outlet Mall. We had tried to go to Ferguson’s Linen but they closed at noon on Friday. We were looking for a shop with sweaters or a linen shop. I did get a sweater, not exactly what I had in mind but nice!  When we arrived at the mall, a passerby made a comment about the weather. I replied and he said “is that an American accent?” I admitted it. He told me his daughter lives in Chicago. Everyone here seems to have someone in America. And they all comment on our accent!

We found lots of nice things but didn’t purchase much.  We left the mall at 4:45, a bit later than we’d planned. I wanted to get home before dark as the narrow winding roads are even more difficult at night. It was dark by 5:15…..with half an hour yet to go on the road. All went well…well except for one little bump! I didn’t see a curb.

So we are camped out in the wee apartment. Sarah greeted the group of Scripture Union kids, 39 boys and 4 leaders. She went home after orientation. Hopefully we won’t have any interaction with them but we will be here….just in case. The sitting room upstairs isn't as cozy as the end of the grand hall but it works! And the good thing is that I have been able to get wi-fi here tonight! It often doesn't work in the apartment.

This morning (Tuesday) I felt I had overslept, awaking at 8 am. I showered and took my laundry down to the basement. There were two heaping baskets of towels to fold which I did. Then I made a pot of coffee, put away the two drainers full of clean dishes left from last night and made my way down the hall to reread the devotions I had prepared for today’s staff meeting.

Bebe soon joined me, delighted to have coffee. Shortly after 9 some of the staff began arriving for the day. Richard appeared with a tray laid for tea and had brought along the coffee! Bebe went to the Kairos Staff meeting. I later indirectly learned that our staff meeting for today had been cancelled. This poses a bit of a problem for me as I have been waiting for staff to submit prayer concerns for the November Prayer Calendar. Staff meeting has been cancelled now for the second week and the pressure is on to get the letter out to supporters….but what to put on it? I had the template completed two weeks ago. Perhaps today.  Alan Dumigan also was not notified of the cancelled meeting so we had a nice chat in lieu of the meeting. He had come out from Dundrum. We talked about many things. He did say that Leonard has a  Pensioner's Pass for the bus so he can travel for free.

Richie reminded us that the mini-buses are now painted with the logo and name. They look quite nice!

After lunch Bebe and I were told to go to Oasis to strip the beds that we had made last week (visitors were there over the weekend).  We didn't check the other rooms as we thought there had only been three guests. Later when Deirdre returned to MH, we learned that although we had needed to make up only one room last week, several (that were already made up) were used because it had been a group so we will have to go back and strip the rest of the beds. English…a great language but not always good for communication.

On the return from the Oasis, we diverted into Newcastle to the Wool Shop. I wanted Eleanor to check my work on one piece and I needed to buy more yarn! She said I could get two projects out of one skein and that I should just weigh the ‘wool’ to see when it was about half. Yep, the kitchen scale weighs in grams! Oh...and yes, we did see Leonard on Main Street!

Deirdre’s “to do” list included cleaning the office so at 8 pm we began that project. One person has left Murlhough House but not cleaned out their things so those were put in a box. Project Evangelism no longer exists as an entity so those things were put in a box. Papers were sorted and sorted! After 3 hours, two bags of trash were removed with the two boxes. We dusted and swept and tidied up. It looks quite nice but in the midst of all the work, I forgot that Michelle was going to Skype. Deirdre explained my absence and we’ll try on Thursday.

In the afternoon I saw what looked like a large colander of blueberries. Richard was working on them and they are sloes….a tart, sour berry that grows wild on either a bush or bramble, I’m not sure. He made the sloes into a syrup to be used in various ways. He said that these are the ingredient in sloe gin but these particular berries will not be introduced to alcohol.

Note: On Saturday when we were in Donegal, we were in the Republic of Ireland. That means the roads were marked in kilometres and the currency was the Euro. Only the province of Ulster is Northern Ireland which uses miles and pounds.

Sunday

Our breakfast at Heron’s Burn included a lady who is returning to Omagh after several years in England. We had a nice chat and she told us that our American accent would be a “ticket”. She said that the Irish would be happy to give us directions just to engage us in some conversation and hear our accent!

The only road marker you see and it's off the road and not visible until you are right on it!

Leaving the B&B we headed to Derry but did take a side trip through Gortin area which was quite scenic. It was in the Sperrin Mountains with wee narrow roads, not wide enough for a car to pass. At least once, the oncoming car pulled over to allow us to pass. The view was amazing but then just about every view in all of Ireland is stunningly beautiful.

The original wall and the added walkway. This is about 20 ft above
ground level so the wall itself is 30 ft. high.

Bishop's Gate

St. Columb's Church inside Derry.

We arrived with the help of the map, the GPS and Wendy’s directions in Londonderry/Derry just as folks were hurrying off to morning worship. We pulled into a carpark near on Bishop Street Within. Then we walked the wall. It’s about a mile all around but we walked from Bishop’s Gate to Newtown Gate and back, then from Bishop’s Gate round past the 14 Sycamores planted in memory of the 13 Apprentices and a leader from the 1689 Siege. A party of 6 was filming a documentary from the cannon rampart. We did go down and walk through a neighborhood.  I was trying to get to the Tower so since the Fire and Rescue Squad was out checking alarm systems, I asked one if he would “rescue” us. He gave us some directions and a bit of history about the place. He noted the red/white/blue paint on the curbs denoting loyalists. The yellow/green would be the republicans. We saw a few of the murals. I asked the firefighter is he was from Derry and he said “no…I’m from Fermanaugh!”  He has been assigned to Derry by nature of his job.

Wherever you are in Ireland, someone is walking the dog!!

We left Derry heading home. We backtracked a part of the route and then used the M1 for a large portion. It is the only four lane highway in N. Ireland and cut a bit of time off our journey! I wanted to eat lunch before the M1 but there were no restaurants or tearooms open that we could find. No pizza places, no Chinese restaurants….everyone is closed on Sunday. Finally, I pulled into a petrol station that also has a quick mart. We were able to get deli sandwiches and crisps and donuts. Junk food delight!

The drive home was uneventful and we arrived back at Murlough House shortly before 4 pm. It was good to be in before dark!

After a restful night we were up for an Irish breakfast complete with potato bread. Bebe asked me why the eggs were so yellow and I told her it was probably due to free range chickens.  We chatted a bit with the B&B folks, Wendy and Richard and dog Bertie….a cute little ten week old  Jack Russell terrier. We had decided to stay over again tonight so made those arrangements as well as asking a few questions about the area.  Richard cleaned the frost off the car and we set out for Belleek by 9:30 a.m. The GPS and map in Bebe’s hand, the steering wheel in mine, we were off!!  Fewer u-turns today and we arrived at Belleek at the exact time the GPS predicted!!

The tour was not available on Saturday but we did see the video…impressive!  I can see now why the larger pottery basket piece with the intricate flowers and open weave cost 1,450 pounds!! A very small one, perhaps a 4 inch oval, with the same type of delicate work was priced at 69 pounds. I bought a few things including a necklace with a Belleek pendant and a lamp for my bedroom! The lamp is NOT available in the US. It is white with clusters of white roses. Stunning! We had tea and pastries in the tearoom  while we pondered what other things we might purchase. The tearoom serves on Belleek pottery and even the finials on the railing are Belleek.  We went back in ready to spend!! The clerk asked if we wanted them shipped directly home so we did. The shipping is expensive but he was able to take off the VAT (value added tax) so that offset the shipping cost. No VAT on shipped orders. The shipping came to about £ 5 instead of £43 with the reduction of 38 pounds for the VAT.  And we don’t have to worry about packing it in our suitcases!

Leaving the town of Belleek, the GPS and map were not extremely helpful. After a couple of obvious wrong roads, I stopped a fellow who was walking along the road. He gave us excellent directions with a beautiful smile! I think he was really laughing at two American women who needed help.  He also suggested that we might be interested in taking road 231 which goes out to the west coast for a bit. We did and it was an excellent suggestion! The drive gave us some grand views. The pics of the canopied trees, however, is typical of the roads we have been traveling in the past two days. The roads are well paved but narrow and winding (I know I've said that but you just cannot imagine!!). They are much more narrow than any of our county roads in Indiana.

Stone fences, farmland, Donegal Bay, Bluestack Mtns.

Farms and Donegal Bay

We were on our way to Donegal. I had my eye open for a cap and scarf like the ones I had seen at the Ulster Folk Park. The tags said Donegal so I assumed I would find a bigger selection in the town itself. That was not a good assumption. We went to at least six shops describing the plaids and not one person had any idea what I meant. They showed us other woolens but not anything like the Donegal socks, hats, scarves, jacket and purses I was looking for. We shopped around, did find a woolen shop for yarn and a couple of other things. We left Donegal at about 3 pm for our drive back to the B&B.  Coming out of town there was an exceptional view of a lough and hillsides. I pulled over and we just got out and enjoyed the scene and took pictures.

Some miscellaneous bits of information….There were signs announcing  ”traffic calming ahead”. That was a cue that there would be speed bumps. They were not so calming to me but I guess it does calm the traffic!! I have complained over and over to Bebe about the lack of adequate road signs. It is so difficult to know where to turn and what road you are on. There are just so few signs. I had to laugh out loud when I saw the sign that said   “no road markings”. At least they admit it!! There was another sign that in two words brought all sorts of thoughts to mind. This sign read  “famine graveyard” .  Even though it was over 150 years ago, it is still very much a part of the picture of Ireland.

We were back at Heron’s Burn by 4:15 pm. We walked out in the yard taking pictures of the sheep behind the house. There is a small bubbling brook that runs between the yard and the pasture. The sound of the brook can be heard from our little terrace. It’s very serene and charming.

One of many sheep in Northern Ireland!!

Since we had not had lunch, we went for an early supper at 5:30 at Sperrin’s.  I’m glad it wasn’t “date night” as I had garlic potatoes and onion smothered steak…all very tasty! Dessert girls that we are, Bebe and I each ordered a dessert and then shared them both. She had chocolate fudge cake with ice cream and I ordered Banoffi Pie. Sorry….no pics….but trust us….yummy!!

This is the chicken that laid the egg that went in the breakfast that Pat and Bebe ate at the B&B where Richard and Wendy live. And she wondered why the eggs were so yellow....free range!!

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!!!