A causeway to Scotland destroyed by a grandmother (1 November 2024)

 


Autumn is now in full swing with leaves of different hues everywhere.  The change of season was apparent in France too, but not as noticeable as the temperatures were quite mild.  Here in Dublin and now Belfast it is 12-13 degrees and overcast, although we did have a few moments of sun on our first day in Dublin. 

 

We had decided to stay an extra night in Belfast and that necessitated a relocation of bags to another hotel.   I also wanted to see if I could replace the headphones  I have lost along the way.  I found the right place but they were more expensive than if I bought them in NZ. 

 

It had been recommended by our friends M and A that we should visit the Giants Causeway.  It was about 90 kilometres from Belfast, about an hour and a half drive.  We left much later than intended but got there just after lunchtime.  

 

The Giants Causeway was a result of volcanic activity 60 million years ago.  However, a couple of legends were told of the causeway.  One legend has it that an “Irish giant named Finn McCool created a causeway to get across the Irish Sea to face his rival, the Scottish giant Benandonner. Following their fearsome meeting, Benandonner ripped up the causeway as he fled back to Scotland, leaving what is now seen. Finn McCool's giant boot also lies fossilised at the Giant's Causeway.” 

 

The other story has it that the causeway was built for love rather than battle.  In that story Finn builds the causeway to get to a beautiful Scottish maiden in Scotland.  Alas his grandmother has other ideas and uses magic to cause storms that rip up the causeway.  Eventually his able to get to his beloved but dies in her arms.  The grandmother wanting to seeing what has happened climbs to the top of a hill and horrified what she has done turns to stone.


 

We took what was meant to be the harder walking route to the “causeway” but the only difficulty was when we got to the causeway and clambered onto it.  I had expected it to be much longer than it was.  The photos I had seen suggested so.  The rocks themselves were quite amazing, almost hexagonal in shape and stacked in columns.

Enjoying being on the Causeway

Giant's Causeway

The grandmothers boot

 

We found out why the blue route was labelled hard when we then climbed up the side of a cliff giving us some very good views of the causeway. 

 

Before heading back to Belfast, we stopped for scones at the tearooms in the hotel there.

 

That night we went for dinner to a really beautiful pub called The Crown Bar.  It was in its original Victorian splendour including a number of snugs.  The decoration of the bar and the ceiling were amazing.  Apparently the original builder of the pub had hired Italian craftsmen who were working on the catholic cathedral to undertake the work in their downtime.  Even outside the pub the elaborate decoration made it stand out from its neighbours.  The building is owned by National Heritage and run by Nicholsons (formerly Bass). Nearly a million pounds ($NZ2m) was spent by both parties bringing it back to its full Victorian glory. 

 

Belfast is an interesting city.  There was little evidence of the “troubles” where we were staying but it was suggested that tensions are still there.  The centre of the city felt safe.  It was easy to get around and looked reasonably prosperous.  It certainly was  full of people eating and drinking.  Many of the streets are pedestrianised and while there are not a lot of cars in the city centre there were lots of people around

 




The cliffs around the Giant's Causeway

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