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| Carrickfergus Castle, one of the fine sights along the Antrim Coast Road. This is Ireland's first and most impressive Norman fortress. Unfortunately as I had to make headway on the roads in order to reach the Giant's Causeway, so a photo by the roadside had to suffice. =) Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| The long and winding road... This is the one of the most famous drives in the world, the Antrim Coast Road, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012). Besides being very scenic, it is also filled with lots of snake bends and blind spots. |
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| Blind ascent! This is one of the blind spots... the lanes always merge when approaching a tunnel or bend so need to be more careful and alert when driving this road. The Antrim Coast Road, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Marina with a view... Even the policemen were admiring the view of Torr Head while on duty. =D Ballycastle, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Moored boats... View of Torr Head from Ballycastle, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Flagging out the mountain! These coloured flags were put up in anticipation of the Summer Olympics that was to be held in the United Kingdom that August. View of Torr Head from Ballycastle, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| The look of tranquility... Boats moored in the Ballycastle Marina. Ballycastle, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| What a big head! =D View of Torr Head from Ballycastle, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012). |
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| Dream high! Children of Lir Sculpture is a sculpture of swans in flight. This was modelled after the Children of Lir, an Irish legend, where the 4 children of Lir (a Sea God in Irish mythology) were turned into swans by their evil step-mother, Aoife, who was consumed with jealousy of their love for one another, including their father, Lir. Ballycastle, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Misty Sheep Island... A view that would stop the driver on a steep slope, pulled up the handbrake, whipped out her camera just to take a pic of this! Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Rugged beauty in the Emerald Isle... The weather was strange that day... rain, shine, rain, shine... this was one of the moments when the sun was out again, and the fog was lifted from the islands. Sheep Island, Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Looking towards Larrybane headland... Larrybane headland once stretched out towards Sheep Island and had a promontory fort on the top dating to 800AD. The large caves underneath once served as home to boat builders and a safe resting place from winter storms. This was one of the film sites of "Game of Thrones" Stormlands. Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Hand in hand... These mini islands are home to Fulmars, kittywakes, guillemots and razorbills. Islands near Carrick-a-Rede island, Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| The beautiful route to Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge... Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Walking towards paradise... Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Trouble in paradise... Weather on the coast changes with a snap of the fingers. View of Larrybane headland and Sheep Island. Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Swinging to the beat of your heart! =D Getting ready for an exhilarating rope bridge experience on the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge! =) Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Don't look down! Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge is the only tangible link to the "Rocky Island", Carrick-a-Rede. Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| A walk to remember... Feels like walking on a tightrope on the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Such dark clouds could only mean one thing... rain! There was no shelter of any sort on the Carrick-a-Rede island, so we were fully subjected to the pelting rain and strong winds. Can just imagine how we looked after the rain clouds passed. We had our complimentary wash-and-blow while we were on the island wringing our hands and waiting for the rain to pass. =D View of Ballintoy from Carrick-a-Red island, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Walking on a tightrope... It looks like nothing but in reality, crossing the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge is a pretty scary experience, especially when the wind blows! Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| The tightrope! Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Uninterrupted view of Carrick-a-Rede island across the Atlantic Ocean to Rathlin Island in the background. The sun was out again after that rain, and everything looked so bright and pretty once more. =) Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| The 2 faces of a cow... angry and docile! Whitepark Bay, Ballintoy, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Like bees to a Honeycomb! One of the features of the Giant's Causeway, the Honeycomb. =) Giant's Causeway, Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Following the footsteps of giants... The only 3 timings when the Giant's Causeway has no one around are early in the morning, evening and when it is raining. Our visit coincided with the latter... it did not rain once but twice while we were there. For a photo like that, we had to endure the wet and cold... but it was worth it! Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Step by step! Wet basalt rocks after the rain. These rocks could get very slippery in some places due to the algae growing on the rocks. Giant's Causeway, Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| If this is not a Giant's home, then whose is it? How else can you explain the Chimney Stacks that marked the home of Finn McCool the Giant who built the Giant's Causeway. When the chimney is not smoking, it means that Finn is not at home! =D Giant's Causeway, Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Don't harp on it! =D The Giant's Harp at the Giant's Causeway, Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Looking towards Aird Snout, a nose-shaped promontory jutting out from the 120-metre basalt cliffs above the Giant's Causeway. Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Follow the shepherd! View of the Shepherd's Steps from the top. Giant's Causeway, Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Eating ‘til the cows come home! Summer is a period of non-stop feasting for the cows. =) Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Bird's eye view of Little Causeway, Middle Causeway and Grand Causeway! Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Putting yourself in the Giants' shoes! Bird's eye view of Giant's Causeway from the cliff top. Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Little men, giant steps! Bird's eye view of Giant's Causeway from the cliff top. Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| The Three Stooges! The sheep on the left looked a bit shocked... ok maybe my wolf howl was a bit too real but that certainly caught their attention. =D Bushmills, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Standing at attention! Looks like they were maa-ing to the National Anthem during the flag raising ceremony! These sheep were actually eating grass before I came along and disturbed their peace. Bushmills, Northern Ireland, (27 June 2012) |
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| Fallen castle... The Dunluce castle was a MacDonnell stronghold in the 16th and 17th century. In 1639, part of the kitchen next to the cliff face collapsed into the sea, after which the wife of the owner refused to live in the castle any longer. According to a legend, when the kitchen fell into the sea, only a kitchen boy survived,as he was sitting in the corner of the kitchen which did not collapse. This castle was featured in Jackie Chan's movie, The Medallion. View from Magheracross Viewpoint, between Portballintrae and Portrush, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Misty view of Portrush and White Rocks Beach... The Irish Open 2012 was playing at that moment in Portrush... hahaha not sure how the golfers were able to see how far and where their ball flew to, given that it was such a misty day... oh yes, it had started raining again! =D View from Magheracross Viewpoint, between Portballintrae and Portrush, Northern Ireland (27 June 2012) |
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| Towering over the rest... View of the Spires Convention and Exhibition Centre when I walked out of my hotel, Fitzwilliam Belfast. Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| A museum of Titanic proportions! This museum was opened in Belfast, birthplace of Titanic, in April 2012 to mark the centenary sinking of the Titanic. Its design is based on the bow of Titanic and is built right next to the slipway where the liner was floated in 1911. Titanic Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Sign of things to come... Titanic Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| A moment in time... Old movie reel of the streets of Belfast around the time when the Titanic was built. Titanic Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Depiction of industrialisation spread in Belfast... Titanic Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Behind closed doors... An exhibit in Titanic Belfast depicting where the shipyard workers working on the Titanic spent their free time. Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| From the ship's hull... Simulation of the Harland and Wolff (H&W) shipyard with actual video footage of the launch of the Titanic at this very spot. Titanic Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Peace wall or prison walls? This is the so-called Peace Line or Peace Wall. Here at Townsend St, these steel gates mark the beginning of the wall. For almost 40 years, this insignificant-looking 4-km long, 6-metre high wall divided the Protestant Republicans Falls district from the Loyalist Catholics Shankill district. West Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Expressive wall... The Solidarity Wall along the Falls Road is filled with murals depicting Irish Republican sympathies with the Palestinians, the Kurds, the Catalonians and the Basque, among others. West Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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A community divide!
This wall is called the Peace Line or Peace Wall. Not appropriately named, considering how this wall was not able to prevent RPG missiles from flying over to the other side during the period of the Troubles. =P It even outlasts the Berlin Wall. West Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Cry for freedom... Mural dedicated to the hunger strikers in their cause for freedom. West Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Ordinary building, extraordinary ambitions...
This red-brick building looks like such a happy building with a colourful mural of a man with a big smiley face on its gable wall. However, 'happy' is the last word to describe this place. This is the Sinn Féin headquarters, and the mural is that of Bobby Sands, the hunger striker who was elected MP for West Belfast just a few weeks before he died in 1981.
West Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Painting a scary picture... The anti-Queen sentiments seen in certain areas of the West Belfast area. West Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Symbols of a violent past... The mural of an Irish Republican Army (IRA) volunteer with a rifle plus the hand-painted street sign "RPG Avenue" here speak volumes of the days of a violent sectarian divide. This street gained infamy as it provided a line of sight for the IRA to launch rocket-propelled grenades (RPG) on the security forces based nearby. West Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Decorated wall of honour... West Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Murky thoughts... The murky brown River Lagan matched the mood of the ominous sky. Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| "Ehh... she was alright when she left here..." How Titanic would look like on its actual birth spot from sea. =) View of Titanic Belfast from River Lagan while on board the Titanic Boat Tour by Lagan Boat Company, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Slipway where Titanic took her first tender steps into the water... View of Titanic Belfast and Titanic's slipway from River Lagan, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| The most efficient pump in the world! Thompson Pump House with pumps that could empty the massive dry dock located right behind this building in just 100 minutes. Titanic sat in that very dock on the eve of her first and last voyage and was served by this very pump house. View from River Lagan, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| The "cleaver"! HMS Caroline is the last survivor from the World War I, Battle of Jutland. River Lagan, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Laying the final touches... Shipbuilding will always be in the blood of the people of Northern Ireland. Haha I thought this looks like a Lego set, so colourful and bright! Belfast Harbour, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Interlinked... The Thompson Pump House, the iconic yellow Harland and Wolff (H&W) crane who is one half of the Samson and Goliath duo, and the White Star House are all part of the great legacy of the Titanic. Titanic Quarter as viewed from River Lagan, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Speakers' Corner... The sweeping steps of the Custom House have long been a platform for protests and speeches galvanising the working man. City Centre, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| The Leaning Tower of Belfast! =D The Albert Memorial Clock Tower was erected in memory of Queen Victoria's departed husband. A joke from the locals "Old Albert not only has the time, he also has the inclination" was made in reference to this leaning tower. Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Upholding the rights of the city... Belfast City Hall, City Centre, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| The 2012 Summer Olympics, which even "we are not amused" Queen Victoria would approve! =D City Hall, City Centre, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| At the centre of everything... Belfast City Hall, City Centre, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Bomb practice ground... Europa hotel unfortunately earned the name of the "most bombed hotel in Europe" and "most bombed hotel in the world" after suffering 28 bomb attacks during the Troubles! Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Looking into the dark past of Europa Hotel... Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Weatherman not required! We did not need a weatherman to tell us that the weather was going to be bad, very bad. =P George Best Belfast City Airport, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Away and beyond... Farewell to the birthplace of Titanic and the iconic yellow cranes of Titanic builders, Harland and Wolff (H&W). George Best Belfast City Airport, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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| Forecast of weather conditions for my trip? This waterlogged ground plus the reflection of the cloudy sky is a weather forecast that could not be any more accurate. This was only Day 2 of my trip in the UK, and rain and overcast skies were our constant companions for the rest of our trip! George Best Belfast City Airport, Belfast, Northern Ireland (28 June 2012) |
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