Day 12
Today was my wife Robin's birthday. This was the second time we've celebrated her birthday while on a Rick Steves tour. What a great way to spend your birthday!! At breakfast this morning several birthday cards appear.......and not one is from me......oops!
It was cooler this morning (thank goodness!) but still bright and sunny. The coast of County Antrim is beautiful and Pat O. has several scenic stops planned for us.
Sir James drops us off first at Dunluce Castle. In Irish "Dún Lios" means strong fort. We are coming back later for a tour but Pat O. wants to get some group pictures while the sun was at our back. This afternoon the sun would be behind the castle. Two of my background themes feature Dunluce.
Matt, Pat O. and Meghan at Giant's Causeway
Probably stealing some thunder from our later tour guide Pat O. explained that part of the castle including the kitchen fell into the sea when the cliff face collapsed. Pat said that an Irishman once quipped, "that was the first instance of fast food".
After a quick jaunt on the coach we next toured the Giant's Causeway. This is another site I've been anxious to visit as I've seen pictures of it for years. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and it is spectacular. It is made up of thousands of interlocking, mostly hexagonal basalt columns. There is a similar geologic site in California called "Devil's Postpile".
Scientists would have you believe that the columns of the causeway were formed from a lava flow some 50 to 60 million years ago. The Irish however know the truth. The Irish warrior Finn McCool built the causeway so he could walk to Scotland to fight his Scottish counterpart Benandonner. Finn fell asleep before he reached Scotland. The much larger Benandonner came looking for him. To protect her sleeping husband, his wife Oonagh laid a blanket over him so he would appear to be their baby son. When Benandonner saw the size of the "infant", he fled home to Scotland assuming that the father Finn must be gigantic indeed.
May your smile be big and wide,
And may your pockets always have
A coin or two inside
Keith tasting some Irish whiskey
Our next stop was in the village of Bushmills where we took a tour of the Old Bushmills Distillery. Bushmills has been producing Irish whiskey (the "e" is used in the United States and Ireland, whereas Canadian and Scotch take their whisky without the "e") for at least 400 years. The distillery was officially licensed in 1608 but it is believed that troops of King Henry II drank Bushmills 400 years before that.
The manufacturing facility was fascinating and following the tour we adjourned to the bar and restaurant where Pat O. had a very nice lunch waiting for us. It was here also that we got to taste some of the different whiskeys made here. I'm not an Irish whiskey drinker but it was fun tasting the differences.
Way to go Robin!!
After lunch and a wee dram we headed off to Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, just up the coast from the causeway. I'm not sure about the wisdom of tackling a rope bridge after drinking Irish whiskey but what do I know! The rope bridge links the mainland with tiny Carrick Island. The bridge is about 65 feet long and is almost 100 feet above the rocks and crashing waves. My wife Robin has a fear of heights but has worked hard to overcome it. She made both crossings, over and back, as did all of our group without any problems. Apparently, it's not uncommon for visitors to be unable to make the return trip across the bridge which then requires a boat to take them off the island.
Robin's Birthday Dinner
As promised, we returned to Dunluce Castle and had a wonderful tour led by our local guide, George. George told us the history of the castle but what piqued my curiosity was George's statement that many people believe the castle is haunted. Some of the current staff have seen "unexplained phenomenon". I doubt that it's open but it would be fun to tour the castle at night. It might help to be fortified by a few "samples" of Bushmills first.
Dinner this evening was on our own and in honor of Robin's birthday a group of us headed back to "55 North". Our group dinner last night was so good we decided to eat there again. We had a great time and it was fun celebrating Robin's birthday on the Antrim Coast of Northern Ireland.
