Rob Little's Blog – the musings of an English / British Tour Guide !

Actually the first photo is of the viw over the Severn Vale with the Malvern Hills in the far distance. The town is Gloucester.

Stroud Farmers Market does not have the stature of some of the markets to be found in France but it is certainly one of the best in the UK.

We bought wonderful fig and walnut bread, smelly ripe camembert cheese, strong farmhouse chedder and mackerel pate – yum! And for Sunday some great veg covered in dirt and of odd shapes unlike the sanitised stuff we get in the supermarkets.

Nice atmosphere in Stroud on a saturday morning !

Well the first thing I should say is that I was rather alarmed to have been stopped by the police for taking photos of the courthouse. When I said that I didn’t know it was not allowed to take photos of the building they said that although I could take photos of anything, given the heightened security situation here with a 400llb bomb found in Belfast saturday night and shots fired at the polce the same night, they had to be vigilent.

In any case it does seem somewhat voyeuristic taking photos here but, sadly, the town is really only known for one thing “abroad” – the brutal killing of 29 innocent civilians of all religious and political persuasions, all ages and many natioanities….by a car bomb planted in the High Street one Saturday the 15th August 1998 afternoon in as a desperate attempt by fringe republicans to hijack the “peace process”. This was the last massive attack and perhaps the worst of the entire conflict?
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It is worth quoting a report from the time of the bomb: “The Omagh fatality list reads like a microcosm of troubles deaths, and left no section of Irish life untouched. The town they attacked is roughly 60-40 Catholic-Protestant, and the dead consisted of Protestants, Catholics, a Mormon and two Spanish visitors. They killed young, old and middle-aged, fathers, mothers, sons, daughters and grannies. They killed republicans and unionists, including a prominent local member of the Ulster Unionist Party. They killed people from the backbone of the Gaelic Athletic Association. They killed unborn twins, bright students, cheery shop assistants and many young people. They killed three children from the Irish Republic who were up north on a day trip. Everyone they killed was a civilian. The toll of death was thus both extraordinarily high and extraordinarily comprehensive.”

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Today the town appears to have recoved and all apears “normal” except in the rest of the UK you would not expect to be stopped in a High Street for taking photos?
The photos below show:
1. Omagh Memorial Garden – the perpendicular things represent the people killed.
2. Message in the Memorial Garden
3. The spot where the car bomb exploded
4. The High Street today

I have to say I do feel uncomforable about visiting this place…..

Returning to Belfast to fly home at 6.30pm BFN

Well I think my Great Grandfather may have done something a bit wrong to have been posted as a Coast Guard to Burtonport!! It really is in the middle of nowhere in the wilds of Donnegal – apparently it was an enormously important fishing port in its day.

I have not yet been able to find the place where my Great Grandmother was buried (died 1903) but I am meeting a guy tomorrow who may shed some light on that.

The photos are of Burtonport Harbour and of the old Coast Guard Cottages that were burned down at the time of “the troubles” in 1919. Amazingly they are still standing!

Later I the afternoon I met up with one Eddie Ward who has dedicated his retirement to “research”! He came up with a picture of a church/school st Burtonport also a photo of the cottages before they were torched! He took us to his little croft nearby and then I was obliged to follow him for about 30mins to his house for a “cupatea”! When we got to his house his wife was baking bread (mmmmm smell) and he was burning peat on the fire.

Oh and by the way at no point did I see a sign for Burtonport it is called “Ailt an Chorrain” – thank goodness for GPS!! All road signs are exclusively in Gaelic here!!

I am falling aseep here (perhaps to do with the Bushmills Whiskey) I’ll add more later!

Don’t have time to write much at the moment but here are some photos from this morning!
1. Free Derry Corner
2. Bloody Sunday mural
3. British Soldier mural
4. Free Derry Corner + Bloody Sunday mural

Why not start the day as you mean to go on with a Whiskey in your coffee or on your porridge Ha Ha! What a way to start a rainy Monday morning!

Tradional Irish music

Well when we arrived at the Giants Causeway it was nearly dark although it was still only 3.15pm – the clouds were black so we decided the 1 mile return road would be unwise! So, eminently sensibly heade for the Bushmills Whiskey Distillery which closed at 3.30pm today grrrrrr !

Oh well off to Derry and maybe find.a pub playing traditional music !
Photo
1. The coast near Giants Causeway
2. The Bushmills Irish Whiskey Distillery

A positively sublime little harbour next to a “boiling” sea and a tiny cafe whose wide menu home made Irish Stew, whiskey cake and “lumpy bumpy” which sounds very “afternoon delishtish” *WEG* ha ha!

Its quite mesmorising to watch the sea even if it is peeing with rain and the wind chill makes your hands feel you are on the top of Mount Washington!!

I am only going to use the word “SPECTACULAR” this once in case you think I am over-using the word although I could use it in between ever other word to describe this isolated truly sea-side coastal road between Larne and Ballycastle. There are few cars and today the sea is very choppy. In the distance in some of the photos you can see Rathlan Island which is a nature conservation area. Stopped for a Fish + Chip lunch at Mortons Fish + Chip shop in Ballycastle….later on to the Giant’s Causeway.
…..oh did I mention that this road is SPECTACULAR?
Photos below:
1. Choppy sea at Carnlough
2. The little harbour at Carnlough
3. Near Cushendall
4. ” ” ”
5. ” ” ”
6. Tor Head Scenic Road Nr Ballycastle
7. Tor Head Scenic Road Nr Ballycastle
8. Tor Head Scenic Road Nr Ballycastle
9. Fish + Chips from Mortons famous shop

Well having spent two days in Belfast is is definitely not what you might expect from its recent history. Yes the murals and Loyalist / Republican flags are still flying in many of the working class residential areas but the people are so friendly with a sharp sense of humour…there are many new plush hotels, the night life is vibrant with live, music and “spontaneous” dancing…jigging….in the pubs!!. Perhaps uniquely for many cities you can see green hills and even cows from the city centre!

It is now 10.45am and I just reached the Antrim coast (the photo is just north of Larne) – a beautiful coastal drive up to the Giant’s Causeway before heading inland again to Londonderry.