Tom’s Travels

The Great Eight Reunion in Belfast, Northern Ireland

The Great Eight, that hardy band of teachers who worked and traveled together in Malaysia, had their first reunion last week-end in Belfast. A good time was had by all. The Great Eight consisted of Joe and Marlene, from Canada who were traveling with their granddaughter, Tom and Colleen, Americans who came from Prague, Julie, Polish and is now teaching in Krakow, and our hosts, Mike, from Belfast, and his girlfriend, Sarah, who is English. The only original member of the group who was not there was Renee, who made the lame excuse that she couldn’t pop over for the weekend from Australia. She was represented by Joe’s granddaughter, though being only 12 years old, she didn’t drink as much as Renee would have. We were last together in the summer of 2007 at International House, the English language school connected to Limkokwing University in Cyberjaya, Malaysia.

We all arrived on Friday, March 14^th. Sarah, who is currently working in the Belfast tourist office was able to get us a friends and family rate at the Hotel Europa, a four star hotel. It’s a beautiful hotel in the center of town and has the distinction of being the most bombed hotel in Europe, maybe the world. There have been 76 bomb threats, of which 34 have actually gone off. But things have been peaceful for years, up until the week before we got there. (More about that later). We met in the lobby and walked across the street to the Crown Bar, established in 1849 according to the sign above the door, and had a very nice meal. It was a beautiful restaurant. Carved woodwork. Lots of artwork. Statuary. Very nice. We even took pictures of the Ladies Bathroom. Well, the girls did, at least. And the food was excellent.

We then retired to Fibber Magee’s Pub in the back of Robinson’s next door. Another typical Irish setting. Very crowded but we were able to get a table in a corner not too far from the music. The music was provided by a threesome who played traditional Irish music. It was great. I think I must have some Irish blood in me somewhere ’cause I love traditional Irish music. Just imagine, Friday night, lots of Irish people, drinking beer in a crowded pub, singing and dancing into the wee hours. Who’d have thought that could happen? We were all tired so we made it an early evening but I could have listened to the music all night.

The next morning, we had a magnificent buffet breakfast in the hotel, the price of which was included with the room. Eggs, sausages, bacon, potatoes, different kinds of bread, juice, coffee, pancakes, etc. Also on offer were baked beans, a typical breakfast food in the UK (but somewhat unusual as a breakfast food for and American) and black and white pudding. Now this isn’t really pudding in the normal sense of the work. I’m not sure what is in it, but it has the consistency of a dry sausage. The difference between black and white is that the black has more blood mixed in it.

We met at nine and went first to St. George’s Market, a food and crafts market that is open on Saturday morning. Permanently located in a huge building, they offer everything from fresh fish to vegetables, spices to meat cut directly of a whole hog roasting on a spit. It would be great to be able to go there every Saturday morning to get fresh fruit and vegetables. We formed a two car caravan and headed north out of the city. We made several stops along the way to take pictures or explore the ruins of a castle. It was a blustery, windy day but clear. At one point, on a narrow country road, we ran into a traffic jam. A sheep (and we saw many of them) had gotten out of the field and into the road. There were fences on each side and he didn’t know how to get out of the way. He would run a few yards and then stop and look at us. We would move forward and he would run a little ahead of us. Finally he found a side road and we were able to resume speed.

Ireland is green, very green, and beautiful. I expected the grass to be brown because it was still cold and wintry. Sarah said that their grass turns brown in July and August. Can’t stand the heat. We drove north along the coastline enjoying beautiful views of the sea and the adjacent hillsides dotted with sheep. After a delightful lunch in a quaint hotel, we began the explore the “Giant’s Causeway.” The “Causeway” is a geological formation of hexagonal pillars of rock, standing vertical and tightly packed so that you can walk on the like walking on stepping stones in a garden. The difference is that they are not all the same height and there is some climbing to do. In some spots they form a vertical wall, five to ten meters high. Also care must be taken on those closest to the sea as they can become very slippery from seawater. And the day we were there, the wind would almost sweep you over the edge. It’s a fascinating spot and covers an area of a hundred meters or so. Some say that the “Causeway” is the result of a volcano and that the molten lava cooled to forms the hexagonal pillars.

The truth is that the Irish Giant Finn McCool built the causeway across the Sea of Moyle to the island of Staffan, which is in Scotland, in order to do battle with the Giant Benandonner. Now these two had yelling back and forth to each other and Benendonner had challenge Finn McCool to a battle of strength. Finn agreed and said he would build a causeway across the sea. This he did but when he finished he was exhausted and went back home and fell asleep. The next morning Benandonner came across the causeway to Ireland. Finn’s wife heard him coming and, knowing that Finn was too tired to fight, covered her husband with a night gown and a sleeping cap. When Benandonner demanded to see Finn, she said, “Quiet! You’ll wake the babe!” Now Finn was not a big giant by giant standards, only 56 feet 6 inches high, but Benandonner reasoned, If this is a baby, then Finn must be enormous! He beat a hasty retreat back to Scotland, destroying the Causeway as he went. And that’s the true story of the Causeway. Ask any Irishman. They always tell the truth.

It truly is an amazing site. A World Heritage location.

We stopped a couple of more times along the coast, walked on the beach, and had ice cream before heading back to Belfast. That night we had another nice dinner and drank a toast to the missing and missed Renee. The pubs were too crowded to even get into on a Saturday night. We went into Robinson’s, the oldest pub in town, but didn’t stay. After a long day, we called it an early night.

Sunday morning, after again stuffing ourselves at breakfast, we took a bus tour of the city. Fascinating. The tour guide touched on all aspects of life in Ireland. Ireland has had a long and embattled history. I’ve never been sure if it was the Catholics against the Protestants, rich against the poor, or Irish against the English invaders. Whatever the cause, the problems are still there. They’ve made great progress recently but the wounds have not totally healed. We rode in the top deck, outside, and it was a cold, blistery day. Not the best for me. The tour guide was very witty, open, and informative. He pointed out highlights along the way. We went to the shipyards where the Titanic was built. I didn’t know it was built in Belfast. He stated that the Irish did a good job building it but it had an English Captain and a Scottish engineer. “It wasn’t our fault. The Titanic was OK when it left Belfast.”

We rode through the different areas of the city, those that had historical interest as well as those that took sides during the conflict. The Irish refer to the times of the killings and retaliation as “The Troubles.” “In the time of the troubles….” or “during the troubles….” He pointed out neighborhoods that were “staunchly Catholic” or “staunchly Protestant.” And some were immediately adjacent to each other. In some areas, there are metal walls, some as high as 50 feet, which separate the two factions. There are metal gates which are locked at nights and on weekends to keep the residents apart. And there are murals everywhere painted on buildings memorializing heroes from one side or the other. The guide pointed out a new building and told us the old structure had been replaced to make room for the new. He said that a team of English engineers had been brought over to blow the building up. “What a waste of local talent. We’ve been blowing up things for years.” All in all, it was a very good tour. I’d like to do it again (in warmer weather).

We grabbed a bite to eat at Subway and Mike and Sarah and Julia took us to the airport. Our goodbyes were not as sad and teary eyed as those in Malaysia because this time we really knew that we would see each other again sometime, somewhere in the world. It was wonderful to see them again and it will be wonderful to see them next time, hopefully with Renee.

Ireland is a wonderful country. I can’t recommend it highly enough. I want to go back and I think you should too!

OK, this part is for me. My understanding and thoughts on the current crisis. The week before we went to Ireland, two British soldiers and a policeman were killed in separate incidents. The RIRA (the Real Irish Republican Army) claimed responsibility for the deaths of the soldiers, and the Continuity IRA for the policeman. The IRA ( the original) called for a truce years ago and has been working within the political process to bring peace to the country. There have not been any killings in over twenty years. The members of the “old” IRA who are now in parliament came out strongly and condemned the killings and branded those responsible as murders. This from men who had led the IRA during the Troubles and had probably been responsible, directly or indirectly, for deaths. Members of Sinn Fein stood shoulder to shoulder with the British in calling for peace and hoping the no retaliations would occur. They attended the funerals, which would not have happened a decade ago, according to the paper. A former IRA commander called the killers “traitors to the entire island of Ireland.” They say that the RIRA and the CIRA are dissident splinter groups and have no real support. Let’s hope so, but scattered graffiti did appear after the killings. “RIRA 2, Brits 0”

The papers pointed out that although there had been no killings for years, attacks and shootings had continued. And from BOTH sides. Between Sept. 2007 and August 2008, there were 62 casualties but no deaths. 25 “suspected” republican attacks and 37 “suspected” loyalist (British) attacks. One article pointed out that there were 40 “peace lines” (the metal walls) in the city, which is TWICE as many as there were a decade ago. It also stated that all but 5% of Irish children are educated in segregated schools. We saw a sign in front of a school which read “Carnlough Controlled Integrated Primary School.” 68% of 18 to 25 year olds stated that they had never had a meaningful conversation with someone of the other religion. Parents in Northern Ireland are calling for integrated schools and 825 say they would like for their children to go to an integrated school but there are none in their area because the religions are so separated into neighborhoods.

Ireland is a beautiful country with beautiful people and it is sad that a few can cause so much trouble for so many. But the conflict has been going on for years and the wounds won’t heal quickly. It’s heartening to see both sides stand together against the killings. They say, “We won’t go back!” The general mood was that the killings were the work of a small group of dissidents who didn’t have broad support. They were an aberration rather than a return to armed conflict. I hope they are right.

Economically, Northern Ireland seems to be flourishing, lots of building and new construction. It’s a wonderful country. I can’t wait to go back