The most beautiful places in Northern Ireland! 🌦🌆

Hello again from the island! 😇

As the title suggests, today's focus will be on the impressions I gathered during my trips to Northern Ireland over the past few weekends. And since the matter of Brexit is still awaiting a final decision, we decided to play it safe and make the planned trips before March 31st.

I took the first tour in early March with Madline, another au pair from Cottbus (funny that we only met in Dublin :D). The trip was organized by a travel agency, so once again we had to get up at unearthly hours, take the bus from Dublin to Northern Ireland.

The first stop was the 'Dark Hedges' - an impressive beech alley that is considered one of the most beautiful and most photographed places in Northern Ireland. It refers to the old, gnarled trees that have grown over several hundred years to form a kind of tunnel today.

They were originally planted by a man named James Stuart to impress visitors on their way to his estate - which, in my opinion, he succeeded in doing. I can imagine that this road creates a mystical atmosphere, especially in the early morning or fog, without tourists hunting for the most beautiful photo (myself included). It's no wonder that scenes from the series 'Game of Thrones' were filmed there. Unfortunately, the trees won't remain like this for much longer as they have apparently reached their life expectancy... some trees are already dying. We didn't have much time to let the place really sink in because our tour was tightly scheduled and followed a strict timeline.

So after walking up and down the alley once, we continued with our bus to the next stop: the 'Carrick a Rede'. The name of the island translates to 'Rock in the Road'. It is accessible via a rope bridge, which was originally built by fishermen to catch salmon that had their spawning grounds there. I had actually imagined the bridge to be much longer since the photos always gave a different impression... so when we arrived, I was a bit disappointed by how short it actually is. Nevertheless, we were able to cross it alone :).

Next up was the main highlight of our tour - the Giant's Causeway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. These special stone columns, uniformly shaped volcanic formations, which are like puzzle pieces, were formed 60 million years ago. But it wouldn't be Ireland if there wasn't a fitting legend ;). According to the story, the causeway was built by a giant named ' Fionn mac Cumhail '. Fionn was threatened and insulted by one of his opponents, a Scottish giant named 'Benandonner'. Out of anger, Fionn tore stones from the coast of Antrim and threw them into the sea to build a bridge from Ireland to Scotland. After its completion, he challenged his rival to a duel, which the Scottish giant had no choice but to face. Fionn quickly realized that he had underestimated his opponent, who was much bigger and stronger. Additionally, Fionn was exhausted from building the causeway but did not have time to rest and would not survive the fight. His wife then had the idea that saved both him and Ireland: she disguised Fionn as a baby. Upon Benandonner's arrival, she assured him that her husband was on his way but offered him a cup of tea while he waited for his return. However, when he saw the 'giant baby', he was so unsettled that out of fear of the size and strength of its father, he turned back to Scotland.

I have to admit that for me, this natural phenomenon deserves the title of highlight for various reasons... I actually don't want to constantly mention the weather here, BUT on that day we had more than bad luck. It had been drizzling lightly all day, and of course, it started to rain when we arrived (2-hour stay), and then it eventually started pouring. That's when you appreciate your rain jacket. The Giant's Causeway is also the windiest spot in Ireland - we had some difficulties standing at times. So catching a cold was inevitable. Nevertheless, it was a really great experience, and we had a lot of fun despite the unpleasant weather conditions.

- the weather situation on-site expressed in a photo :D

The final stop of our tour was Belfast, with just over an hour to spend there. 1. It was not enough time for us to really explore the city, and 2. our things were wet, and we were completely frozen, so we decided to spend the time in a cafe instead.

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I was actually sure before this tour that I wanted to see Belfast again on my own, without time pressure - which we did this weekend.

Arriving early, we visited a market, which is definitely the nicest one I have seen during my time here (even though I shouldn't mention that to the Irish). It was set up in a covered hall and had everything your heart desires. Just to give you a few examples: fresh fish; all kinds of food and pastries you can imagine; handmade jewelry; clothes; art, etc... And while we walked around and looked at everything (each stand at least twice), a live band played music in the lively hall. And I have to admit that this was my favorite part of the day. Here are a few impressions:

Afterward, we made our way to the famous and highly praised Titanic Museum. Given the high admission price, we also had high expectations... which were quickly disappointed. Nevertheless, it was interesting to learn more about the former Belfast as the most prominent city in shipbuilding, the working and living conditions at that time, and the terrible tragedy.

Later, we walked through Belfast to see a bit of the city center. I wouldn't say that Belfast is a typical Irish city... While there are many shops that can be found all over Ireland, the architecture is quite different and reminded us a lot of London. So the influence of England is clearly visible. I personally particularly liked the paintings on the walls of houses, which artistically describe the history of Northern Ireland. If we had more time to spend there, we probably could have collected even more impressions... I would have liked to visit the Botanic Gardens and Queen's University or go to one of the Jazz bars :).

Before our bus left for Dublin again, a visit to the obligatory pub was a must. So we went to 'The Dirty Onion', the name is convincing, isn't it? The pub reminded me a lot of 'Auguste' in Cottbus: outdoor seating, live music, and lots of fairy lights, as well as a very pleasant atmosphere - just the right thing to end the day with a beer or apple cider for the non-beer drinkers!

Here are a few more photos of the city:

- my favorite building there: The City Hall

I really hope you're all doing well! For me, it currently feels like time is passing faster and faster... I can hardly believe that my time here will already be over in 12 weeks.

Sending you all hugs!

Your Hanna 🤗