Nordirland

Day 17: On this day we set out to explore Derry. The city center is surrounded by a approximately 1.5 km long city wall, which is fully accessible. From this city wall, all the important sights can be admired. From churches to the town hall to the two neighborhoods that still reflect the Troubles. 'Bogside' with its political murals adorning entire facades and 'The Fountain' where the curbstones are painted blue-red-white, a sign that the loyalists still feel under siege.

Our highlight was the so-called Craft Quarter inside the city walls, characterized by cute shops and cafes.

Our tour continued along the north coast where we passed the longest beach in Ireland (Benone Beach) and explored the Downhill Castle with the Mussenden Temple. Traveling off-season can be very advantageous as we were able to save the entrance fee here.

We made a little detour to Dunluce Castle and Portrush before reaching the 'Old Bushmills Distillery', where we unfortunately decided against a tour with whiskey tasting as we still had to drive and were running a bit late. Although the smell in the air already made us hungry. But at least we got some whiskey jam.

We left the Giant's Causeway aside for now, as we wanted to explore it on foot. Instead, we drove to Ballintoy to the parking lot of the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. To our delight, we met a very friendly Irish parking attendant there who quickly showed us the most suitable parking space for the night.

While exploring our sleeping place, we quickly noticed something hidden there and our interest was aroused: a filming location from Game of Thrones! It quickly became clear that from now on we would also visit the other locations in Northern Ireland.

Day 18: Today we had a more active agenda - a 19 km hike along the Causeway Coast to the Giant's Causeway. The landscape ranged from beach to cliffs and meadows that reminded us of the Shire. In addition to another filming location and the ubiquitous sheep and cows, we also saw plenty of wild hares peeking out of the tall grass. With several breaks and great views, we arrived at the Giant's Causeway after almost 5 hours, feeling quite exhausted.

At first glance, from the cliffs, we were a bit disappointed and wondered why this is such a big attraction. But when we got a bit closer, it was astonishing to see what Mother Nature has created.

Even outside the season, there were still many visitors on the rock formations, which overwhelmed us a bit after our peaceful hike. So we quickly retreated and started the return journey, which was supposed to be by bus. After waiting for 50 minutes with tired legs and a 15-minute bus ride, we arrived back at our Freudolin full of joy.

Since we didn't want to spend another night in the same parking lot, we drove a few more kilometers to Ballycastle. There we had a parking space with a sea view - luckily! Just in time for dinner, a few dolphins entertained themselves in the bay in front of us - that is definitely better than watching TV!

Day 19: After so many days in the van, sometimes you wake up in the morning and don't remember exactly where you are. To orient ourselves, we had to push aside our green curtains and look out the window.

On the way to Belfast, we visited various Game of Thrones filming locations and were delighted every time we actually recognized the place from a familiar scene.

Here's an example.

The journey to Belfast was difficult due to the confusing road layout. We were glad to be able to park the car and explore the city on foot. After just a few meters, we realized that the crowds and the pace in the city were uncomfortable for us and that we already enjoyed and prefer the tranquility of nature. Nevertheless, we fought our way through the urban jungle. Apparently, we also made a confused impression on others, because after a short time a tourist information employee approached us to help us plan our visit. But because he spoke so much and so fast, we were just even more confused afterwards. We saw the three things we had remembered and followed the gourmet tip willingly. Once again, we were very impressed with our fish dishes and can highly recommend the fish restaurant City Fish.

Then we went back to nature to a parking space overlooking seals. There we met Kristin and Stephan, two Berliners traveling in an orange disaster relief vehicle. We spent an entertaining evening together. It's really nice to meet like-minded people and exchange experiences, especially since we still consider ourselves newcomers in this field.

Day 20: We continued our Game of Thrones tour and went, among other places, to Castle Ward, which in the series represents the stronghold of the King in the North - Winterfell.

Afterwards, we pursued an inevitable recurring task: the search for a shower. As this has proven to be very difficult so far if you want to avoid spending a night at the campsite, we spent half of the day looking for one. This can really be quite nerve-wracking. Finally, we actually found our luck at a campsite where we quickly used the showers and then moved on. Unfortunately, we cannot say for sure if that was completely legal :D

We are now parked near Newgrange. This World Heritage Site is on the agenda for tomorrow morning.

Now we are cooking something delicious and then off to bed!