Belfast - sure to be sure

We are really liking all these new ports and the United Kingdom is definitely well-represented on this world cruise...

Heading down the Channel towards our Dock

Once on land, our tour whisked us out into the countryside to visit one of Belfast's greatest highlights “The Giants Causeway”.  Here is where myth meets science, and it is up to you to decide which you prefer to believe.

The following information is from the Giants Causeway Tour Website

The Myth

As legend has it, Northern Ireland was once home to a giant named Finn McCool (also called Fionn Mac Cumhaill). When another giant – Benandonner, across the Irish Sea in Scotland – threatened Ireland, Finn retaliated by tearing up great chunks of the Antrim coastline and hurling them into the sea. The newly-created path – the Giant’s Causeway – paved a route over the sea for Finn to reach Benandonner.

However, this turns out to be a bad idea as Benandonner is a massive giant, much bigger than Finn! In order to save himself, Finn retreats to Ireland and is disguised as a baby by his quick-thinking wife. When Benandonner arrives, he sees Finn disguised as a baby and realizes that if a mere baby is that big, the father must be far larger than Benandonner himself!

Following this realization, Benandonner rushes back to Scotland, tearing away as much of the Causeway as he can in his haste to put as much distance between Ireland and himself as possible. And thus, the myth of the Giant’s Causeway was born.

The Scientific Explanation

Perhaps a less interesting explanation, the scientific approach dictates that the Giant’s Causeway was first formed over 60 million years ago. The science says that the Causeway was created following a period of volcanic activity, where the lava cooled and formed these incredible interlocking basalt columns. Each column is near-perfectly hexagonal in shape; a lasting reminder of the power of the world’s natural beauty.

No matter which you choose, it does not take away from the beauty of this phenomenon.  A very popular tourist attraction with so many visiting scampering over the rocks.  But watch your step as you need to plan your route so you don’t run out of stepping stones.

Entrance to the Giants Causeway

amazing formations

I climbed up high .... bit of a challenge working out how to get back down

Driving around the coast we had amazing views of the coastline, with another quick stop in the picturesque Ballintoy Harbour.  Of course, its biggest claim to fame was that it was yet another famous filming location for Game of Thrones…. Actually, our driver was the private driver to none other than Jon Snow when he was in town for filming… Yes, we saw the pictures. 

Ballingtoy Harbour

Morning Tea

Our next stop was the Carrick a Rede rope bridge, which links the mainland to the island of Carraig-a-Rade, which means “The Rock in the Road” an obstacle for the migrating salmon as they searched for the river where they were born.

The history of the rope bridge dates back to 1755 when it was first erected by the salmon fishermen... Since then it has taken many forms…  today it is a much sturdier but still swaying bridge that you can cross.

We stopped a the Carrick-A-Rede Bar in Ballintoy for a typical Irish lunch.  Remembering yesterdays large meal, we decided to share… big mistakes because those pork and leek sausages were yummy and the traditional Irish Champ (mashed potato) was to die for….

We stopped for some magnificent views of the remains of Dunluce Castle, perched on a cliff overlooking the ocean.

 And a quick stop was made at the Bushmans Distillery where the boys enjoyed a small tasting of whiskey.

Maybe we had one too many quick stops or maybe there was just too much to see, as it resulted in us having a quick drive-by of the highlights of Belfast.  Thwarted by drizzling rain and the lack of visibility out of the windows, it was not even worth getting the camera out to try and take any type of photo.  Oh well, I guess it justifies another visit in the future….

Holyhead… What is this …. Another new port!

We are now leaving the warmth of Europe and have hit the United Kingdom. A change of clothing that will stay with us for the next month or so.

Holyhead sits on the small Isle of Anglesey and our tour today had us visiting the highlights of the island and then a beautiful drive around the national park of Snowdonia.

After the ship docked we needed to catch the shuttle along the long pier that takes you to the terminal.  Here was where our driver from Celticos Tours picked us up.

Holyhead waking up to see us sailing into port

Fabulous breakwater

Where we are docking

Too far and too dangerous to walk, so we are shuttled to the terminal

How many Welshmen does it take to secure our lines?

Where we are dropped off you have to walk through the station to follow the path to the town centre

Celtic Gateway Pedestrian bridge in the distance

Ferries that will take you to Ireland

Our guide quickly scooted us out to South Stack, a brilliant white lighthouse built on the summit of a small island in 1809 to warn ships of the dangerous rocks below.

Just the most beautiful countryside

Just across from one of the vantage points for the lighthouse we wandered into a field where we found the remains of the ancient hut circles,  now serving as beautiful landscape features for the surrounding homes.  Also known as family circles these huts made up small homesteads.  The larger circles furnished with stone benches, basins, and storage pits are thought to be the family homes, and the smaller rectangular shapes could have been workshops and sheds for the animals. 

From there we headed back to Holyhead and visited the church of St Cybi, a beautiful church built with the walls of an old Roman Fort.

No visit to Anglesey is complete without visiting “that town, with the long name that no one can pronounce”

Quoted from Celtico’s Website:

”Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch is the full name of the famous village with a tongue-twisting name. A brief visit to pose in front of the station sign is a must, and practicing pronouncing it is a challenge. In reality, the name is a nineteenth-century marketing trick of combining and enhancing village names with a view to attracting visitors, and guess what? It still works!”

Iconic train station sign

The town might be small.... but it has one really big souvenir store

As we continued our tour of Anglesey we followed the coast and visited Penmon Priory, although Vikings have destroyed all evidence of the original monastery, over time parts have been rebuilt. We wandered through the church, adjoining graveyard, and the Dovecote, which still stands in excellent condition.

The Dovecote

inside the dovecote

We followed a path that wound its way behind the church where we found the Holy Well (St Seiriols Well), which is believed to have healing properties.

If we had decided to spend more time standing on the shores of Penmon Point we may have spotted some of the abundant wildlife it is renowned for, but we settled to take pictures of the black and white lighthouse that seems to be floating on the water. 

The pilots houses found at Penmon Point

Beaumaris is another lovely seaside village we visited with its quaint shops that line the main street and the beautiful colored homes that line the waterfront.

Now it was time to cross the magnificent Menai bridge which the Anglesey to the mainland across the Menai straight.

On our return to the ship we traveled over the Britannia Bridge

It was time for lunch so we stopped in Caernarfon and enjoyed a fabulous pub lunch.  There must be no mussels left in all of Wales as I swear they were all on my plate.    Although we didn’t visit inside the castle we did enjoy a walk around the town.

We were now starting our drive around Snowdonia and enjoyed the picturesque vistas before us. 

All countries seem to have an elephant rock

Stopping in the little village of Beddgelert for ice cream, our driver relayed the story of where its name came from..

Legend or publicity stunt, you decide…. ( taken from Wikipedia)

“Gelert is a legendary wolfhound associated with the village of Beddgelert (whose name means "Gelert's Grave"). In the legend, Llywelyn the Great returns from hunting to find his baby missing, the cradle overturned, and Gelert with a blood-smeared mouth. Believing the dog had devoured the child, Llywelyn draws his sword and kills Gelert. After the dog's dying yelp, Llywelyn hears the cries of the baby, unharmed under the cradle, along with a dead wolf which had attacked the child and been killed by Gelert. Llywelyn is overcome with remorse and buries the dog with great ceremony, but can still hear its dying yelp. After that day, Llywelyn never smiles again.”

Sniff Sniff

Our last stop was Swallow falls, though it had to be a quick visit to ensure that we got back to the ship on time…

It was a lovely visit and all it achieved was leaving hungry to visit more of this lovely countryside….