Gobbins and Giants

Laddie G. Shane
Jun 12, 2016
3 min read

Well this weekend sure wasn't boring and also did not disappoint. Saturday AM we got a little more rest than usually and headed for Belfast. We started by driving by Stormont for those who had not seen it and it was great that he did because on the cricket field near Stormont you could hear bagpipes. The UK National Bagpipe Championships were going on and Dr. Tim let us check it out. So AWESOME! After that we headed for Queens University Belfast and it was such an amazing campus. The plant life as well as the buildings were just incredible and awesome for an architecture nut like me. We also went into the Ulster Museum on campus and saw many exhibits on Northern Ireland. The history is amazing and it's hard to think about Spanish ships from the Spanish Armada crashing on Northern Ireland's coast but they did. After a quick bite we headed for Carrickfergus for a parade celebrating William the Orange coming to Northern Ireland. The bands were fantastic and very different from American bands in style and technique. After a little ice cream we headed for the Gobbins. The Gobbins is a path which was part of the vision of Berkeley Deane Wise, Chief Engineer of the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway Company, to use the recently expanded railway line to attract visitors to this spectacular part of Ireland. With the arrival of the steam train in the 19th century, it became possible to move large amounts of people and goods in relatively short times. Not only did the railways turn cities like Belfast into industrial powerhouses, they opened up remote beauty spots to a new kind of industry – tourism. The Gobbins path was Berkeley Deane Wise’s final contribution to the tourism offering of the area. It was also his crowning glory. Walking the cliffs was amazing and the landscape is truly to good for words. Was a fun filled Saturday I really enjoyed.

Sunday was a GIANT day as we headed for the Giants Causeway. According to legend, the columns are the remains of a causeway built by a giant. The story goes that the Irish giant Finn MacCool, was challenged to a fight by the Scottish giant Benandonner. Fionn accepted the challenge and built the causeway across the North Channel so that the two giants could meet. Fionn hides from Benandonner when he realises that his foe is much bigger than he. Fionn's wife, Oonagh, disguises Fionn as a baby and tucks him in a cradle. When Benandonner sees the size of the 'baby', he reckons that its father, Fionn, must be a giant among giants. He flees back to Scotland in fright, destroying the causeway behind him so that Fionn could not follow. It is an amazing place and I really enjoyed it. After the Causeway we headed for the Rope Bridge of Carrick-a-Rede. It was so much fun and kind of scary at the same time. It's amazing to cross the bridge and see Scotland just on the other side of the Channel. The day continued with amazing views as we traveled down the Antrim Coastal way. Our last stop was Ballygalley where Dr. Tim was baptized and it was such a beautiful place. We got to see a tree that was brought from Spain because the seeds were in the pocket of a sailor of the Spanish Armada and was buried there after he washed up on shore. Truly Amazing!