With a desire to see a peat bog, we found this area set aside as a park. It is not a raised bog where bog bodies have been found (ancient ritual sacrifices) or where you could reputedly drown due to a sucking affect pulling you in similar to quicksand if you got to close to the edge. This is a blanket bog, not very deep but very important for wildlife and the overall ecology. It's a beautiful park!
Belfast
The Black Cab tour was the most memorable experience I had in Belfast (unless you count falling on the street!) It was an eye-opening insight into the "Troubles" as they are called: the conflict between the Unionists and Republicans, in other words, those that want to stay British and those that want to join the Republic of Ireland. The issues are complex, the struggle a long one with roots centuries old in the religious persecutions under Cromwell and the British attempt to English-ize the Irish.
Our tour was conducted by a retired gentleman who knows his history and clearly was an Irish Republican. He and other drivers are wanting to keep alive the truth as time marches on. So we see the separation of the Catholic neighborhoods from the Protestant neighborhoods that still exist in parts of Belfast.
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| One of the four gates that close every night to separate the Catholic from the Protestant areas |
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| Murals are everywhere about the city |
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| Some murals are meant to commemorate history, others are "tongue in cheek" comments on history |
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| Along the wall, graffiti the entire length, some political, some not |
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| I was offered a Sharpie and invited to add my own name |
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| We walked to the museum which is located next to this grand old university |
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| We stayed at the Fitzwilliam Hotel. On their breakfast buffet was a complete comb of honey dripping. |
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