June 16

We landed in Belfast at 9:00 am that would be 4:00 Eastern Standard Time. Get up, grab all our belongings and head to customs with the rest of the tourists. Except for my Dad and my brother Eamon. See my Dad is still a citizen of Northern Ireland and a British subject, my brother has an Irish passport/duel citizenship, which entitles them to go through a different customs line which of course is much, much shorter.
After a hour and a half we all meet in the lobby to pick up our luggage, now let's find the rental cars (this should be a treat). Remeber we need to drive on the left side of the road. I can handle this, so I think.
Pull out of the car rental area and I just want to drive on the right side, Every time I pull up to an intersection I find myself looking the wrong way and almost causing an accident. Then we have these round abouts, they are everywhere! If you are from the East Coast it's referred to as a circle, in New England it is called a rotary. What ever you call it they are difficult to maneuver because you go around them clock wise instead of counter clockwise, like we do in the states. Also, no one knows who has the right away. SO FAR no injuries. Oh I did forget to tell you we have 3 cars, try to drive and keep eveyrone together, that in it self is a chore.
We got everyone's luggage, carr on's we need to get started and need to travel 60, 70 miles to the town of Derry where my parents are from. A night of traveling and we are still at the airport parking lot, who has English money to get us out of this parking lot? No, not parper money (pounds), but a pound in the form of a coin for 3 cars. Because the machine only takes coins, who would ever think there wouldn't be an attendant to let us out? This isn't Hopkins International Aiport or Philadelphia Internatil Airport, but Belfast International Airport. I actually opened the door on the left side of teh car and realized there was no steering wheel. That should being to show you what a journey this is beginning to be.
We are off and driving, the countryside is breathtaking. The clouds are so white and fluffy, sheep and cattle down the hillsides, fields all different colors of green and separated by hedge rows or stone walls used as fences. We travel small two lane country roads for much of our drive to Derry.
After 4 hours of picking up cars, luggage and finding our bearings we arrive at my Aunt Nora's house, this is my father's youngest sister (72). Aunt Nora lives in a retirement community, with her own modest apartment. She very much enjoys her surroundings and neighbors. We are met in the driveway by a group of smiling Irish women. For most of us it's been over 10 years since we last saw my aunt. She looks wonderful, except for the use of a cane, she gets around very well. The rest of the greeting committee consists of a cousin of my father (Aunt Eileen) and several other ladies from the community. After the normal hugs and kisses and the questions of who is this child, who do you belong to, and oh, how grown up you are, 'Your were only a wee one when I last saw you'.
The ladies have put together a lunch spread for all of us to enjoy in their community room. Sandwhiches, soup and of course tea (a main staple of Irish people). Now it's time to find the house we will be staying at, luck would have it one of the ladies working at the community center says she lives close by where we are going and would be happy to show us the way.
The house we will be staying at is in Lisfannon Heights a community just outside Buncrana which is about 20 miles outside of Derry.
Thank goodness for this woman taking the time to show us the way or we would still be looking for the house. The last trek of the trip to the house is straight up a hill. The car literally will not make it up the hill in second gear, it almost stalls.
At the house, looking out from the deck, the view is spectacular almost indescribable. We are looking over a lough, which is what we would consider a bay. This lough is also known as 'Lake of Shadows'. Instantly you can understand how it got its name. The sun and clouds cast shadows over the lough to create these beautiful shadows. Our second day in Ireland we had the Giant's Causeway. Legend has it that Finn McCool, a Giant, took his hand and scooped out a handful of soil. The Giant then threw the soil into the water, the soil became what we know of today as Scotland. The rock formation that we went to see, is supposed to be the walkway that was formed for Finn McCool to walk upon to England. In reality, a volcano errupted many years ago and pushed the rocks to the surface of the sea. The rocks are perfect octagonal shape, this being an all natural occurance. Also, on our second day, we stopped at Dunluce Castle to explore. Both the Causeway and the Castle are on the Causeway Costal Route which gave spectacular views of the coastline. Dunluce Castle was built in the 16th Century, it is hard to believe that such work and architecture could be completed by hand without of the use of modern technology. While we were at the Castle there was a group of College students performing an archaelogical dig. The students feel that they had recently foudn evidence of the Moors at the Castle site.