"Northern Ireland trip" a Northern Ireland Travel Page by annase

When I was invited to a wedding that was going to take place in Northern Ireland in August 2006, I had a bit of mixed feeling about the invitation. Northern Ireland??? I had never really thought of going to Northern Ireland before going to Scotland, Wales or Ireland first. I had always imagined that I’d visit Dublin and then make a day trip to Belfast or something… So many questions run through my head such as what’s there to see besides the capital, Belfast. There is a place called Londonderry or is it actually Derry? Why is this? Is it actually going to be safe or are we likely to run into a trouble, knowing that this region has frequently been on the media for its less than peaceful past? What else do I really know except what I’ve seen on telly and heard in news???? Hold on, wasn’t there some news a year or two ago that the Irish Republican Army (IRA) was giving up the violent means to influence the decision makers on this issue?? I think there was...

All the anxiety and uncertainty was soon put to a rest by a few minutes spent online. Northern Ireland is perfectly safe. There hasn’t been any trouble for a few years now. And it is green, pretty and there are plenty of interesting things to do.

After finding that all out I could concentrate on issues such as what’s the weather going to be like, considering it’s August. Is it going to be raining solid for 4 days in a row or is there going to be a bit of sunshine as well? Should I take my swimming gear just in case? It could actually be rather nice.. What else is there to do? I relied on Google again and found out that there were quite a few things to do. There is this amazing lava rock formation called the "Giant's Causeway", a whisky distillery(!), a few beaches, loads of coast line with cliffs and bays..

There was some quirky art work for sale in a cafe in Belfast city centre. This two piece was made by some local female student and she was flogging it for mere £55. Unfortunately it had already been sold to someone by the time I saw it. Really cool. Don't remember her name though.