Spring Break 2013. I had already lived in Ireland for over ten years when I realised I still hadn’t ventured north. So we hopped in the car and went on a short but sweet road trip. Four hours later we were in Belfast. We took in the Botanic Gardens, the Titanic Museum, the Ulster Museum, spent the night, and then drove up the Atrium Coast to see the Giant’s Causeway. The weather was incredible. Not a drop of rain and vibrant blue skies.
The Botanic Gardens have been around since the 1828—the existing building was completed in 1840—and contains a variety of very old seed plants, exotic trees, ferns and plenty of colourful flowers. I felt like I had stepped back in time to the early days of botany exploration and interest. I could imagine the train of a long dress and a bustle trailing behind me on the cold floor inside the Victorian Palm House.
The Titanic Museum has the best scones in the cafe. It takes something special to be the highlight here. The history of Belfast during the construction of the ship was extremely detailed and interesting. I would have liked to have gone back through the whole museum again and relived the story starting with life in the Belfast shipyards when construction started, through the launch, the tragic sinking, the movies and the salvage that followed. Outside, is a painted outline of the ship itself. Enormous.
Atrium Coast and the Giant’s Causeway. Plenty of fresh air and exercise. Its was cold but crisp and all done in a very long day. The Giant’s Causeway is one of the 8th wonders of the world and a geological gem. It was formed by an ancient volcano but the legend is a better story: the columns were built by the Irish Fionn MacCumhaill as a bridge to Scotland when he was challenged to a fight by the the Scottish giant Benandonner.
Whimspherical 