Outside The Perimeter

It’s surf day! We thought we would be some of the only crazy people wanting to learn how to surf in the 50 degree water, but when we were greeted by our two very fun surf instructors, we also found out that we would be joined by an entire stag (bachelor) party of 12 Belfast boys. It was by far, one of the funniest days ever! The instructors split us into teams for the warm-up which included running, skipping, front rolls into the ocean, and lots of sarcastic comments from the stag party. Our team name- Catholics, Protestants and Americans- don’t ask, the Belfast guys decided on it. The entire lesson was so much fun, with the exception of trying to squeeze our bodies into those wet suits. We learned how to position ourselves on the board, how to paddle before and during the wave and then finally, the standup! Marshall was a pro and credits his Crossfit burpees to actually having a practical use. Me, not so much the pro, but had a blast and enjoyed the great weather. Overall thoughts on Northern Ireland….Beyond the beauty of the landscape, we were also impressed by the people who lived in the coastal area- so nice, welcoming, laid back, and humorous without even trying. This definitely goes down as one of our favorite places!

After showering, we got back on the road and made our way to Belfast. The drive into the city was quite easy with lovely views of windmills and the countryside along the way. With the sun not setting until about 10pm, we had lots of daylight left and immediately began our tour of Belfast with City Hall, St. Anne’s Cathedral, and a cupcake in the park (for all of you who know my love of cupcakes). One thing we noticed about Belfast, was that the city center was flooded with free thinking and uniquely dressed teenagers including a couple of kids with signs offering free hugs- I exchanged a hug for a photo:) We continued onto Queen’s Island where the Titanic was built. The Titanic Quarter included the Dry Dock where they built the ship over a three year period and the Pump House which they used to pump out all of the water after the ship set sail. It was impressive to see the sheer size of the dock!

That afternoon, we spent the day at the Royal Botanical Gardens. It was a super colorful park that was quite peaceful and relaxing to see the dogs playing on the lawn and people just hanging out in the nice weather. Just outside the Garden gates was the Queen’s University campus. Detailed old buildings, surrounded by newer row houses that contained different academic departments. It was one of my favorite campuses of our UK tour.