Northern Ireland - October 2014

We got a ferry from Cairnryan, Scotland to Belfast, Northern Ireland. We were met by Fionntan and Keyleigh, fellow teachers from Huai'an, China. We of course ended up having drinks in a couple 

of pubs and had dinner in a restaurant called 'Made in Belfast'. Fionntan and his folks then put us up for our stay.  Next morning a visit to Carrickfergus Castle was first on our list, then a wander round the streets, there is great artwork on some of the buildings.

After heading into town we went to The Titanic Centre - photo 2 - and spent a few hours absorbing the history of Belfast and the tragic Titanic story.  It was definitely worth the visit. The following day Fionntan and Keyleigh took us up the Causeway Coast.  Our first stop was castle ruins at Kinbane on a headland, the castle was built around 1544 there was also an old cottage on the headland that was used until 1980.

Photo 1 - Fionntan, Keyleigh and Jonathan in the old cottage. Next stop was Carrick-a-Rede, a rope bridge that crosses from the mainland to an Island where locals used to go for salmon fishing.  We then went on to Ballintoy Harbour for lunch, some of 'Game of Thrones' was filmed here.

Photo 1 - Across Ballintoy Harbour, photo 2 - We had a quick look at Dunseverick Castle then on to

'Giants Causeway'.  We had a good wander around the causeway, we were warned about not getting to close to the ocean as it obviously unpredictable, the guy in photo 6 did not listen, and yes he was okay.

Giants Causeway.

Photos 1 to 3 are still Giants Causeway.  Photos 4 and 5 are Dunluce Castle. We then headed back to

Belfast, it was a really good day trip.  The next morning we had breakfast at St George's Market with

Fionntan's parents Geraldine and Martin and of course Fionntan and Keyleigh.  A great selection of food and crafts were available and worth a visit, not sure if it is open every day or just a weekend thing.

The Belfast Hop on hop off bus tour is certainly a must here.  The commentary certainly gave a lot of 

history about the city and 'The Troubles'.  Photo 4 - shows 2 Harland and Wolff cranes called Samson and Goliath that stand out over the city, they were used for ship building.  When we arrived in Belfast on the ferry we could see them from a long way off shore. Photo 5 - Crumlin Jail.

These photos are from the Shankill Road and surrounding streets, there is still a lot of visible signs like these of 'The Troubles' in this neighbourhood.  Other areas in Belfast did not have the same feel about them.

Iceland - September 2014

Iceland was cold, rainy and windy when we arrived, in fact the plane had 2 attempts at landing due to the wind. We did 

'The Golden Circle Classic tour' with Grayline Iceland Excursions which took about 8 hours.  Photo 1 - Nesjavellir 

Geothermal Field, photos 2 and 3 - Site where the tectonic plates of Europe and North America meet. Photo 4 - Jonathan is where Icelanders created a parliament in 930AD this is the same area as in photos 2 and 3.  Photo 5 - Jonathan wants one of these vehicles.  Photo 6 - Gullfoss waterfalls which are spectacular, we went down to the big rock area on the left for a closer view. It was impossible to stay dry.

Me at the falls. Photo 2 - The Strokkur hot pool that erupts every 5 to 7 minutes.  Photo 3 - Skalholt 

medieval church.  Photos 4 to 6 - we had a wander around Reykjavik - the capital of Iceland.

Further wandering around Reykjavik, Photos 1 and 2 - Hallgrimskirkja Lutheran church, the church organ was huge. Photos 3 and 4 are a couple of the city streets.  Photo 5 - view from a water tower of Reykjavik.  Photo 6 - The light house at Grotta.

Our next excursion was 'a geothermal adventure' with Reykjavik Helicopters.  We encountered more rain but there were 

enough gaps of fine weather for some photos and a wander around Mount Hengill.

We did another day tour, this time with Iceland Horizon Tours going to Snaefellsness Peninsula north of Reykjavik.

Another rainy cloudy day, with enough breaks in the weather to do some exploring.  Photo 2 - basalt columns which is the

end of an old lava flow.  Photo 3 - Jonathan walking through the lava to get to a beach. Photos 4 and 5 - the beach.

Photo 6 - lava fields that make Iceland so rugged.

Photos 1 and 2 - The coastline,  near Arnarstapi.  Photo 3 - Pieces of Greenland shark hanging to dry, the meat is hung for 7 weeks after being cut up, then buried for 7 months otherwise it is toxic to humans.  We tried a very small piece of shark, it did not taste the best.  Photos 4 to 6 - A museum at Bjarnarhofn which was pretty interesting, the greenland shark meat is processed  near the museum.

Scotland - September 2014

We arrived in Scotland in time to witness the vote for Scottish Independence.  It was certainly an interesting time to visit,
with Yes and No signs in all sorts of places.  Photo 1 is the 'Kilwinning Abby', photos 2 and 3 are in the pedestrian street in
Kilwinning.  Had a good chat with the Yes people at their wee stand.  

Was shown around Isle of Arran by friends Graeme and Aly,  a lovely part of Scotland. Photo 4 - Machrie Moor stone circles. Photo 5 - old buildings near the stone circles. Photo 6 - sign states 'Passing Place' on the road from Brodick to
Blackwaterfoot.  We drove around and across the Isle at a leisurely pace.

Photos 1 to 3 Brodick Castle on Isle of Arran . Photo 4 - Jonathan and I back on the mainland at Stirling castle in Stirling.
Photo 5 - Aly and Graeme our great guides. Photo 6 - William Wallace monument seen from Stirling Castle.

King Robert the Bruce standing guard at Stirling Castle and Stirling Castle.  I think the armour is my size.

Photo 1 - Stirling seen from the top of Wallace Monument, it was over 200 steps to get to the top and was very windy.
We then went to see an engineering marvel the 'Falkirk Wheel' which raises and lowers canal boats from 1 canal system to another. At this site is a miniature version of the 'kelpies' - photo 4 - where Aly and Jonathan try to show the scale of the artwork.  We then drove to the big version of the 'Kelpies' - photo 5 - where again Aly and Jonathan show the size of the horses. 

A family dinner with the Scotland branch of the family.

A day in Glasgow, a real mix. The street group are called Clanadonia and were very good.

We were loaned a car for a couple of days and drove from Kilwinning to Fort William on day 1.  Had a lot of rain, but there were enough breaks in the weather to take photos.  Photos 1,2,3 and 6 are the town of Inveraray.  We had lunch in a
pub dated around 1798. Photo 4 is on the way to Inveraray, and photo 5 is the train used for the Harry Potter films. 

Photos 1 and 2 - We went via Glen Coe to Fort William as had heard the scenery was amazing - that is so true.  Photo 3 is Jonathan at Fort Augustus on day 2 at a series of locks. We also visited a few more castles photos 4  - Urquhart Castle at Loch Ness and photos 5 and 6 are Dunnottar Castle which is between Aberdeen and Stone Haven.

UAE and Oman - September 2014

We arrived in UAE and stayed with friends Katharina and Daniel in Dubai.  The malls are huge, photo 1 is Jonathan at IBN Battuta mall. Photo 2 is Dubai from a water taxi, this was the cheapest way to get a cruise.  Photo 3 is the hotel Burj Al Arab.  We ended up at the Dubai Creek and the Souk area and had a wander around.  It was around 38 degrees C. 

People at the Dubai Creek, Souk area.

Photo 1, Jonathan on the 4 Points Sheraton roof top bar which is the 43rd floor, we had a drink and watched the sunset.
The Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi was truly amazing, we got a free guided tour which was definitely worth while.

The Zayed Grand Mosque, it is the largest Mosque in the world.

We went over to Oman for the day with Katharina and Daniel, these photos are us going to the Kitnah Wadi - ending up having a swim at the 'Pools at Al Huwail'.  A very cool thing to do.


After a night at Al Ain in UAE we drove up Jebel Hafeet to get a view of the country side.  Photo 1 has us sheltering in
the shade on Jebel Hafeet and photo 2 the view. Then back over the border to Oman where we went to the Fossil Valley area.  We did a hike to a hanging garden, it was around 45 to 48 degrees so very hot. Photo 3 has Katharina and I climbing a hill.
Photo 4 is me in by the hanging garden.  Photo 5 is Daniel, Katharina and Jonathan - this gives an idea of the size of the
area.  Photo 6 is Jonathan as we head back down.   

Had a sand storm on the way back to Dubai and visited Big Red sand dunes.




Photos 1 and 2 are in the old Bastakiya Area of Dubai where we had a wander.  Jonathan and I went to a breakfast at the
Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding.  The young lady in photo 3 told us of local customs and the UAE
way of life, she was a good speaker and had a nice sense of humour.  This was very informative and I would recommend it.
Photos 5 and 6 are us dining at an Italian restaurant at Dubai Mall with Daniel and Katharina.