-- Trapezes & Surf --

Another trip to Bundoran and I was again taking the bus into town (couldn't cycle because of the rain) to meet my driver Rob, which had previously been on my previous trip to the North.

One of my tourists was already waiting inside the bus, she was Hungarian and had been in Ireland for a bit, kind of an adrenaline junkie to be honest.
Nobody else had appeared in College Green and we went to Busaras to meet the rest of the group, mostly people traveling in pairs: an Irish girl and a french girl who used to have a friend in common and are not friends with anymore, two lovely middle-aged women from Dublin and a couple from Blanch who came across very friendly...nobody had ever surfed or rock climbed in their lives before.

Some curious fact about this trip is that most of them were into photography and had very expensive and professional equipment to face the beautiful landscapes of the North.

And after having some troubles locating all of them under the rain ,we drove off Dublin and hit the road for our first stop, the Monastic Site of Kells.
It was my first time there and the place had another group of tourists. It reminded me a lot of Kilkenny to be honest, many ancient headstones and old Celtic crosses. This was the place where the famous Book of Kells was originated so I guess the historical weight was also very important , even though it wasn't really my turf.

After some snaps under the drizzle, we continued our trip to the North with stops in Cavan for a quick snack, Enniskilleen for views of the lake and Ballyshannon for lunch.
Since surf was not good and things in Bundoran were not ready yet, we went straight to the Benbulben for some heavy hiking.
It was very warm and the changing Irish weather looked a bit indulgent to us as when we reached the top of the mountain, the view was absolutely clear and the ocean was showing some amazing shades of silver and blue while we were taking all the pics we could as nobody was around the antennas and we had a beatiful 360 degrees view of the region.

Hiking down was also very nice, even though my knees were already asking for a break and we headed back to the hostel for some well deserved time off and rest.
Most of us were very tired and just went for something quick for dinner, saw the sunset and went straight to bed in preparation for the famously hectic second day.

And as we woke up very early and after a light breakfast, we were bussed to the beach for SURFING!!! All I know is that it was a lovely sunny day and the waves were calling my name.
The group had the basic lesson and then off to the water. I could see how they were trying to catch the waves and what a great time they were having while doing it. The weather was just perfect for it.


Two and a half hours of getting battered by powerful waves later, we had our lunch and walked into the Adventure Centre for the...high ropes!
The instructor this time was very funny and made sure we had a great time in there. The rockclimbing wall is always a good laugh and see people struggling with their stamina and fears to get to the top is very fun.
The girls had no problems with getting up really, nor the couple and even our driver tried it and reached the top.
Arms a bit tired and we did the abseiling which I really enjoy but still can't get used to after a gap of weeks without trying it, although I must admit that now I am very comfortable with it.

And of course the reason of many laughs: the trapezes. Now, I had tried that one before and struggled to actually pull off that shaky telephone pole and grab the trapezes but must admit that this time was easier and very enjoyable. Even had it taped and now available on my YouTube channel.
Most people on our group jumped. The french girl gathered courage after seeing us jumping and finally made it in the end, but the jump that made our day was from our friend Bernie who, after climbing the pole and standing on it, took about ten minutes to jump off after all the cheering from the group forty feet down the ropes and after about twenty false attempts of jumping.

Then it was time for the classic afternoon barbeque, a perfect opportunity to bond and to mingle with other people staying in the hostel, including a French guy who was working there for the summer and a group of Brazilian tourists who had brought half a cow to grill and made it all very enjoyable.
Since most people on the group were very into photography, we decided to go all together to watch the famous sunset while the camera shutters wouldn't stop clicking until the sun said its good-bye and it was time for us to go to bed after a hectic and long day.

Next morning we drove up north to the border and Strabane welcomed us to Northern Ireland. An hour later and we were at the Giant's Causeway with yet another day of beautiful sunny weather, perfect to enjoy the magnificent scenery of the site.
The sea was very calm and the air so clean that you could even see Scotland from there while the sea bottom was showing different tones of blue and emerald green.
Then we drove to the Rope Bridge where I relaxed on the "beach" for a while as I refuse to pay ten pounds Sterling to see a bridge.

Belfast was our next stop and after locating our hostel, we had time off to go for some shopping in Victoria Square, enjoy an outdoor movie at the City Hall or just relax around the city which by that time was bursting with people.
Then we decided to go for a pint at the famous The Crown pub in front of the infamous Hotel Europa (target of many bombing attacks) to close the day.

After that I just went back to the hostel and relaxed for the night, as the next morning we left the hostel early for a tour of the Titanic Quarter, birthplace of the Titanic, where I admit I felt like a kid in a candy shop when watching the gigantic pool where the steel floating fortress was built and then to see the not so cheering murals (both sides) where my tourists enjoyed themselves by taking many pictures and learning about them thanks to a very interesting history lesson featured by our driver Rob.

Two and a half hours later, Port Tunnel was welcoming us into Dublin. Promises of get together reunions were made as well as some of getting wetsuits and try surfing themselves. I am happy to know they enjoyed it. Next post: Lahinch/Galway! Haven't done one of those in quite a while.