Rain and Rainbows around Northern Ireland

Photo Album Part One:

Walking along the cliff above Giant's Causeway. The wind was incredibly strong, and it was raining, too, at a slant. One side of me was dry and the other side was soaked.

The first rainbow that day. Giant's Causeway is that small peninsula on the left. We're still up on the cliff, looking down on it.

These columns were halfway down the cliff. They're called the Organ.

Giant's Causeway! It began to rain again.

This is the group that I went with! We rented two cars for the day. The four people on the right were in my car--we narrowly avoided driving on the right side (which would be the wrong side) of the road! The eight of us represented a good few countries: Germany, the Czech Republic, Spain, Turkey, the Republic of Ireland, and America.

Dunluce Castle. Still cloudy and cold.

From the Castle, I took this photo of the seacliffs to the west. The sun was beginning to peak out again. Notice the one archway.

Another rainbow over Dunluce Castle!

Very windy!

Yet another rainbow as we leave Dunluce Castle behind. From here we drove to Derry (or Londonderry if you prefer), but it was too dark by the time we arrived to see anything of the town.

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Photo Album Part Two:

My 23rd Birthday! Some of my Irish Studies classmates and I went out for a drink and discovered a pub full of leather couches, real lanterns, above par music choices, delicious and decently-priced meal deals and a lack of undergrads. One could not ask for anything more!
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Photo Album Part Three:

My classmate Frances asked for company at the GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) Conference in Armagh the weekend after my birthday. It took us forever to get there. Our train broke down, then our connecting bus was late, and then we got lost in Armagh once we arrived. It's a small world though; a friend of mine from Queen's lives in Armagh and came walking down the street just as we decided we'd better hail a taxi.

Here we are! The proud delegates! It was a conference for team/club leaders to voice their concerns and brainstorm about the year(s) ahead, but we got in on the basis that it might provide useful information for research. Irish sports are not something I follow, but I had the great fortune to attend one workshop that was perfectly geared towards my own research.

Irish language is an important aspect of the GAA since both the sport and the language are cultural activities/heritage. For instance, GAA club names are in Irish. And there is a cultural aspect of the GAA called Scor, in which language, story-telling, and dance are emphasized. Most clubs are formed on a parochial basis and more-or-less become the social outlets for the youth in those parishes. Needless to say, Gaelic sports are generally only pursued by members from the Catholic community in Northern Ireland, but the organisation is cross-border--meaning that the entire population of the geographic island is involved. It is the largest amateur sports organisation in the world.