Happy Father's Day! (Yes, they celebrate it here.)
Saturday was our day in Belfast which is about an hour NW of Armagh. We left from Armagh about 8:30 in the morning and picked up our travel guide at the rail station in Belfast. We had about a two hour tour of the city, the highlights of which included a tour of the harbors (the Titanic was built in Belfast) and a tour through the Unionist and Nationalist neighborhoods. It's very clear which is which, based on who's flying the Union Jack and who is flying the flag of Republic of Ireland. While the Troubles are no longer, the Peace wall that was errected in 1969 to divide the sides, still stands. It has become a living work of art and visitors and residents are encourgaed to leave there own personal messages of hope and peace. When it gets full, it gets painted over and the messages start anew.
After the tour we stopped at our church, St. Anne's Cathedral and sough out lunch and shopping. We returned to the church at 3:00 for rehearsal which should have been pretty straightforward but it turned into a tech session due to some unforseen difficulties. So not a lot of singing time. And it was COLD in the church. Definitely not that prepared for all this overly cool weather that seems to permeate everywhere. Especially large stone churches.
The concert again went well, with some definite improvements from the night before. Hopefully by Tuesday (our 3rd and final performance) we'll have it perfect! We had dinner after the concert (yes it was a late night) and then the hour bus ride back to Armagh. Fortunately we have a late start this morning (11), down to visit Tommy Sands at his home which is not far from Dublin, on the coast. Then we head to Dublin for a tour and maybe some shopping, but being Sunday not sure much will be open.
Wishing yesterday that more of my VAE friends were on the trip. While there have been some expected challenges on this trip (misery loves company), there have also been lots of other wonderful experiences to share.
Hopefully I'll be able to send a message from Dublin later tonight.
Peace to all.
Lori
No comments:
Post a Comment