Happy 4th of July!
You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.
Erma Bombeck
There, I guess King George will be able to read that.
John Hancock, after signing the Declaration of Independence
Erma Bombeck
There, I guess King George will be able to read that.
John Hancock, after signing the Declaration of Independence
Our correspondent this morning is Sarah Murray:
We awoke this morning bright and early to the welcome sound of Ms. Duarte's fist on our doors. We took taxis to the train station where we caught the 9:40 train to Derry/Londonderry. Why is the city called by two names? The cities population cannot agree on the name: Catholics call the city by its historical name of Derry and Protestants call the city Londonderry - a name that traces back to the planation of Ulster. After many futile attempts to read our assigned homework from Reading in the Dark by Seamus Deane, we found ourselves lulled into dreamland by the gentle swaying of the train. We students fell asleep on each other for a solid hour at least. We awoke this time to the beauty of the countryside with its majestic cliffs, fields, vegetation, and seaside.
We arrived in Derry/Londonderry, crossed the Craigavon Bridge spanning the Foyle River, and met our guide at the historic Guild Hall. Ruairi, pronounced Rory, O’hEara (how’s that for an authentic Irish name?) was incredibly knowledgeable about the walled city of Derry and the Troubles that began there in the late 1960s. He is 28 years old and very friendly. Ruairi gave us his version of Derry/Londonderry's history, which gave us an interesting perspective on the events we had learned about in the classroom regarding the Siege of Derry/Londonderry. In 1688 James II, the ousted Catholic king of England, went to Ireland and began conquering cities in hopes of regaining the crown from his Protestant son-in-law William of Orange.
Derry/Londonderry's mayor, Lundy, intended to surrender to James, but in the middle of the night the Apprentice Boys (Protestants loyal to King William) shut and locked the gates, beginning the 105 day siege on the town. Ruairi then continued to give us a more recent history of the town's violent past, including Bloody Sunday. This occurred in 1972, and what began as a peaceful Catholic civil rights march ended with the shooting of 13 innocent protesters by the British army, six of whom were our age. We finished the tour with our visit to the Free Derry Museum which included an extensive and moving display on Bloody Sunday.
On the way to the museum, we were able to see some of the murals on the sides of people's houses that related to the town's inflamed past. We then stopped for a while at the stone wall that was previously the side of a house and which has become an internationally recognized icon for nationalist resistance throughout the whole of Northern Ireland (and beyond). The sign is white with black lettering that reads simply "You are now entering Free Derry." It is amazing to see the role that this city has played throughout Irish history and struggles for liberty. Our group retreated back to the center of the city where we proceeded to split up for a few hours for some quality shopping time!
Love to all - Sarah :)
Our afternoon correspondent is Sonja Schnell:
After a delicious lunch at the Sandwich Shop with Tom, Sarah, Gabby, and Jess we headed to the stores for a dose of retail therapy! We decided that Tom was the best guy to ever shop with girls, as he did not complain and told us we were pretty whenever we asked his opinion. Awesome! After spending a few too many pounds, as usual, we met at the Diamond, a memorial in the center of the walled city, for our next tour scheduled for four. This tour was to be led by a Loyalist member of the community.
After waiting for about ten minutes and watching Mr. Bizga climb the walls of Derry/Londonderry, Raymond informed us that the tour would most likely begin at five. He had initially planned it for five, but changed it to four a few days before. We wandered around for a little while, stopping St. Columb’s Cathedral/Museum. There we viewed the cannonball which held the request for surrender during the siege of 1689, which was returned with a resounding “no” by the people of Derry/Londonderry. This is a rather odd way to send a communiqué. On our way back to the meeting place, we passed Derry/Londonderry’s finest: youths that were openly snogging (publicly displaying affection) on top of the walls of the city. Yet another cultural experience!
After revisiting our meeting place and once again watching Mr. Bizga climb the city walls, we realized that our guide was not going to show. This was disappointing as we were unable to hear another perspective on the situation in Derry/Londonderry. The Loyalists of the area, who number only about 500 on the west side of River Foyle, still feel as though they are under siege, and this missed opportunity was unfortunate for everyone. We all find hearing from both sides an important aspect of our learning process. The dual perspective allows us to better understand the dynamics of the people in the north of Ireland and their culture. Hopefully, our guide was simply feeling under the weather and this was not a display of the weaknesses of the peace process.
Unfortunately, we had to return to the mall. Such a shame. On this occasion we had less time, so most of us decided to save our money for when we shop in Belfast tomorrow. At six we walked back to the train station exhausted yet still in search of the infamous Platform Nine and Three-quarters. Needless to say, as I am not writing from Hogwarts; it was left undiscovered.
Our beautiful return trip was decorated with rainbows, and all of us regretted not residing in the towns they landed on. Our group goal is to find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Wish us luck! Our rainbows were accompanied by reading, a very exciting experience for everyone! Jayson met a few more Irish girls; we are all impressed by his tactful “networking.” Mr. Bizga would be proud. Most people began to doze off after a few pages, an unfortunate biproduct of learning, as we have discovered. Gabrielle and I watched Sarah slowly take over Patrick’s seat, using his arm and then entire body as a pillow. The funniest moment of this was probably when she woke up, however, as there was a beautiful drool stain on his jacket.
The group returned to Queen’s after an extremely long day and devoured food in the dorm. We made a run to Spar (a grocery store at our local BP station), twice (during which Sarah, Gabby, and I were followed by a group of twelve-year-old soccer players), for some delicious frozen meals and ice cream. We devoured a three-course meal of microwave dinners, sandwiches, or Tom’s mystery meal, then polished it off with four pints of Ben and Jerry’s. After group bonding, which continues now, we will head to bed. It has been yet another wonderful day in Ireland, and we can not wait for more in the future.
Much love from
Quote from the Day
“We’re gunna be chillin’.”
-Raymond
2 comments:
Derry's wall gives the city a medieval feel of a castle being protected from the Catholics of the Republic, a stone's throw away. (It gives one a good stretch of the legs, too!) Reading in the Dark cannot be understood in the same way without seeing Derry's Bogside - I hope you guys can better enjoy the depth of Deane's masterpiece after exploring this scarred city!
Well? Didn't we chill today? And wasnt the train a good idea? It allowed guys to sleep lying across those tables, meant for your Coke and sandwiches. I have a sneaky suspicion that the team find it hard to sleep at nights. Can't understand why! Maybe the days are too long and the nights too short.
Derry and Riairi O'hEara were great. He was a first class guide but remember what I said about preception. I am pretty certain that Ruairi is almost 90% correct in his analysis but do allow for that little margin. This is not to take away from the veracity of what he was saying. The Civil Rights Movement preceded the modern day IRA. The first big Civil Rights march which led to the first death in the Troubles was IRA free!(Oct 1968). And the Battle of the Bogside was IRA free also.(Aug 1969). But by the time of Bloody Sunday (Jan 1971), the IRA were in full bloom (if that's the correct word).
Isn't Derry compact though, and the oldest walled city in Europe, birthplace of Martin McGuinness, Deputy First Minister, who was IRA Commander there.
The shopping was a big attraction for some reason- and the "snoggers" on the walls could well have been Catholic and Protestant!! So, I suppose the walls serve a purpose even today!
Love your style Sarah.
Sonja describes the afternoon perfectly. But it was such a pity that the Loyalists simply didn't show. Even the Loyalists of Castlereagh said they had a "siege mentality up there."
So don't be too hard on them. The Derry ones are from a section of Loyalism which has still to hand in all their guns, and although the Derry (Londonderry) branch didnt show we can only 'guess' why they didn't. But a good source told me that in that small community of 500 there was a 3 way split! I even had to check later to see if my contact was still alive. He was...and is!
Well, the stores got another quick visit as Sonja sadly points out and I saw myself the good taste that the ladies, in particular, have. On the train back to Belfast I, too, noticed that Jayson was keen to stretch his legs and stroll around the carriages.
Wasn't it just great that day? The trip wouldn't have been the same without it.
We chilled!!
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