a tree tunnel, a rope bridge and a castle {northern ireland, part two}

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the cottage we rented in northern ireland was right on the coast - we watched the sun set over the ocean each night (at about 10pm!) out the window of the living room. it was about an hour drive from belfast airport and all the places we wanted to see were less than a thirty minute drive away. it was perfect for our first trip as a family of four.

on sunday morning we went to church and felt so welcomed into a small congregation of wonderful people. after church and naps we went to the “dark hedges” - a street lined by gorgeous and huge beech trees. this place has become a tourist attraction due to the popular series game of thrones being filmed there. i’ve never seen that show and have no idea what it is about, haha. but i can sure appreciate an amazing tree tunnel in the middle of the super beautiful northern irish countryside! 

on monday we went to carrick-a-rede rope bridge and the scenery in that area blew me away. i was seriously wrapped up in some intense nature-loving rapture. the weather was spectacular, the colours were incredible, and the drama of the coastline and cliffs and waves was just exhilarating. we made one last stop at dunluce castle before heading back to the airport to fly home to london. it was pretty cool to scramble around those ruins perched on the cliffs overlooking the sea. we drove the long way to the airport - along the causeway coastal route - so that moses could get in a decent nap in the car. the views from the car window - green, sheep, ocean, hills, cows, trees, bursting yellow flowers - were stunning. and so good for my city-dwelling soul. 

we absolutely loved experiencing a little bit of northern ireland! 

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^^ there’s ian (with his arm outstretched) and moses (strapped onto his daddy’s back) crossing the rope bridge to carrick-a-rede island! the rope bridge was originally built in 1755 by salmon fishermen! but luckily it has definitely been updated since then ;) ^^
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^^ the little mo got to walk himself back across the bridge (he’s in front of ian in this photo). ^^
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^^ moses discovered his shadow! here he is waving at it :) ^^
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^^ we saw sooo many sheep in northern ireland! these guys were kind enough to pose for my camera :) ^^
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anytime we were in the car, i was sandwiched between two car seats in the back … so i didn’t get any good photos of the amazing scenery on our drive back to belfast airport. but this picture i did snap out the back window gives a little sense of the beauty! ^^

next up for traveling for us is three weeks in the usa! I am soooooo excited on lots of levels for that one. and i’m grateful we got a little traveling-with-two-kids practice in before this big trip! 

Comments

  1. Wow! Beauty like that is good for the soul! Thrilled that you got to enjoy it.

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  2. Did the baby need a passport? If so, how did you get him one so quickly?

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    1. as northern ireland is part of the uk, he didn’t need a passport for this trip. but we actually already had one for him! we just hopped right in the process of getting one soon after he was born so we could also get his uk visa in there before our trip to the states next month.

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