Dundrum Castle

I have been to some wonderful places this year but I was glad of spending a day in good old Northern Ireland after returning from India.

We really do have some of the most beautiful scenery in the world.
Sadly, I only had my iPhone with me but even with that I really like the shots I got.

Wheely Good Day

Today was my little sister's birthday. But for several reasons too dull to mention we did most of our celebrating yesterday. We went out of lunch and did a spot of shopping. Sarah seemed to like the idea of nipping into shops, picking up stuff she liked but leaving the bill to her big brothers!
But the main event in my opinion was the Belfast Wheel. For those of you who don't know, Belfast City council have erected a big wheel at City Hall. For £6 you can go to the top of the world! Well, not quite the top of the world but if you are a bit squeamish about heights it feels like that. The ride was good craic and the view was great!We ended up sharing a pod (no idea what the technical term is but they looks like pods) with some Eastern Europeans. The girl who appeared to be with her mother made a call from the top of the wheel during which she stated that all was ok - this was the point that we thought it would be funny to scream. So we did, and it was.

Slingshot Update

Jacob's Digital annoyed me this week. After ordering my Lowpro Slingshot from them expecting to pay the advertised rate they contacted me to say they couldn't send it to Ireland for the normal £4.50 rate. Instead it would cost £18.50!

So naturally I told them that I was not happy to pay that siting that I could buy the bag cheaper elsewhere - and by elsewhere I meant Amazon directly. But after sending the message I logged to Amazon to order it from them and discovered that their price had gone up! More than a little irritated, I then added a second reply to Jacob's Digital (via Amazon's Marketplace) voicing further displeasure at the whole thing. They ended up just refunding my for the bag.

But the good ending to this story is that on the way home from London I called into the Dixons store in Stansted airport. There I found the same bag at under £30 and didn't need to pay delivery as I did that bit myself!

It seems like a pretty good bag and has been doing its job well so far - although it hasn't been rigorously tested yet!

Always wanted a Slingshot

No camcorder is complete without a bag to safely transport it!

This one seemed pretty cool so I ordered it from Jacobs Digital through Amazon! This way I benefit from a cheaper price than buying from Jacobs directly but benefit from a faster delivery than Amazon promise!

Its a Lowepro Slingshot and if you check out the photos on Amazon you will see how handy it is. I know it is made more for SLRs etc but at the end of the day its a padded back with movable compartments - right?

We'll see how it performs when it gets here.

Where the Mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea

I wish I had taken more photos today.

My brother and I, after a hearty lunch at Blue Glass (pricey but delicious), decided to head to Newcastle, Co Down to meet up with Mum, Dad and little sister who had travelled down a little earlier in the day.

I think I found a new appreciation of the placed today. In spite of driving through some torrential rain on the way (you can see it in the distance in the photo below), the wee seaside town seemed to escape most of it and remained sunny. It gave us a chance to see the wonderful Mourne Mountains in all their splendour! I think we will go back soon to the mountains themselves for a good walk.


The new promenade is fantastic. Such an improvement over when I was there last. And when it comes to food ou can even find a few nice bistro style pubs and decent coffee shops. Newcastle has gone an got itself a new suit and wears it so well! Carrickfergus Borough Council take note!!

I also learned today that it was a William Percy French (1854-1920) who wrote 'The Mountains of Mourne' song. Some of the words are etched into a steel memorial to the man so I got a chance to read what it was all about. So for those of you who only know the last line of each verse - here is the rest of the song!

Oh, Mary, this London's a wonderful sight
With people here working by day and by night
They don't sow potatoes, nor barley nor wheat
But there' gangs of them digging for gold in the streets
At least when I asked them that's what I was told
So I just took a hand at this diggin' for gold
But for all that I found there I might as well be
Where the Mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea.

I believe that when writin' a wish you expressed
As to how the fine ladies in London were dressed
Well, if you believe me, when asked to a ball
Faith, they don't wear no top to their dresses at all.
Oh, I've seen them myself and you could not in trath
Say if they were bound for a ball or a bath
Don't be startin' them fashions now, Mary Macree,
Where the mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea.

I've seen England's king from the top of a bus
And I've never known him, but he means to know us.
And tho' by the Saxon we once were oppressed,
Still I cheered, God forgive me, I cheered with the rest.
And now that he's visited Erin's green shore
We'll be much better friends than we've been heretofore
When we've got all we want, we're as quiet as can be
Where the mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea.

You remember young Peter O'Loughlin, of course
Well, now he is here at the head of the force
I met him today, I was crossing the Strand
And he stopped the whole street with a wave of his hand
And there we stood talkin' of days that are gone
While the whole population of London looked on
But for all these great powers he's wishful like me
To be back where the dark Mourne sweeps down to the sea.

There's beautiful girls here, oh, never you mind
With beautiful shapes nature never designed
And lovely complexions all roses and cream
But O'Loughlin remarked with regard to the same
That if at those roses you venture to sip
The colours might all come away on your lip
So I'll wait for the wild rose that's waitin' for me
Where the Mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea.

Red Mist

As I was uploading my previous post I noticed that my photos, taken with my Nokia N73, had a bit of a red mist on the right hand side. Could this just be a dirty lens or is this a problem with the phone/chip?

And it's colours they were fine

The Causeway Coastline that is. I spent most of the 12th July with Dermo and Debbie. We travelled to Portstewart with the aim of doing a spot of fishing. But we didn't do much until we got to Portballintrae, and the fish didn't really do much at all. They must take the 'July Fornight' off too. Everyone we spoke to had similar luck but for me the day was not wasted. It was great to just be out in the open, breath the sea air and feast my eyes on some of our quite spectacular countryside and coast.

Does your Dog(fish) bite?

Well, yes, actually!

Dermo and I went down to Port Muck on Friday night to do a spot of fishing. I had never done it before so began by casting the line into a few rocks. But by the time we waited for some German's to leave the good spot I seemed to be doing ok.

I must say I'm not too good when it comes to worms, cutting up fish and all manner of stuff for bait. I'm also not great with the fish themselves!

But I got my first catch! As I reeled it in there was a point when I thought I simply managed to hook into another rock but as it turned out it was a dog fish. They are strong little fellas - apparently related to the shark family. As Dermo removed the hook (I wasn't for touching it) it squirmed and wrapped itself in a circle! Anyway, the pic isn't of my fish but of of one another fisherman got but you can see what I mean.



It was a lovely evening. The sunset that sillouetted some other fisherman on a rock was complimented by an equally lovely moon rise.