View from the Hill

Ok, so, for those of you familiar with the Marine Corp Marathon you'll appreciate this. I walk a hill every day that's like 2 miles of the Marathon. In the morning, it's grand, all downhill into Dalkey to catch the DART. At night, sweet Jesus. Its just over a mile, straight uphill.... the whole fecking way. One day I finally made it to the very, very top of Killiney Hill. Here you have the benefit of seeing the view without the hike.












My house is somewhere over here...













And that's the view at the top. Lovely, isn't it?

Ahh... Saturday

Wow, its been a little bit...

So last week I continued doing work for Jimmy. I didn't draft a letter quite the way he liked it but we got it taken care of. I must be doing something right because I'm supposed to go to Kerry now on Feb 15 for some event. Who knows what it is. This man doesn't seem to know if he's coming or going most days.

Last night we went to a pub down the street called the Druids. Now, by down the street I mean about a 3 min walk around the corner. Its really quite nice. So, it was Fay (my house dad), Ciara (pronounced Kira, host sister), Ashley (other host sister), Kelly and Jillian. Eventually Ozzie and Eamon showed too, Ozzie being Fay's friend and Eamon being Fay's brother. They kept ordering rounds and we had a good time.

I got up today and decided I was going to make cheesecake because we had all talked about it. Now, I had mentioned to Mary (host mom) some of the things I needed in passing and she picked them up at the store for me! God bless her. I learned a few things this morning while trying to make this cake...
1) There are no such things as graham crackers here. (yes, you read that right, they don't know what they are)
2) Cream Cheese is called Philadelphia
3) Everything is in metric and that is NOT the most efficient way to cook things.
4) There is a wall switch to turn on the oven and the temp is in Celcius

Now, I succeeded in making a fairly decent semi-cake like thing. I ended up cutting the recipe in thirds because I only had 400 grams of cream cheese (230 grams = 8oz.) It didn't whip up quite right (maybe too much egg) or fill the pan, but its ok enough to eat! I guess it is a learning experience.... I'm sending them proper measuring tools when I get home. Both Mary and Ciara quipped that the USA at least has that right.

After that I headed to see a play at the Abbey Theater. It was called the Recruiting Officer and it was eh. But I had forgotten how nice Dublin can be when the sun is actually out.

Came home, had dinner, slid down the stairs (I've been more accident prone here than I have been in ages) and am now filling you all in. I'm really tired tonight but that may be because I intend on reading a tremendous amount of Irish history tomorrow.... I still don't understand why historians feel the need to make history boring.

So, thats it for now! More soon!

The New Job

So I started work on Tuesday. I didn't know I was starting on Tuesday, I was just told to go meet the man, but it turned into a 6 hour work day. Jimmy Deenihan is a force of nature. He never stops moving! It turns out he's setting up an arts exhibition in NYC for artists from Co. Kerry. This is now my project. After being there for about 45 min on Tuesday he hands me a grant application and says, here, fill this out. Sure, ok, yah, no problem. I convince him to leave it with me and have a much better version for him on Thursday, one that's typed, not handwritten. Apparently, I've won him over because I now own this project and can actually write letters to people as myself on his stationary. So, what this says to me is this, I've been here less than a week and I have more responsibility than my previous job gave me in 3 years.... hmm...

The working conditions would be considered odd in the States. There is his secretary, Bernadette , and me. That is all the staff he gets. So I have to bring my own computer and share his desk... yes you read right.




See? Jimmy's chair is on the left... and mine is on the right. See my Mac sitting there?









That about covers it. He seems nice enough and riding the DART is like the metro, only slower. Oh yah, and the cheapest place to eat in the whole city is the cafeteria at the Dail. So that's a perk too.

Assignment!

I received my placement today and will be heading into the Dáil tomorrow to meet my TD. I now know that TD stands for Teach Dáil in Irish. It would mean house representative. I will be working for..... Jimmy Deenihan who represents North Co. Kerry.

Here's a bio on him:

Deputy Deenihan was appointed Fine Gael Spokesperson for Defence, September, 2007.He served as Spokesperson on Arts, Sports and Tourism, 2002-07.

A Dáil deputy since 1987, Jimmy was appointed as Advisor to the Leader on Northern Ireland Policy and Party Spokesperson on Sport in February 2001. He was Fine Gael's Junior Spokesperson on Environmental Information and Protection from June 2000 to February 2001.

He was a member of the Gaelic Athletic Association. He won All-Ireland football medals with Kerry in 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980 and in 1981 the year he captained the team. Jimmy Deenihan received a GAA All-Star Award in 1981.

I'm hopeful that all this sports stuff means that I'll get to go to a few matches while I'm here (for free). Mulreany told me that this man only gets grad students because he requires high quality of work. In my mind this means he's probably high maintinence.... so we'll see how this goes.

Also, Jen figured out how to call me... you have to put 011 353 in front of my number which means I now have the longest phone number in the world.

Dalkey

So the little town we live in outside of Dublin in Killiney is known as Dalkey. Yesterday a group of us walked down to the harbor to see Dublin Bay. Apparently there are about 300 seals that live along the coast and the local fisherman fed a few of them for us so we could see them. There were some cliff faces and rocks that the rest of the group climbed on as well.




Again with the crooked photos, I'll figure this out I promise. This is the door to 6 Glenalua Tre.







The view from my room.... note the donkey on the hill.







Coastline looking into Dublin Bay.









Local fisherman feeding the seals!








The girls from the group. For some reason in every picture we take this semester my eyes are closed...







The group climbing the cliffs around the bay. I was too much of a chicken to go. :)






What more does one need at the end of a long day?

Kilmainham Gaol

This was the jail that was used for political prisoners from the 1803 rising, the 1916 rising, and the 1920 civil war. Eamon De Valera was held here twice but never killed because he had an American Passport (he was born in New York). De Valera went on to become Ireland's first "prime minister" or Taoiseach.



This is the more Victorian style wing of the jail. The movie Michael Collins, and the show the Tudors have used it for filming. Also, music groups like to record here because the acoustics are good.





I'm not really sure why blogger won't let me turn these, even after I've saved them the right way. So turn your head 90 degrees to the left. This is the entrance to Kilmainham. They used to have public hangings at the front door.





This is the older part of the jail. Solitary cells, similar to Eastern State Pen. in Philly. Smaller, and darker, during the famine they had anywhere from 5-7 people per cell and some sleeping in the corridors.








There are two black crosses in the courtyard that mark where the 14 leaders were shot. One marks where 13 were killed and one for the last one shot.






This is a plaque commemorating the 14 that the British executed that were involved with the Easter 1916 rising.

Pictures!

Ok, so here are some pictures for you all. The captions are below them. Enjoy! I think this weekend we're exploring Dublin so I'll have more to come! I'm also debating a trip to Egypt for spring break (don't worry too much, I'll be going with a group.)

My eyes are closed... but this is about half the group out for a nightcap.

Sneak shot of Kelly, my housemate and fellow classmate from CUA.

The front door of the IPA where I am taking classes. It is right next to Lansdowne Stadium where the soccer games are, but Lansdowne is currently being renovated.

My host doggie, Poppy.

This picture is my room at my host family's house. The room that Kelly has is pink... you can understand why I didn't pick that one. Its a little chilly but a comfy place altogether!

Above you see Grafton Street, which is the main shopping street in Dublin. It's still all lit up for the holidays.

More soon!

Internet Finally!

Ok, more later but I do have Internet now at my homestay! I'll be posting pictures and stories soon enough, thanks for your patience. I've received texts from some people but not from others so let me know if you've texted and I haven't responded, just drop me an email. I'm off to bed since I'm fighting off a cold, or its just cold here. At any rate I'll talk to you all soon!

I've been everywhere man

On my way to Buffalo on Wednesday I see:
1. a Cadillac with a license plate that says "Funeral"
- Not really sure what to make of this, but I laughed a lot.

2. A truck with the word "suicide" and a skull and cross bones painted on the back of it.
- Pair that with the plate that said funeral and I felt like the world was trying to tell me something.....

Anyway, back in VA for the moment, then off to NC to visit the fam! I'll let you know how Christmas goes... we all know how I feel about the holidays.

My moment of the day

I have a dog. The dog is hairy. Therefore, I need a vacuum. I bought an old school vacuum with no hepa filter, just a bag and a hose. I figured there was less of a chance it would get clogged. So I take the vacuum out yesterday to use it and it has zero suction power.... I mean nothing. So I start pulling it apart to see what the issue is. I can't find (or feel anything) so I start to get pissed off. Let me add that I'd been in the house all day trying to write a paper, so I take the dog for a walk to cool my head before I throw the damn thing out the window. Or take it up to my neighbors to throw it out because I live on the first floor.

So after a short walk, I come back and my roommate says she's fixed it... no, it still has no suction. I'm annoyed but also determined not to have to buy a new vacuum. I start pulling this thing apart piece by piece. I'm pulling out tons of dog hair that was just stuck in the curve of the hose and then all of a sudden there's this noise.... I keep working at it and a quarter falls out. Yes a quarter! I didn't know that this vacuum had that much suction...

I'm telling my friend about this. And he says to me, and I'm quoting this "you have like 14 f*&%-ing masters degrees and you can't bend over and pick up the shiny thing on the floor?!? You know its not a good idea to try to suck up change in the vacuum"

Thanks ass, I know this. I was more annoyed that I needed to quarter to do laundry, but hey, at least I fixed the vacuum!

What a brilliant statement...

Quote from K-Ville last Monday:

Fire Marshal: "I'm not good at sending out signals, or reading them so I'll just say it. I think we should have sex"
At which point she gets to, uh, do some cross departmental relationship building with Cobb.

Amen sister, amen. I'm keeping that one for my own use at a future date.

Thank you Southwest!

Thank you Southwest Airlines for the most entertaining safety instructions I have heard yet. They included:

"Please ensure your tray tables and seat backs are in the upright, locked, and most uncomfortable position. We will be coming through the cabin to check because we don't trust you"

"If you haven't been in a car since 1964, let me explain how the seat belt works. Please ensure that it is fastened low and tight around your hips, like the captain's speedo"

"In the event that this Southwest flight turns into a Southwest cruise we encourage you to take your seat cushion with you and kick paddle, kick, paddle the whole way to shore. We'll be right behind you with the complementary beer and peanuts"

"We don't anticipate a loss of cabin pressure, if we did we wouldn't have come to work today, but in the event that it happens, designer oxygen masks will fall from the ceiling. After you're done screaming and grabbing your neighbor please fully extend the plastic tubing to start the flow of alcohol, i mean oxygen, and breathe normally.... yeah right. "

"If you are traveling with a small child or someone who acts like it, please secure your mask first and then help them. If you're traveling with more than one child, now would be a good time to pick your favorite, who are we kidding, the one with the best earning potential, to save."

"If you don't like my jokes there are 6 exits off of this plane..."

"Welcome to Buffalo, as soon as my boyfriend... I mean the captain, has turned off the seat belt sign you can move about the cabin... please be careful getting your items out of the overhead bins, we don't want anyone going home with a complementary headache."

We also changed gates in Baltimore because "this plane has too much fuel, and its snowing in Buffalo"... really, snowing in December? Who knew? Not to mention this statement translates into... "This plane has too much fuel and its snowing, so if we slam into the runway we want to make it less likely we'll explode."

There you have it folks, an airline with a sense of humor.

Some famous jazz person lived here...

*names have been changed to protect the innocent... and the not so innocent. My thanks to the people that drug me around all weekend. You were excellent tour guides and fantastic people with great stories.

Well, I took a much needed vacation/exploration trip last weekend. I decided to head south... way south to New Orleans to see a good friend of mine. Aside from Florida I've never spent anytime further south than North Carolina, just like I've never spent time out west. Us East Coasters tend to be East Coast-centric.. we know there's a south, and a west and even a mid-west, we'd just rather not go. That being said, New Orleans is a city that is unique, wonderful, and like nothing else I've seen in my limited explorations of the US.

My friend, Jim (he gets that name because he reminds me of my uncle) was sure to get me out to do all the touristy things. I had a hand grenade at the Tropical Isle on Bourbon Street, a hurricane at Pat O's, and more things that I can't remember from that night. But I can tell you that the bars on Bourbon close.. that's right, they do actually close! At about 5am, and really no one wants to see what anyone else looks like at that time... trust me.

After much sleeping (and getting yelled at because I decided to wake up at 9 am, go back to bed!) We started to move about 3 pm. Then it was off on the street car again to meet up with more people at the Carousel bar on Royal. Really, it is a carousel in a bar and it moves, let me tell you that screwed me up more than I'd like to admit. Not that we were sitting on the moving part mind, we were sitting on the part that doesn't move and when I'd look up I'd get confused. Course, it doesn't take much to confuse me.

From there it was back out to Bourbon for the honorary tour of the classiest strip joints I have ever had the pleasure to see! Or rather the only strip joints I have ever seen... Have you ever seen a stripper light her nipples on fire? I have! Yes girls, you too can aspire to be a stripper on Bourbon, all you need is two 1 dollar bills, nipple rings and a lighter... I'll let you figure out the rest. There was also a girl who we were certain had no bones in her body... not a one. No human can move like that, maybe she was part snake? I will also admit to falling asleep, quietly, at the strip club. Yes, I'm old and lame now and a 5 am night followed by a 3 am night did me in.

Sunday I got the grand tour. Mostly because someone thought that the po'boy shops would be open... ahem. Know your city!! :) Just kidding. Anyhow, we (Jim, me, and Jim's friend, Kate who is a fantastic tour guide, her knowledge of random NOLA stuff is astounding) started at the SOS Festival (Save our Sandwich). Yes, you read right, a festival and street party dedicated entirely to the po'boy. New Orleans loves the po'boy (for those of us from above the Mason Dixon, its a hoagie) and its suffering a slow and painful death at the hands of corporate America. So why not have a party to bring it back? Kate (she gets that name because she reminds me of one of my favorite bartenders) mentioned to me that she had moved back from Baton Rouge because she couldn't get a decent piece of bread. These people take their sandwiches very seriously. And their festivals, why not combine the two?

Also, I got to eat a Snowball.... stop it, I've had snow before, this was more like... the shaved remnants of an ice sculpture in a cup, with a flavored sugary substance and condensed milk... what a fantastic idea. Highly recommended. Especially if you're still tired from Bourbon Street, there is nothing like a good sugar buzz to fix that. And I got to see a second line (a brass band that marches down the street, don't roast me on technicalities, I'm still learning). From there we decided to go get a po'boy instead of waiting in line... let me cut to the end of the story, about 5 hrs later we finally got food, but in the mean time I got a great tour of the lower 9th ward, the projects, Lakeview and other areas of the city. We ended up back in the quarter where my friend was very grumpy about not having eaten, and his friend and I were hysterical with laughter. I think we annoyed the waitress because she ignored us. Oh well, life is just too damn short to be that unhappy.

We went down to see police HQ which was destroyed during Katrina. As we're getting a quick and dirty tour of the area Jim says:
"Yeah, there was some big stink when they wanted to build here. It involved tearing down a house that was important. So they compromised and left that street sign, Jane Alley over there. Apparently some famous Jazz person lived here or something"
So Kate walks over to read the plaque and I hear...
"Jim! Louis Armstrong was born here! some famous jazz person... how about the famous jazz person"

He still hasn't lived that one down.

There was also some discussion about RIP T-shirts, which include an airbrushed sunrise (birth) and sunset (death) date along with a silk screened picture of the dead person. These are more popular among the... lower income classes. But it was made all the more funny when Jim was trying to find me a picture of them on the net and the news came on to tell us that a body had been found and they hadn't identified her, but she was wearing a pink tank top with a picture of herself silk screened on it... really? I mean, really? Was she already prepared for her murder? Was it a birthday gift gone wrong? I guess I'll never know....

All in all it is a fantastic city, and if you're one of those nay-sayers that thinks we should have let them drown, shame on you! The big easy has more vibrancy and history than you do in your little toe. Think twice before you bash New Orleans, they're pretty good at identifying and laughing at their own flaws, they know what's up, and they know you're tired of hearing about them, but go visit, have a po'boy and beignets at Cafe Du Monde, watch the bands play and revel in a town that knows how to extract the best parts of life, put them together, and laugh when it just doesn't quite work. But hey, you got up today right? That deserves a celebration!

http://www.cafedumonde.com/main.html
http://www.nola.com
http://www.poboyfest.com/
http://www.parasols.com/
http://www.hotelmonteleone.com/leisure/carouselbar.html

ps. for those of you worried about crime... I was there 4 days, there were 7 shootings, 1 stabbing, 1 medical, and 1 suicide. Baltimore, DC, and NYC have the same stats, they're no different than any other major city. Stop worrying, get your ass on a plane, and go support the economy, you need a vacation anyway.

Curse you stomach!

As many of you know I've been battling pretty severe stomach issues since April... some of you have even had the unfortunate experience of being around me when the pain occurs, my sincerest apologies.

I've been to the doctor and learned nothing (mostly because she refuses to call me back... ahem). And as I'm losing my good insurance on Nov 30th its not worth the battle at this point. Except for today. Today is Thanksgiving, a day where food brings us all together with the friends and family we are so grateful for (or at least for the stories they give us). I had every intention of going to a good friend's house, his mom is a fabulous cook, the family is great fun, what better day could I have? I had some yogurt this morning because I know its not a good idea to fast, as it got closer to time for me to head out the worse and worse I started to feel. I had to call and beg off because of the massive stomach spasms that took over my body.... stomach why do you hate me?!?

So, now that I've missed Thanksgiving (and I am hopeful that my friend's mother will send me leftovers) I've spent some time looking into what this may be. I started by making a list of what problems occur and what things are causing it. My mother has recently been diagnosed with IBS and because of that I'm at a higher risk. Also, I've lost close to 20lbs since the end of Aug without trying, and while I can stand to lose some weight, I'd rather be in control. Given everything I've tried, what the Dr said before she stopped talking to me, I've decided it's time to go gluten free.

Or as close to it as I can. For those of you who have no idea what gluten is, its the stuff that holds food together. Its wheat, rye, barley, oatmeal, and the hops in beer. I'm not looking forward to this unless it makes me feel better. Trust me you don't want to hurt the way I do on a daily basis. I figure I'll give it a try for the next few weeks and see if I feel better, if I do then I've figured it out, if I don't.... well then I get to eat pizza, po'boys, and brownies again. Oh yeah, this also means I have to figure out how to cook....

Really, this is too easy. Thanks to a good camera person, we have our esteemed leader of the free world attempting to talk turkey... maybe he finally found someone who understands him. Or he's still trying to figure out what that thing on its nose is...

For those of you who don't know the history, the first turkey was pardoned by President Abraham Lincoln. His son, Tad, wanted to keep it as a pet. After that our esteemed Presidents received turkeys, both alive and dead, until 1961 when JFK pardoned a turkey. There is also a runner up in this turkey lottery of a lifetime, just in case the first turkey is unable to perform its duties as the official national turkey... oh yes, they have things they have to do! It's not just a life of leisure. They have to attend events, like the 2005 Thanksgiving Day Parade in Disneyland where they (both the National Turkey and the first runner-up) were grand marshals of the parade. Oh yeah, and don't forget to enter the contest to name them!

I suspect that the rest of the bird nation may be plotting against these birds... when the chickens revolt I don't want to be around.

Happy Thanksgiving all!!

Week 3 Summary

I'm going to sum up week three. By this time we're all pretty exhausted and learned out. The most poignant moment of this week was meeting Lawrence McKeowm and Alan McBride. Lawrence was a hunger striker in the H-Blocks. He was a Nationalist and was imprisoned for political reasons. He talked to us about the hunger strikes and the things that ones body goes through from fasting for 45 days. He said the most memorable thing was the sense of smell. They'd wax the floors and everyone else would be fine, but the hunger strikers would be absolutely sick from the smell of the wax.

Alan is a Protestant that grew up in Belfast. He and his wife and daughter lived there. One day he took his wife to work at her fathers shop up on Shankill Road. She did that once a month to help out. He dropped her off and then went for a bike ride with his daughter, who was about 4 at the time. When he got back his friends came by to tell him that there had been an attack on Shankill Road. It was the IRA bomb of October 1993. It was a bombing that went awry. The IRA Volunteers were supposed to give the people in the shop an 11 second warning so they could gain some space, but instead the bomb went off killing 11, including Alan's wife.

It was an unbelievable thing to have these two men in the same room together. Both men affected strongly by the Troubles, on either sides, and wanting us to know about their beliefs. Lawrence works now to tell people about political imprisonment and to help their understanding. Alan has started WAVE, a group that goes into the areas and works with survivors.

There was a very large discussion of victim's rights going on within Parliament while we were there. And it's to be understood that the definition of victim is still being decided. To the Protestants who want to continue to be a part of Britain the Sinn Fein and the IRA are forever linked and they are intrinsically evil and a terrorist organization. They don't believe that any IRA man who died or the hunger strikers were victims of this political war. If you ask a Nationalist, the Unionists and government who have oppressed them and prevented Ireland from being united, they are the victims and the people who have died keeping the North a part of the UK are the terrorists. This makes it almost impossible for the Parliament in Stormont to decide on what defines a victim, let alone what victims deserve as compensation. Whose to say what lives were more important than others? Worth more? How would you feel if someone told you your loved on, who was taken from you in a bomb, was only worth x number of dollars (or in this case pounds)? It's a hot topic, and in my opinion, not one that will be resolved soon.

Politics

Ok this was a long day all about politics in Northern Ireland, which is more complicated than you'd imagine. Lets start with the basics.

From some of my previous posts you may or may not be familiar with the terms Unionist, Loyalist, Nationalist and Republican. Lets get some definitions.

• Unionist- A person who wants to remain a part of the Union with the United Kingdom. Predominantly Protestant.


• Loyalist- loyal to the United Kingdom, also predominantly Protestant. Tends to be more concerned with the Loyalists in Ulster as a community with only conditional loyalty to Brittan.


• Nationalist- Member of a community that is defined by blood, language, church, ect. Concerned with winning independence. (Traditionally Catholic


• Republican- Want of a representative government, emphasis on citizenship. More concerned with power exercised within the State. (Traditionally Catholic)

We visited Stormont, the home of NI parliament, as well on this day. We got to hear from a panel of representatives of the different parties, including Sinn Fein, DUP, SDLP and UUP. Stormont was constructed in 1923 and occupied in 1931. 1922 was the first session of Parliament. The way the political parties work is Sinn Fein is a Republican party, they have what is known as an all Ireland Agenda, the SDLP (Social Democratic and Labor Party) which is a slightly more middle of the road group than Sinn Fein, then there is the UUP (Ulster Unionist Party) who wants to stay with Britain but is more middle of the road than the DUP. The DUP (Democratic Unionist Party) is the leading party in NI and its leader, Rev. Ian Paisley, has been throughout the Troubles one of the most vocal about staying with Britain.

Things got heated when these people got into the room together. Keep in mind this is the first time that Stormont has held parliament in more than 50 years. Most of the DUP party considers Sinn Fein to be terrorists. I personally liked the SDLP party as their beliefs made the most sense to me, however they aren't the strongest party. The two strongest parties are the polar opposites, Sinn Fein and the DUP.

Derry/Londonderry

Wow, I don't even know where to start with this day. Today we visited Stroke City, Londonderry or Derry depending on whom you talk to and whom you agree with. I was in awe to be able to walk around the Bogside and visit an area that was for all intensive purposes the start of the Troubles.

I've stolen this history from localhistories.org... my thanks to them.

EARLY DERRY
Derry is an ancient settlement. Its name is believed to be derived from the Gaelic word doire meaning a grove of oak trees. From the 6th AD onwards century there was a monastery in Derry. (Tradition says St Columba founded it). In time a settlement grew up by the monastery. However for centuries Derry was a rather small settlement. It did not become truly important until the 17th century.

In 1566 Derry was captured by the English. However they did not hold it for long. In 1567 a gunpowder store exploded and the English departed. The English captured Derry again in 1600.
A new town was founded at Derry in 1603. King James gave a charter founding the new town and a large number of merchants and tradesmen settled there. However this first new town was destroyed by Cahir O'Doherty and his men in 1608.

Nevertheless a second new town was created soon afterwards. King James confiscated large amounts of land from the Irish. He then settled large numbers of Scots and English people in Ulster to try and create a loyal population in the area. As part of the Ulster Plantation several new towns were created.

King James invited the merchants of London to help him settle English Protestants in Northern Ireland. They agreed to build a new town at Derry. It was to have 200 houses and a population of about 1,000. The new town was called Londonderry. It was given a charter in 1613 and had a mayor and corporation. In 1617 it gained a grammar school. By 1630 the population of Londonderry was probably about 1,000. Streets in the new town were laid out in a rectangular pattern. In the years 1613-1618 walls were built around Londonderry. St Columb's Cathedral was built in 1633.

During the Irish rebellion of 1641 Derry was besieged but the Irish were unable to capture it. In 1649 during the civil wars between king and parliament Derry was besieged by royalists for 20 weeks but again the city did not fall.

The most famous siege of Londonderry took place in 1689. In 1688 the Catholic king James II was deposed. However the Lord Deputy of Ireland, The Early of Tyrconnell stayed loyal to James so did most of Ireland. Londonderry was one of the few places that remained loyal to William. A Catholic army attempted to enter Londonderry. On December 7 1688 13 apprentice boys shut the Ferryquay Gate against them. As a result Protestants fled to the town, swelling its population.

In March 1689 James landed at Kinsale in an attempt to regain his throne. The siege of Londonderry began in April 1689. Since they were not strong enough to take the town by storm the besiegers tried to starve the defenders into submission. Conditions inside the city grew worse and worse. There was a terrible shortage of food and the defenders were reduced to eating horsemeat and tallow. Disease also broke out. Nevertheless the defenders held firm.

In June three ships arrived from England, carrying supplies However for several weeks they were unable to reach the city as James's men had erected a wooden boom across the Foyle. Eventually, on 28 July, one of the ships, The Mountjoy, broke the boom and the city was relieved. Three days later the besiegers realised the game was up and they left.

DERRY IN THE 18th CENTURY
In 1704 an Act of Parliament stated that only Anglicans could hold office in Ireland. Presbyterians were excluded. Partly as a result of this measure many Presbyterians emigrated from Derry to North America in the early 18th century. Despite this Derry grew larger in the 18th century and suburbs appeared outside the walls. Boom Hall was built in the 1770s at the point where the boom crossed the river during the siege.

A number of new buildings were erected in Derry in the 18th century. The Irish Society House was built in 1764. Long Tower Church was built in 1784-86. Bishopgate was rebuilt in 1789.
From about 1750 a linen industry grew up in Derry. Until the end of the 18th century there was only a ferry across the River Foyle. In 1789-91 a wooden bridge was built. This greatly boosted trade and industry in Derry. The Derry Journal began in 1772.

DERRY IN THE 19th CENTURY
In 1821, at the time of the first Irish census, Derry had a population of 9,313. It grew rapidly during the 19th century and had reached a population of 40,000 by its end. In the early 19th century large numbers of Catholics came to Derry from the countryside looking for work. The Courthouse was built in 1813. Derry workhouse opened in 1840. The railway reached Derry in 1845. Magee College was founded in 1865 to train men for the Presbyterian ministry. St Columb's College was founded in 1879. In 1863 another bridge, this one of steel, was erected across the Foyle. Carlisle Bridge, as it was called, was demolished in 1933. St Augustine's Church was built in 1872. St Eugene's Cathedral was built in 1873. Its spire was added in 1902.
Derry Guildhall opened in 1890. It burned in 1908 and was rebuilt. It was bombed in 1972 then refurbished.

In 1831 a man named William Scott began making shirts in Derry. From the 1850s the shirt making trade in Derry boomed. By the 1870s shirt making was the main industry in the town. There was also a shipbuilding industry in 19th century Derry. Meanwhile the port of Derry prospered.

During the 19th century many emigrants from Ireland to North America left from Derry. Today they are remembered by an 'emigrants' sculpture.

DERRY IN THE 20th CENTURY
Brooke Park opened to the public in 1901.

A War Memorial was erected in Derry in 1927.
Our Lady of Lourdes Church was built in 1976.
Craigavon Bridge was built in 1933 to replace Carlisle Bridge. Foyle Bridge was built in 1984.
In 1932 Amelia Earhart, the first woman to fly the Atlantic, landed at Ballyarnet. From the mid-19th century a shirt-making industry boomed in Derry. In 1997 United Technologies Automative factory closed. This was a severe blow to the city.

During World War II Derry was a major naval base. There were also air bases around the city. Large numbers of American and Canadian servicemen were stationed in the city. From the late 1940s a public housing estate was created at Creggan. In the 1960s the council demolished slums in Derry.

On October 5 1968 the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Movement attempted to hold a march in Derry. However the Northern Irish goverment banned the march and when it went ahead it was broken up by the RUC in Duke Street. The Battle of Bogside occurred in August 1969. Tension between Catholic and Protestant had been building for some time and it eventually erupted into violence. On 12 August 1969 the annual Apprentice Boys march was routed past the Catholic Bogside area. As the Apprentice Boys marched past there were clashes between the RUC and Catholic civilians. There followed 3 days of rioting which ended when the British army was sent in.

In 1972 came the tragic event known as 'Bloody Sunday'. On 30 January 1972 the Derry Civil Rights Association were holding a march through the town when the British 1st Parachute Regiment opened fire, killing 14 people.

Today Derry is a flourishing city. Foyle Valley Railway Museum opened in 1990. Tower museum opened in 1992. Foyleside Shopping Centre opened in 1995. Rath Mor Centre also opened in 1995. Derry Visitor Centre and Convention Bureau opened in 1997.

DERRY IN THE 21st CENTURY
In 2001 Creggan Indigenous Enterprise Park opened. Millennium Forum opened in 2001. Creggan Country Park opened in 2003. Today the population of Derry is 72,000.

The Titanic Quarter and City Hall

Today we toured City Hall and explored the old Harland and Wolf yards where Titanic was built.
I've "borrowed" this from the City Hall website.

For centuries, Belfast had been a small settlement. Everything changed in 1613, when a Royal charter gave the city town status. Belfast expanded rapidly as a result, becoming an important port and manufacturing centre. By the end of the 19th century, Belfast had outgrown its status as a town and was a major industrial powerhouse, known for its shipbuilding, ropemaking, engineering, tobacco and textile industries. In 1888, Queen Victoria gave Belfast the title of city and it was generally agreed that a new city hall was needed to reflect this change in status.

Building work

Negotiations to acquire the one and a half acre White Linen Hall site, located in Donegall Square, began in 1896 and a price of £30,000 was agreed. The new hall was built by local firm H+J Martin, following a design from Alfred Brumwell Thomas, who won a public competition with his classical Renaissance design. Funding for the new building was raised from the profits of Belfast Gasworks for which Belfast Corporation (now Belfast City Council) had responsibility. The first stone was laid in 1898 and work was completed eight years later. In total, Belfast City Hall cost less than £500,000 to build.

Opening of Belfast City Hall

Belfast City Hall opened it`s doors on 1 August 1906 during a great time of prosperity for the city. The magnificent building is a lasting memorial to Belfast`s success and is a great source of civic pride.

Functions of Belfast City Hall
Today, the City Hall`s functions include:

* hosting the 51 members of the Council on the first working day of every month
* providing tours of its facilities for tourists and members of the public
* hosting public exhibitions, such as ` No Mean City` photographic exhibit
* providing registration services and marriage and civil partnership ceremonies
* hosting civic events.

Belfast Coat of Arms

Image: Belfast City crest The present Belfast Coat of Arms dates from 30 June 1890 when the Ulster King of Arms made a Grant of Arms to the new city of Belfast. The motto 'Pro tranto quid retribuamus' comes from Psalm CXVI (116), verse 12 of the Bible. Translated from the Latin, it means 'what return shall we make for so much'. The precise origins and meanings of the symbols contained on the Coat of Arms are unknown. However, images such as the bell, the seahorse, the ship and the chained wolf were all used by 17th century Belfast merchants on their signs and coinage. The seahorse, which is used twice, shows the maritime importance of Belfast, as does the ship at the base of the shield.

The name 'Belfast' also originates from the Gaelic 'Beal Feirste', which means 'mouth of the river'.

The Titanic Quarter is an area of the city that Belfast is rebuilding and reclaiming. At one point H & W was the largest make of steam ships in the world. Belfastians to this day are proud that they were the ones to build the Titanic, and they'll take pains to remind you that they were not the ones to sink it. The captain did and he was not from there. Now this area is used for film sets and history tours.

Film

I'm dedicating a separate post to this one. We had a class this evening on film, more specifically, Troubles films. Gordon did a great job examining the portrayal of the North in film. Just remember all of the films involve a crazy woman with red hair and an Aran sweater, someone with a horrible Belfast accent, and an IRA man.

Here's a list of Troubles films:

• Ourselves Alone
• Odd Man Out
• Hennessy
• Patriots (Which was the Outsiders in the USA)
• Angel (Danny Boy in USA)
• Cal
• A Prayer For the Dying
• Hidden Agenda
• Patriot Games
• The Crying Game
• In the Name of The Father
• Blown Away (no one is sure where Tommy Lee Jones got his accent for this movie, but it sure as hell wasn't anywhere near Ireland)
• A Further Gesture
• No Surrender
• Harry's Game
• Nothing Personal (loosely based on the story of the Shankill Butchers)
• Any Mothers Son (About the 1981 hunger strikers)
• The Devil's OwnThe Jackal (semi-remake of Day of the jackal)
• Ronin
• The Boxer
• Resurrection Man (Also loosely based on the Butchers)
• Titanic Town
• An Everlasting Piece (more of a fun look at the Troubles, comedy)
• The Most Fertile Man In Ireland (Also a fun look at the Troubles, comedy)
• Michael Collins
• Divorcing Jack
• Mad About Mambo
• Oh Mr. Porter!
• Silent Grace
• Bloody Sunday
• Omagh
• Man About Dog
• The Mighty Celt
• Mickeybo and me
• Breakfast on Pluto
• Freeze Frame
• Closing of the Ring (yet to be released)
• The Craic
• High Boot
• BennyShergar (based on a true story about the IRA stealing a racehorse and asking for money, but they didn't know what to do with it so they shot it)
• Puckoon (Monty Python-esque)
• Wild About Harry
• Johnny Was (lowly based on a Stiff Little Fingers song)

Phew, that's quite a list. Keep in mind that most of the people in NI (including Gordon and Dom) will tell you that the portrayal of the paramilitaries is complete crap, in most cases