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Travis and I had a quiet weekend at home this past weekend. In case any of you are worried about Travis and his workload please note that he still has time for some good naps every now and then :) The lovely blanket that he is sleeping under is a famous Donegal Tweed blanket that we acquired in Ardara on our trip to the north. We learned (hopefully the truth) that Donegal tweed was once considered a lower grade of tweed b/c it had flecks of color in it that we considered flaws. At some point the flaws became desirable and now Donegal tweed is quite desirable to those who know tweed.For those on bump watch, no pictures of the bump but I can tell you that it's getting obvious. On one hand it's a drag to be super limited in my clothing choice every morning when I get up (maternity pants are still a bit big, I hope they fit soon!) but it is fun to actually start to look a little pregnant now. I'm sure in a month or two that will have worn off, but I'm enjoying it for now. No kicks yet, but I'm hoping anytime now.
The exact reason for the name of the bridge has been lost in the mists of time, but various authorities will attribute it to massacre in the area about the time of the 1641 Rebellion. There is a path nearby which is the beginning of what is known locally as the "Brandy Pad", which in years gone by was the route along which smugglers used to bring barrels of brandy into County Down. Ships would secretly land the barrels near the Bloody Bridge at dead of night, and teams of smugglers would carry them through the mountains to Hilltown about ten miles away. From there the brandy would be distributed all around Ireland.
Legananny Dolmen in County Down, Northern Ireland. Dolmens can be found throughout Ireland, they are appx 5000 years old and predate the pyramids at Giza in Egypt. It's believed that they are a type of tomb, under many dolmens the remains of ancient people have been found. Engineers should take note of the tiny points on which the top stone rests. It's absoultely stable and the point of contact on one stone is only about an inch square.
There is a legend attached to the dolmens all around the island. Grania, an Irish princess, was betrothed to Fionn Mac Cool, an older king. However, she fell in love with Dermott, a handsome young warrior, and they ran away. Finn pursued the lovers across Ireland for years. Legend is they lovers slept on the dolmens, making them magical places even today.
As you can see the wall has been added on to several times, the lower level is concrete, the middle layer is corrugated steel, and the top is wire fencing. Our driver told us that the fencing was a recent addition, as in the last couple of weeks. It really drove home to us that while the Troubles have definitely subsided there are still major cultural differences that are unresolved. The wall also includes automatic gates which close at 6pm every night and remain closed all weekend long.
It was at this point in the trip that Emily was pretty sure Dave had abandoned us. We were watching him drive away, and you could see the road for several miles in the distance. However, while in the middle of conversation, she and I both looked up and couldn't see the truck anywhere! Emily blurted out, 'Where the HELL is DAVE!' Moments later he emerged from around a small bend in the road, but for a moment we all thought we might be in for a really long hike!
This is about where Dave and I met up with the 3 super hikers. Travis was pretty sure that Dave was letting me stand too close to the edge of the cliff. As you can hopefully see from the photo there are 2 little specks that look like their toes are hanging over the cliff, that's me in the blue and Dave in the black. It was a little payback for all the times Travis perches in treacherous places and I stand there holding my breath! (don't worry, we weren't as close to the edge as it looks).
