Tag: Northern Ireland

Rathlin West Lighthouse: a beloved upside-down beacon off the coast of Northern Ireland

Nathan

A trip to picturesque Rathlin, the only developed island off the coast of Northern Ireland, offers several things including wildlife, a medieval history and more. Three lighthouses guide boats along Rathlin, and the seafaring excitement begins as soon as you leave the shores of Ballycastle. The island is home also of one of the largest seabird colonies in the UK. Every year over 250,000 seabirds such as guillemots (which only come on land to nest and can dive to a depth of 180 metres underwater), razorbills, kittiwakes, fulmars (a grey…

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Cairndhu House – a piece of history in Northern Ireland

Ivan

We are in Northern Ireland, off the Coast road in Carnfunnock Country park, near Larne, County Antrim. Originally built as a grand summer residence around 1875 for Mr Stewart Clark who was a wealthy Scottish textile industrialist, Cairndhu House has a rich history of grandeur and ruin and now lies in extreme disrepair. Sir Thomas Dixon, 2nd Baronet, married Edith, youngest daughter of Mr Stewart Clark in 1906, at Dalmeny Church, South Queensferry. After their marriage, they lived for varying periods at Graymount House, Hillsborough Castle, Drumadarragh, Luttrelstown, and Lucan,…

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”The big fish” of Northern Ireland

Ivan

We are in Northern Ireland, along the banks of the River Lagan in Donegall Quay, Belfast. “The Big Fish,” also known as “The Salmon of Knowledge” (Irish: bradán feasa), is a sculpture made from a mosaic of ceramic tiles representing a creature of the Irish mythology. The giant sculpture is based on a character from the tale “The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn”, which recounts the early adventures of Fionn mac Cumhaill, a mythical hunter-warrior of Irish mythology. The story tells of an ordinary salmon that eats nine hazelnuts that fell…

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