After I dropped M off at soccer camp this morning, I drove up to Top of the Hill park, where a taxi driver had recommended we go to take pictures of the city. What a beautiful view! I walked the park for about half an hour, taking loads of photos looking down on Derry.
The 4th isn't a holiday here, not even for Americans at Seagate. But Steve reports that the Seagate cafeteria decorated for the 4th and served hot dogs and other barbecue foods for lunch. There was even a band playing in the corner.
M started soccer school today and was excited to write his first post about it. I am sure he will have more to report as the week goes on.
We have our own barbecue planned for tonight. Here are the fixings.
Our weekend started Thursday night, when we met another Seagate ex-pat family for dinner and another visit to the Grianan of Aileach.
Steve took Friday off from work and we drove to Sligo, on the west coast, stopping at the Yeats Tavern in Drumcliff for lunch. We arrived in time for the 3pm show at the Irish Raptor Centre. The show lasted a full hour and included many raptors flying right over the audience -- close enough that M and I even felt talons across our ears and forehead! The Himalayan vulture was one of our favorites. He is 3 years old, weighs 10 kilos (22 lbs), and has a wingspan of 3m (9 feet)! Flying is tough if you are that big and he tried to "cheat," hopping from trainer to trainer to get his chicken treats. I always like the owls and we were allowed to pet the back of one of the owls, so soft.
After the raptor show, we checked into our hotel and walked into the town center for dinner. After dinner, we walked more and looked at the abbey ruins through the gate. The abbey was built in the 1280s.
Saturday morning we got an early start and drove to the Carrowmore megalithic cemetery. We enjoyed walking among the tombs and through one of the larger ones. From Carrowmore, we could see Knocknanera, the legendary tomb of mythical Queen Maeve.
We drove south from Carrowmore and were surprised at how much flatter the land is south of Sligo, not the rugged rolling hills we're used to in the north part of Ireland. We arrived in Galway mid-afternoon. Galway is a vibrant town with a large pedestrian shopping area. It's also the first spot we've visited where we've seen crowds of tourists (and mostly American tourists). I bought some yarn made in Donegal at a yarn shop in the pedestrian mall.
Sunday morning we drove home so Steve and M could rest before heading back to work and to soccer camp, respectively.
M here. Today I started soccer camp. I was put with 13 other boys between the ages of 8-10 and we kicked off by practicing dribbling skills.
Then we got to the really fun part: matches. I was wearing my USA jersey. I was picked by the Oranges, so I was just wearing the orange bib after that. The Oranges lineup was this: M (me), M (a different one), L, A and J. L was the tallest person on the team. A is from Vancouver! We played 7 matches and we won 5 and drew 2. Our record was almost 5-1-1, but I slotted a last-second goal to keep us at 5-2-0. Here is how it happened. I had the ball from a cross. I used my new Nike T90s to boot the ball up. Too high, I thought. The goalkeeper thought so too. He stayed on the left. The ball went and went - and flew into the upper-right hand corner! Goal!!!!! And there's the whistle! 2-2. A draw!
My Nike T90s (pictured below) are fabulous! They fit me perfectly and are worn by EPL stars Wayne Rooney and Fernando Torres plus Yaya Toure, who scored the FA Cup winner! Can't wait until Tuesday for another day of camp!
On our first drive through Donegal, we stopped briefly at Glenveagh Park. We visited the castle, but didn't have time to walk the grounds. Today, M and I went back. I did more driving today than I had yet and am glad that I am getting over my fear of left-side driving and roundabouts.
We arrived at the park at about 10am and immediately started walking the 2km (1.2 mile) nature trail. We stopped at the education cabin and read about biodiversity in Ireland. M liked matching pictures of birds with their names. The park was very quiet and we didn't see anyone else on the nature trail.
After the nature trail, we explored the visitor centre, which has a history of the castle, including the notorious and unpopular eviction of tenant farmers when the castle was first built in 1861. The park is also part of a program to re-introduce golden eagles to Ireland and we liked seeing pictures of their 2007 and 2009 chicks.
After a quick lunch at the visitor centre, we took the shuttle bus further into the park, to the castle. Instead of touring the castle again, we walked the gardens around the castle. I especially enjoyed the views of the castle and Loch Veagh from Victorian and walled gardens.
