A Tour of the Antrim Causeway

Belfast -- an Old City of Conflict is now a New City of Cool

"People are building bridges.  The most important bridge been built is in each and every person...It's important to being part of the solution, not part of the problem."

As a teenager growing up in Georgia, I heard a lot of news of the centuries-old conflict in Northern Ireland.   The problem is, I really didn't understand it.  To me, this conflict was similar to the enduring Israel-Palestine conflict with no end in sight.  Sadly, the news seemed so remote, with no direct, personal impact, and I felt so detached.  I never expected to visit this country with my own eyes -- it was never on my radar scope, up until now.

So when I found out I would be visiting Mark and Lee (friends who I met at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in DC three years ago), I realized there was a lot to learn.

Belfast is known for its troubles and religious conflict.  For over 25 years, the IRA was very busy here.  On Bloody Friday 1972, the IRA set off 22 bombs killing 9 people and injuring about 120.  The city had not experienced such a day of death and bloodshed since the German blitz of Easter Tuesday 1941. Nearly 1,000 lives were lost and 100,000 people became homeless.  One main fault was that when the bombs dropped, people did not know what to do.  There were no bomb shelters.  They did not know whether to run, hide or stay in their beds. The IRA hoped they would be just as successful in catching the government and the people unprepared in hopes of getting Northern Ireland out of the UK.

Truly, there was only one main pursuit: The Irish Republicans wanted a united Ireland. However, there never such a state as a united Ireland.  After all as a detached foreigner, I didn't truly understand what the big deal was, other than the name and the unity.  Truly, Northern Ireland and Ireland enjoyed an open border where citizens could cross either side freely without having to produce a passport.  So what's in a name?

Background

The conflict between the Catholics and the Protestant isn't  really about religion.  It stemmed from differences in social classes. The majority of the population in Ireland was Catholic.  They never underwent the church reform that England did in the 1500s.

Hostility arose between Catholics and Protestant when England began to establish plantations in Ireland and act as a colonial power.

The Legend of the Giant's Causeway

Derek Stockley: Profile of a Painter

The Man Who Tried to Blow up Westminster Abbey

Here we are in front of Westminster
Where in 1605 the lunatic Guy Fawkes planned something sinister
He wanted to blow up every Lord, Common and Minister
But the Kingsmen caught him in the act and punished him with light torture
And today the towers still stand, surrounded by timeless British culture

Trafalgar Square Celebration

London Wall

Old London Limericks

"We are the Champions" at the Eiffel

Neil Proposes to Jill at the Eiffel

Normandy: My 20 Years in the Navy was Nothing Compared to this

"It was a travesty to see how so many young,  boundless lives were forever lost on this bloody foreign beach.  At the American Cemetery, I could see thousands of white crosses and Stars of David facing patriotically towards their homeland."

My retirement from the Navy wouldn't be complete without paying homage to the D-Day troops in Normandy.  Americans, British, Canadians -- it didn't matter which flag they were flying -- they stood up for unity against Nazi aggression and many fell to their gravesites on these beaches.

Over Sixty-five years later, the hilly seaside bears few scars from the dark and gray day of June 6, 1944.  But on that longest day, things had turned to hell in a hurry.

I could not imagine these young soldiers jumping out of their LCAs, crossing the slippery beach and climbing the cliff face via ropes and grappling hooks in the face of nasty fire.

The Louvre

Putting on the Ritz

Notre Dame

Jardin de Tuileries of Paris

Hello Kindle, Goodbye Borders

"Books no longer, get lost on the shelf. They can be accessed even in the remote parts of the world, even that clunky textbook.  With the Kindle, once you buy a book, it's forever yours."

Reminiscing

I used to love Borders and Barnes and Nobles.  I would spend countless hours, flipping away at shelves,  relaxing in the comfy chairs, eating away at books and sipping Seattle's Best.

Those were the days. Long, and lazy with nothing in store but a good book and an open mind.  Now those long, lazy days are long gone....

Planning for my European Backpacking Trip

When I was planning my trip to Europe, I knew I would spend countless hours waiting for a plane, for a train or riding on one.  Since I was backpacking, I had to travel light.  I was convinced then that I needed to purchase a Kindle.  And since Amazon had just reduced the price on the Kindle 2 by 20%, I was off running to Target to make that storied purchase.

Operation Welcome Home

Relationship

I flew in with approximately 200 Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen who deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan for up to one year.

A flight that I barely made (Space-A), and one that I didn't expect to make turned out to be the highlight of my trip.

Understanding

It was an honor flying with my brothers and sisters back home. And it was a great honor being in the receiving line of the best, most heart-felt welcoming I've ever witnessed in my 20 years of service.

What a wonderful way to come home after the whirlwind tour of Europe and a fantastic way to end my Navy career.

I start school on Sunday and go on terminal leave until the end of October.

Thank you sincerely to everyone especially Operation Welcome Home for giving our Heroes the welcome that they truly deserve.

Bastille Day 2010, Paris