Today I am having a rest day, so I am as fit as possible to met my target of reaching Coleraine by 25 April as I need to be back home by 27 April.
Belleek I discovered is the most western village in Northern Ireland and so also in the United Kingdom. Indeed part of the village on the other side of the River Erne is in the Republic, I can see the Irish flag from my bedroom window. Its main tourist attraction is its pottery, which was closed today. Upcoming local elections have resulted in a posters attached to lampposts showing pictures of the candidates, as if their appearance will inform you of how well they will represent their constituents, although I suspect much voting is based whether you have catholic or protestant antecedents. The village is similar to many I have seen on Ireland, a main street with a few bars, a Centra supermarket, a chemist, a café and a few shops. Two grey churches stand at the top of the main street, a Church of Ireland and a Roman Catholic church. Many of the churches I have seen on this trip have looked grey and uninviting, as if representing a more authoritarian view of religion.
After a generous breakfast I bought some supplies and a newspaper and settled down to read almost every page.
 |
| Main street of Belleek. |
In the evening there was music billed at 10 pm in the bar beneath the B&B, so I took a place with a pint of Smithwicks in good time. There were a mixture of ages in the bar. Ladies made up for a night out, noisy youngsters, one of whom seemed to have had too much to drink (or was stoned). I pitied the girl sitting next to him. Then there were older couples who no longer had much to say to each other and quiet elderly men like me, so I did not feel too out of place. At 10:30 pm a man began singing country and western with recorded backing music. At 11 pm, I went to bed, he was still singing in the bar below me as I passed into sleep.
No comments:
Post a Comment