So today Eruntane, the parental units and I headed northwards along the Antrim coast to meet up with my sister and brother-in-law in Coleraine. From there we ventured down to what might possibly be the world's oldest jigsaw puzzle: the ancient geological wonder that is the Giant's Causeway.
First Impressions: The sun had vanished and the the Antrim cliff-tops were windy and drab. Leaving my father behind the remaining five of us followed the badly tarmaced road downhill, avoiding the mini tourist bus which crawled past us every five minutes (the driver talking to her kidnapped passengers with somwhat maniacal force - apparently she had once driven more respectable Ulsterbus services and done just the same - still I imagine her verbose approach to public transport is more appropriate at a world heritage site than on the high street, just past Boots). At the bottom we were greeted by a smallish outcropping of rock which barely revealed its unusual geometry until you were right upon it, having passed the little revolving rock-shaped sign which divulged educational information, concealed in short, sharp statements and swamped in pictures, just in case the kids got bored after 'the'.
To be honest, it was slightly dissapointing. I had memories of the Causeway from school trips back in my Primary Education days and they were much more impressive than the sight/site I was greeted with. Still we clambered up the step-like geology and made our way out along a promontrory jutting out into a slightly tamer than usual sea. And there, as the wind forced me to retire into the depths of my hoodie, I realised why it was such a popular destination. The view was incredible. The sea, the strange rocks, the coastline stretching on around a misty corner, the mythology that turned an odd lump of rock into a giant's boot and a series of strange strata in a cliff into an organ. It all added up to make a magical place, perhaps a little drained of it's charms by the wheather, but one of the wonders of the North Coast nonetheless.
To add to the wonder, those memories which had left me feel briefly cheated upon our arrival then began to fuel my interest "Oh yes, there was a certain number of sides they kept asking us to remember" I began to ramble nonsensically, "It's all about how they cooled, I think", I continued once Eruntane raised her own questions, and then soon I was ranting on about the myth and the geology (after a brief information top-up from the aformentioned rolling edutainment rocks) and enjoying every minute of it. Even the steep wall back up to the visitors centre was enjoyable (I moaned, but then that's half the fun) and afterwards we had a fantastic (if served by zombies) lunch at the Causeway Hotel. The discovery of mint Aero cheescake proved there is almost nothing you can't make a cheescake out of. It was great!
Today was also of note as I got to visit my brother and sister-in-law (having the same first name as my original sister) and their dogs. When I left at Christmas, they had two, the same two we had had when I first left for university. Bandit, the older dog, is the most pathetic beast ever to stalk the earth (and easily the most adorable) and Miko, the other one, is all bounce and love and absolutely no sense. Now however I discovered a newcomer, rug-furred, monster-pawed, young Jack, who tried his best to have Bandit's good looks and Miko's bounce. He mostly succeeded and also managed to leave me pinned to the floor as Eruntane watched on giggling. I didn't get to know him well, but he seemed a fine addition to the family dog collection. Welcome aboard pup!
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