Thursday - Devenish Island - Ulster Folk Park

Under a bright blue sky we headed north towards Derry. Erica took this opportunity to give us the history of the ‘troubles’. She read us the story – “The Papest and the Prod” or “The Northern Interlude”. It is the story of a Protestant Young Man who falls in love with a love Roman Catholic, and the effect of the intolerance on their lives. It was a very sad story.
As we drove along, we noticed a further change in the scenery – there are lots of hills and valleys, and increased vegetation. or plots of land designated by hedges and/or hedges are a little bigger, and someone noted that there seem to be more cattle than sheep, though both are in ample supply. Our first stop was Enniskillen where we boarded a boat the HM Kestrak to take us to Devenish Island. There were lots of swans and duck at the wharf just waiting to be fed. However – we good Canadians – knowing how bad bread is for these birds – fed nary a one.
The cruise took just over a half an hour to get to the Island, and our guides Stephen and his partner filled us in on what we were seeing along the way. Once we arrived at the Island we all wandered around the island reading the signs, and drinking in the ambiance of this worship filled place. There was a group of school children with their teachers, spending the day learning about the island, and adding to their vocabularies, and understanding of the effects of nature on the structures from ancient times. Several of our members enjoyed climbing up the towers to get some amazing view—despite very tiny windows.
After a ride back to Enniskillen during which we enjoyed a drink and a scone, we were back on the bus headed for Omagh were we had lunch, then spent the next 2 hours wandering through this very interesting historical park which tells the story of emigration from Ulster to North American in the eighteenth and nineteen centuries. There was a museum and then a 50 acre display of houses, equipment, and information designed to educate the participants on this historical period of time. Once again we ran into a group of school children who were on a three day field trip, learning about the crafts and skills from that period.
The last leg of our journey was into Derty itself and to our hotel where we will stay for the next two nights. We learned that the city’s name has just recently been changed back to Derry from Londonderry. There are obviously some very strong feelings about this change, as there were several signs where the London part of the sign has been painted over.
Tomorrow we will be getting a tour of Derry, so we will all turn in early tonight for a leisurely morning in anticipation.