Ireland Day 11 & 12 - Belfast & Dublin

I am going to combine days 11 & 12 since there are not as many pictures for these two.  Day 11 started with a drive from Maghera to Belfast.  We drove up to Cave Hill which overlooks the city of Belfast.  We had read about a great hike where you could see some amazing views and some cool caves but it ended up being a really long hike so we decided to pass.  We stopped by Belfast Castle before leaving Cave Hill.  Belfast Castle was built in 1872 and had a really cool garden with a cat theme (legend has it there has been a black cat at Belfast continuously since it was built).  Here are some pictures at Belfast Castle:

We headed from Cave Hill down into the city.  We were to meet Joanie (Willie Quinn's daughter) at 4 PM so we had a couple of hours to roam the streets.  We had a lot of fun checking out the stores and were able to get our Starbucks kick at a local mall.  Below are pictures of the streets of Belfast and of City Hall (we were to meet Joanie at Ten Square, a restaurant just behind City Hall).  We saw some protestors outside of City Hall that were calling for peace from those who were opposing British rule by doing violence that was hurting Irish citizens.

We arrived at at the restaurant a little early so we decided to run down to the local Jury's Inn to check out their rates.  The rates were great so we decided to reserve a room.  We ran back to the restaurant and got there just in time to meet Joanie.  Joanie was absolutely delightful and we had a blast getting to know her and learning more about her family and Ireland.  We ate a fantastic dinner at Ten Square and then headed to a local pub, The Errigle Inn, where we got to experience the local scene.  We left feeling like we had made a friend for life.  We headed back to the Jury Inn and hit the sack.  Here we are with Joanie at the pub and a picture of our hotel:

Day 12 was our last full day in Ireland.  We got up and walked the streets of Belfast one last time before  hitting the road for Dublin.  We were able to visit a few more stores and make a final Starbucks run.  Here is Am at Starbucks:

We made our way back to our car and started the journey back to where it began, in Dublin.  We checked into The North Star Hotel and then hit the streets to wander the city.  We headed for Grafton Street which is the most famous shopping street in Dublin.  The street was for pedestrians only and it was absolutely packed!  There were a ton of cool shops and we were able to wrap up our souvenir shopping.  We also were able to experience some more cool street musicians.  Below is Grafton Street and one of our favorite street musicians (the little boy is running up to give him money):

We closed out the evening with a trip to the Hard Rock Cafe.  I collect Hard Rock glasses so I was ecstatic to pick up a Dublin glass.  We headed back to the hotel (with a minor sidetrip to McDonalds for dessert) and went to sleep for the last night in Ireland.  Here is Am at Hard Rock Cafe:

We woke up early on Day 13 to head for the airport.  We longed to stay in Ireland but at the same time were excited to go back to some routine.  We both had fallen in love with Ireland and promised we would return.  So it was goodbye for now but we shall be back!  Here is a summary of our journey: