On June 11th we were up early to head off on a coach trip, we were picked up at 8.15am and then followed 45 minutes or so of faffing about, picking people up etc. It was a full coach of nearly 50 people. At last though we were underway. Our first stop was a very short one in Carrickfergus, it would have been nice to stop for a little longer, but it was clearly a stop for comfort breaks and people to use the ATM's. Before long it was time to head on to the next stop, which was Carrick - a - Rede rope bridge. Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge is a famous rope bridge near Ballintoy in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The bridge links the mainland to the tiny island of Carrickarede. It spans 20 metres and is 30 metres above the rocks below. The coach driver had called ahead and got people's tickets ready, including ours. The property is operated by the National Trust so all free for us!! From the car park there is about a mile to walk to the actual rope bridge, its all either going up or down or over rocky ground, so a real challenge even before you get to the rope bridge. We timed it really well and there wasn't too much of a queue when we got there and we pretty much went straight over. I won't lie, I was nervous! I didn't dare look down and wanted to get over as quickly as possible. Once on the little island we sat and enjoyed the view, then went for a walk before heading back. We were ever mindful that there was a time limit to how long we could stay. 
Next stop was a pub for lunch, the meals had been pre-ordered so were pretty much ready when we got there. About 45 minutes later we were back on the road and heading to the Bushmills Whiskey Distillery. There wasn't enough time to do the tour, but we had time to look around a little and visit the gift shop. We did buy a little bottle of Bushmills to take away with us, and that was a delight to drink!
And then finally we were off to the Giant's Causeway. The Giant's Causeway is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, the result of an ancient volcanic fissure eruption.. Its always been a dream of mine to visit this place ever since I read the story of the two giants and how the causeway came to be. I prefer to believe this version of events! We had just under two hours here, there was enough time to head down to the stones, again they are a fair way from the car park. Luckily there was a shuttle bus which was free for us being NT members - result! Its really stunning when you get there, it was a dream come true for me. The stones are harder than they look to climb across, but I did it! It was also here that I finally got to send a message in a bottle, we had it all ready and cast it into the Atlantic from the causeway. Lets hope one day I find out what happened to it. After making our way back to the visitor centre we spend about 40 minutes looking around the exhibits and gift shop.
The journey back to Belfast took around an hour as we went the direct route not the beautiful coastal road. We arrived back into the city about 7pm, what a long day but a wonderful one where dreams came true.
Dinner and cocktails at Revolution de Cuba and a slow walk back to our hotel! Monday was a agood day! Sadly ended with packing and two exhausted people!
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