Day One in Derry

I would have had to live in Northern Ireland for a few decades to really understand the tension between Catholics and Protestants in Derry, but even today a tension is still clearly felt.

The Peace Bridge was erected, in part, to improve relations between the mostly protestant "Waterside" part of the city with the mostly catholic "Cityside".

I took this photo from the other side not ten minutes later. Even the weather seems divided.

No matter which side you support, I think we can all agree something must be done for Cityside's homeless toy problem. 

Ugh, that gray one is still clinging to a time when someone held it with love in mind. So heartbreaking.

On the west bank of the River Foyle, you'll find the only intact walled city in Ireland.

Since my day-planner has been completely empty lately, I decided to walk around on the walls and take a few photos.
   

I don't know why, but that guy makes this photo. I think it's because of how his coolness prevents him from putting both feet on the ground. 

Here is a better shot of the outside of the wall. I had to hover for what felt like forever to get it just right. It was exhausting!

But I managed to get one from the other side as well.

Not everyone living in Cityside is a Catholic Nationalist though. I believe this is the slogan for the Protestant Loyalists.
  

The city view from the wall.

I've seen a couple "yarn bombings" in Ireland. Yarn bombing is a type of graffiti that uses colorful knitted or crocheted yarn rather than spray paint. I kind of like it, although I prefer to call it "guerrilla knitting" because of the imagine that produces in my head.

It's impossible to see in this photo, but this mosaic is made up of thousands of small photographs of people.

Eventually, I decided to use a birthday donation from some loving people back home to get a hostel for the night. Thank you Vonda, Christy, and Dave! Your donation not only meant getting out of the rain, but also meant meeting two new friends, but more on that in my next post, because this library is closing and I don't want to see how angry this librarian can get.