On September 3, 2006 while on a tour of the British Isles and wound up in Belfast, Ireland as one of the stops. We had already checked out the map and knew there was a town named Whitehead about fifteen miles northwest of Belfast and had determined we would visit. The town faces out on the Irish Sea near the entrance to Belfast Lough. There are actually two prominent features flanking the town, the white limestone cliffs of Whitehead and the black volcanic cliffs of Blackhead.

Our purpose in visiting Whitehead was nothing more than to be able to say "Our surname is Whitehead and we have been to Whitehead, Ireland.", but it proved to be much more. What seemed like an easy trip turned out to be one of the most interesting day trips we have ever taken, anywhere.

Having checked the train schedule we determined that we could walk over to the station and just catch one just about any hour. Apparently Whitehead was on a popular route and there were plenty of trains going between Belfast and Carrickfergus, and then beyond.

Being from out of town and novices at reading train schedules we took a brisk walk to the station to discover that the train had "just gone" and there would be another on about three hours. When we asked for other modes of transportation to Whitehead we were consistently given the response "Why would you want to go there, there is nothing to see." or "Whitehead is a dump, visit some of our other local attractions and have a much better day." We left the station dejected and decided to just enjoy Belfast and the surrounding countryside for the day.

As we were leaving the station and walking back toward the center of town, Kathy spotted a vacant cab driving down the street and flagged it down. Her statement was something like "We are not going to come half way around the world and get this close to Whitehead, Ireland and have to say we missed it because we missed the dang train!" The cab driver seemed pleasant enough and said that even though he was off duty he would be happy to take us up to Whitehead, even though there wasn't much to see. So off we went to Whitehead in an off-duty cab.

The drive to Whitehead proved to be scenic and our cab driver seemed to want to explain the conflict in Northern Ireland, which we were more than a little curious about. We caught just enough of the history to understand that in Northern Ireland there is still a separation of living areas with Catholics and Protestants living separately. While this seems strange to us, it apparently helps keep peace there. One surprise to us is that each neighborhood flies a flag to indicate that the residents are either Catholic or Protestant.

About half an hour into the trip we turned off the main highway and went over a small embankment into Whitehead. Almost immediately we were greeted by an old Victorian era train station and a sign welcoming us to Whitehead. From there we turned north and then west again to go down to the waterfront. To our surprise the waterfront area was fantastic, even on a gray, cloudy day.

Whether you looked north or south you were greeted by a wide panorama, with the waterfront of Whitehead in the middle of a horseshoe shaped section of coastline. In either direction there were cliffs and great scenery.

On the way back to Belfast we stopped to do some sightseeing in Carrickfergus and to visit Cerrick castle. then it was on further south toward Belfast proper. Our cab driver asked if we would like to see some of the neighborhoods where the fighting had taken place during the war. Reluctantly we said "Yes" and that proved to be a great decision.

If you want to understand Northern Ireland then touring the recent ruins created from the fights that took place in the 1980s and 1990s is a must. We drove through several neighborhoods where there were still burned out buildings and there are propaganda paintings on just about every available surface. An example of just one is shown as the last picture in the list to the right.

Feelings about the fighting in Northern Ireland are still very much alive. But we learned several things from our cab driver that were interesting. He stated that the fighting had come to a halt because prosperity had come to everyone, so everyone had a stake in maintaining the peace. Also, the children do not understand the conflict and it could very well die out with the fighting generation. Apparently many children play together regardless of religious affiliation and this could carry on into personal lives as they get older. For adults though things are different. Protestants hire only protestants and Catholics hire only Catholics. The lines get blurred during the week during meals, transportation, and other everyday activities.

If you have a chance by all means go to Northern Ireland and Ireland. It is a great place and I believe the Irish people appreciate and want to be understood by Americans. If your surname name is Whitehead then be sure to go to Whitehead, Ireland. We might be from there and we might not, but it makes for great stories.