Preface:
As a Young Ambassador, I will be learning about Northern Irish culture, politics and history and specifically information about the Downpatrick area. The aim of the Young Ambassador program is to educate Americans and Canadians about Northern Ireland and to have the Young Ambassadors share their information and enthusiasm for the country with people back at home.
There are Friends of Saint Patrick chapters located in Northern Ireland and the US. The chapters promote Northern Ireland as the home of Saint Patrick and support the Saint Patrick centre. I applied to become a Young Ambassador through the Albany, NY chapter; our chapter is just beginning, and I am the first Young Ambassador from New York!
Trip Details!:
On June 1st, I left from JFK for Dublin and arrived one June 2nd around 9:30am. Dr.Tim Campbell, the director of the Saint Patrick Centre, warmly greeted me at the airport and introduced me to some of the other Young Ambassadors. Tim drove us around the suburbs of Dublin for awhile and we were able to see the beautiful Irish sea. After picking up a final Young Ambassador at the airport, we began to make the two hour drive from Dublin to Downpatrick in Northern Ireland.
The drive was hair-raising at times; the roads were narrow and winding! The countryside was beautiful, but all of the Young Ambassadors began to doze off in the van. In nearly no time at all, Tim announced, "We are now crossing into Northern Ireland." There's no formal border, so crossing into the country is no different than crossing over into New Jersey to New York, for example. As we got closer to Downpatrick, we could see the Mourne mountains rising in the distance.
We all arrived at the Saint Patrick Centre where we had to perform a quick costume change and put on our khaki pants and Friends of Saint Patrick polo shirts. From the centre, we took a walk up to the Down Cathedral to attend a mass celebrating the Queen of England's Diamond Jubilee. Tons of people packed into the beautiful cathedral to honor 60 years of the Queen's reign. The choir sang several songs, and we all commented on how it was the most beautiful choir we had ever heard. Several prayers were said and speeches were given. I think that the most interesting part of the celebration was when three people shared first-hand stories from when they had seen the Queen's coronation back on June 2nd 1953. They were each fantastic storytellers - I really felt like I was standing there in Trafalgar Square in London, watching the Queen's carriage pass as the rain poured down from above. I am quickly learning that many people in Northern Ireland are terrific orators.
After the celebration, we headed over to see our accommodations for the first time. We are living in a huge 4 bedroom home in Ballydugan. We have a gorgeous living room with a fireplace and sweeping views of a little lake - and lots of cows!
A short amount of time passed before we were swept away to a barbecue at the Saint Patrick centre. The weather kind of spoiled our barbecue so we had to eat inside. We met a lot of local people as well as Margaret Richie, MP for South Down. We didn't actually get around to eating until 9pm or so and did not get back to the house until 10:30pm, so we were exhausted for sure!
Overall, an interesting start.
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