Reuniting on Reunification day: Dublin to Glasgow (Part 3)

The ferry from Belfast to Ayrshire was very smooth. Made smoother by the 25 pound 'upgrade' to the Stena lounge which offers free food and drink, a place to charge devices (that worked unlike Heathrow), and a comfortable seat to see the views and snooze.


The ferry used to run from Belfast to Stranraer - but now goes to Cairnryan, a few miles away. It is a slow ferry, but I didn't complain. The 2 hours 22 minutes went quickly - some cake, some sandwiches, a glass of wine and some more Seamus Heaney.

I was grateful to be picked up by a friend from Vietnam at Cairnryan, who drove me to his home nearby. His Vietnamese wife is an excellent cook and we had traditional barbecued fish as an appetiser and then Bun Cha for dinner - celebrating the 50th anniversary of the reunification of North and South Vietnam that marked the end of the second Indochina War. We had lots to catch up on, and the noodles and wine flowed freely. The next morning, a coffee to recuperate and one of the best Pho to be had in the whole of the UK.


My friend lives in a castle, and the king of the castle is his wonderful black labrador. They kindly dropped me off at Stranraer train station - which is the end of the line in more ways than one, from where I took the 09:00 train via Ayr and Kilwinnie to Largs.








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