Hey everyone, my name is Amber! Before this trip I had anticipated to be brought into a culture that resembled my own and to visit places that were previously discussed in class. When I actually arrived here though I was quickly taken aback by the streets and people that made up the city. In Derry/Londonderry and in Belfast I was shocked to see a Wall separating the Loyalist community and the Nationalist community. I had known that there was conflict, but I did not expect to see the physical representation of it so obviously shown. On our trip to Belfast I was speechless when I heard our tour guide talk about how at night they closed the gates of the Wall. This struck me in a way that I hadn't expected. How could there be the declaration of peace but yet the people still enforce the laws of separation? To me this seemed like a person saying that they are okay, but remaining broken on the inside. Back home in America we hear the stories of the hardship that occurred in Ireland, but we never hear of what's happening in the now. We know that there is a peace agreement, but we do not know how individuals are actually managing. Coming here and being a witness to the repercussions of The Troubles is something that more people should experience. A person can only learn so much from a book and until they witness it, what they learn will only remain a story.
-Amber
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