Liz Warren | Storyteller

The one-l lama,
He's a priest;
The two-l llama,
He's a beast.
And I will bet
A silk pajama,
Saint Patrick never
Saw a llama.

(with apologies to Ogden Nash) 

It was a gloriously sunny, bright day. Liz Weir drove us up narrow Knowehead Road, between Broughshane and Ballyeamon Barn.  The trees made a green tunnel. Slemish, where Patrick worked as a slave after he was kidnapped in Wales, was off in the distance.  I asked Liz to pull over so I could get a shot of it.  No sooner had we hopped out of the car when this lovely llama poked his head over the fence to check us out.  Liz said, “Be careful. They spit”! There were several other llamas in the field below him, and there was a nice muddy duck pond with ducks and geese.

            We started our day driving into Cushendall so I could visit Celtic Crafts, a favorite stop.  Then we drove east along the coast to Glenarm, and specifically to the Walled Garden at  Glenarm Castle, where we had lunch in the tearoom and then a wander.  The garden, built in the 1700s, is one of the oldest formal gardens in Ireland.  The castle itself has been the home of the Earls of Antrim since the 1600's, right up to the present day.

     Then we drove into Broughshane, known as "the garden village of Ulster", to visit the chemists and to pick up some supplies for dinner.  Broughshane is one of the most beautiful villages in all of the U.K., and has won the British equivalent of the Tidy Town prize for its size for several years running. Hanging baskets, charming stone bridge, smartly painted house and store fronts, public art – it’s got it all, plus Union Jacks and red, white, and blue flag-festooned streets.  Broughshane is a staunchly loyalist town and July 12 is just around the corner.

            After Broughshane, we visited Blackthorn Cottage and its owner, Roseanne.  Then on the way back we met the llamas as we gazed out on Slemish.  A totally satisfying day! As Liz noted, "There's no place more beautifl than Northern Ireland on a fine day."

The first photo is the Llama and Slemish, then the Walled Garden at Glenarm, public art in Broughshane.  The ceramic butterflies were painted by local children. Lastly, the realy thing in the lavender at the Walled Garden.