Tag: Michael Black

On to Rathlin

Our Rathlin ferry was schedule for 6:30, so we left John’s at about 4 pm. Richard has been doing the driving and we’ve minimized the “wrong side of the road” challenge by sticking to highways as much as possible.

We did a FaceTime call with Michael Black, our host, on the way. Sadly, Michael will not be joining us on Rathilin due to a medical issue he needs to attend to in San Francisco. It will be his first summer missing his visit to Rathlin in 20 years. I learned later how significant his absence would be for the people of Rathlin.

We called Michael en route. I have never done a FaceTime call and it was pretty amazing to be driving down the highway in Belfast having a video call with Michael in San Francisco to prepare our arrival on Rathlin.  He had gone to great lengths to prepare our accommodations, including having his niece, Aiofe (Frances’s daughter), drive up from Dublin to get the house ready. Aiofe is also a musician with a strong following in Ireland. Her most popular single is Along the Wild Atlantic Way. it’s great!  But on this day, she’s our housekeeper. Only in Ireland….

Michael Black’s indestructible jeep

Michael also left us his jeep at the dock for use while on the island. I loved tooling around the island in the very durable vehicle. The stick shift brought me back to my early driving days.