well, that went better than i expected. with breakfast sorted, i m off for some culture in the next part of myjourney, which takes me up the coast with a quick stop off at the capital city of northern ireland, belfast. here and in some other parts of northern ireland, it is notjust covid that tourism has had to overcome in recent years. the 30 year conflict known as the troubles halted a lot of travel to this city up until the good friday agreement was signed in 1998. a sort of dark tourism emerged afterwards as visitors explored places and murals associated with the conflict, but in recent years murals with other topics at their heart out become a bigger part of the urban landscape. seedhead arts have been
and for glenarm castle, first built in the i7th century, the impact of the troubles on tourism meant relying on deserters for lots of income would have been a risky strategy, until recently. so during the pandemic, when tourism was at an all time low, they decided to take a leap and invest in tourism for the future. it was all about surviving long term. we took a look how we could reinvent ourselves to come out again when this would be over. we knew the public perception would have changed and that outdoor space was going to be more valuable moving forward, and so we concentrated our efforts on creating outdoor space and activities. in addition to the gardens on the grounds that were already drawing visitors,
we get good food and all that. i have no doubt they will lay on a splendid christmas lunch. that ll be nice, we ll enjoy it. a year on, residents and staff are fully vaccinated and boosted but are worried about the new omicron variant. the threat of bringing it in here is like, yeah, it gives me quite a lot of anxiety. i don t mix with anybody outside of work. i meet one friend outside for a dog walk a couple times a week and that is it. but it s notjust covid. they have also had to deal with a staffing crisis. they are operating at half capacity over 12 of their rooms are empty. despite a local recruitment drive, sandra has been unable to find staff. she has had to bring carers from abroad. i actually made the decision to remortgage my own home and buy a four bedroomed property so that i knew that when recruits came from abroad i would have
i have no doubt they will lay on a splendid christmas lunch. that ll be nice, we ll enjoy it. a year on, residents and staff are fully vaccinated and boosted but are worried about the new omicron variant. the threat of bringing it in here is like, yeah, it gives me quite a lot of anxiety. i don t mix with anybody outside of work. i meet one friend outside for a dog walk a couple times a week and that is it. but it s notjust covid. they have also had to deal with a staffing crisis. they are operating at half capacity over 12 of their rooms are empty. despite a local recruitment drive, sandra has been unable to find staff. she has had to bring carers from abroad. i actually made the decision to remortgage my own home and buy a four bedroomed property so that i knew that when recruits came from abroad i would have somewhere for them to live. as this home counts down to christmas, in the midst
i have no doubt they will lay on a splendid christmas lunch. that ll be nice, we ll enjoy it. a year on, residents and staff are fully vaccinated and boosted but are worried about the new omicron variant. the threat of bringing it in here is like, yeah, it gives me quite a lot of anxiety. i don t mix with anybody outside of work. i meet one friend outside for a dog walk a couple times a week and that is it. but it s notjust covid. they have also had to deal with a staffing crisis. they are operating at half capacity over 12 of their rooms are empty. despite a local recruitment drive, sandra has been unable to find staff. she has had to bring carers from abroad. i actually made the decision to remortgage my own home and buy a four bedroomed property so that i knew that when recruits came from abroad i would have