We weren’t sure what to expect from Northern Ireland.
Growing up we heard of the violence and conflict in the North and knew that
things were pretty stable now. Simon’s previous work has a team in Belfast that
colleagues had visited and had reported the city was interesting and open for
tourists. So it was with some trepidation but with open minds we entered
Northern Ireland.
The Ferry Over
Cruising the Scottish coast to the ferry we boarded in good
time and lounged comfortably across the sea for the 3 hour journey. The boat
was a little rocky and put us both in a sleepy mood. We lucked out with a
perfectly calm day and would not like to do the crossing on a rough day.
Belfast
We had been told by friends that we must do Paddy Campbells
famous black cab tour and it ranks as #1 on trip advisor so we couldn’t pass it
up. We didn’t quite know what the tour would cover but we knew we would be
getting some sort of overview on the history of Belfast. We were lucky enough
to get Paddy Campbell himself, with his 35 years of cab driving all in Belfast
– it is fair to say he has seen some things. Paddy took us through the Catholic
and Protestant neighbourhoods and up the Shankill and Falls roads, stopping at
murals and other sites of interest whilst explaining the background to the
conflict and aspiring hopes for the future of Belfast.
We had felt very safe in Belfast, but after the tour we
couldn’t help but feel a little bit more cautious (although we did not need to
be), but its hard not to be a little shaken by things that have happened. We
certainly became more aware by the levels of security everywhere, the huge
numbers of security cameras, the fortification of certain buildings
(courthouse, police stations) and the police cars (closer to military trucks)
being driven at night by officers. It’s fair to say that Belfast has seen some
rough times but the peace agreement is holding and things are on the up and up
but both Paddy and we think it will take a generation or two for things to
progress to a more ‘normal’ level.
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| This is known as The Belfast Mona Lisa, as the gunman follows you as you move past the wall |
We couldn’t help but think that this type of public art
could only serve to continue the segregation/ divisiveness between the
Catholics and Protestants as it glorifies those who commit extreme violence.
Although as Paddy says “one mans terrorist is another mans freedom fighter”,
but none the less we wondered whether it only reinforces the behaviour. Paddy
did note that public art around the city is becoming a great way to bring the
Catholics and Protestants together, as young people work on pieces together
regardless of ‘sides’.
Protests are still occurring (going on while we were there)
which costs the city a lot (~500,000 pounds a day) on associated security
costs. It can seem that there is not a lot of thought given to the impact or
consequences of their actions. There are large costs, an impact on tourism and
therefore the local economy etc. So is it all worth it? We appreciated this
quote “In most other countries they have all sorts of sports; soccer, cricket,
whatever. In Belfast we have something called recreational rioting” – a Belfast
resident.
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| Residents next to the fence erect their own barriers to protect from missiles and petrol bombs thrown over the wall. |
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| Next time you hear 'rubber bullets' were used this is what they look like, we thought they were little like normal bullets... |
We saw the peace walls, many great people including the
Dalai Lama, Bill Clinton, Bono and more have written their peace message on
these walls. The Dalai Lama famously wrote “Open your arms to change, but don’t
let go of your values”.
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| Amy signing the peace walls but it was wet so the texter didn’t hold! |
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| Built (and still used) to surround the Catholic community to keep the Protestants out (and vice versa).The now called 'peace wall'' is filled with messages of peace from people around the world. |
An article by the ABC on Belfast and the progression towards peace, they also interview our tour driver Paddy for his perspective.
After our tour we had a walk around the city and through the
shopping centre and around the Belfast centre itself. We made our way up to the beautiful Belfast Castle, and later enjoyed the city light up at night.
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| The Albert Memorial Clock in the city, the lean is not my camera that is the lean of this mini tower of Pisa. |
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| The 'wedding cake' City Hall |
The ill-fated Titanic was built and launched in Belfast
which was a massive accomplishment for the small and relatively unknown city at
the time. Today it has completed a massive Titanic museum. The outside of the
building is a replica of the bow (front) of the ship and is to scale meaning it
is as high as the ship was. It is a remarkable building and feels immense when
you are standing next to it. Behind it where the two ships (Titanics sister
ship Olympic) were built are blue LED
strips in the outline of the hulls. They were spectacularly large ships and
must have been a wonder to see 100 years ago when they were launched. We were lucky enough to stumble across an outdoor musical which meant our stroll around the area was filled with song.
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| A spectacular and intimidating building, with the proportions being to the exact scale of the Titanic. |
One of the must see pubs in Northern Ireland is the Crown
Liquor Saloon. It is a spectacular pub due to the inside fitted out with the
interior from the HMS Brittanic. It
also features the crown jewels on the ground as you walk through the door,
meaning you walk over the crown jewels – this might have been more popular to
one side than the other. One of Simons HP colleagues was in town for work, so we
caught up for a drink and enjoyed the cultural experience. We had a great
night, there is something fabulous about being able to just talk to someone you
already know as well as meeting a bunch of new people. It was a great night,
although the bar closed at 12:30 with a promptness we have never seen before.
We invited Anthony along for the journey to Londonderry through the Giants
Causeway the next day.
Drive to Londonderry
We picked up Anthony and hit the road to The Giants
Causeway. The road was narrow, winding, hilly and beautiful. The weather however
had plans of its own and sent us some of the strongest wind we have experienced
anywhere so far.
We pulled up at Torc head at an abandoned coast guard
station and nearly got blown into the Atlantic. The view from the top of the
head was breath taking but the wind was incredible you could lean completely
into it and not fall over.
Down the curving road some more we came to the famous Rope
Bridge. It was not really what we expecting in that it was much more solid and
short in length than we thought it would be. Regardless the walk to it was
scenic and the weather was not terrible.
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| The water was translucent turquoise - very appealing for a swim except for the howling wind |
Further down the road we caught a glimpse at the smallest
church in Ireland, St Cobbans. Its about the size of a family wagon car and
overlooks the beach. We also stumbled upon some gorgeous small castle ruins lining the coast.
On the cusp of dusk we made it to The Giants Causeway. We
avoided paying 8.50 Pounds to get ‘in’ to the place. The walk to the causeway
is free, they don’t advertise that though and push you through the ‘world
class’ visitors centre for a fee. Cheeky buggers.
The Giants Causeway is one of the greatest natural wonders
in the UK and we have never seen anything like it. Over 40,000 hexagonal
columns formed by volcanic activity millions of years ago has left a remarkable
site. No wonder the ancients thought that giants had built a causeway to
Scotland giving it its name. You really had to take a moment to just take this
in because it doesn’t look natural.
Rolling into Londonderry after dark we lucked out and got a
gorgeous hotel room, and then enjoyed great dinner at the hotel restaurant
chatting the evening away with Anthony.
Londonderry
Londonderry has some of the best surviving walls in Europe.
Originally a planned city for emigrants from England and Scotland to ‘colonize’
Ireland the walls were built as defences. It’s only a mile around but with the
weather so miserable it felt like a lot longer.
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| You can see to the right of the wall the fence which seperates the Protestant community from the Catholic community. |
From one side you look down on ‘Free Derry’ otherwise known
as Bogside, the first settlement outside the walls. This is the catholic area
of Londonderry, or to them, Derry. The Irish flag flies everywhere and murals
similar to those in Belfast adorn the walls of the houses. The same
divisiveness exists here as it does in Belfast.
Further around the walls you cross the peace lines, they’re
here too, over to the British side. The Union Jack flies proudly here over
everything and the streets, poles and gutters are painted red, white and
blue. A marble plaque in prominent
placement reads: Londonderry West Bank
Loyalists. Still Under Siege. No Surrender. With messages like these it’s a
wonder if these places will ever really move on.
Getting off the walls and seeking coffee and breakfast we
found the most perfect coffee shop and had what Simon rates as a top 3 coffee
of Europe so far. Anthony agreed having experienced similarly poor coffee in
his journey.
We finished the walls and bid Anthony farewell. It had been
really nice to have a fellow Aussie along for the ride and someone to have a
chat with and experience Northern Ireland with.
Heading south through the pouring rain we crossed the border
to The Republic of Ireland. There was nothing to indicate the border except the
speed limits change to kmph and everything has Gaelic and English on it.
Final Thoughts on
Northern Ireland
It’s easy to think ‘why can’t they just move on’, but it’s
also easy to forget that some are dealing with only relatively recent loss.
Perhaps the better question is why can’t we all learn to embrace forgiveness
rather than live in resentment and contemplating or seeking revenge. It seems
to us that the only way forward is to forgive, because there really is nothing
good that comes out of any other option.
Everyone we interacted with in Belfast was super friendly
and helpful. People really went out of their way to help and assist us which
hasn’t been common so far. We put this down to Belfast really wanting and
needing tourists to come back and spread the word that it is a friendly and
safe place.
We found Belfast a great place to visit. Don’t be put off by
the past it’s open for tourists and welcomes them with open arms.
Simon & Amy xoxo
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