Northern Ireland - Belfast - Part 2 of 2

What an incredible day we had in Belfast on May 28th.  Despite Belfast's troubled and extremely violent past, Belfast is taking great strides to better itself and capitalize on the rarities that make Belfast unique.

Our day touring around was full of surprises that exceeded any expectations we had.  Our plan for the day was simply to check out the docks where Titanic was built - that was it for our agenda.  What we were in for was so much more. Read on to find out what happened!

The Titanic Quarter, which houses many of the docks is beautiful. It is surrounded by new development - business and residental. As we walked through the Titanic Quarter, we read all of the information panels which described Belfast's involvement in Titanic.  Titanic was built in Belfast by Harland & Wolff Shipyard and the ship itself was operated by White Star Line. Titanic set sail from Belfast to Southampton, it's first stop to pick up passangers for the ill-fated ship.

While in Belfast, it also happened to be the 100th anniversary of when Titanic left Belfast's shipyards (May 31st), so Belfast was gearing up for a big ceremony and celebration to mark Belfast's connection to the ship. Until just recently, people in Belfast did not discuss the Titanic at all.  Despite being built in Belfast by its working people, Belfast felt ashamed after Titanic sunk. Shock that the ship cited as "unsinkable" did in fact sink, shame and embarassment were emotions felt by those in Belfast until just recently.  They realized that the rest of the world was fascinated by Titanic and how they were missing out on sharing their side of the story.  Their story is not one of despair, but rather it capitalizes on innovation and pride in the workmanship of the boat. What was unfortunate was what happened to Titanic - it hit a giant ice berg which resulted in the ship's sinking and over 1,500 people losing their lives - but Belfast's role in the ship building was something to be pleased with and something to celebrate.  They are now just embracing this - 100 years later.

While walking around the Titanic Quarter, we came upon the former Harland & Wolff building which was currently used to display some minor information on Titanic for its 100th anniversary.  It contained lots of Titanic artwork from local schools and a few panels of information telling stories of those involved in Titanic's craftmanship.

The exterior of the H&W building

The inside - as you can see, it's been severely neglected!

The middle photo shows the former drawing room of H&W, where Titanic was literally created on paper!  The photo below shows the drawing room as it appears today.

While in the drawing room area, reading the information panels, we met a lady who worked there.  She was talking to us quite a bit and loved that we were from Canada. She asked if we had signed up for the Titanic tour and we replied, "No, we are just doing our own tour around town".  She responded that we must take the tour - it's great and there is so much to learn.  She proceeded to find someone who might be able to get us on the tour for 4pm.  The process is that you need to go to the Tourist Office which was about a 45 min walk away to register & pay.  Short end of the story is that she talked to this guy (who we later learned was a Trustee for the Belfast Titanic Committee and in charge of the S.S. Nomadic Restoration) who told us to come back at 3:45pm and he'd get us on the tour.

We didn't really know what the tour was about or what it entailed, but we were on board for it.  In the interim, we were told to walk further down the docks to check out the Pump House and dock where Titanic was build. 

Pump House

Dock where Titanic was built

This picture does not do the size of the dock justice - it was massive!

After walking around the dock and checking out the Pump House, we proceeded back to the H&W building to await this mystery tour. We met up with the Trustee and he guided us over to a tent which looked like it was housing a boat under construction. Turned out we were going on a tour of the S.S. Nomadic - a sister ship of Titanic. It was used as a tender ship to ferry 1st and 2nd class passangers from Cherbourg Port to Titanic.  The ship continued to be used after Titanic's voyage as a tender, troopship and even was a floating restaurant for a period of time.  In 2006, the Nomadic returned to Belfast and is now the last floating link to Titanic and the White Star Line.  The ship itself still has many of the original features that were handcrafted by the workmen of the shipyard and incorporated into the designs of Titanic and it's other sister ship, the RMS Olympic.

Under construction

We had to put on hard hats and bright green vests since we were on a construction site - so official!

S.S. Nomadic

S.S. Nomadic 

Stairs on the S.S. Nomadic

Information panel with lots of information on S.S. Nomadic's history

Our day in Belfast was particularly memorable - mainly because it unplanned and what we ended up doing was unique. We met some amazing and kind people throughout the day that provided us with a wealth of information and got us onto this private tour of the S.S. Nomadic for free! The S.S. Nomadic will not be open to the public for at least another year.  The plan is to have it ready in time for the Titanic Building's opening next year - April 2012.  The Titanic Building looks spectacular and I would have loved for it to have been open while we were there.  The top floor is a banquet hall that will replicate the dining area on the Titanic.  The objective of the building is to allow its visitors to re-live the entire Titanic story from its birth in Belfast to its fateful maiden voyage.
 

The Titanic Building is on the left - the building that looks like a boat!

Since we paid nothing for the tour, I bought a souvenier from the S.S. Nomadic restoration project.  It was a Titanic postcard with an 1912 penny - the year Titanic was constructed.  I tossed the postcard but I kept the penny - it will always remind me of my wonderful experience in Belfast!

Northern Ireland - Belfast - Part 1 of 2

Matt and I flew into Belfast from Glasgow on May 27th.  We took an early morning flight and as a result, ended up spending the night sleeping in Glasgow airport - or attempting to sleep.  Glasgow Airport is essentially a ghost town after 11pm as no flights go out until 5am the next morning. We each found a nice cozy spot, snuggled with our luggage and tried to get some sleep. 

We finally arrived in Belfast, found our way to our hostel and thankfully they let us check in early. We took a power nap and then it was time to explore! We decided to walk to Falls and Shankill Road to see the murals. There is a ton of history on these two streets and if you love learning history like I do or ever plan to visit Belfast, I encourage you to read up on it.  These roads and the people who live on them/near them have been exposed to shootings, bombings and even targeted murders.  As we walked up and down the streets, we stopped to reflect on the murals, read plaques that marked where someone had been killed and paused at remembrance sites.  Old men would wave at us as we walked through their formerly troubled streets, seemingly pleased that tourists were walking freely on these roads.  These roads are listed as "must-see's" in every tour book on Belfast, but everyone is encouraged to take a Black Cab tour instead of explore it on their own.  The road is completely safe - its modern day Belfast. You will see so much more on your feet than you would see on a taxi tour.

Here are some of my pictures from Shankill and Falls Road:

Also while in Belfast, there was a huge market at the City Hall.  I love markets, especially when they have foods from different cultures.  Here are some pics of the market:

Well, that was Day 1 in Belfast. Part 2 discusses our Titanic adventures!

Scotland - Glasgow and the Western Highlands

Glasgow
On May 25th, we arrived in Glasgow.  Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and the people who live in Glasgow or are from Glasgow are referred to as Glaswegians. 

Glasgow is a working city filled with many young people who like to work during the day and socialize (ie. drink heavily) at night. As with other working cities we've been to, such as Manchester, there are plenty of shopping opportunities.  We walked through the city and made a few pit stops including a gothic cathedral (it was scary looking - I would not attend a Sunday service EVER at this church).

Side view of cathedral - looks ok.

As you walk around the grounds of the cathedral, there are weird tombs that make me nervous. Maybe it's the way they've aged and how creepy they look and the fact that it was becoming dark when we were there?

Some monument...I forget now :(

Glasgow at night!

Western Highlands
We took a tour up through the Western Highlands which we heard were much more impressive than the Eastern Highlands.  Our Western Highlands tour also included a stop at Oban, a port side city which is also the seafood capital of Scotland. Our tour guide, Michael, was so knowledgeable about Scottish history.  If you ever go to Scotland and take a tour, see if you can book a tour with Michael though Rabbie's Tours.  He is the best guide I have ever had. I learned so much about Rob Roy, Robert the Bruce, William Wallace and inaccuracies in the movie Braveheart. Plus he had so much other random knowledge that made you go, "really?" That reminds me, I really should e-mail the tour company and let them know how great Michael was! 
 
The weather for most of the day was overcast - which is what I expect for Scotland (or the UK in general).  It was much better than the chaotic weather we experienced for our Eastern Highlands tour.  We stopped at Invereray Castle, home to the Duke of Argyll.

Invereray Castle

Boats at Invereray

The little town of Invereray! Only 2 main streets.

In the small town of Invereray is where I met my first true Scotsman. How do I know that he was a true Scotman? Well, he was dressed in a kilt and was playing the bagpipes!!! The true mark of a Scotsman.  My friend Eve made one request of me and that was to find a Scottish man in a kilt playing the bagpipes...I'm pleased to say that I accomplished the mission! 

This is just for you Eve!

We also stopped at Kilchurn Castle.  Here are some pics of the view as we walked to the Castle and the Castle.

The drive through the Western Highlands was more scenic & beautiful that the Eastern Highlands. We even saw hairy coo's (more than just the one we saw doing the Eastern tour - Hamish).

Oban
Oban is a pretty portside city.  Matt's mom has traced some of their ancestry back to Oban, so it was particularly meaningful for Matt to be there. He could see why some of his family moved from Oban to the east coast of Canada, as it looks very similar!

And finally, here are some other pics from the Western Highlands!

I loved the Western Highlands and  I hope that if you ever go to Scotland, you will travel though the Western Highlands as well :)