Belfast, Northern Ireland

This was our second visit to Belfast in two years, so having opted to take the tour to the UNESCO World Heritage site at the Giant’s Causeway last year, we decided to do a shorter excursion this afternoon. That gave us the morning free for possible independent exploration in the city center of Belfast with some possible shopping, but unfortunately it was Sunday and stores didn’t open until noon. However we did decide to hop on the short free shuttle to the city center for a brief walk around there. On the pier were Barbara, the Port Lecturer and Joe L’Episcopo, the Shore Excursions Director. Ordinarily that would not be of note, but today, Joe had donned an official reproduction of the uniforms worn by the officers on the Titanic.

We took the first shuttle and checked out the information center with its souvenir shop across the street. From there we walked a few steps to the large, imposing Belfast City Hall. We walked around the perimeter taking pictures from many angles and checking the statues. Before we left the area, we thought we had remembered that there had been a Titanic memorial and wondered if we had missed it. Sure enough we had, so we walked back to the memorial and took a brief look at it and snapped a few pictures. Next year, by the way, will be a big year for both Cobh, Ireland and Belfast, Northern Ireland since the Titanic was built in Belfast and its last port before hitting the fatal iceberg on April 14, 1912 was Cobh. We had been told in Cobh that there were going to be special cruises going to Cobh, and also Belfast I would imagine, following the Titanic route. (Note how frequently the Titanic comes up in our references on this cruise. We certainly trust we are making only historic references to the Titanic!!) In “honor” of the occasion, each of us purchased Titanic tee shirts!

After an early lunch, we went to the pier to board our excursion called Grey Abbey and Ards Peninsula Scenic Drive. After a brief photo stop to view Stormont Estate, the seat of the Northern Ireland Assembly, we were on our way to Grey Abbey, a 12th century Cistercian monastery. The caretaker greeted us and showed us various herbs that had been grown there and what medical issues they were used to treat. As he was explaining these, almost literally out of the clear blue, it started to rain hard and those who remembered that they were in the UK, raised their umbrellas, but Barb and I along with most others scampered to the shelter of the visitors’ center. It was a crazy day weatherwise: we started our tour with blue skies and sun in our eyes (no complaints there!), followed by the rain, sun, and again another hard downpour later.

After the rain let up, our guide explained the areas of the abbey ruins until a “monk” in his vestments appeared and described the life of a Cistercian monk. For anyone interested, they could expect to arise at 3 AM (that rules me out immediately), pray and meditate in silence much of the day, and have the opportunity to talk with others only in one room and at very limited times. A person would give up their possessions as well as their families and established friendships to live the life of a monk. However a person had a full year to determine if this life was for them and if not, they could give up this lifestyle within the year. If they remained, the decision from that point was irrevocable and they were committed to being a monk for the rest of their life.

From there, we moved on to the seaside resort of Donaghadee where we were taken to the oldest pub in Ireland, Grace Neill’s Bar, established in 1611. We were invited to have an Irish coffee a strong coffee mixed with some Irish Whiskey (the Irish spell it with an “e” while the Scottish spell it without the “e”—the Irish maintain the “e” stands for “excellence”). Unfortunately it was so crowded that the only eating was outside, so we found a place under an awning. I opted for some “regular” tea but because soft drinks weren’t offered, Barb said she would try the Irish coffee. That surprised me because I didn’t know she was into whiskey(!), I quickly found she wasn’t as she nearly gagged on her new beverage. I had figured she would prefer a pot of tea to the Irish coffee. As we sat there, the winds picked up and sheets of rain came down, driving us into the pub, but almost immediately the rain stopped and once again the sun came out.

Back on the bus, we were given a quick tour of the nice waterfront on the Irish sea with distant views of Scotland and even Cumbria in England. As we made our way back to Belfast, we went through several attractive towns but had one experience that was rather unique. All of a sudden in one village, the bus slowed down to a stop for seemingly no reason. Looking far ahead, we could see what seemed to be a parade. The guide said we would need to check to see if this would delay us or if it would be brief. Fortunately it was brief as the marchers turned off. Then he explained it was a march by the Orange Men, a Protestant organization, which were commemorating the lives lost by Protestants in the Protestant/Catholic strife that lasted several decades during the 20th century. They were going to offer some prayers and sing some hymns at a memorial to the dead. Quickly they were out of our way and we resumed our journey back to the ship.

Very briefly, most will know that six Protestant counties in Northern Ireland preferred to remain attached to the UK rather than become independent with the rest of Catholic Ireland in 1921. Northern Ireland is about 60% Protestant, mostly Presbyterian¸ and about 40% Catholic. The Catholics have wanted to unite all of Ireland under the Irish government in Dublin and a lot of civil unrest and violence flared throughout Northern Ireland for years. British forces had been dispatched to Northern Ireland which made the government in London extremely unpopular. But in recent years, there has been an uneasy peace and on the surface, to tourists, everything looks fine and there is no visible evidence of unrest. It’s such a beautiful part of the British Isles that we hope the peace will hold in Northern Ireland. I can’t imagine the violence that these areas have witnessed, especially in Belfast, as recently as the 1990s.

Back on the ship just as the gangplank was due to be raised, we resumed our journey toward our last port in the UK, Portree on the Isle of Skye in Scotland.

Chuck