Belfast & Armagh

Belfast & Armagh

3^rd May.

We set off from Draperstown at 8am after a night out, it was a sluggish start. I was glad we were going to Belfast as secretly I was stressed about getting to the airport for our Glasgow flight so this trip gave us an idea of the time needed to get there.

The Hilton loved the fire

An hour & a half later we parked the car in the Hilton car park & desperate for a comfort stop walked into the Hilton foyer like we belonged, heading for the coffee shop & the amenities. Finding coffee, paper & a lovely fireplace settled in to plan the day.

Feeling refreshed I headed for the concierge guests need a map & direction. Map in hand we headed for the Belfast Open Top Tour Bus stop & boarded the bus for a two hour tour. Advertised as the most comprehensive tour of Belfast we were not disappointed. Belfast we found out had recently been voted “Europe’s Friendliest Regional Capital”& we sure had the funniest guide to date. 

City Hall

We visited the city centre or as otherwise known the Cathedral Quarter. It is named after the St Anne’s Cathedral that dominates this section with the largest Celtic cross in the world. The cathedral itself is ornate but Protestant & the spire of hope was erected on the roof in 2007 dedicated on 9/11 as a symbol of Christian Hope. I thought it looked ok inside but outside could not quite work out why you would put such a modern structure on a classic 1932 church.I was impressed by the lovely Titanic quilt, tapestry chairs & kneel pads.

The huge Celtic Cross

Passing City Hall, we came into the Titanic area launched for the 100 year anniversary of the Titanic sinking is Titanic Belfast the world’s largest Titanic themed attraction.  Everywhere you go there seemed to be a reference to the Titanic & the city is sure pinning hopes on tourism returning for this attraction.

Across the road were the shipyards Harland & Wolff where the Titanic was built & still housed the two massive cranes Sampson & Goliath looming over what was once the world’s biggest shipyard. These cranes can be seen from everywhere in the city.

We drove through the roads that divided the town in the “troubles” The Falls & the Shankill. They were covered in political statements in the form of murals & the town remains separated by the peace wall & gates that can be shut in times of tension. I felt rather emotional passing through these areas I could not really fathom this era in Irish history apart from the fact that it was very sad & so many lost their life mostly innocents. The guide being able to make a joke of everything at this point broke my chain of thought with “While the protestants were in the shipyards building the Titanic the Catholic were at the other end of town building the iceberg” typically always able to laugh at themselves & just as we passed a mural of Hurricane Higgins the world champion snooker player.

We drove the great drive up to Parliament House in the Stormont estate the gardens & building were a statement high on a hill overlooking Belfast. Another story flowed from our guide’s mouth about how the air force took over this building in the war & it being white & high on a hill was a definite target so the painted it black with a mixture of tar & manure. After the war this was scrubbed off but the story goes that the manure never left.

After an overload of information the last little bit of facts imparted that was Belfast was also rated as the 2^nd safest city & that Ireland was the safest country for travelers. Everyone laughed after hearing all the stories & seeing the troubled areas but the guide reassured us it was now safe as all the criminals were preoccupied running the country & too busy for committing crime.

After the tour & a quick lunch we discovered Johnnies Cupcakes taking a picture for Crissha the cupcake queen. We also stumbled upon Garfield’s bar Johnny just had to have a photo of this as that is his call sign when 4 wheel driving.

Leaving Belfast we stumbled upon the Lough Neah Discovery centre, this lough is the largest in the British Isles. Lough Neagh is renowned as, the earliest known inland site of pre-historic man, for great fishing, fantastic calm area for water sports & a haven for wildlife. Leaving the car park a VW started up with a roar reminding me of Allicia I took a photo for her it looks nothing but I think there was a good motor under the bonnet from the noise.

 

Moving off from Lough Neah after a lovely walk we headed to Armagh & the Saint Patrick's Trian. Founded by Saint Patrick Armagh is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland. We were too late in the day to see the Book of Armagh which is similar to the book of Kell's that was a bit disappointing but the Catholic St Patrick's sure did not disappoint. Perched high on the hill overlooking the whole city it rose like a magnificent beacon. The church was decorated in the most amazing tiny mosaics all over with ornate lights & a beautiful collection of stained glass windows the nicest I thought was The Last Supper

Lastly we rushed to the Protestant St Patrick's too late to go inside but after nearly being locked in by the minister must have been or our sins I managed a single photo. It paled in comparison like the poor cousin of the day. 

Then homeward bound to Draperstown one last stop at Lough Fae for a wake me up walk around the Lough. Johnny spotting some screening machines we took a picture for Mick.