On Wednesday we took the second group excursion to Belfast. It is about a two hour bus ride North from Dublin up along the east coast. Technically you are leaving Ireland when you go to Northern Ireland. However, since there is an open border the only way you really know you have left Ireland is because the lines in the road turn from yellow to white and are measured in miles instead of kilometers. You also have use pounds (an even worse exchange rate!) While I was struck by the beauty of the west of Ireland, the North is quite a different experience. The political and religious tension between the Unionists and the Nationalists is present at every turn. There is a strong divide between the Protestants and the Catholics dividing Belfast in half. The struggles are shown through murals painted all over Northern Ireland on the sides of buildings and houses. Most of the murals are not constant and change to reflect current issues at home and abroad.
Bobby Sands- Died during the Hunger Strike
Memorial Garden
There are large metal grated walls that literally divide Belfast in half between the Irish Catholics and the Unionist Protestants. It is surreal to think that it is only in very recent years that peace talks have ensued and while it seems peaceful there is still a serious divide that could lead a break in the peace at any moment. All over Belfast there are Leisure Centers, basically community centers or gyms, and in some places two Leisure Centers will back up to one another, however it is well know by the people which one has a unionist affiliation and which has a nationalist affiliation. There are people who have lived in Belfast their entire lives and never crossed political and religious lines ever, even if hey were only a block away.
In the afternoon we went to the Titanic Quarter to visit the site where the Titanic was built. Currently the entire area is undergoing a huge re-gentrification project; building stores, apartments, Belfast Metropolitan College, and a museum completely dedicated to the titanic. We got to see the plans and project layout, which is a massive project that won't be completed for another 25 years. The most interesting part was being able to go into the original drawing room that has not been touched for over 100 years. It is a beautiful long room with an arched ceiling. It is going to be brought back to its original splendor and then used as an event space! We then got to go out to the original docks where the ship was built as well as the dry dock and pump house. At the end we were all declared "Titanararians" and given the famous Belfast line "Titanic, she was alright when she left here."
After a long day of touring Belfast and the Titanic Quarter we arrived at the Dukes Hotel at Queens University. I am usually not one to be overly excited about hotels, but this one has just been entirely redone and somehow I lucked out with my own room. I walked into a modern posh room with a king size bed (basically heaven compared to my mini twin at DCU), a giant plasma tv on the wall and the best bathroom ever with a jacuzzi, separate tub and shower, and best of all heated towel rack. It was amazing after a long, cold, wet day.
DAY 2: Derry
On Thursday we drove an hour west to Derry (or as the Protestant Unionists call it Londonderry). It was a very somber experience. We first walked along the city walls, which were originally built in 1613-1618 and are the oldest surviving walls in Ireland. From the walls you can see where the Bogside Massacre occurred in 1968. I think the hardest part to comprehend was that this occurred so recently and peace talks did not even begin until the 1990s.
We then toured more of the political murals, depicting the lives lost during Bloody Sunday. In the heart of the Bogside there is the Museum of Free Derry: The National Civil Rights Archive created by John Kelly, the brother of Michael Kelly, one of those who died on Bloody Sunday. It tracks the years from Civil Rights in the 1960s to Bloody Sunday on January 30, 1972. Bloody Sunday was supposed to be a peaceful march, however it turned fatal when 14 unarmed demonstrators were shot dead and 14 more were injured by the British army. 5 of those killed were shot in the back. All the artifacts in the museum are original from the families who were living in the Bogside. There is original photos and video. The house the museum is in was owned by the grandparents of one of those killed. It is overwhelmingly sad; you can still see the pain in the communities faces. They are still waiting for answers and for those involved to be held accountable. There were two official inquiries held by the British government. The first was considered a whitewashing by the government. It meant nothing and brought no answers. The second inquiry was supposed to be finished by 2003, but has been pushed back for years and now isn't even close to being finished until at least 2010. It was a very hard day.
That night after we all had rested a bit and relaxed from the day we finally were able to let loose. The entire group, leaders and all, went to the famous Crown Bar! It is a really funky old bar with mini booths that have high walls and little doors that you can close to have your own private little area. It was lots of fun and a good way to unwind.
DAY 3: Parliament and Carrickfergus
In the morning we all went on a tour of Parliament Buildings (really only one, but that's what its called). It is a massive historic building situated on top of a hill. The layout is similar to the Parliament at Westminster. There is an ornate ceiling painted with red, blues and golds painted to hide the smoke stains that would cover the ceiling. The entire building is made of granite and marble. It is positively gorgeous. You are only allowed to take photos of the grand hall, but all the other meeting rooms are just as beautiful as the grand hall. The statue at the top of stairs is a statue of Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, James Craig. The interesting part about the statue is that it is a life size scale and he stands over 6 feet 8 inches. Another fun fact is that in WWI the building housed the air force command base. In order to hide building from surprise attacks, since it was huge, white and on top of a hill, they painted the entire building black with tar and cow dung, which then took 7 years to clean off.
After this we went straight to Carrickfergus Castle! We had a great tour and amazing tour guide named Steve! He definitely played to the crowd. The castle was beautiful and situated directly on the water.
That night we went to Belfast and were able to go onto the Belfast Ferris Wheel which over looks the entire city at sunset!
On the Wheel!
DAY 4: Back Home
Going to the North was amazing. It was exntirely different from the trip to the South, but well worth the history that we were able to learn. Being led by Don was an added piece to the adventure, since he has lived through all the events that have occurred in Ireland over the past 50 years.
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