Thursday 5th September
Today's pedometer reading 13.15 k's.
It’s been another beautiful sunny
and warm day, perfect for exploring Belfast.
Our hotel is very central so we
left the car behind and spent the day on foot.
First stop Belfast City Hall.
Most of Belfast’s main streets radiate out from the hub of Donegal Square and
in the centre of the square stands the vast rectangular Portland stone bulk of the
1906 City Hall.
Statues around the building
include a glum looking Queen Victoria outside the main entrance and, on the
east side Sir Edward Hartland, founder of the Harland and Wolf shipyard which
built the Titanic. A beautiful statue and memorial garden dedicated to those
who died when the Titanic sank in 1912 is nearby.
I went inside to look for a loo
and came across this beautiful, stained glass and leadlight window completed as
part of a millennium project…it’s subject, the great famine…
In Ireland, the Great Famine was a period of mass starvation, disease and
emigration between 1845 and 1852. During the famine approximately 1 million
people died and a million more emigrated from Ireland, causing the island's
population to fall by between 20% and 25%. The cause of the famine was a potato disease commonly known as potato blight.
Next stop Linen Hall Library. Above the library door I was expecting to see a
red hand (The Red Hand of Ulster) but this is what we found…
The Red Hand of Ulster, the emblem of the
province is the subject of a gory legend…
The kingdom of Ulster had at one time no rightful heir. Because of this it was agreed that a boat
race should take place and that "whosoever's hand is the first to touch
the shore of Ireland, so shall he be made the king". One potential king so
desired the kingship that, upon seeing that he was losing the race, he cut off
his hand and threw it to the shore — thus winning the kingship. The hand is
most likely red to represent the fact that it would have been covered in blood.
This one doesn’t have quite the right impact
now that it’s painted white.
We then visited The Entries, a series of little
alleys between two streets that are supposed to feature some of the best pubs
in the city…we thought it all looked rundown and seedy…another disappointment.
The next thing we saw was an armored police van
with wire cages around all the lights. Over the next few hours it passed us a
few times it seemed to be on patrol around the centre of Belfast...there seemed
to be a strong Police presence all round the city…on foot and in patrol cars…we
didn’t feel comfortable at all. We headed down to the Lagan Maritime area and
loved two statues that were installed in 2009. ‘Big Fish’ has beautiful ceramic
scales
and the ‘Beacon of Hope’. Made of
stainless steel and cast bronze, she spirals upwards and holds aloft 'the
ring of thanksgiving'. The globe at her feet indicates the
universal philosophy of peace, harmony and thanksgiving, and has marked on its
surface the cities where the people and industries of Belfast migrated and
exported to.
Again we didn’t feel comfortable, two youths made
a couple of comments in our direction and Andrew felt they were paying a lot of
attention to his camera so we decided to head back to our hotel. We went via ‘The Crown’ our guide book said that ‘even teetotalers
should make a detour to the tiled façade of this flamboyant Victorian drinking
palace.’
We were so impressed and made to feel so
welcome and seeing that it was about 1.30pm, we decided to stay and have lunch.
The Crown dates back to the 1880’s and it’s lovingly restored interior features
stained glass, marbling, mosaics and a gorgeous ceiling with scrolled
plasterwork.
It was hard to take photos, it was quite busy
so I’ve cheated & here are some from the internet.
We were lucky enough to dine in one of the
wooden snugs that face the long bar.
They have their original gas lamps and are just
the perfect place for a drink and a meal. I enjoyed a chicken & mushroom
pie, while Andrew opted for…yes you guessed it, Belfast steak and black pepper
sausages served on mash!
I think you’ve probably guessed that Belfast
hasn’t been our favourite place so far…there have been some really lovely
aspects and we’ve met some wonderful people, but overall we both have a
feeling of unease. We’re having a quiet afternoon, resting and doing a big
repack of our bags because we now have 3 one night stays in a row…we need to be
organized! We’ll wander down to The Queen’s Quarter again and have dinner in a café
or pub.
To finish off today’s blog here are a more few
photos that Andrew took on our walk today…
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