A day trip to Belfast from Dublin made for a nice day out. Since the Troubles have subsided, it is relatively safe traveling there. There is a train from Dublin that goes straight to Belfast in about 2 hours time. One of the lads we worked with while we were in Dublin is from Belfast, so he volunteered to be our "navigator" for the day (he refused to be our "tour guide"). Having a local there with us certainly made it more enjoyable as we didn’t have to be concerned with being in the wrong side of town, finding our way around, etc.

We walked through Queens University and its botanical gardens, enjoyed tea & scones at a small local shop. We also walked through the shopping area, by city hall, the ship yard (a major industry in Belfast and where the Titanic was built), the new concert hall, the courthouse (still with heavy steel barriers and now-empty guard towers), then on to the Crown Pub for lunch.

The Crown is most famous pub in Belfast and is ornately decorated with hand-painted tiles outside. The inside still has the old-style snugs (wooden partitions around the tables to provide some privacy). It is across the street from the Europa hotel which has the distinction of being the most bombed hotel in all western Europe. Gives you a warm feeling, doesn’t it?

Note Jim holding up the wall while our “navigator” Paul dispensed pearls of wisdom to our august group.

It has been interesting watching the work that has been done by all parties concerned towards building a lasting peace in Ireland. We hope and pray that the Troubles are truly past and that the people of Ireland can live their lives in peace.

We came back to visit Belfast briefly with our friend Nancy Haynes in the spring of 1999. This time we vistied the Linen Museum where they did an excellent job explaining the history of the linen trade as well as the processing from growing the flax to weaving the cloth. Even Jim had to agree it was interesting!

We also drove a few kilometers out of town to Carrickfergus to visit visit the Norman Castle (above) built in 1180 by John de Courcy. The castle was occupied up until 1928.

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