August 8 - On to Belfast

We were up early and on the bus by 8:15 am. This morning, we drove to Belfast, with a pit stop on the way. When we arrived in Belfast, we were taken on a Black Cab tour. These were mostly typical Black Cabs that can be seen on British TV. Some of the cabs were small vans that held more people.

One of the Cabbies

Protestant Mural

All the cabs went to the same places, and at times, we stopped and heard from a couple of the drivers who spoke about what Belfast was like during "the Troubles". The cabbies were a mixture of Catholic and Protestant drivers, each having a good sense of humour, but wanting us to see, and get a feel for, what life was like in Northern Ireland during that time.

Mural in Protestant Section

First, we stopped at a Protestant area and one of the cabbies who was Protestant spoke to us about the characters involved, the murals that were painted, and tried to explain why they were fighting to stay as part of the United Kingdom. He talked about some of the leaders who were fighting for their convictions and the many who were killed.

The Wall Between Catholic and Protestant

Then we drove to the wall that is still standing and helping to keep one of the Catholic areas apart from the Protestants. Now they are living in peace, but the wall is not something that they want to take down.  It is a very tall wall (40 feet high) and over a mile long. We stopped and heard about it, and about the people who have written slogans of peace on the wall. Dawn wrote our name on it, along with people like John Lennon.

Catholic Cabbie

Catholic Mural

From there, we went inside the wall and stopped at a Catholic memorial to those killed during the fighting. A Catholic driver gave this presentation, and it was quite a different point of view from the Protestant presentation. He spoke of the sociopaths and psychopaths who shot many innocent women and children. What a sobering set of presentations, even though these cabbies were good friends, with many living in communities of the other religion.

After checking into our hotel, it was back on the bus to take a guided walking tour of the back streets of Belfast. Our guide was a woman who had a great sense of humour. We only walked through a small part of the city, but she took us to many places that we likely wouldn't have gone to. She spoke of them as places the locals went. In all cases, she was a fast-talking, humorous guide.

Mural outside Pub Wall

Carved Wood Door in Pub

We visited one of the local pubs that had a door made of special wood and beautifully carved. Then she took us to another bar (her favourite) where we were treated to a drink as part of the tour. When we were finished there, we re-boarded the bus and drove to a fish and chip shop that had stayed open just for us. This was another favourite of our guide and I have to admit, it was very good.

Then it was back to our hotel, and get ready for bed. Tomorrow, we do some more touring in Belfast, and then drive on to another town.

Bookmaking Shop in Belfast