Trendy Belfast Murals

At the end of the political tour of Shankhil and Falls, Desmond, our Black Taxi Driver decided to show us what he called the ‘Trendy Belfast’.
“Here it’s even okay to be gay and live together."
He’d just been telling us that Catholics and Protestants did fall in love across the barriers but that they had to leave the Shankhill and Falls area because of the hostility between Catholics and Protestants in West Belfast.
“In the rest of Belfast it’s not at all so political.  The murals here are mostly about music and art. There are 30 or more bars in the area and people just love to come and socialize here.Here’s one mural in honour of Van Morrison.  You’ll recognize Bono too over here. There’s Liam Neeson."

Belfast City Hall, Ireland

It’s a must see in the guide books.  Smack dab in the centre of the city. A beautiful building. We wandered in and followed the signs to the exhibits.  This was in the cafe where we learned the Belfast had been a centre of industry for a very long time. It had produced planes since the War and was a great ship building centre that had built Ocean liners including the Titannic.  As well it was a place where linen was made en mass.  I loved that the first chocolate as we consider it in modern times was developed here. Milk of Magnesia comes from here. Portable defibrillators. Quantum Theorem Physics.  James Bond’s Autogyro!!! Lord Kelvin of temperature fame was from here. The first air craft ejection seat was developed here.  Aerated water for drinking came from here. The list goes on and on.
We lucked out as a tour was beginning and welcomed.  The building is a working place with security concerns so you can only go through it as part of a tour. Our tour guide was incredible.  Thanks to him we learned that Van Morrison been honoured with the rarely bestowed freedom of the city.  The murals were explained. There was even a picture of the man who had argued for more lifeboats on the Titanic and been over ridden by others opinions.  There was a copy of the Ulster Covenant. A half million people had signed a document asking that Ireland remain part of the British Empire.  The Original Charter have been given by King James I in 1613.  Some million or more loyal protestants live in Northern Ireland now.
We noticed that Northern Ireland was distinct from the south when we found that Euro wasn’t the exchange but rather Stirling Pounds. Thank God for ATM machines.
I thought of my grandfather from here as I was sitting in the Lord Mayor of Belfast’s chair.  I don’t he’d have thought a grandson of his would one day be doing this when he was emigrating to Canada with my grandmother.

James Bond’s plane!!!