Destination: Belfast

Quite early Saturday morning we tiptoed around getting ready so as not to wake the others when we went downstairs to meet the 6am cab ride we had scheduled to the airport. Sally got up to bid us farewell and we were off for the next leg of our trip to Northern Ireland. We caught a flight on Easy Jet from Glasgow to Belfast, it was so short they barely had a chance to offer anyone a drink. Once there we gathered our bags and headed out. The original plan was for the mom of Jen’s friend Louise to pick us up and take us to our friend Whitney’s house in Belfast, because Whitney doesn’t have a car and Louise was scheduled to do a wedding on Saturday (she is a priest in the Church of Ireland). However, we did not see her at the airport after looking at the inside and outside meeting spots. Just as Jennifer was having to confess to ignorance about Louise’s mom’s name (after all, they only met once 10 years ago!) there was Louise herself coming down the sidewalk! She was with her good friend Allison who would be our driver. So after a quick hug, Louise headed off to preside at the wedding and Allison was driving us into the city. All went well and soon we were at Whitney’s home.

After quick introductions all around and confirmation that we would all meet up Sunday night for dinner at her house Allison headed off. Whitney welcomed us with a pot of tea and some cinnamon soda bread (mmmmm . . .) as well as giving us a tour of her cosy home. We decided that since the sun was out we should make the most of the day and see a bit of the city. So, fortified with a little caffeine we made our way to the St. George’s market.

The market happens every Saturday and is a mix of food goods (ready made to bulk spices to coffee to free range lamb), crafts, antiques and live music all held in an indoor hall. This is a weekly haunt for Whit, so we were happy to get to tag-a-long. We had fun wandering around, tasting local cheeses, bread, sweets and pate’ among other things. We also found exactly what we had been looking for as a souvenir. Everywhere we have been here folks use cute little spoons to stir their tea and we had thought it would be fun to have a set of teaspoons to use at home. In one of the antique stalls there were several from different eras, made of different materials all in little cases. We found a set that are sort of art deco and are silver plate (cuz while we think they’d be fun to use, we aren’t so keen on polishing them!). They even came with a matching set of little tongs for sugar cubes - we were excited. Plus these were way cuter and about the same price as plain jane ones from the department store. Our shopping mission completed, we decided to get some provisions before exploring more of the city. Whitney recommended the blueberry scones, hazelnut lattes and a breakfast “bap”. The Belfast Bap is a roll, kind of a pillowy soft one about the size of a big hamburger bun that is used for sandwiches. For breakfast they were available filled with eggs and bacon or sausage.

We decided to share a bap and a scone between the three of us and found a place to sit on the ground and listen to the live music while we munched.

Our bellies full we used our bus day pass to look all around downtown - where there is a ferris wheel right next to city hall - and rode up to see some of the murals and walls that are ever present reminders of the fragility of the peace which exists here now. There are many neighborhoods which are still flying the flags which were hung in July for the marching season here when protestant loyalists and catholic republicans are most visible. While natives just know which areas are which any time of the year, it is even more obvious for tourists like us right now because either the union jack or the flag of the republic of ireland are flying up and down the streets depending on the neighborhoods loyalties. One can still see bullet holes in buildings, murals that stand in tribute to those who died on both sides of the conflict and police stations which still have high walls with barbed wire, more like a prison, to protect those who serve in the police force.

It was sobering for us to see how real the divisions still are, although things are much better than they have been in terms of violence. There are still sometimes what are called, “flare ups”, but nothing like the widespread conflict that existed during “the troubles”. While the problems are deep seeded and complex, it is sad to realize that a big part of what defines them is the sectarian nature of the conflict. It can’t be boiled down to one simple problem, but the reality remains that at least in part lots of peoples’ lives have been altered, damaged or ended too soon because two groups of Christians don’t trust one another. Love one another, not as easy as it sounds.