4 July: Day Thirteen
Our Itinerary for the Day:
Tour of Belfast
Our tour around Belfast was eye opening. It was amazing to see how strongly the tensions run even in this time of peace. As we made our way through the divided neighborhoods, Declan reminded us of the history of "The Troubles." Once again it seemed appropriate that the weather too was gray and rainy as we made our way around town. The huge murals, peace walls, and divided neighborhoods were all sobering to witness. The most startling thing was the HUGE bonfire towers that were being erected in the Protestant neighborhoods for a celebration that was a few days away. They looked like huge wedding cakes made out of wood pallets and tires.
Titanic
Belfast has only recently reclaimed its Titanic history. They seemed to think that telling the world that the most famous ship at the bottom of the ocean was built here in Belfast was bad for business. Now that the business of tourism is bigger than ships, they have realized how profitable their history can be.
While we didn't have time for the Titanic Museum, we did have a walking tour by Susie (also a RS tour guide) who has personal connections to the Titanic. |
All Good Things Must Come To An End...
It seemed like we had just started exploring Ireland, but already it was our farewell dinner. Our tour group had several talented musical people (This did NOT include me!). The creative group had worked together to write new lyrics to the song "Hallelujah" which highlighted our adventures together and performed it as a gift to Declan. It was the perfect way to end our Irish journey.
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The Magical Thing is...
...even though this was a tour, each of the 28 members had a different experience. We all brought different background
knowledge. We chose different things for our free time. We related to the information and history differently.
Every tour becomes your OWN adventure!
knowledge. We chose different things for our free time. We related to the information and history differently.
Every tour becomes your OWN adventure!