Troubled Belfast

What do you get when you put drunken Irish Catholics and drunken British Protestants all in the same small city, and then throw in decades of political and social disagreements that span across several generations? Why, Belfast, of course.

The city has been plagued by war for as long as most can remember. With the Irish fighting for independence from Britain, and the British still clinging to a land rich in exports and industry, it's no wonder that the people of Belfast are not surprised when they hear riots and fighting in the streets.

I missed the last car bomb by two weeks. Arriving late at night, I was nothing short of terrified when I first arrived. Belfast's reputation precedes it, and I was a lone American walking around after dark looking for a friendly hostel. People all around me were running home. I wasn't sure whether to scoff or join in. But my pack was too heavy for sprinting.

I was excited when I opened the hostel door to find a bunch of couches and beanbags occupied by travellers watching Avatar on the big screen. I played cards with new friends that night, not wanting to venture out into the warzone beyond the front steps. I made friends with a travelling French Canadian who was also travelling alone, so we decided to explore the town the next day.

I'm half exaggerating of course. Belfast was actually a fairly nice city. But the eastern side of town was where all the trouble was. So guess what we did the next day? Headed straight there.

We hired a "Black Taxi Tour" guide, who was an old man with a taxi, and a life which was intimately affected by "The Troubles". He drove us around the bad part of town, which had a 13 mile long wall splitting the two warring sides. The wall was 40ft tall in some places, and it had gates placed every mile or so which closed after dark.

The houses in this area all had thick metal cages on the sides facing the wall. Apparently, they still get attacked by the other side with the occasional molotov cocktail or two. There were several memorials along the wall dedicated to the martyrs of the troubles. Casualties included children as young as 9 years old. It was really eye-opening to hear this man's stories and how he had been personally affected by the war.

In recent years, there has been a big push for peace, which has resulted in countless grafitti murals depicting everything from political figures to martyrs. They were so interesting to look at. We even signed one of the peace walls.

After the tour, we grabbed a Guiness at a famous pub in town. I still haven't acquired a taste for the stuff. I feel like it's a cross between chocolate malt and molasses. But we did learn something new...the Titanic was built in Belfast! So we headed there next. After walking around for several hours, we found it. The docks where the world's most infamous sea vessel was constructed. I'm sorry to say that it really wasn't anything special. Just a normal shipyard, lol. But it was still amazing to be in such a historical place.

We walked past a Chinese buffet that night, and decided to indulge. I haven't eaten a Chinese buffet in three months, and I was definitely in the mood for food. I ate like 8 plates. The waitress just looked at me in disgust. I looked at myself in the reflection of the lid for the sweet and sour pork...and smiled.