BELFAST- August 20, 2011
Up early to catch the ferry to Northern Ireland and woke to a beautiful mostly sunny day. The ferry ride was approx 2 hrs, so it made for a relaxing time. It was a big ferry with a restaurant and different seating areas, so the ride was very enjoyable.
We arrived in Belfast at 2:00 PM and had a tour of the city with our local guide Collin. My first impression of Belfast was not a good one. There were some nice buildings and architecture, but the city did not feel safe to me and seemed very run down. But by the second day I did change my opinion and found it a rather interesting city after all. A lot of history here and some very unique areas and sites to see. Our Hotel was the Europa and it was probably my least favorite of all the hotels in the CIE tour. However the location was great, right in the heart of the city and across the street from the famous Crown Pub and the Opera house. A little interesting tipbit on the Hotel Europa, as it was known as the "most bombed hotel in Europe" and the "most bombed hotel in the world" after having suffered 28 bomb attacks during the Troubles. Dinner at the hotel was very good so that made up for the room.
BELFAST AND DOWNPATRICK- August 21, 2011
Had breakfast at the hotel and then took the ferry to Strangford Lough to tour Mount Stewart house and this ended up being one of our favorites on the tour. At first, no on knew anything about this place and the tour guide said we will be spending 2 hours here and everyone was looking at each other like, "what the heck are we going to do for 2 hours?" We let me tell you, that was not enough time. The house was nice but the impressive part were the gardens... WOW! Just incredible. We toured the house first then onto the gardens where I wished we had more time to just relax and sit and enjoy them, but because of time, we rushed around taking as many photos as we could to capture the memories of such gorgeous gardens that went on forever.....(See photos)
We then took the ferry to County Down to see Down Cathedral and visit St. Patricks grave. Interesting cathedral and grounds. St. Patricks grave is basically mark with a giant boulder and a plaque next to it.
Had lunch at St. Patrick center which was just OK, not much to see here and arrived back to hotel at 3:30PM. Spent the rest of the day shopping along Royal Ave. in Belfast which was fun and then headed to the Crown Pub for a pint. Here is a little history about the Crown Bar:
"The Crown Liquor Saloon in Great Victoria Street, Belfast was perhaps the greatest of Victorian Gin Palaces which once flourished in the industrial cities of Britain.Today wonderfully preserved, the Crown is cherished and still well used by the people of Belfast . The Crown is famous as a tourist venue in the heart of Belfast, and the pub dates back to 1826, when the first train ran from Belfast to Lisburn" Another great delight in this magical pub and my favorite part of the pup was the Snug rooms with it's ten different shaped, cosy and elaborately carved wooden Boothes, lettered from A-J. In the snugs you will find gun metal plates for striking matches, and an antique bell system (this used to be very common in Victorian Houses where servants were employed), which alerts bar staff to your liquid needs. Drinking snugs according to old records were not originally built for comfort, but to accommodate those people who preferred to drink quietly and unseen. It was really cool so be sure to take a look at the photos below. Dinner that evening was at the Hotel Europa and was good again.
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