10.25.13-10.27.13 - Belfast means Titanic

Belfast was actually the first city that was kind of disappointing, but I think that was largely because I was sick and the weather was cold and windy.

My first impression of Belfast was that it reminds me of a mix of Chicago and Boston. Boston for the weather and Chicago for the buildings/body of water. It’s pretty hodge podge, with a good mix of ornate old buildings, modest brick construction, and modern buildings in between. They also are very proud of their shipping heritage. Everywhere you look there are poster podiums explaining some architecture or some shipping history. I never even saw much mention of the Troubles. But I suppose that’s not the sort of thing you want to advertise, is it?

Belfast and the River Lagan from the other bank, in the Titanic Quarter.

An example of Belfast's Georgian Architecture.

City Hall

Belfast also seems like it would be a really neat place to live, despite being sparse on tourist sites. It’s bustling, as a big city should be, but it has the river and just enough variety in the buildings that it doesn’t feel too industrial. And, like any good Irish town, it has tons of pubs. You can’t swing a cat without hitting a pub in Ireland. 

I got in on Thursday at 3 and power-walked to the Titanic Belfast because one of the staff at the hostel said it was only about half an hour away and I knew it closed at 5. Turns out it’s more like 45 minutes away power-walking and they let the last group go through at 3:20. I was SO. SAD. when I saw that I couldn’t get in. So I decided not to go to Giant's Causeway. I figured that, since I was in Belfast, I should focus on the city itself. And it was cheaper anyway.

So I went the next day (Saturday) to Titanic Belfast, and I think it's worth the 10 pound (again, yay student card!) entry fee and 45-minute walk. I took two and a half hours to walk all the way through, because it is very detailed. It begins with Belfast in the late 1800s, setting the stage for its large shipping industry. It then follows the construction of the infamous ship from its conception and designs all the way to its sinking, the investigation, and its graveyard at sea. I have to say that, in a way, it was almost too informative: it kind of took some of the aura of mystery away from it, you know? But it is also really well done. It presents everything factually and fairly and works hard to dispel certain myths associated with the story (J Bruce Ismay was actually not all terrible, and the stories of Captain Smith's final hours are varied and conflicting). 

Building that housed one of the drawing rooms for Harland and Wolff, the company that designed the Titanic, Olympic, and Britannic.

Memorial to the 1500 people who lost their lives.

Did you know there was actually a J. Dawson on board? Joseph, not Jack. And no, James Cameron did not base Leo DiCaprio's character after the real J. Dawson.

Original gates to Harland and Wolff.

A neat video of the launching situated so that when you looked through the windows you saw the original dry dock where the Titanic was launched.

The Titanic leaving Queenstown (now Cobh). This is the last picture of the ship ever taken.

The last distress call was never finished.

I won't list all the facts from the museum because it will probably bore you to death, but my favorite parts were 

1. the virtual walk-through of the ship and

2. the dark room that showed the Marconi transmissions from her last few hours and played actual eye-witness accounts over the speakers.

So yeah, Belfast wasn't as undeniably awesome as the other places I went to in Ireland, but one of my main reasons for going was to see Titanic Belfast, and that was definitely worth my time.