The last thing we did in Belfast, just before going to the airport, was to take a taxi tour. We'd seen good reviews. Ellen's meetings were over, so we went together. A taxi picks you up and takes you around the city, showing you the sites you're interested in. We were interested in the history of The Troubles. Our driver, Joe, knew his subject, and basically gave us a lecture. Both sides, he said, were responsible for the violence. He was less sanguine about the current state of affairs than the young taxi driver who drove us into Belfast from the airport at the start of our visit. Joe is a Catholic native of Belfast who lived through The Troubles. He told us that he made his first Protestant friend only a few years ago. (Thinking about it now, I'm not sure if I should be happy that he has a Protestant friend, or sad that it took him so long.) The walls that were built during The Troubles to separate Catholic and Protestant neighborhoods are still up, and the gates in them are still closed nightly. Joe says it's good that they are. If there were to be an incident, he said, there would be “guns in the streets.” Granted that I only spent a few days there and didn't do a lot of mingling, but Belfast didn't seem like a powder-keg or a war zone. It's been 25 years since the Good Friday Agreement which brought an end to The Troubles, but unfortunately there is still some violence.

Belfast has public murals and other commemorations of The Troubles. Joe took us to a street corner where a pub once stood, until it was destroyed by a bomb. The bombers killed their target, but they also killed innocent bystanders, including children. A memorial has been set up at the site.

We also stopped at a mural of Bobby Sands, a member of the Irish Republican Army. He was imprisoned by the British for his activities. He considered himself a political prisoner, but they considered him a terrorist. He went on a hunger strike in protest, and died.

We also stopped in a Catholic neighborhood at the mural shown in the video below. The mural expresses support for the Palestinians. The support is given because Catholics in Northern Ireland see similarities in their situations – both living as second-class citizens in their own homelands. We drove a few blocks to a Protestant neighborhood, and there was another wall with murals on it, but these expressed support for Israel.

Catholic support for Palestinians on YouTube

The Crumlin Road Gaol (the British spelling of "jail") is another tourist attraction in Belfast. I spent a morning there. It didn't hold my attention as well as the Titanic museum did, but I'm glad I went. I was expecting to be presented with a lot of information about The Troubles. There was some, but it was not the primary focus. The gaol was built in the mid-1800s and was used until it was finally closed in 1996. If you follow the link above, and look at the website, you'll see that the jail is available as a venue for conferences, events, fundraisers, and even weddings! Forgive me, but it's the last place I would choose for a wedding.

According the Wikipedia, the gaol is "it is the only remaining Victorian era former prison in Northern Ireland." It incarcerated men, women, and children. If I remember correctly, kids could get sent to prison for playing football (soccer) in the street! I'm glad that law has been taken off the books.

The gaol is directly across Crumlin Road from the courthouse, which is also retired, but, sadly, is in much worse shape than the gaol is.

The gaol and the courthouse on YouTube