While I was totally supporting his independence, I wanted to help ease him into it and get settled. So, on only his second weekend in Belfast, I was already headed for a visit. After a two hour train journey from Dublin's Connolly Station to Belfast Central (which was spent on a lovely train occupied by a decidedly unlovely and rowdy crowd of people going to party in Belfast for the weekend) and a confusing time of trying to find each other, we were reunited. James took me on an exceptionally scenic route through periods of drizzle and we eventually reached his place, where we ate Tayto sandwiches (the Northern variety are, apparently, somewhat different?) and watched Netflix.
The next day, the touristing began and, it was only later, an hour before I got my train back home on Sunday, that we discovered that we actually did every single thing on the official tourist "must-see" list (bar hitting up the Titanic Museum). We headed to Queen's University so I could perv on the stunning red brick facades and, from there, went into the park adjacent where the Botanic Gardens and Ulster Museum are located. The Botanic Gardens are much smaller than those in Dublin but are in a similarly pretty 19th century greenhouse that is perfectly photogenic and a lovely place for a quick stroll. Don't expect hours of amusement but, as it is free, it's a nice little stop-off, especially en route to the Ulster Museum. Said museum is fantastic. We spent four hours there, checking out the art, the dinosaurs, the mummy, the Game of Thrones tapestry, the natural history and science exhibits...all of it. Relatively compact but full of things to see and with especially excellent facilities for kids, we enjoyed it thoroughly and put off filling our empty stomachs longer than we normally would, in order to see it all.
Once our stomachs could no longer be ignored, we headed to the little Korean Cafe that I had spotted the day before (and mentioned in my last post on where to get Korean food in Ireland), Cafe Arirang on Botanic Avenue. A cute, wee family-run cafe that serves tasty treats that you don't always find on menus here. We got the bulgogi kimbap, tteokbokki, spicy noodles and fried dumplings between us and it was quite the feast.
Full and no longer faint, we then headed to explore the city and I was amazed by how big and built-up the centre is, considering the relatively small population. Architecturally, the centre is rather diverse, with a lot of beautifully preserved buildings centred around the City Hall and then spreading out into a combination of more modern builds and historic warehouses. There is a lot to see and I wondered why no one had ever mentioned that it's quite a pretty city to me before. Of course, I often have to defend how beautiful Dublin is to people, so it doesn't surprise me that many don't have much admiration for Irish city planning. However, I digress. My point is: the centre is compact but interesting and is also home to the Victoria Square Shopping Centre, a vast glass-roofed shopping street that has all the high street chains you might be looking for (and some little gems besides), a cinema, and some restaurants. Its crowning glory is a tall viewing platform that goes up to just beneath the glass dome and from which there is an amazing view over the whole city. We arrived just before sunset and managed to catch it there, though my legs shook in fear the whole time. It's a great view, that I recommend checking out but not if you're afraid of heights. I'm not and I was still scared stiff.
A little shaken from the experience, I was in need of drink and the drizzle and wind that appeared with the dusk made us head off in search of shelter. On the way to one bar, a second nasty gust of wind sent us into The Merchant. Trust me to stumble into a five-star hotel...how bougie, I know. But the Victorian and Art Deco former bank is a beaut and their bar is excellent: not too warm, not too loud, great cocktail menu and truly excellent service. At between ten to fifteen pounds for a cocktail, it is, by no means, cheap but isn't truly insane either. I've paid that price for a nice drink plenty of times at home. My brother got a drink that was akin to mulled wine (delighted to have found somewhere to get his fix year round) and I had a trusty Whiskey Sour. I wasn't overly blown away by the drink itself but the surroundings were so lovely that I'd return in a heartbeat. In fact, I liked the whole place so much that I'm considering staying there when I visit with the BFF later in the year.
The next day we had a slow start before grabbing lunch in St George's Market. Let me tell you, it's the perfect spot for a slow, happy Sunday. Live bands play at the core of the market, there are stalls of clothes, trinkets, vintage pieces, artworks and more to browse, and there is a decent food court. We wandered around the stalls of Belfast's last surviving Victorian covered market to work up an appetite and then I grabbed some falafel, my brother got a burrito. We sat down together just far enough from the music to hear it and still have a conversation. Then we followed it all up with some delicious and well-priced cakes from a stall called Dezurts. I even bought some of their famous and v Insta-friendly unicorn meringues to bring back for my sister.
Lastly, we popped over to City Hall and checked out the excellent exhibitions there (I cried at how beautiful and well done one of the rooms about the Troubles was), papped an outfit shot and picked up the brochure that told us we had just done everything on the must-see list (bar the Titanic Museum).
Even still, there's lots of stuff that's off the beaten track that I want to do and we're planning my next trip already, which was exactly what we discussed as we walked to the train station. I really fell in love with Belfast and can't wait to return. There are so many restaurants and bars that look great and cool galleries and cultural venues to check out. And now that it's home to my precious babby bro, I want to know more about it. If you're looking for somewhere to head off for the weekend, I highly recommend it: there are a lot of things to do for free, it's easy to navigate and get around, and (as mentioned) lots of places to eat and drink. Keep an eye for more adventures in Belfast in the future here as there are bound to be plenty!
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