Belfast - a Titanic Adventure!

Well, here I am, in Belfast! Belfast is, as I'm sure you are aware, famous for a couple of things. An obviously one is "The Troubles" [understatement of the past 60 years I would have thought!], and another is for having built the RMS Titanic... Most places would hide if they built the world's biggest ocean liner and it sank on the first voyage, but I guess the Irish are a little different... they celebrate having built the ship! One of their sayings is "She was alright when she left here". Another one, which I have on a t-shirt is "Built by Irishmen, Sunk by an Englishman"! Nice!

Needless to say, there are many Titanic-related activities in Belfast, the first of which was the Titanic dry-dock and pump station. The dry-dock, as they promote, is the last place that the Titanic was on DRY ground, and was where it is fitted out, engines installed etc, prior to the maiden voyage.

It's a bit of a walk [it took me 50 minutes from my central Belfast hotel], or you can take the hop-on-hop-off bus, and at only 7 pounds for a guided tour, including walking into the dry-dock, which is 44 feet below sea level - an attraction which has only been open for a few months.

As you'll see from the pictures, the dock was large [it was the world's largest dry dock when built], and the Titanic towered over it when it was fully fitted out! Enormous!

Anyway, here are a few of the pictures. The third-last one is the building which is the focus of my next post. the second-last one is a piece of artwork, and the last is a sign that includes that saying...

Walking around Glasgow #2

Next up for my walking around Glasgow were visits to the Riverside Museum and the Tall Ship "Glenlee".

The museum has a wide range of ground and sea transport, including cars, trains, trams and ships, and a mocked up Glasgow street from days gone by. On the street, all the "shops" can be entered, including the subway terminal. There are also displays about some older technology [that is, 20-30 years ago]. What's better, it was free entry [after an easy 40 minute walk from the hotel].

The ship has been restored and all decks are open. I see they do school visits, so probably better to avoid that day :-), but also appear set up and able to cater for events/ parties.

Pictures are from around the museum, then the Glenlee and one of a water taxi service. These attractions are right next to each other, and are well worth the visit if you're in Glasgow!

Walking around Glasgow #1

In my first full day spent in Glasgow, I did my usual trick of going for a wee walk.

Glasgow is an interesting city. A mixture of very old and very new buildings, and lots of little hills :-) apart from when walking beside the River Clyde, it often seemed as though I was going up or down a bit. Don't tell anyway, but I think I got a bit of exercise... ha ha ha!

I spent a fair amount of time by the river. Most of the time it was possible to walk right beside the river, and there were a large number of bridges (at least 5 or 6 suitable for walking over, plus a dedicated rail bridge) just in the areas I wandered along.

The photos show some of the sights along the river and in town. Take a look at the last three; the first of these looks a wee bit like part of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the second looks like a round stadium, a wee bit like the Caketin... ok, maybe just a little! The inscription on the final image says "All Greatness Stands Firm in the Storm".

Enjoy!

In to Edinburgh

After leaving London, I arrived in Edinburgh for the first of 2 nights there, to be followed by 4 nights in Glasgow.

Arriving in Edinburgh, I was met by the ever-pleasant Moira [and later Ken], and after dropping off  the bags, headed off into town and a visit to Edinburgh Castle. Edinburgh Castle was on my must do list, and it was good to spend some hours there.

What follows are a number of photos from this visit, and of Edinburgh itself.

Enjoy!

Sir Francis Drake and the Golden Hinde

7 September and Sam and I went walking around for a few hours. Among other things, we did the London Underground and London Dungeon experiences [sorry, they were dark and a wee bit scary/ funny at times] and visited Sir Francis Drake's ship, the Golden Hinde.

As you'll see, Sir Francis is in fine health, although somewhat demanding when sitting in his chair :-)

Enjoy!