Yes, I am behind on the blog again. So sorry! We have been very busy.

Before we returned our rental car this morning we hoped to find a place to have a traditional Irish breakfast. We had a place in mind, Este Bistro, but today is a holiday in Northern Ireland and many stores and restaurants were closed. We found a place that was just as good, Café Smart. I had eggs benedict but Stan ordered the "big breakfast" which our neighbors at the next table informed us was the "Ulster's Fry," an absolute must in Belfast. How lucky. And it was so funny. We sat almost elbow to elbow to other diners on both the left and the right sides. Stan and I talked with each other - I'm sure they were all thinking, "the must be tourists." No one said a word. They hardly looked up. But when that huge Ulster's Fry showed up, they almost stood at attention. Guests at both tables said, "Oooooh, that looks good!" That opened the door! We had conversations going two ways -- with the gent on one side and with the couple on the other side. They told us what we must do today to thoroughly enjoy Belfast. They talked to us about Belfast's healing since the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 that stopped the bombing and fighting between neighbors and families who took allegiance with Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland. It was a very bad time from 1969 until 1998. Neighborhoods became distinctly Nationalist or Unionist. Even neighboring parks were divided with walls to separate the two. Since the agreement, both areas have worked hard to get along and have prospered. The city is thriving once again.

It was raining today so it was not so good for walking or even using public transportation to get us around. We caught the Big Red Hop On-Hop Off Bus. We covered the entire city from the SSE Arena, The Titanic Museum - yes, the Titanic was built here. Some folk quickly pointed out that it was a magnificent ship but an Englishman ran it to ground. The Titanic area today includes the major set for productions like The Game of Thrones - which incidentally is shot primarily onsite in Northern Ireland. We passed The Big Fish, saluting the return of salmon in the River Lagan; we saw universities and neighborhoods who produced great writers like, C.S. Lewis, performers like Van Morrison and actors like Liam Neilson. We went through major neighborhoods - those that were once only Protestant and those that were once predominantly Roman Catholic and those that still hold on tightly to those respective roots.

When that tour ended we had lunch at White's Pub, founded in 1730, said to be the oldest pub in Northern Ireland. We had Irish stew, of course.

It was still raining so we hopped on the optional tour to Belfast Castle. We stopped at the castle which is some miles out of town. It was built 1811-1870. Along its history, it fell into the hands of one of the Earls of Donnegall who was a drunkard and gambler. To safe the estate the family married their daughter into the wealthy Chichester family who paid off the debts and then gave the estate to the City of Belfast. A wedding and party facility now, the castle is in fine shape and its grounds are lovely.

We also stopped at the Carrickfergus Castle and passed the Belfast Zoo and the coast of the Belfast Lough - it was raining. It was difficult to see a great deal but we could see the outline of the modern skyline of the new Belfast.

Regarding Belfast's weather, our guide told us, if you look up at the mountains and see a cloud on top, that means it is going to rain. If you look up and cannot see the mountains, that means it's raining.

It rains a lot here.