We experienced probably the shortest flight ever yesterday morning when we flew from Glasgow to Belfast. By the time we finished the ascent, it was only 5-10 minutes before we were descending. The flight was only 25 minutes and I think we spent more time waiting in the plane on the runway before and after than in the air!

It was a beautiful hot day so we spent the afternoon in the Botanical Gardens just a few minutes walk from where we were staying near the prestigious Queen's University in the University Quarter. The gardens were full of people enjoying the sunshine and we visited the free Ulster Museum which details the history of Belfast and Ireland. The exhibition on The Troubles was not in chronological order (confusing!) but was nevertheless a very interesting introduction to this very important part of Northern Ireland's history.

Indeed it didn't seem very historical in the days preceding our arrival. July 12 is Loyalist (Protestant) Marching Day and there was quite a lot of violence in the lead up. On the weekend a bus had been hijacked and used to attack police, a family had been shot at and there were riots across Northern Ireland, including Belfast. So, not knowing the area, we were naturally a bit nervous. We had been told that as long as we stayed away from the suburbs we'd be fine and that the best indication of the situation was whether tourist buses were running. To our delight the buses were running and this morning we hopped on one. With the tour we saw the docks where the Titanic was built and where they are currently building a visitor centre in time for the 100th anniversary of it's creation next year. We travelled up to the very grand and beautiful Parliament Buildings, built by the British after the creation of the Republic of Ireland to make a big statement that Northern Ireland was there to stay in Britain. It is built of a sparkling white stone and was therefore an easy target for WWII German bombers, so they coated it with a black manure in an attempt to hide it. Unfortunately it did not come off as easily as they'd hoped so it's not as sparkling white in some places as it used to be.

Next we entered northwest Belfast, the epicentre of Loyalist/Nationalist fighting. We travelled on both sides of the Peace Wall, seeing both sides' murals and homes. Union Jacks and Orangemen flags were EVERYWHERE on the Protestant side, leftover from Marching Day. We saw remnants of bonfires from the celebrations too. The murals themselves were beautiful and we are told that the murals have become more peaceful and less threatening over the years. The peace wall and it's murals where particularly lovely as they most definitely signal hope for the future and many people's confidence in the peace process. Indeed President Bill Clinton and the Dalai Lama have signed the wall. We wish we had more time to get off there and explore the area and the murals further.

The city centre is quite lovely, the City Hall is simply stunning and it's architect was knighted for his efforts. While it is lovely in places, in others you can still see the scars of conflict. There are bullet holes in some old buildings and lots of carparks where they couldn't be bothered rebuilding sites. In fact we didn't know until afterwards that the bus station we arrived at is part of the small complex that includes the Europa Hotel, the most bombed hotel in Europe. You can see the contrast of new and old brick sections of the Grand Opera House next door when one of the bombs that went of in the Europa hit the Opera House too.

This all sounds very dramatic and in some ways it is - we were told by hostel staff that even in the city and our leafy University quarter it was quite tense in the lead up to and on the day of July 12. And yet on our arrival two days later, it was almost as if it never happened: the people are so warm and lively and we felt so safe the whole time.

The hostel was especially fun. Owned by a young guy in his late 20s, the staff are young, fun and very accommodating. They are very generous with the facilities and we had a great time making friends with them, playing with their dog Bu-Ju who looks like Stitch from Lilo and Stitch, and swapping travel stories. Oh and I cannot forget that we just saw Harry Potter! It's been a very interesting, very relaxed and fun couple of days!