Belfast in Northern Ireland, was our next port of call on the second leg of our cruise to Norway. We took a bus into the city and paid £15 to travel on the hop on, hop off bus so we could go and see the sights, namely the Peace Gardens after the conflict that lasted from the late 1960s to 1998.
Our tour guide on the bus, explained that in 1969, conflict broke out between some Protestant loyalists, who wanted to remain part of the UK and some Catholic republicans who wanted to unite with the Republic of Ireland. Protestant unionists and Catholic nationalists shared the same views but didn’t agree with the violence. I am old enough to remember it though.
In 1998, the Good Friday Agreement (or Belfast Agreement) was signed helping to bring to an end the conflict and killings in the area that was commonly known as ‘the troubles’. One of the things I wanted to see was the Peace Wall (or Peace Lines) that were built after the Good Friday Agreement. It was hoped the Peace walls would help calm a difficult situation down between the two communities.
The mural is of a smiling Bobby Sands, the famous volunteer for the Provisional IRA who was imprisoned in HM Maze. In 1981, Sands, along with 6 other political prisoners went on hunger strike, losing his life months later. It was a very thought provoking visit. I'm glad that we were able to go in these peaceful times.
