A - Airports Aldergrove is the International Airport for N.Ireland it is situated near Antrim within 10 miles of Belfast. Belfast also has it's own airport nearer the city centre called Sydenham.
B - Boats Belfast and in particular Harland and Wolff made the Titanic. As you all probably know, this was the ship that sunk on its maiden voyage. Belfast is still a shipbuilding capital, although this is getting less and less, year by year. Belfast's deep port means it can handle many ships including cruise ships (2 of them recently), the tall ships and regular ferries. The HSS, Stenaline ferries, the Liverpool ferry, and the Seacat come carry passengers to and from Liverpool, Stranraer and the Isle of Man. You can also go from Larne - Cairnryan, this is shorter but you get a rough ride or older boats.
C - Concert Arenas The Ulster Hall used to be a great stage for many acts coming to N.Ireland but now it is mainly empty due to the newer complexes around Belfast. It was, and still is, a beautifully crafted building. The newest concert facility is the Odyssey arena, home to the Belfast Giants, Bottom, 'French and Sauders' and of course Steps. A few years before the Odyssey was built, the Waterfront Hall had been built. It is a dome like structure and a wonderful concert hall for orchestras, Willie Nelson and Swan Lake to name but a few. There are of course others around including Stormount Caste, the government buildings. There's also the Grand Opera House that has been renovated recently (again) and shows a variety of shows including the annual Christmas pantomime.
D - Days Out Not really about Belfast but tours, excursions and days out are an excellent way to enjoy N.Ireland. Trips go to Ireland, Scotland and the rest of Northern Ireland. Top destinations are the Giant's Causeway (Northern Coast), Marble Arch Caves (Enniskillen) and Tollymore Forest (Newcastle). You can also get open-top bus trips around Belfast City-Centre. Dublin is popular for shopping. Ayr is only a few hours away offering ice hockey and some shopping. Glasgow is also very popular for football.
E - Entertainment Belfast offers a lot of activities for everyone. Playing fields scattered around the Belfast area allow for rugby, football, Gaelic games, hockey and an assortment of other sports. The proximity to Lough Neagh allows for relatively safe (but cold) watersports. The coastline offers other watersports but wetsuits can become a necessity in winter. Leisure centres offer swimming, ten-pin bowling, badminton, Internet cafes and a host of other activities. You can walk, cycle, play sport and do basically anything in N.Ireland and most of these activities are near Belfast and accessible by public transport.
F - Food It's good and plentiful in and around Belfast but not as nice as America. Ruby Tuesday's is one of several well-known restaurants. However, the real quality meals come from independent retailers (often family owned.) It would be impossible to list all of them and I'm not going to try to compile a top 10 list but one piece of advice, look around and don't always opt for a brand name or popular choice.
G - Giants The Belfast Giants are Northern Ireland's only professional ice hockey team. They get 6,500 people every match and are one of the best-supported teams in Europe. They are only a year old but already have 1,000 season ticket holders (including 4 Johnstons.)
G - Government Buildings Stormount Buildings are the home of Northern Ireland politics when they are in operation. There is a fine one-mile walk up to the actual buildings. The grounds have hosted a concert and a motor racing day featuring the Jordan F1 cars and some older racers.
H - History Belfast is blessed with a wonderful array of historical landmarks and relics. Museums (see M...section) house splendid works of art, top of the range exhibitions and genuine relics. However, it doesn't stop there; Belfast Castle lies on the Cave Hill. Carrick Castle overlooks Belfast Lough and Dunluce Castle on the Northern Coast near Portrush. Several monuments grace the countryside including Knockagh and Scraba tower.
I - Inst. and other schools RBAI (Royal Belfast Academic Institute) is a top school in N.Ireland. The overall school system has been criticised heavily in the recent past but it is still one of the best around. Inst. is also a landmark in Belfast and is very well built. Other major schools in the province are Ballyclare High School (my home from home.) and Belfast high School. Both are top grammar schools that achieve high grades year on year.
J - Joke (NIR) Northern Ireland Railways are not renowned for being a good company or even a medium one but they try and have massive plans for expansion and renovation of trains.
K - Knockagh and Surrounding Area A bit vague and not the most famous landmark in the world but nevertheless, a good place to go. I live only a few miles form Knockagh and would highly recommend it to anyone who is visiting the country. It is situated between Newtownabbey and Carrick. Knockagh Monument remembers the thousands who died during the world wars. It is quite high up so you can also get a very good view of Belfast Lough, the city and surrounding towns. A night-time visit is equally as nice for scenery. Any budding Chris Boardmans may want to cycle the hill and enjoy the very fast descent. (40mph and upwards easily.)
L - Laganside You could easily write a whole opinion on the Laganside (ideas…) but I'll be brief. It was smelly, horrible and vandalised but now it houses; power-boat racing, upper-class housing, the Odyssey, multiple docks and a very scenic walk along the towpath along with a viewing gallery across the river.
M - Museums The Ulster Museum is situated near the city centre within the beautiful surroundings of Botanic Gardens. The Ulster Folk and Transport Museum is near Hollywood and shows visitors many attractions from a Delorean to a whole village. Another less-known museum is the Linen Museum in Lisburn city centre. It is free and currently showing a Tutankamen wardrobe exhibition.
N - National Cycle Network Oh yes, Belfast is equipped with a cycle lane network stretching from Newtownabbey to Lisburn. It goes along from UUJ (University Ulster Jordanstown) Belfast past Macedon Point then parallel to the M2 along to Fortwilliam and into Belfast City Centre. Form there, it goes out along the Lagan Towpath to Lisburn.
O - Odeons (cinemas) Sorry but I was getting stuck with ideas. Anyway, Belfast has plenty of cinemas. There are cinemas in Yorkgate, the Odyssey, Glengormely and Carrickfergus. There was a proposed Imax cinema at the Odyssey (3-d cinema) but plans failed. There are many other independent cinemas including Ballyearl Theatre and the Group Theatre.
P - Pubs Belfast offers a wide selection here. Pub-crawls are a regular occurrence and remember, enjoy the craic. Look out for the National Trust owned Crown Bar (Liquor Saloon) facing the Europa Hotel. It used to be a railway hotel and is still in its original design.
Q - Quietness In a busy bustling city filled with stress, you need somewhere to go to rest. Belfast has some of these. The main places would be Botanic Gardens, Cave Hill, Knockagh and the grounds of Stormount.
R - Roads There are three motorways in and around Belfast; the M2, the M3 and the M5. The M3 is a flyover that has reduced inner city traffic. The other two take you around the rest of N. Ireland. The Westlink goes right through the heart of Belfast and is in semi-constant gridlock. The road system is generally good but as with all modern cities, it can become over-crowded at peak times.
S - Sporting Heroes A list is the easiest way to do this so here goes; George Best (Manchester United and N.Ireland - football) Mary Peters (shot-put, decathlon) Alex Higgins (snooker) Joey Dunlop (Isle of Man TT, Northwest 200 - motorbike racing) Eddie Irvine (F1) Danny Blanchflower (Spurs and N.Ireland - football)
S - St. Anne's Cathedral A very famous landmark in Belfast situated on the Donegal Street/Talbot Street junction. It is a magnificent piece of architecture and well worth a visit.
T - Troubles It's hard to talk about Belfast without mentioning the troubles. Hopefully, the latest round of peace talks will put them to rest forever and N.Ireland will start the long road to integration. However, N.Ireland is still marked with signs indicating conflict, the Peace Wall, Drumcree, Ardoyne, every lamppost with a flag on it (almost all of them.) I personally think that the talks may break down but the country will never return to all out war, as it would be too damaging for the economy. People have seen what normality is like and they don't want to let it escape them.
U - Universities Belfast has some of the best universities around. The University of Ulster owns Jordanstown (UUJ) and Coleraine. Stranmillis Teaching College and Queens University are another two top universities (particularly Queens). Queens is situated on the Golden Mile that is Belfast's answer to the Vegas Strip so students are blessed with plenty of entertainment. They offer a wide range of courses and on the whole easily accessible by public transport.
V - Visitors It has been said that people from N.Ireland are the friendliest around, this may not be the case with each other but I can assure you that you will be treated very well by 99.9% of the people in Belfast. Let me tell you a tale; my dad was in London on a busy street, an elderly man fell over and was in obvious discomfort. Only two people stopped an elderly woman and my dad. Almost, everyone else walked past and ignored him - too busy to stop and help him. This would never happen in Belfast, there would be a crowd around him helping him up, giving him a lift to the hospital and whatever else was needed.
W - Where to Stay? Belfast is full of hotels and you should be able to easily find one in your budget. The Hilton Hotel is on the outskirts of Belfast, The Europa Hotel and McCauselands are in the city centre. You could always go for a small B&B.
X - Xmas Shopping Once again, sorry but I was struggling to fit this in anywhere else. Shopping is good in Belfast. The main place to go is Castlecourt. This is a big shopping centre in the very centre of Belfast. Almost all of the major stores you'd expect to see in a city are located in Belfast and quite a few are in Castlecourt. However, it doesn't stop there, many streets around Castlecourt stretching up to the City Hall are packed with shops and other retail outlets. If you prefer shopping on the outskirts, you can go to Abbeycentre, Connswater or Sprucefield. All are well equipped for all your shopping needs.
Y - y? In an act of desperation, I have opted for 'why.' Why should I go to Belfast? • It is cheap and easy to get to. • It has as many facilities as any other modern city. • It is unique in its own way.
Z - Zoo Belfast Zoo (Bellvue) is located on the Antrim Road in Glengormely, it is only a few miles out of the city-centre and occupies a large area. The Zoo contains over 100 different species.
Well, that was a small part of Belfast. It is a lovely place full of culture and facilities for entertainment. It is a good place to live and I can assure you could easily mistake yourself to be in any other modern world city.
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