Apparently this is supposed to be based upon St. Paul's in London. But then again, it also looks like the Customs House in Dublin (which was a design originally intended for St. Petersburg).
It does look quite pleasant and the grounds give a nice area in which to sit down, especially on a hot summer’s day (thought they don’t seem to be too frequent in the North).
It’s also handy for the buses and the shops. The buses congregate on two opposing sides of the square (Donegall Square, notice the ‘ll’, it was named after some duke or some such person who had the two in his name as opposed to the one you get in the county). These are the red city buses as opposed to the blue of Ulsterbus.
The shops in Royal Avenue face you if you stand with the front door to your back. They are the major British retailers, such as the epitome of British haute cuisine, Burger King. It is a bit easier to travel down the said thoroughfare now that the security gates and turnstiles have been removed.
Great Victoriabus and rail station is only about five minutes walk away. So are the Opera House (not that it stages any to my knowledge) and the headquarters of the UUP. So you have all of the important places near to hand. You can go to the shops, laugh at the OH and UUP then get the hell out.
I took a wander inside the City Hall on one occasion but didn’t see much. I don’t know if this is because there isn’t much to see (which I suspect) or that the councillors don’t want to come into too close contact with the public. There are the usual trinkets that you get in these types of places, the gold rabbit’s from the mayor of London (I made that up, but you get the idea, it’s junk and junkets) and the usual ‘Oh you are so wonderful’ certificates of friendship or whatever they are from other councils.
They do sell souvenirs but given that they are neither in abundance or much cop you might want to give them a miss. Also, given the usual reticence of Belfast people when it comes to being helpful or friendly, you would probably have to go to the counter on your knees.
The whole shebang is best viewed from the outside. Though the Capitol Hill architecture is spoilt from time to time by the political banners that are put up.
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
very helpful by (77%):
helpful by (23%):
