I arrived ten days ago to Belfast, and the experience is still positive, especially if you count that in 10 days, almost got run over "only" 2 times ... (I remind you that here they drive on the left) which for a foreigner is not bad, even if I have to admit that I needed all my concentration (which is not too much, but it's something said a bald like me, when he found a comb without spikes).
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Ormeau Park |
This country is really green, is the first thing that impressed me about this country, when I was still in the plane I Thought, where are the villages in this country? Well...they are in the middle of all that green, I have the feeling of I’m living in a park with houses in the middle, on my street there are many trees and I have a huge park right next to my house called "Ormeau Park " to give you an idea how big is, it has a golf course, 5 soccer fields (actual size, not the kind we had in school), 5 basketball field, 3 tennis courts, and a fairly large building indoor tennis, all that is "only" half park ...
I live in the South Belfast near Ormeau Bridge (loyalist Protestant area = English area), about 20 minutes from the city center. The center is small, but has everything you need for a good Sunday afternoon (yes, I say Sunday because here everything is open on Sundays), streets with many shops and food and stuff and a shopping center called Victoria Square just near the town hall.
Victoria Square is not like other shopping centers that I have ever seen, it is as if you took 3 streets of Barcelona, build a roof and put more floors above and below, and a viewpoint above all ... Well, that's Victoria Square.
In addition my favorite building at this moment(I have not seen much of the center) is the town hall, is big, and beautiful and has a front yard with lawn and a large screen for sports broadcast, when the sun comes here to say hello (this is not extremely common) is filled with people lying, watching TV or chatting, it's really pretty. For me Belfast is like a small London, a beautiful city center with shops, coffee shops and little streets and the rest are residential neighborhoods. Well…residential neighborhoods and churches, here are more churches than people per square meter (this is a personal mathematical rule.... nothing confirmed yet!)
But unlike London, Belfast is, above all, a university town, so not many people is living here now, in my neighborhood almost all houses are for rent cause I live near Queens university (which is beautiful, the people says is very similar to Harry Potter castle) and is the students home, so until September it will not begin to come people again.
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Queen's University |
Speaking about universities, students and students party, I have not seen a too much party but I recognize that I have not been much in the center, as I preferred to use these 10 days to settle down to my house and the city. I promise to tell you more things about Belfast, Northern Ireland and most of its pubs later.
Hugs to all, love you:
The Bald of Belfast