We decided to visit this troublespot because we have heard so much about it and it was a day's outing.
I will admit that there is a palpable feeling of tension in the place. One of the reaons is the copious display of flags and banners. For example, we took a tour bus around the city, saw the Catholic areas and the Protestant. Very noticeable in the Protestant zone (the Shankill Road) was a huge proliferation of Union Jacks, hanging from windows, most lamposts, etc. They were ubiquitous. The flag manufacturers in Belfast must be wealthy.
In city Center there is something called the Peace Wall separating (protecting?) one zone from another.
We travelled down the Shankhill Road area (Prod) but could not get near the Falls Road (Catholic zone) in West Belfast because of a "security alert", apparently it's quite common in Belfast. The Shankill Road has a wide range of giant murals depicting the Ulster Volunteer Force (the Protestants' answer to the IRA), graphically displaying their military prowess, the AK47 being prominent.
Looking at Belfast, to us it seemed like a prosperous, typical, midsized British city. It is trying hard to escape its reputation for violence.
On a historical note, we saw the shipyard where the Titanic was built and launched in 1911. It sunk in the Atlantic April 14, 1912 on its maiden voyage to New York.
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