Perhaps it was the whiskey.

Saturday, March 19^th, 2016.

Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK

It’s about 11am GMT and I am finally waking up. Cate said that we could sleep in, but when I finally shuffle down 2 flights of steps to her living room, she looks like she’s been awake for at least a few hours. Oh well, it’s time to start our day!

Cate makes me a cup of coffee, using her awesome European kettle (seriously it takes like 1.5 minutes to brew coffee in this thing!) We have a long conversation about the existence of half and half outside of the US and she eventually convinces me to give up on the idea. I begrudgingly drink American coffee with whole milk.

There are 2 main options for the day – the black cab tour, which explains the history behind the Troubles or the Game of Thrones tour. The black cab tour comes highly recommended, but I am totally obsessed with Game of Thrones. I start to explain to Cate that I want to choose history over pop culture but... Before I can finish my thought, she has booked the black cab tour. Internal conflict settled.

We have a few hours before the tour starts, so we walk over to the market. It’s a great open-air market complete with crafts and food. I really want to buy some stuff, but it all looks like decorations in my Mom’s house. I can’t find anything that I want to buy, so I restrain myself and buy nothing. I ask Cate what food I should try and she suggests the Belfast bap. Since Cate is vegetarian and I am ordering a sandwich with every animal on the farm, we have to split up to order brunch. I have to fight my way through a small crowd to order my sandwich. A very friendly lady takes my order but I can not understand a word of what she is saying (I swear I speak English?!). I just keep saying “yes” to all of her questions. Ultimately I end up with a sandwich that is taller than it is wide.

Cate and I eventually find each other and she politely gazes around the market while I make the biggest mess of all time trying to eat my sandwich. After brunch we have about an hour to kill, so we walk over to the main town square. We browse through City Hall, which is pleasantly empty. There is an exhibit about World War 2, which is terribly sad. We also walk over to a look out point attached to the main mall, where we can see the ship building yards where the Titanic was built (Belfast is certainly riddled with tragedy.) 

Soon we meet our driver for our black cab tour. He (like everyone in Northern Ireland) is larger than life and is full of jokes and rhetorical questions. He takes us through the Protestant and Catholic neighborhoods and gives a great show of explaining the ethno nationalist conflict between Ireland and Northern Ireland that is only barely resolved (after the tour Cate explains to me that a car bomb went off in her neighborhood only 2 weeks before I arrived.) As the tour comes to an end I feel sad but also very engaged in recent Irish history. I am surprised by my interest and simultaneously disappointed in my disengagement in other ethno nationalist conflicts. 

After our tour is complete, we take the long way back to Cate’s, cutting through Queens University, where she is currently working as a Professor of Sociology. It is now 2 days past St. Patrick’s Day and the campus is an absolute mess of broken bottles, cigarette butts, pants (yes, multiple pairs), shoes, and other assorted relics of total and utter debauchery. Oh, college life.

It’s now approaching 5pm and we decide that it’s an appropriate time to start drinking again (when in Rome…).

We start out at Europa Hotel, which is Europe’s most bombed hotel (my sadness for Belfast has returned full force). I am surprised that it is a very nice hotel. I am even more surprised that they will not accept Cate’s credit card. Apparently it’s a common for bars to accept debit cards but not credit cards. This is irritating to us, but in the grand scheme of things, it’s probably best for a country with a major drinking problem to discourage the purchase of alcohol on credit. Oh well, we pay with cash and are on to the next pub. We go to a traditional Irish pub in the City Center but end up surrounded by non-Irish drinkers. It’s okay though; the Guinness tastes just as good.

Next we go to dinner at Cate’s favorite restaurant. I order the mussels and they are literally the best mussels that I have ever had. Damn, Belfast, you continue to surprise me. 

Next we meet her friend, Eoin, for a few rounds of whiskey. Eventually it hits midnight and I am strangely not drunk, but am definitely tired. We take a cab back to Cate's and I force myself to shower and pack as I have a very early flight tomorrow.

My time is Belfast has come to an end and I feel very accomplished. The whole experience felt more fulfilling than fun. I can’t quiet articulate my feelings, but I know that I am somehow wiser than I was 2 days ago. Perhaps it was the whiskey.

It's Tradition.

Friday, March 18^th, 2016.

London, UK / Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK

It’s about 6pm and my (company-provided) chauffer is pulling up to Heathrow. It’s the end of a full work week in London and now I am off to enjoy a weekend to myself. I am catching the last flight to Belfast to visit another long lost AmeriCorps friend, Cate and her 2 American cats.

Checking in at Heathrow is uneventful. I have arrived very early and now I am bored. I find a café and order cake and coffee (I’m officially on vacation, which means I get cake.) About an hour before my flight leaves, I make a quick stop at the airport bar to grab a half pint of Guinness. I have heard that it tastes different in Ireland and I want to test that theory. The airport-Guinness tastes pretty good, much better than in California.

After waiting nearly 2 and a half hours for a 45 minute flight, I am boarding Aer Lingus and am on my way to Belfast!

The Belfast airport is tiny and deserted. It looks old, but I decide to withhold judgment for now. Cate has instructed me to take a cab to her flat so I look for the cab line and am completely surprised to see my entire flight in line for a cab and no cabs. Slowly, the cabs trickle in. It is freezing outside, but the girl in front of me is wearing a short skirt with no tights, so I try to not feel so sorry for myself (In true LA fashion, I am wearing boots, jeans, a long sleeved shirt, and a peacoat.)

Finally I get into my cab. I cannot understand a word that the cab driver says. I’m pretty sure that cabs work the same in Northern Ireland so I just smile and give him Cate’s address. Eventually I end up at her flat. Hooray!

When I arrive Cate and her friend, Marseille, are finishing up a very late dinner. They are worried that I am tired, but I am not. To the pub!

Today is the day after St. Patrick’s Day. So it’s “slow”. As it turns out, a slow day in Ireland is like a very busy day anywhere else! The pub is packed and very, very loud. I decide to order a Guinness to test my theory. I want to order a half pint, but Cate does not let me. I acquire my first ever Irish Guinness and it does not disappoint! I make a big deal about the wonderful creamy flavor for all of my new Irish friends, but honestly its anti-climatic because it tastes just like the Guinness at Heathrow. 

After a pint, we move to another, quieter pub. Here, we get a whole table to ourselves and proceed to talk about our favorite topic – boys! Cate is single, Marseille is married and I am dating two lawyers. We have lots to talk about. After we finish this round, Marseille has to go home, but Cate and I are up for one more pub. She decides to take me to the oldest pub in Belfast. It is adorable and a little bit smelly. Oh well, time for more beer!

This pub is kind of awesome. It’s almost empty, but there is a group of locals playing traditional Irish music in the corner. We order 2 beers and I finish mine way before Cate. I tell her that I want to order a whiskey to sip on while she finishes her beer. She encourages me to do so, but when I go downstairs to put in my order to bartender insists on selling me 2 whiskeys (she does not want Cate to be left out). I finally give in and return with 2 whiskeys. Cate can’t stop laughing. She has been struggling with this Irish tradition for over 2 years now.

Eventually we finish all of our alcohol (fulfilling yet another Irish tradition) and walk back home. Cate’s flat has 3 stories and I sleep on the very top. It was an awesome evening and tomorrow I have 1 full day Belfast. I can not wait.