Mike's Site

Went on an hour and a half tour of a segregated section of Belfast. By segregated, Protestants, who are pro-Britain, and Catholics, who are for a united Ireland, live in separate neighborhoods. Belfast is like a chess board of Protestant and Catholic neighborhoods.

In this section there’s even a wall with gates that open mainly during daylight hours. One gate stays open until 11 PM. It’s a pathetic situation.

This segregation is still happening 25 years after the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 which was supposed to patch things up between the two.

Before the agreement, these two groups went at it with bombings, assassinations, riots, house burnings, murders and other unpleasant stuff. These times between 1969 and 1998 are called The Troubles. There’s still a bitter undercurrent here and it may take generations before relations are “normal”.

The wall runs about a mile and graffiti is allowed. So, my guide, Danny, handed me a black marker and told me to have at it. It was a pleasure.

It was a good tour thanks to Danny.