Titanic, Part 2: Why all the fuss in Belfast?

Belfast. Image courtesy of Belfast Visitor Convention Bureau

As promised, here is part 2 of our visit to the new Titanic Belfast project, currently under construction in Belfast.

Why is there such a big fuss in Belfast over a ship that sank a long time ago? ”At the time Titanic was built,”  Bryan Gregory, the executive in charge of Titanic Belfast says, “Belfast had the four largest industries in the world, in shipbuilding, rope making, linen production and tobacco. The city really was a hive of industrial activity and that spirit has sustained us through the 30 years of the troubles.”

Also intriguing is this question: Why is Titanic, beyond Belfast, still such a magnetic presence? Gregory, I thought, had an interesting answer. “The romanticism of the ship,” he says, “is part of it, as it as a ship of unfulfilled dreams, one that is an uncompleted journey.”

The Titanic-obsessed, dubbed “Titanoraks” have had this city on the radar for years. Says Colin Cobb, proprietor of Titanic Walking Tour, the name is “a geek version of anorak, the name for plane spotters, but a Titanorak is an honorable geek”.

Titanic crafts made by children

Even local kids have Titanic fever.  Through everything from arts and crafts to history, Belfast children actually learn about Titanic in school! Particular kudos to the young interpretive artist who created a papier mache version of the ship – he got it right about Titanic’s four funnels (these were on display at Titanic Belfast’s marketing office).

If you’re a tourist visiting Belfast, there’s much to see and do. You can take a boat tour that gives a close-up look at the slips occupied by Olympic and the drydock in which Titanic was built.

Take a boat tour in Belfast (Westerdam is in the background)

In Titanic builder Harlan & Wolff’s headquarters down on the Belfast waterfront, the drawing gallery is on the Titanic Walking Tour itinerary; with its soaring glass ceilings, it’s the place where the ship’s architects and designers drafted plans.

The Ulster Folk & Transport Museum (a must visit on any trip to Belfast whether you’re interested in Titanic or not, and I figure you wouldn’t have gotten this far into the story if the ship is a snore!) has still and moving images and the world’s largest collection of photographic negatives.

Dry dock

But the highlight, the real moment of “wow!” has to be the dry dock in which the ship is built. It’s still here (and still dry) and the view, alongside the historic pumphouse (which houses a café and gift shop) is the most interesting visual of all.

Ultimately, the dream for the creators of the glossy new Belfast Titanic museum complex see it as a magnificent centerpiece for the magnet in this city that the ship has become. And it’s one that will connect, as well, with all of the disparate Titanic offerings, from the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum to walking tours and to the boat rides that sail up to ship slips.

Stay tuned; we’ll continue to follow Titanic’s progress in Belfast. And whether you’re thinking of booking a cruise that will call at Belfast in 2012, the anniversary year, or considering a more intensive visit (count me in there!), you might want to start planning the trip!

CSB