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Belfast-2-Belfast-By-Bike

WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?

Everybody has heard of Belfast – the Belfast in Northern Ireland that is! It’s the home town of Van Morrison, George Best, Kenneth Branagh and, of course, the Titanic. But how many other Belfasts are there?

Well in 1982, on a visit to South Africa, I found a second one and vowed that one day I would ride from there to the Belfast; Belfast-2-Belfast-By-Bike was born, or more accurately the idea was conceived. The pregnancy would last 37 years, but in March 2019 I left Harare, dropped down to Belfast, RSA, and, over the next year, rode to Belfast, N Ireland, arriving in March 2020.

Somewhere along that long road, the answer to the oft-posed question, “What are you going to do when you finish?” came to me; I would ride to all the other Belfasts in the World. Of course, what else? Why didn’t I think of that sooner?

How many others are there? Not counting the innumerable Belfast Streets, Roads, Parks, etc, I have found 26 “places”: 2 in Canada; 18 in the USA, one each in Australia, New Zealand and Jamacia, and two others in South Africa.

This website is about those Belfasts, and my journey on a 50+ year-old motorbike to visit each one and find out its story.

Join me on the Journey!

Part 1

This was the first stage, going from South Africa to N Ireland taking in 19 countries; March 2019 – March 2020

Part 2

This was the second stage, taking in Canada and the USA; April – October 2024.

Part 3

This is the final(ish) stage, started in January 2025, and is ongoing …

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Belfast, Belfast; Wonderful Town!

The site of Belfast, at the mouth of the River Farset where it joins the River Lagan, has been inhabited since the Bronze Age. The name derives from the Irish BĂ©al Feirste, translating roughly as “mouth of the sandbar” The town itself was founded in 1613 by one Sir Arthur Chichester; it was granted city status in 1888. The local dialect, with variations, call it “Belfawst“.

Belfast City Hall

Belfast City Hall seen from Royal Avenue, was constructed 18 years after the town was granted city status.

Belfast Shipyard

Samson and Goliath, the cranes and Belfast’s Harland and Wolff Shipyard, was once the largest ship yard in the world. It is, famously, the home of the Titanic

Belfast Public Library

Belfast Public Library, dating from 1888, with the old offices of the Belfast Telegraph in the background.

Belfast News-Letter

The Belfast News Letter is the oldest English language, daily newspaper in the world. The oldest surviving edition is dated Oct 3 1738. Joy’s Entry still bears the name of the founder, Francis Joy.

Queen’s University

The Queen’s University of Belfast was established by Queen Victoria in 1845 as one of three Queen’s Colleges in Ireland, and was intended to be a non-denominational alternative to Trinity College Dublin.

The Big Fish

Humour is never in short supply in Belfast. The Salmon of Knowledge – otherwise known as “The Big Fish” – commemorates, among other things, the story of Belfast, with each scale illustrating a particular event in history.

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