Titanic Belfast

We just got home to Alaska from our big trip to Northern Ireland and Florida.

I downloaded all our photos onto the laptop and I've got a lot to catch up on here on the blog!

Our first week in Northern Ireland we got to go to the Titanic Belfast exhibit. It was voted one of the worlds top Tourist Attractions and I can see why! It was pretty cool and very interactive!

Here's a short walk through...

We learned what Belfast was like back in the early 1900's and how it was a booming city with industries like linen. Elijah's looking at the different steps it takes from flax to linen.

The ship yard is still in use but is now "focusing less on shipbuilding and more on design and structural engineering, as well as ship repair, offshore construction projects." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harland_and_Wolff)
Throughout its lifetime the Harland and Wolff shipyard produced over 1,700 vessels and at its peak, employed a workforce of 35,000. 

The Titanic and the Olympic were built side by side in the slips you can see in the photo above. This is where the Titanic was first launched from on May 31st 1911.

The SS Nomadic is located right next door to the Titanic museum and is defiantly worth a visit as well.

The hat Elijah is wearing is one that Geoff wore as a little boy. :)

In both the Titanic museum and also on the Nomadic were hidden little stuffed animals or people. The boys were given a map and had to keep their eyes out for a character in each section. If they found all the hidden characters they were given a certificate and official looking ticket. This really kept their attention and they did find them all.