Belfast: Michelson Sailors Ashore

Belfast City Hall
This seaport city was the sole port of call for Michelson from fall 1962 through summer of '63. It was a happy place for most of the crew. Principal watering holes were the unlikely named Thompson's Honolulu Bar and a night club called The Embassy. Other spots were the lounge at the Royal Avenue Hotel and The Queen's Lounge in the Queen's Arcade building. For really late night libations the British Legion allowed us in the bar if we bought drinks for the old military pensioners.

While in port dry cleaners and tailors came aboard.  I went to the dentist and got new eyeglasses, appointments arranged by the ship's local agent. Also went to the cinema and theater. Our chief petty officer and I attended a meeting of the local ham radio club. A visit to a Belfast bookstore yielded most of the novels of Thomas Hardy. These were excellent reading during down time while underway. Hardy's descriptions of his native Dorset, which he called Wessex, are amazing.

Belfast was quiet at that time, before "the troubles" erupted in ethnic/religious strife. Besides the then ubiquitous Wimpy's burger places there were good restaurants in and around Belfast. I learned to drink bordeaux wine, which the British call claret, with dinner. Learned that you need to specify scotch or irish when you order whisky. One of the field engineer guys was French. He always asked for Dubonnet, which was popular at that time. Now, you can't even find it in Paris. 

One vendor came aboard peddling duty free booze. He got a lot of orders. The stuff, mostly Canadian Club whisky, was delivered directly to Michelson's number four hold.

When a member of the ship's MSTS crew was admitted to the Royal Victoria hospital some of us paid him a visit. This place was huge, definitely victorian and run by the National Health Service (NHS). I don't remember why he was in there but the poor guy was lost in a sea of beds "on the ward". 

Some of us rented a car and drove north along the coast through County Antrim. We got to see the Giants' Causeway and Londonderry (a/k/a Derry). Will report elsewhere on excursions to Scotland and the Irish Republic.