Northern Ireland - how do you perceive it?

So I'm 44, and recently find all my friends are in their serious relationships or the single ones are too busy chatting men up online 😂 I'm married with a few kids, and just wondering if anyone has any advice on how to meet new interesting people. I love up near alder grove airport so not a city girl. Just afraid to go on any sites incase someone mistakes me for looking to date rather than a few girlfriends to put the world to rights with every now and again

Agreed.

Avoid politics. Avoid talking about The Troubles.

I'm an NI "Pressbutton". Got Dual Irish British nationality. Support reunufication. But if I told my proddy family that....

Re flags & painted kerbstones: if that surprises you as a "blow-in" then you've not done much research on NI.

I really loved it. I’m English with an Irish RC mum and I’ve been a few times to visit friends, family and for work.

The people are lovely but there are certain topics where you still need to be very careful, as I witnessed when someone misunderstood what I was saying on the tour around the Shankhill. 😬

My baby is born in October 2023
I heard the preschool in Northern Ireland start in September
does that mean I have to wait a year to enroll my child or can I enroll her if she’s just shy by one month

I have yet to visit, want to. So a limited view of that part of Ireland.

Regular visitor from ROI, mostly to Co Down.

The scenery is stunning! The people are friendly. Better amenities than the South.

I am OK with British Flags flying but UVF flags make me nervous and feel conspicuous in my ROI reg car.

But overall, I love it. And would live to visit more of NI.

Delving deeper, Northern Ireland is a bit bigger in area than East Anglia but with only about 2/3 of the population. Belfast has a smaller population than Southend on Sea. Derry is smaller than Nuneaton or Stevenage.

One of the reasons many people are ignorant about Northern Ireland as a place to visit is that it is a relatively small part of the UK.

I love Belfast. My bloke was born there so I’ve been there a lot in the last 26 years.

Derby + cranes. What a temptation!

Nearly!

Of course Derby doesn't have the benefit of famous cranes.

So, a huge city nearly the size of Derby!

That thread is great!

Last year I was in Newcastle, Co Down and I found a shop specialising in traybakes and I bought a chewy rice krispie thing with chocolate on the top. Very nice but then I read this from the thread:

You'll never get a traybake at a coffee shop that comes close to the quality you'll get in a dusty Presbyterian church hall

<envious look>

They sound delicious!! Thank you.

Brilliant! Thank you.

That thread is the thing that hooked me on Mumsnet to begin with!

I want a traybake now, I was grand until I read about them here. Trying to do Slimming World and now I have a longing for a traybake.

I got back from my first time in NI this week. Stayed in Belfast but travelled along the coast to various little places. It was beautiful. Especially Belfast. I much preferred Belfast to Dublin in terms of cities and the people of Northern Ireland were so so friendly. We're going back in January.

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/mumsnet_classics/3527870-Which-is-the-tastiest-Protestant-traybake

There's a whole thread!

I’d say that very quietly. I think it might imperil the GFA.

Moved from England to NI in the 90s when I was a teenager. Got spat on at school for being English (was catholic) . Got called names on tbr bus by Protestants for being catholic. Really a lose lose situation. Parents bought a house in a Protestant area as they really didn't buy into all the crap in NI (my mum was from there though ) . Always felt awkward and isolating being the only catholic in the whole area - you can tell from the school uniforms. Left when I was 18 to go to university. Moved back temporarily after uni. I remember feeling that the overt friendliness was a bit fake. I just couldn't connect with people.

Left again as soon as I could.

Went back recently and i willl say they have much better playgrounds than we do. But the weather is crap and I think limited things to do compared to where I live in England

The Good Friday Agreement was only 25 years ago, that's not that long when you're talking about such deeply entrenched feelings that have been held for generations. Not to mention the hurt - I think I read once that every single county in NI had more deaths in the Troubles than GB as a whole. Which you wouldn't always think based on the media coverage! And of course it's not just the deaths, it's the injuries, the fear. There really is generational trauma and that doesn't get cured in 25 years.

It's moving in the right direction though.

Sorry yes probably my language was wrong - accepting is a better word.

@TheBelleOfBelfastCity

Maybe I shouldn't have been so shocked but I had kind of imagined it would be a historical thing - like the Berlin Wall. That has murals but they are peace focused.

I was wondering how the children in that area grow up 'neutral' with those murals around them all the time. Feels like it would take a long time.

We did see one mural promoting peace.

They were also building a bonfire in Derry when we were there - mid August.