As the MS Caribbean Princess was being tied up to the dock in the port of Belfast, a gleaming, glass and steal structured just across the ship channel came into view on the starboard side. It's a dream building that was completed just a year ago to commemorate the centennial of Titanic. It also stands as a symbol of hope and progress - but most of all, rebirth.
Not even that long ago, Belfast was considered one of the most dangerous cities in the world. During 'The Troubles' in the 1970s and '80s, bombings, assassinations and government crackdowns were a way of life in the hard-scrabble capital of Northern Ireland. The six predominately protestant Ulster counties opted not to join the new Irish Free State in 1920 and remained in the United Kingdom. There was sporadic conflict between the republicans (those wishing to join Ireland) and loyalists (those wishing to remain in the UK) for the next half century, and then erupted in an orgy of bloodshed.
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