The story of these years in the Titanic Quarter has been a story of dreams given form.  When I arrived here there was a big gulf between a developer’s dream and the concrete building-site reality; now there are many places throughout the Titanic Quarter where the reality looks strikingly similar to the CGI artist’s impression from just a few years ago.

For example, the Arc apartments…

or Belfast Met…

or Citibank

And yesterday, the ultimate dream given form: INSIDE TITANIC BELFAST!!  Tegan and I were honoured and delighted (well -Tegan was honoured and delighted; I was like an excitable child on Christmas morning crossed with a lottery winner) to be part of a group of Titanic Ambassadors given a preview visit to Titanic Belfast, to help the team get up to speed and iron out any wrinkles in time for the big launch on 31st March.

And now I’m sitting typing this blog in another dream given form: Dock Cafe.  We’re meeting neighbours, starting conversations, welcoming strangers, drinking a lot of coffee – it’s everything I could’ve hoped for – and loads more I didn’t expect – when the Dock began with a blank page 2-and-a-bit years ago.  So, in honour of all this progress, I’ve updated (did you notice?) the strapline at the top of the Dock website homepage for the first time since the Dock began.  (Bonus brownie points for anyone who can remember the old one…)

We’re no longer just a vision, just an idea – so the strapline can now tell the story of The Dock.

It began with a vision…
Then it became a walk…
Now it’s a pop-up cafe…
Some day it could be a boat…
But it’s always been about Life in the Titanic Quarter.

Awesome.

And what of Titanic Belfast, you may ask? – did I take any sneaky photos inside, will I give you a sneak preview, what did I think of it all…?  To which I will only answer: Buy a ticket.  NOW.  Don’t be an armchair observer of the Titanic Quarter – come and see, taste, feel, experience dreams becoming reality in Belfast City.

(PS extra bonus bonus brownie points – the phrase ‘a dream given form’ is an obscure reference to a wonderful old sci-fi show called…?)

Here in The Dock one of the undisputed highlights of 2011 was getting to connect with loads of our neighbours at the Arc at our various Meet The Neighbours events – whether barbeques or birthday bashes, coffee mornings or Christmas parties, it was fantastic to be part of the birth of a vibrant new community here in the Titanic Quarter

Our regular get-togethers disappeared for a bit in 2012 while we were working hard behind the scenes to get Dock cafe ready to open.  So now it’s time for the next generation of Meet The Neighbours – as before, the coffee will be plentiful, the welcome will be warm, the craic will be great – but we’ll now be open day-by-day instead of once a month.  We’re not just occasional visitors any more – we are The Local! – the place where you can pop in for a chat, meet up with friends, connect to all the great events happening around the Titanic centenary, or just chill out surrounded by some of the best artwork, music, coffee and fresh-baked goodies that Belfast has to offer.

But it’s still great to have a focal point in the middle of a busy week – a time when the TQ community makes a special effort to connect at Dock Cafe so that neighbours can meet, friendships can start, a community can be born.  So see you at 11-1 on Saturday morning – our time-honoured Meet The Neighbours slot!

How’s this for a Dock Walk and a half… nearly 300 people turned up at Saul on St Patrick’s Day to take part in the pilgrimage walk to Downpatrick.  Organised chaos ensued as your trusty Chaplain, armed with the Dock Walk sound system (a rather trendy little Bose speaker  – which is rather more used to groups of 3, or maybe 30 at a pinch, than 300!) guided them along on a heart-stoppingly beautiful Spring morning, following in Patrick’s footsteps from the site of Ireland’s first religious community, to the historic old stone of Downpatrick Cathedral.

Along the way we stopped to share some prayers and moments of quiet, using some words from St Patrick’s Breastplate.  We used those words again on Sunday’s Dock Walk, our hearts filling with courage as we listened to this ancient prayer amidst the shining steel and glass of Titanic Belfast as the sun set behind the hills.  Maybe you’ll get a chance to use it again this week – whether out in the glories of creation, or stuck at your desk on a grey morning…

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven:
Light of sun,
Radiance of moon,
Splendour of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of wind,
Depth of sea,
Stability of earth,
Firmness of rock.

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through the belief in the threeness,
Through confession of the oneness
Of the Creator of Creation.

…Where is it?

So I hear that some of you have been wandering, lonely as clouds, looking for Dock Cafe over the past few days – and many of you have ended up at the Pump House Cafe at the Thompson Dock instead!  Which is fine – we love the gang at the Pump House Cafe – but for those of you who really, really want to find Dock Cafe, Jeremy’s excellent map might help:

And one other suggestion – ditch the cars, people!  I suppose it is easy to whiz past Dock Cafe on the road – but you really can’t miss it if you’re exploring the TQ by foot – as nature intended.   So leave the car at the Odyssey car park, walk the streets, breathe the air, take your time… there will be a superb cuppa and a bun waiting for you at the end of your journey!