By the time the U2 cavalcade swept up Belfast's Stranmillis Road it was already clear the city was experiencing something new. Heads turned and people asked in disbelief: "Is that them?" The sound of sirens and police-led cavalcades usually have different connotations around here.
From tea time the area around the Botanic Park venue in south Belfast resembled one big street party. For Belfast it was a rare display of youth culture as droves of good-humoured fans, some wearing Bono-style sunglasses, meandered through the streets.
Crowds gathered outside pubs and queues formed at off-licences. Young people sat on the street drinking. Fast-food outlets did a booming trade as stereos blasted out U2 music. For once, you could almost have forgotten you were in Belfast.
Some of the residents of Stranmillis, many of whom are either students or young professionals in shared houses, took the opportunity to throw a party on their front doorstep. The sense of occasion was palpable, and this wasn't so much about U2 as the fact that Belfast's biggest rock concert was taking place. Few of the fans wore U2 T-shirts or head-bands.
A lot of them were young enough to be Oasis fans. Others remembered the Dublin foursome in the early days.
Gary Mills from east Belfast said he was a fan from the Joshua Tree era. "I'm here for the event, to be able to say `I was there'," he said. "I think they are making a gesture and I hope it's going to be the start of something, that other big acts will come now as well."
Michelle Morrison from Newtownards said she had never seen anything like this in Belfast. "This is something that everybody is going to. There are no divisions at a concert like this. It's great to see people out on the streets enjoying themselves."
Generally, the young people throughout the area described the atmosphere as fantastic. One young Englishman of Irish parents said it was the type of thing that would make him consider moving back to Belfast.
RUC men sat in their vans and took a back seat as security men patrolled the streets and ensured no alcohol was taken into the park. For some in the queue, it must have seemed strange to have men with southern accents telling them what to do.
For one evening at least, it seemed that Bono could sing a different song and Bloody Sunday seemed like a distant memory.