Cork is Ireland’s second largest city and is about a 45-minute bus ride from Kinsale. The main reason we went there was to pickup a SIM card for cellular data, and after we we had a great time touring around this urban but historic river city and, of course, checking out a couple of pubs. We also tried our first Murphy’s Stout, now our new favourite Irish beer, and finally found a pub that sold Jennifer’s previous favourite, Kilkenny.
Trip highlights from May 25th, 2017 follow. Click any image for a larger view, or click the position to view the location on a map. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at http://mvdirona.com/maps
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St Patrick’s St
Position: -8 28.24, 51 53.97
This is Cork’s premier shopping avenue, St. Patrick’s Street.
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Vodafone
Position: -8 28.26, 51 53.93
Our first stop was Vodafone, where we picked up a pre-paid SIM card and a data plan that will work throughout Europe. Communications is super-important to us, so getting a cell phone SIM is always one of our first stops. This was very close to the easiest and fastest transaction we’ve ever got. The price is quite good as well.
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Cork City Marina
Position: -8 27.81, 51 53.91
The Port of Cork City Marina is right in downtown Cork along the River Lee. Stays are limited to six nights though, so it wasn’t an ideal landing point for us as we wanted to spend longer after we arrived in Ireland. And the marina is a good ten miles in from sea. Boats typically clear through at Crosshaven at the entrance to Cork Harbour.
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Customs House Quay
Position: -8 27.79, 51 53.97
These two-story warehouses at Cork Customs House Quay were completed in 1818. They look at least that old and have been commercially occupied until recently. The River Lee splits here and takes two paths through Cork, reconnecting a few miles to the west.
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Oliver Plunkett
Position: -8 28.18, 51 53.91
We had a great lunch at the Oliver Plunkett pub. We’ve been surprised not to find Jennifer’s favourite Irish beer, Kilkenny, anywhere. So we decided to try a Murphy’s Stout instead. Neither of us has been a big fan of stout in the past, but Murphy’s is a bit smoother and subtle and it turns out we really like it. It is now our new favourite Irish beer.
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St. Francis Church
Position: -8 28.70, 51 53.89
Cork has many churches. St. Francis, opened in 1953, is one of the more modern ones.
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Cork Courthouse
Position: -8 28.68, 51 53.86
The Cork Courthouse is considered one of the best examples of Neo-Classical public architecture in Ireland. The building was originally designed in the 1830s, but was rebuilt in 1895 after a fire.
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Oliver Plunkett St.
Position: -8 28.49, 51 53.83
300-year-old Oliver Plunkett Street was the only Irish street shortlisted in 2015 for the London Academy of Urbanism’s “Great Street Award” as an outstanding example of good urbanism.
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Holy Trinity Church
Position: -8 28.24, 51 53.73
Holy Trinity church was completed in 1725 and is covered with complex sculptures. It replaced a medieval parish church where the poet Edmund Spenser married Elizabeth Boyle in 1594.
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River Lee
Position: -8 28.44, 51 53.76
Looking east along the southern tributary of the River Lee to Holy Trinity Church.
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National Monument
Position: -8 28.48, 51 53.75
The National Monument was erected in 1906 to commemorate great Irish patriots who fought for Irish independence, particularly those involved in the risings of 1798, 1803, 1848, and 1867.
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Elizabeth Fort
Position: -8 28.64, 51 53.66
Without really meaning to, we’ve been following the South Parish Walk through Cork. Elizabeth Fort along the walk was completed in 1626 in one of the oldest occupied parts of Cork City.
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Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral
Position: -8 28.87, 51 53.66
The first service was held in Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral in 1870, but building, carving and decorating of the ornate structure continued well into the 20th century.
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Labyrinth
Position: -8 28.77, 51 53.66
Jennifer walking the labyrinth, dedicated in 2015, behind Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral.
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Footbridge
Position: -8 28.75, 51 53.80
About to cross another of the dozen or so footbridges across the River Lee in downtown Cork.
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Kilkenny
Position: -8 28.35, 51 53.91
Jennifer finally found a pint of her previous favourite Irish beer, Kilkenny, at Le Chateau Bar on St. Patrick’s Street. We were beginning to think it was an export product only. Ireland is actually the primary market for Kilkenny, but it’s particularly popular in Canada, where we first tried it, and also New Zealand and Australia. In those latter two countries, Kilkenny was readily available in cans in the grocery store.
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Bus Ride
Position: -8 29.43, 51 44.61
On the bus ride back to Kinsale. Even the highways are narrow here–the bus is right up against the lane. We’ve seen a few cyclists on these roads, but we’re not sure we want to try it without a bicycle lane.
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Kinsale Harbour
Position: -8 31.19, 51 42.21
The evening sun lighting up Kinsale Harbour and the Kinsale Yacht Club.
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Click the travel log icon on the left to see these locations on a map, with the complete log of our cruise.
On the map page, clicking on a camera or text icon will display a picture and/or log entry for that location, and clicking on the smaller icons along the route will display latitude, longitude and other navigation data for that location. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at http://mvdirona.com/maps. |
Hey guys, you need to try Guinness on tap while in Ireland. It’s much better than the Guinness you get anywhere else overseas and way better than the canned product. Murphy’s is pretty good though. Kilkenny is a nice creamy draught, made by Guinness, and should be more prolific further north. Have fun. Cheers.
Yes, Guinness is available in large quantity at absolutely every pub we have been at. When we arrived in Ireland we tried Guinness, Murphy’s, and Beamish. All are pretty good but we prefer Murphys over Guinness. Beamish and Murphy’s are not dramatically different — we could probably be just as happy with either but ended up going with Murphy’s.