Adventures of Beth and Dan: When in Ireland!!...

Another sea day before we get to Cobh (Cove) and Cork which helped all the newcomers get some rest before discovering Ireland. Typically a few days before we arrive at a new port staff have provided passengers with information about the area. They are always different depending on what cruise line you are on and who the presenter is. Most of our port talks have been by Jessica and everyone agrees her talks are well worth listening to. We enjoyed a leisure day reading and going to the gym for some exercise. Ireland requires a face to face inspection for their immigration officials so we took our passports down to a designated room where they inspected us before we were able to get off in Cobh.

We got together with a few Arizona folks for happy hour at the Ocean Bar and by 5:30 we were up on the Lido having supper and enjoying discussions about our upcoming port.

Some of the interesting information we learned is as follows:

Cobh is the 2nd largest natural harbor in the world with Sydney being first. Cobh is comprised of Five small islands and is also home to a Naval base. Some of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world have their headquarters here including the one that makes viagra! Apple computers are here also having some form of headquarters.

Blue sky is not common in Ireland because they get a lot of rain and grey days. They say the sky is typically more grey and brown than blue. There are many castle in Ireland. They used to have cars manufactured in Ireland but no more. Henry Fords father was from Cork. All cars are expensive here because they are all imported. Most folks have small cars because you pay taxes on the horsepower. Gasoline is about $7.50 a gallon here. They say Irish don’t honk their horns; they have a lot of patience and feel no need to honk. Ireland was always invaded by someone and they even fought among themselves. They have had upwards to fifty kings and none could ever agree. First they were invaded by the Vikings but we don’t have any relics much from that period because everything was built from wood. After the the Vikings invaded then the Anglo Normans from Normandy came and they were the ones that built castles. The English ruled them for over 600 years and took their land. The Irish had to pay rent to the British. Gaelic was spoken by the Irish and the British punished them with death for speaking it over English. They also punished them for their Catholic ways. The Irish Famine was a result of the English invasion.

The Potatoe Blight killed their crops and over 1 million people died; over 300 million people migrated to Canada and the USA because of the blight. There have been many rebellions in Ireland but in 1922 they gained their independence. Today there is Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland; there are 6 counties in each half. Catholics and Protestants have fought among themselves for years but a cease fire has been in effect for 20 years and many hope to keep it with no more spilled blood.

We docked on Sunday the 18th around 8 am with all aboard at 5:30. We have a small private group tour here going first to the Blarney Castle and then Kinsale with Butlers Tours. Our tour covers entrance fees. The Euro is the currency for the Republic of Ireland where the pound is the currency for Northern Ireland.

We have a nice full size bus and our driver has got to be the best tour guide we may have ever had! He had the Irish brogue and a wee bit of humor thrown if along with good looks to boot! Ha ha. He gave us lots of great information and even sang an Irish song for us. He found us a great spot where we could choose which pub or restaurant to have lunch. Our tour lasted for around 8 hours. We got to climb the 120 steps to the top of the castle were many “kissed the Blarney Stone”! I thought I could but once I got up there I just couldn’t lay down and put my head under that stone! Ha ha. They say that kissing the stone endos the kisser with the gift of gab (great eloquence or skill at flattery). The world Blarney was introduced in the English language by Queen Elizabeth 1 and is described as pleasant talk, intended to deceive without offending. The castle gardens include 60 acres. Gardens include the Fern Garden, a deadly Poison Garden, a magical Rock Close garden with ancient Yew trees and Druidic stones. The gardens are constantly changing and evolving through the seasons. There are two souvenir shops, a cafe, restored stableyard, Blarney Lke, and woodland walks.

The grounds were lovely and we had plenty of time to explore it before being gathered up to head to Kinsale. Kinsale is a historic port and fishing town in County Cork which also has a significant military history. It is on the coast new the Old Head of Kinsale and sits at the mouth of the River Brandon. The population increases over the summer months when the tourist season is at its peak and the boating fraternity and other tourists arrive in numbers.

The driver, Niall, calls our ship “ a liner”.

Castle was erected in 1446 by the McCarty clan. Cork has half a million residents and takes its name from Corcaigh, the Gaelic word for “marshy”. Things to see in Cork include St Fin Barre’s Cathedral built in the 19th century for the Anglican Church reputed to be where Fin Barre established a monastery in the 7th century. St Anne’s Church and Shannon Bells Tower.

Coming into Cobh..

Entrance to the castle area

There she stands!

The stairway is single lane; you go up one way and down another; they say they always built stairs this way so that an army was at a disadvantage when trying to get to the top of the castle!