We started off Cork right, let me just tell you. We walked over a mile to get Fish and Chips from the famous Jackie Lennox Chip Shop. Never heard of it, you say? Well, you don't know what you are missing, because for a decent price, you can get some AWESOME fish and chips. And it is totally a local hangout, based on what I saw. This time we switched things up and got haddock (instead of cod). It also came with tartar sauce (YUM) and traditional mushed peas. They were...interesting? I don't know; I heard that they are an acquired taste. Many people eat them on their chips, but I don't know why you would want to "ruin" your chips. Anyways, it was soooo delicious and so much food that even I couldn't finish it all, and that is saying something! To make it even sweeter, we got a great discount on our three other Paddywagon tours that we booked through our hostel, Kinlay House. I highly recommend both, if you are asking!
Tuesday we had our first day trip from Cork, to Kinsale, Blarney, and Cobh. It was a good way to start this round of tours off because it was pretty relaxed and did not involved too much travel or sitting on the bus. First we hit up Charles Fort, built in the 1600s to protect Kinsale from attack. The weather was not very good, with wet snow falling severely reducing visibility. We weren't supposed to stay long, but we left even earlier when someone came out and told us the fort was closed. Oops! Evidently, you are supposed to pay for admission...maybe on a good day it would be worth it, but this way not that day.
So we headed down the road to Kinsale, which was a compact, cute little town. It is known as a leisure town, with fishing and water sports in the summer, but in the winter and at low tide, it was quiet. We were only there for an hour, but it was difficult to know what to do with ourselves. The weather was not nice at all, so it wasn't much fun to just walk along the waterfront, but we did that for a little while. The best was sitting in a small cafe with a big cup of steaming hot tea. The owner came out and chatted with us for a bit, which was nice. I would definitely say that as a whole, it seems that the Irish are a very friendly lot, definitely willing to help someone out and give advice. After a little more time, we got back on the bus and moved on.
Next stop was the much anticipated Blarney Castle. Let's be real, this is the main reason why people do this tour, and it didn't disappointment. If you go, don't get distracted by the castle. While it is really neat to see, there are caves, gardens, and paths to be walked and explored. Those are what I enjoyed more than anything. And I know, you are wondering, did I kiss the stone? The answer: a mostly okay with it, no. You can't see from the picture of Marissa doing it below, but it is really high...and you can see that you have to lean backwards while looking down to do it. The idea of it sounded painful to my joints, and let's just say, heights are not really my thing these days. Supposedly, kissing the stone will give you the gift of gab. The story originates from a time when English landlords were supposed to collect rent and taxes from areas in Ireland for Queen Elizabeth. Well the one in Blarney always had a persuasive excuse for why he didn't do it, and when discussing the matter with a subject the the Queen said something to the effect of, "that is a load of Blarney," hence the expression and the superstition of the stone. Below you can see the difference between blarney and baloney, which I thought was pretty funny.
As I already suggested, we spent a good hour or so checking out the gardens, such as the Fern garden above and walking the Lake Path. It was absolutely deserted; we saw only one person along the whole path. I imagine that it is positively radiant with green plants in the later Spring. Luckily the weather had turned relatively pleasant and much warmer for our time in Blarney, which made it much more enjoyable.
Next we traveled back down through Cork and out to the coast to the port town of Cobh (pronounced like Cove, it's Irish). We stopped at a local cafe first things for some enormous sandwiches, which was perfect timing because a sudden snowstorm popped into town and made conditions outside miserable for about 30 minutes. Once it cleared up, we headed up the hill to check out St. Coleman's Cathedral and the views of the harbor from the top. What Cobh is most famous for is being the last stop for ships heading across the seas to England or in the other direction to the Americas. During the Irish Potato Famine in the 1800s, over 2.5 million immigrants left through this port on their way to the Americas. Furthermore, Cobh was also the last stop for the Titanic, taking on around 110 passengers here, of which 42 survived. Below, you can see the remnants of the dock that was used to load ships, including the Titanic. Finally, we headed back to Cork, tired and done for the day.
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| Dock used to load the Titanic |
As usual, we rested for a bit and then made our way back into town for dinner. We found a good-looking Kebab place and settled in. Let's just say that we did not get what we expected. With a few accent problems, the guy gave us some sauce choices. I could only discern "spicy," same with Marissa, so we both went with spicy. As he made up our kebabs, the guy asked if we were sure. We hesitantly said yes, and I think from that point, we were doomed. Maybe the guy wanted to see us sweat (literally) or maybe he wanted to challenge us, but he definitely did both. I HAVE NEVER EATEN SOMETHING SO SPICY IN MY LIFE. My nose was like a faucet, my eyes were pretty much crying, the sweat was dripping, my face/mouth/lips were burning and every I looked at Marissa I couldn't stop laughing because she looked the way I felt. But I made it through and finished almost every bite (it was also huge). It may not be an experience that I am anxious to repeat, but it was an experience. And it was actually really delicious, if you can get over the 'burn a hole in your stomach' spiciness factor. What a day!
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| Before I knew what I was getting into... |
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