A Day Missed

Unfortunately, arrived in Cork yesterday morning and was unable to get a wifi connection. Let's hope this connection doesn't fade. 

Cork is a city of rivers and bridges it seems. Naturally it has its fair share of churches and cathedrals. I wonder if church attendance has increased, or has it dropped since the catastrophic fall of the Tiger? However, above the doors of Finn Barr's church there are many trades depicted. I think the one on the left gives a good idea as to what the Irish excelled at in the past under their English masters. 
Just a stone's throw from the hostel is the Cork College University, founded around 150 years ago. The great hall (Aula) is lined with many of the old text books used about 100 years ago. 

The Aula. Cork University

Its a fantastically sunny day today. Listening to the radio here in the hostel, the presenter was very upbeat about the next few days but finished with the fact that its back to normal next week. Thanks mate. 
So, made my way to the world famous Blarney Castle on a local bus. Just in case its not a bell ringer for you, its where the Blarney stone is kissed, hanging head down from the top of the castle keep.  

Blarney Castle

Emson has arrived

In Blarney Castle park

The surrounding park is pretty large with perfectly manicured lawns, some very large trees which tend to flourish here in the Irish climate. Come to think of it there are a lot of very tall Irish people too. Visiting these places can be a bit expensive but being a 'senior' I usually get a reduction. Not with price of cigarettes though. 9 euros a pack!!!. Glad I bought a good supply at Prague airport. 

One of the older bridges in Cork

The Last Day in Killarney

The Grand Galway Hotel

Once again I found a music night and managed to get to sing a song. The banjo player on the left, from Scotland could play a mean tune. 

Colourful shops 

Celtic crosses at Muckross Abbey

The Lakes of Killarney

Muckross House

Torc Waterfall

Even though there wasn't so much water, the Torc Falls, just near Muckross House looked quite impressive.

Just to prove I was there

When morning came I decided to hire a bike instead of going out to Dingle on the bus. The day was fine for the most part, finishing up warm and sunny. It seems that this is a really great area if you're interested in biking or walking. A pleasant day out. D

Hills beyond Killarney

Killarney, as you might guess, is the second most popular destination in Ireland. Dublin is the first but maybe thats only because its normally the place where most people make a landfall in Ireland. 

Inside the cathedral here there seems to be a recruiting drive going on for new priests. This might be, for one reason or the other, due to the numbers leaving. I suppose its possible that they dont have much choice in the matter in some cases, thats if the church doesn't bale them out. Looking at the industrial quantity of holy water on tap, it seems there is a lot of soul cleansing going on in this town. I wonder if there's a way of detecting if someone has imbibed over the legal limit. A halo appears - perhaps?

The hills go by the name of 'Macgillycuddy's Reeks'

3 views of Lough Leane

Today I walked along part of the shores of Lough Leane which is, I think, the largest lake by Killarney. Although this place is supposed to be so popular, I have been pleasantly surprised at the low numbers of tourists. This area has many attractions outside the town so there isn't the density you find in other places like Galway. During the hours of walking I saw no more than half a dozen. 

Ross Castle

The roof of the castle above the great hall

This is a bite size castle with a living space of a large house. Went on the guided tour because its only 3 euros for pensioners. Even hire bikes have a reduction for us old buggers. 

Daffodils along the way.

Ireland is renowned for being just a little wet so the foliage is lush, not to mention the huge creeper and moss covered trees. 
Not too sure what to do tomorrow but I have 2 ideas: one to go on a bus to Dingle, and the other to hire a bike and get some exercise. The bike could be the best option after the enormous meal I've just had. D

Good trip to Killarney

From Galway, the bus to Killarney went smoothly, albeit rather a long time. Had to change in Limerick, which is a place that  seems to have one claim to fame. I asked some people about the place but the only reply I got was. 'There was a young man from Kent, whose.........'. If you still dont know what I'm getting at, try googling Limerick. 

At The Fiddler's Elbow

But last night in Galway I managed to find a good pub where there was some music. The Fiddler's Elbow is off the tourist track so not very crowded and some great music. It was just like I was back in Manchester where I spent many happy hours in such places. Not only that, the songs were the same ones. I was among the guest singers!!! Sang a song I hadn't sung for about 10 years. Playing a banjo is like riding a bike but remembering words is a completely different thing. It didn't matter, they were still appreciative. I went with a crowd from the hostel and one of them, a German girl, sang The Galway Shawl which she had never sung before with words downloaded from the internet. Of course, a few sips of Guinness were taken.

Singing the Galway Shawl

I played the 6 string guitar banjo in the picture above. No problem to play the guitar chords.

Paddy's Palace. Killarney

Now in Paddy's Palace which situated near the centre of town. Took about 4 hours by bus with an hour to wait for the connection in Limerick. Nice place.

New Street in Killarney

There are some fantastic hills surrounding this town, so hopefully there are some trips to be made.

Galway Nights

Not very impressed! Last night I went down town to find a pub where I could hear some of that fabled Irish music. Unfortunately, all I found was huge crowds of pretty drunk individuals chanting those meaningless tuneless football grunts in order to make sure everybody knew that there was one of those much hyped games going on at Wembley stadium about 600 miles away. Every pub, it seemed, had jumped on the band wagon with the obligatory 52 inch TV, connected to a suitably ear splitting HiFi system. Not a chance for detecting the sounds of the tuneful whistles, flutes and guitars from the back room of a cozy Irish pub. Hopefully tonight a multitude of sore heads will allow this little Irish town to return to normal. I am not quite sure what is normal now in the quaint streets of Ireland. 
Anyway, its quiet on the streets today, though somewhat cool still. 

Galway on Sunday morning

Took a bus tour this morning to catch a glimpse of Galway. I suspect that there are lots of pleasant places to see around here but not enough time for any real exploration. 

the Spanish gate

 The Spanish Gate dates back to the 16th century when Galway was a favourite haunt of the Spanish traders. There is even evidence that Spaniards settled here. 

The days of the traders, and fishing boats, are over now with a harbour that is mostly used by private boats. Tourism is Galway's most important industry but there is also a large university campus bringing in some much needed business. 
The visitors to this town are so numerous in the summer that the locals call it the silly season.  Hopefully not as silly as last  night!

Sunday morning

Mural. Spanish connections not forgotten

A music pub

I hope that tonight I might get to hear some music at the above pub. Its Sunday and lots of people left the hostel this morning which is, I hope, a sign of better things. Still cold but the forecast looks much better on Wednesday. D

Galway by the Sea

Dublin. The Bank of Ireland is imposing, but pretty skint.

Dublin. The Ha'penny Bridge

Leaving Dublin, on the way to the bus station I passed by the huge Romanesque edifice of the Bank of Ireland thinking of all the head scratching and wringing of hands that must have been going on there recently. Then there was the The Ha'penny Bridge which spans the river Liffey. It was built to replace a small fleet of ferries that carried people to and fro across the Liffey and the charge for walking over it was half a penny. Its a cast iron construction was the way of many bridges in 1816. The original name was the Wellington bridge. Just like the monument in Phoenix park, it showed the Irish just how great Britain was. 

The bus ride to Galway was two and a half Irish hours which translates to just smidgen more than 3 hours. Irish miles are also somewhat difficult to define. It doesn't matter how long or how far because its all the same in the end. 
Maybe that is Irish logic but of course nothing can beat that old Gaelic adage , 'You cant get there from here' ?????
So now at Snoozles 125 bed Galway hostel, but in many separate rooms. Its bang next door to the bus station which pleases me immensely. 

As a hostel, Snoozles is pretty well perfect.

Tourists in Galway

The day isn't the best with the keen wind thats been afflicting a lot of Ireland for the past week. It hasn't deterred the tourists though.  So far Galway looks very promising and tomorrow will be a chance to explore the place. 

Galway. The old town.

Famous Irishmen

A Look At Dublin

Dublin, it seems to me, is a chaotic jumble of old, very old and fairly new. It was a difficult day dodging the showers and keeping keen wind out. But I managed to do some of the city with the help of a 'hop on and hop off' bus ticket. The missing parts will be waiting for me when I return in 2 weeks. 

Christ Church Dublin

The sombre distinctively grey stone is seen everywhere here and completely suits the equally serious Gothic architecture. The cathedral dates back to medieval days and also the choir school there was founded in the 15th century - and they are still singing. 

Inside the post office in O'Connell Street 

 The post office, in O'Connell street, is not any ordinary PO but was the place where the Irish uprising began in 1916. A large amount of this part of the city was destroyed during the ensuing battle between the rebels and the British army.

Another Wellington monument celebrating Napoleon's defeat. 

The great monument in Phoenix park is all about a British victory. I wonder if the Irish were as impressed as their rulers?

No prizes for guessing where I am.

This is just one of those famous Dublin Pubs

As expected, the tour of the Guinness brewery was just a bit more than I wanted to spend. Not only that, its probably the biggest tourist attraction in Dublin. I think Ireland is relying on tourism to keep it from sinking in the Atlantic. Although the weather is definitely not the best for this kind of activity, there are a surprising number of them about. Lots of Americans of course.

There must be a whole fleet of these things in Dublin.

  The 'Viking Splash Tour' is unusual to say the least. It all began when some bright spark decided to make something out of the fact that there was a thriving Viking settlement by the Liffey river a few years back. The idea is that the passengers ride along wearing gold spiky helmets while the amphibious vehicle takes a very short dip in the river. Well, whatever!
Cheers D

nutters