Our last port of call was Cobh (pronounced “Cove”), in southern Ireland. Sadly the weather closed in, and rain was forecast throughout the day.  Both tired after the last couple of days, it took us a while to get going, and we didn’t step off the ship until late morning.

View from the ship

The streets zig and zag

No-one could say Cobh port was inconvenient.  The train station was about 50 metres from the ship, and the town was right there on our doorstep.  Cork, which is Ireland’s third largest city, was a 30 minute train ride away, so we decided to start our sightseeing there. Plans to visit Blarney Castle were scuppered by the weather, as it was mostly the gardens we wanted to see.  Next time …

Cobh is on an island called Great Island.  To get to Cork, the railway traverses several islands, crossing estuarine mud flats and several small bridges. The tide was well and truly out. The council is spending a lot of money rehabilitating the wetlands, and birds are starting to return.

Views from the train

Tide’s out

We duly pulled in at Cork, where the station was much less conveniently located.  We walked to the centre of town through a semi industrial area.  On the way, we passed the subject of our quiz question.  There’s a prize for the first person to correctly identify the purpose of the building pictured below. On the ship, prizes are described as “life changing”. We’ll leave that for you to decide. And remember, it’s not about what you win, it’s about having fun playing the game!  The answer will be revealed in due course.

QUIZ question – what is this building used for now?

We wandered around the shopping area for a bit, had a quick Tesco’s lunch (then discovered several cafes  advertising GF food), and headed up the hill to Shandon.  The name means “old fort” and it was Cork’s trading centre in the 18^th and 19^th century.  Butter was Ireland’s most successful food export, and Shandon features a butter exchange, as well as several churches and other historic buildings.

Reflections in Cork’s Lee River

What the … how did this car get here?

My reason for going there was to ring the Shandon Bells of St Anne’s Church.  You choose one of half a dozen well known melodies, then pull the bell ropes that correspond to a series of numbers.  You hear the bells chime accordingly from the belfry above you. My first attempt was “Ode to Joy” but I couldn’t get the rhythm right, so I went for “Doh a Deer”, which was much more recognisable.  It gave my right arm a real workout, and I can’t see myself becoming a professional bellringer.  It was fun to give it a go.  I climbed up a very narrow staircase between 7-foot thick stone walls to the top of the tower, where I had a great all-around view over Cork. The clock, which is the largest in Europe, is called the “four faced liar” as every face shows a slightly different time.

Ringing my bells

Cork from the top

One of the faces of the Four Faced Liar

We took the little train back to Cobh, planning to spend a couple of hours exploring on foot.  Cobh was the departure point for 3 million Irish emigrants from the 1600s to the 1950s, including transportation of convicts to Australia, and the mass exodus after the Great Famine. It was also the final stop made by the Titanic before her fateful trans-Atlantic crossing.

Emigrants from Cobh

The predicted rain had largely stayed away till now, but as we stepped off the ship, the first of several showers fell. Undeterred, and clad in our orange goretex jackets, we wandered along the waterfront, where a seaside resort atmosphere prevails. There is a rotunda, flags, flowers, statues, and colourful shopfronts. It would look gorgeous with sparkling water and sunny skies. I particularly liked the “Navigator” sculpture of a man sitting in a boat, delicately holding a tiny paper boat in his cupped hands.

Seaside Cobh

Man in a boat, holding a boat

Cobh is set on a steep hillside, and the streets zigzag their way up.  There are stairs providing short cuts.  Traffic is light and you can wander along the terraces at will, admiring the views.  We made our way past rows of pastel painted houses which are the main feature of the town.  The colours reminded me of Venice – very pretty from a distance, but up close, you realise many of them need some TLC.

House on the corner

We emerged at St Colmans Cathedral, which completely dominates the town.  Gothic in style, it was commenced in 1869 and consecrated in 1919, so it is relatively new.  Its elaborate architecture includes gargoyles, pointed windows and flying buttresses, as well as a lovely stained glass rose window above the huge pipe organ. Inside are vaulted ceilings and rose marble columns, and a glittering marble and gilded altar.  I wondered how come a small town like Cobh could afford such a grand cathedral, which is being cleaned at a cost of several million euros.  Someone must have pulled some political strings back in the day.

Guardian

St Colmans Cathedral in Cobh

Interior splendour

By now it was raining in earnest, and we retreated to the station, where we hoped to use free wifi.  We’d just opened the laptop and established a connection, when pphht – no internet. It completely disappeared.  It was 6pm, and obviously someone had literally pulled the plug on their computer, and the wifi with it.

Having visited the three largest cities in Ireland, we decided that we’d like to take the time to come back one day and see the countryside.

Last Day At Sea

I don’t know how they do it, but inevitably the last day of a holiday is always warm and sunny, convincing you to sign up for the next one.  Today is our first fine day at sea, and the sun lounges are in heavy demand by those determined to get a last minute North Sea suntan.  We had a busy day of trivia, salsa dancing, eating, and (sadly) packing, before saying goodbye to our cruisy lifestyle.  It will be sad to leave, but it’s time to move on to somewhere where the floor doesn’t rock under your feet, and where you can’t eat your own bodyweight in chocolate mousse in one week.  I will miss the ocean views from our window, not to mention the double choc chip cookies, and the loo paper folded to a neat point.

A towel animal menagerie.  This is why I love cruising