This weekend a couple friends and I decided to take a day trip to Cork, which is the second biggest city in Ireland. Right off the bat, I noticed that Cork was a lot quieter than Dublin. For a Saturday, the streets were pretty calm and peaceful. Since we were only there for the day, we made sure to pack everything in as much as we could so we could make our trip worth while.
After waking up at 5:30 in the morning and taking a lengthy bus ride, we arrived in Cork and started our day with a walk through the English Market. The market was filled with a lot of fresh, organic produce. From fish to cured meat to pastries, there was a variety to enjoy. Although we did not pick anything up from the market, we had a really filling brunch at Lab 82. With our stomachs full, we had a lot of walking ahead of us. We walked up a street that was pretty much straight out of San Fransisco to get a view of the city. Even though I was completely out of breath at the top and burned half the calories I ate during brunch, the view was definitely worth it. Not to mention, the weather was extremely nice that day with clear skies to see all the houses and buildings.
Our next few stops included the Crawford Art Gallery, Elizabeth Fort, and St. Fin Barre's Cathedral.
Elizabeth Fort was originally built in the 17th century to defend the city of Cork but now it's open to tourists to see beautiful views of city while learning a little bit of history. Inside the fort I was surprised to see a couple jails cells which were used to hold women prisoners. There was a room with explanations as to why certain women were arrested. It was interesting to read that at the time women would be arrested for stealing spoons, cloaks, etc. In addition to all the history, from the fort you are able to get a good view of St. Fin Barre's Cathedral.
All the walking we did amounted to around 10 miles. It was nice to end the day at a pub, where I finally had my first Guinness and watched a little bit of Gaelic football. It was about time this happened especially after spending 3 weeks here in Ireland. For someone who is not the biggest fan of beer, I actually really enjoyed the Guinness. Our very productive day ended around 6:30pm when we had to catch our 3 hour bus ride back to Dublin. I'm sure we missed a lot of other things to do and see in Cork, but I'm glad to have been able to visit!
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