Ireland! The Emerald Isle is the fiftieth country on our once in a lifetime adventure, and we’re docked, of all places, at Cobh (pronounced “Cōve”), the Titanic’s final port of call before it met its tragic fate in 1912. Happily, I’m not superstitious, and besides, it’s not iceberg season and we’re not heading across the Atlantic from here.
As a matter of fact, our plans for the day weren’t to stay in Cobh, or even the much larger nearby city of Cork, but to head south along the famous Wild Atlantic Way and visit two smaller coastal towns, Kinsale and Clonakilty. We certainly made the most of our one day in Ireland, because there was a second excursion after that, but more on that in a bit.
I’m an early riser, and today I was rewarded with a pretty sail-in to Cobh, beginning with the Roche’s Point lighthouse. Most of the homes beyond were row houses, well kept and painted in pastel colors, but it was hard to take my eyes off St. Colman’s Cathedral, a stunning granite, gothic structure with a dramatic spire that has earned it the title of the tallest church in Ireland. I would like to have visited it if our day’s itinerary hadn’t taken us elsewhere.
9:00 am found us on a bus and heading south along Ireland’s southeast coast to the pretty little fishing village of Kinsale, which is a postcard perfect example of what I envisioned an Irish town to be. Charming shops and pubs, lots of pubs, lined the main street, many of them decked out in red and white, the colors of County Cork. It turned out that the All Ireland Hurling Final was to be held later today, and Cork was in it, facing Clare. While I may have had a vague recollection of hearing of hurling before, it was probably in the context of what happens after one consumes too much Guinness. Anyway, hurling is huge in Ireland, and the Final is much like our Super Bowl.
We had no particular agenda in Kinsale, so we did the touristy thing and wandered around town shopping and taking photos. Being well before noon, we resisted the opportunity to pop into any of the pubs for a pint, though most seemed to be open on this Sunday morning. Perhaps that was to allow the locals to get an early start in warming up for the All Ireland Final, but who knows. For me though, it was shopping, and in one wonderful shop I bought not one, not two, but three hats—my usual ball cap, a fleece lined, hand knitted ski cap for wear when we reach the Norwegian fjords, and a traditional Irish tweed driving cap. I didn’t know I needed the latter until I saw it, but it was love at first sight. I’ll post a photo of me trying it on below.
All too soon we left Kinsale and continued south on the Wild Atlantic Way toward the somewhat larger town of Clonakilty. The Wild Atlantic Way is a narrow road that snakes along the coast, providing some wonderful views from high above the Celtic Sea. We stopped a couple times along the way to take some photos, the first at a little peninsula called Cliffs Old Head of Kinsale, site of the Lusitania Museum and Old Head Signal Tower. The Lusitania was a Cunard ocean liner that was torpedoed by a German U-boat eleven miles off the coast here in 1915, killing 1,197 passengers and crew. From the same spot there’s a great view of the Old Head Golf Links, a private, windswept course on the very tip of the peninsula. Apparently a mere 500 euros can buy you a round there if you know a member.
Our other stop along the way was at the Timoleague Friary, the very picturesque ruins of a medieval Franciscan Friary that was burned to the ground by British forces in 1642. The Friary has an interesting history, and you can look it up if you wish, but for now all I’ll say is that the ruins are gorgeous and well worth stopping to view if you ever find yourself on the Wild Atlantic Way.
And then we reached Clonakilty, which at one time was an important deep water commercial port. However, that came to an end in 1755, and astute readers of this blog may recognize the significance of that year. A few days ago, when we were in Porto, Portugal, we learned that the entire city was destroyed by a massive earthquake in 1755 and had to be rebuilt from scratch. Tragically, 60,000 people died in that quake, and the tsunami it triggered was so powerful that it smashed against the Irish coast and silted up the harbor to the extent that today it can only handle smaller fishing boats and pleasure craft.
The town itself is a delight, a larger version of Kinsale, replete with colorful shops and pubs, many decorated with the red and white colors of County Cork’s hurling team. Spoiler: later in the day Cork lost to Clare by a single point in overtime, no doubt heartbreaking for the locals. Our first mission in Clonakilty was lunch, which we enjoyed at Casey’s Pub and Restaurant, an Irish pub so classic that it had a chandelier made of empty Jameson bottles. The meal was hearty and delicious, and afterwards we had quite a bit of free time to roam the downtown, shopping and taking photos.
Then it was back on the bus for the ride back to Cobh and the ship, though this time we detoured through Cork so we could view the city highlights. I snapped a photo of the Holy Trinity Church as we drove past, as I thought its gothic design was gorgeous. I’ll post a photo below.
We arrived back at the ship at 5:00 pm, and had exactly one hour to get cleaned up and ready to go back out, because today we had a second, evening excursion, a special one put on by Royal Caribbean exclusively for world cruise passengers. Irish whiskey lovers, prepare to be jealous, because the excursion was to Midleton and the Jameson distillery for a private tour and tasting.
Every drop of Jameson whiskey comes from this single modern distillery, which opened in 1975. We saw it, but our tour was of the wonderful old stone buildings that preceded its opening. Jameson offers regular tours during the day, so the guides know their stuff, and the tour was excellent and professionally done, beginning with a short video. The one modern facility we toured was the small specialty distillery, where Jameson’s limited edition, highest quality whiskeys are distilled. All Jameson whiskeys are triple distilled, each time increasing their alcohol content. These people don’t mess around. The tour wrapped up with a tasting of two of their higher end whiskeys, Black Barrel and Redbreast. I’m not much of a drinker, despite the many photos I’ve posted of me trying whatever the local specialty is, and I have an unsophisticated palate, so all I can say is that the Black Barrel was sweeter, and I guess the word for how they went down is “smooth.”
After the tour there was a reception, and we were each given vouchers for two drinks at the bar. The tasting was enough for me, and I was happy to use one voucher for a Coke Zero, and no surprise, I had no trouble finding a fellow passenger who was happy to take the second voucher off my hands. We were serenaded by a four piece band during the reception, which concluded with a wonderful performance of Irish step dancing by two young girls.
And that concluded a very long but fabulous day in southeast Ireland. Tomorrow is a much needed sea day, and then we’ll be in Cherbourg, France, where we have another amazing day planned. We’re scheduled to visit the iconic Mont Saint Michel, which I’ve always wanted to see. I’ll be back with a full report, assuming that I don’t get stranded on the tidal island at high tide, so stay tuned.
On our way to Kinsale we passed this old tower, which I thought was very cool, especially with a good sized tree on its roof.
Downtown Kinsale is postcard perfect.
One euro ($1.09 US) buys you access to a toilet.
Typical pub. Note all the red and white Cork hurling decorations on the outside.
A pretty little square in Kinsale.
Oscar Madison’s Bar. I wonder if Felix Unger has one nearby. 😀
Steps with a function and a message.
Down at the harbor. Lots of sailboats.
Memorial to all the sailors from Kinsale who have lost their lives at sea.
On our way to Clonakilty we made a brief stop at the Old Head Signal Tower and Lusitania Museum.
From the same spot you can see the Old Head Golf Links on the very tip of the peninsula. I’m guessing the relentless wind make the course pretty tough.
Our other stop on the way to Clonakilty was at the picturesque ruins of the Timoleague Franciscan Friary.
Clonakilty, where our first mission was lunch at Casey’s Pub and Restaurant. Lots of red and white inside and outside. I was kind of sad their team lost the All Ireland Final.
The back room at Casey’s, where we ate, has a chandelier made of empty Jameson bottles.
Downtown Clonakilty.
A pretty square with a monument to patriots who lost their lives in the battle of Bic Cross in 1798.
Guinness is good for you, at least it is in Clonakilty.
The post office in Clonakilty is a former church.
It’s me, don’t you think?
Clonakilty was the home of Michael Collins, an Irish patriot and revolutionary who was assasinated by anti-treaty forces at the end of the Irish war of independence.
On our way back to the ship from Clonakilty we passed the Henry Ford Tavern in the tiny village where Ford’s father, William, was born. Henry was born in Michigan after his father emigrated to the United States.
Across the street there’s a silver reproduction Model T.
The beautiful gothic Holy Trinity Church in Cork.
Welcoming drink at the Jameson Distillery.
Pot still at the Jameson Distillery in Midleton.
All Jameson whiskeys are triple distilled.
Display at the Distillery.
Water wheel at the old distillery.
Barrels of aging whiskey.
The two Jameson varieties we sampled.
The Black Barrel and Redbreast varieties we sampled.
Irish step dancers.
A very rare Jameson speciality whiskey. You can buy it for a mere 55,000 euros ($60,000 US).
Somebody turn it on.
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