Kilkenny
We decided to combine a couple of stops into one blog post because they were shorter stops in Ireland. Our first one after Dublin was Kilkenny. Kilkenny is a medieval town in southeast Ireland. Its main attraction, Kilkenny Castle, was built in 1195 by Norman occupiers. To say there is some history here is an understatement. The grounds surrounding the castle are immaculate and since the locals use it as a park, it’s a great place to walk around. Inside the castle is fine but nothing that will take your breath away. Luckily an older woman randomly stopped us on the street and said she had already seen it 8 times and gave us her tickets that her hotel had provided. So we got to go for free.
In terms of sights, I think our highlight was the Cathedral Church of St. Canice. We actually didn’t do too much research and happened to stroll up here when it started raining and decided to go in. The inside of the church is nothing you haven’t seen before, but the history and how they teach it, is better than any church we have visited. Every church we’ve been to has tombs you walk on, organs, etc. but no backstory. However, this particular church gives you a sheet that walks you through each step in the church and gives you the history and not the watered-down kind. The kind of history that is almost like a reality show.
Our favorite bar and a must visit is the Hole in the Wall Bar, which is in fact a hole in the wall. The inside of the bar probably fits a total of 6 people and the bartender will tell you stories the entire time. They also just implemented an hour long storytelling session at 5 PM which Caitlin talked me into and I can say was definitely worth the 5 Euro.
Cork
After a quick trip in Kilkenny we made our way to Cork. I’m guessing that most tourists make their way to Cork to see Blarney Castle and kiss the famous Blarney stone. We decided to knock this out immediately when we arrived. Everyone we talked to and every sign we saw prepared us for an extremely long wait to see the inside of the castle and kiss the damn stone. Luckily for us it wasn’t busy so we got right in and kissed that damn stone. I would say any longer than a 30 minute wait is too much but anything under, then you might as well trudge up there and smooch away. With that said, we really enjoyed the gardens that surround the castle itself. The price of entry is an absurd 18 Euro which is around $20 but we thought the gardens is what made it semi worth the price of admission.
On our one free day in Cork we decided to take a train outside of Cork city center to Cobh. It’s known as the Titanic’s last port of call in 1912 and as a result there is a museum which is more of an experience as opposed to a “museum.” It was fun, and if you are in Cobh then hit it up but the word is, the Belfast Titanic museum is better. Cork was a little tricky because a lot of the sights are outside the town and along the coast and we didn’t have a car to get there. We enjoyed these couple of stops but some of the main sights are hard to get to via public transport.
