Strong Beamish flavor

While visiting Ireland, it is worth going to Cork for a pint of dark beer. The strong bitterness of beer made from heavily roasted barley malt may not suit everyone, but the city has many other advantages for which you need to come here.

Cork is a large Irish city (second largest), with the center on an island between the main beds of the River Lee. It is located where the river flows into the Celtic Sea, and most of its streets were built after the river channels were filled up. In the past, there was a swamp here, as the name suggests, derived from the Irish Corcach Mór Mumhan (Great Munster Marsh).

The city is teeming with life and youth. It abounds in clubs and pubs, students and good music. Once a year, it hosts a jazz festival, as well as a choral and opera festival, which attracts the attention of classical music lovers.

City Tour by Bus - Cork City Tour

Anyone visiting Cork for the first time should consider taking the bus tour and learning about the city's main attractions on the Cork City Tour . The ticket is valid for the whole day, so although the trip itself takes about an hour, you can get on and off the vehicle at any time to take a closer look at something that caught our attention. A normal ticket costs 14 euros, student tickets - 12 euros, while young people under 18 pay 5 euros. Children under 5 years old travel for free.

Cork's top attractions include the monumental neo-Gothic St. Findbara was established in the 19th century. It was built in a few years, but the finishing works continued in the first years of the 20th century. Attention to every detail can be seen both inside and outside the temple, when we look at its imposing facade with figures of saints. The beautiful stained glass windows of the cathedral catch the eye.

The Cathedral of Our Lady and Saint Anne , also known as Shandon, is also neo-Gothic. Its tower is decorated with four clocks showing different hours (The Four Faced Liar ), and is built alternately of red and white sandstone, in the colors of County Cork.

The city of students and butter

As mentioned above, Cork is full of young people, largely students of the local university - University College Cork . Over 18,000 people study here, of which almost 2,500 are are students from abroad. The buildings of the university are scattered around the oldest building like planets revolving around the sun. The edifice is a huge, stunning building in the Tudor Gothic style.

Another place worth seeing is the elegant indoor market, the English Market . On the mezzanine there are restaurants where you can have a delicious dinner, and at the market itself we will stock up on local products. The covered market has a beautiful Victorian vaulted ceiling.

Among the many museums in Cork, among others, The Butter Museum (in the past, the city was the main supplier of butter for merchant ships sailing to the West Indies), as well as the Cork Public Museum and Cork City Gaol , a city prison with cells that contain wax figures instead of prisoners. The Radio Museum is located in the same building.

Camping in Cork

Tourists who came to these areas with their own vehicle will not have to look for accommodation for a long time. About 6 km north of the city is Caravan and Camping Park Blarney . For a day of stay (2 adults plus a motorhome stand) we will pay 24 euros. Access to the showers is included in the price, and there is a cost of € 3 per day to connect to the electricity.

This story cannot be ended without one more, very important topic. As we are in Ireland, you need to devote a few words to the beer. The famous Guinness Brewery is located in Dublin, and the Beamish and Crawford Brewery was established in Cork, brewing one of the best beers in the country. After visiting, the most interesting part of the trip awaits the guests, i.e. the tasting. Dark Beamish with a delicate, creamy foam will satisfy any gourmet with strong bitterness. It is worth trying it, if only because it is a rare brand in Poland.