Charlotte:
Yesterday, we got ready and the nice lady at the Airbnb made us breakfast.
We walked about 20 minutes to get to a big park. We played at the park – my favourite part was the spinner.
Then we went to a museum and found out a lot about Cork’s history.
After that, we went for lunch with Daddy’s friend who works in Cork. He took us to show us his work after lunch. It was beautiful, kind of like a mansion.
We walked around the city. I bought a doll, a lucky Irish doll named Eileen. She has red hair. She’s so cute and beautiful and she’s wearing all green. Her tag says for me to bring her everywhere and she will bring me luck. So that’s what I’m doing.
Then we went to a place called the Titanic. Daddy wanted to go in, so we waited about an hour until our time to go in. It was pretty sad, but it was also pretty cool. Sam, Mom, and I survived (we were assigned characters), but Dad didn’t.
We went out for dinner. My for hurt because I wore fancy shoes and walked a lot today.
Sam:
When we woke up, we went downstairs and had breakfast. Then we went to a place called Cork. We walked around a lot there. First we went to a park, and then we went to a museum that was right beside it.
After, we went to get lunch with Dad’s friend. We went to his friend’s work building, and he gave us a tour. The building had smart elevators. When you scan your card to get into the building, it signals the elevator to come and takes you right to your floor. There are no buttons in the elevator because it is all down by technology. Dad’s friend called the elevators “lifts.”
Afterwards we went to eat some fancy donuts at “The Shack.” I had Gooey Mars. It had a salted caramel filling that was amazing.
Next we went to a town called Cobh (Cove), and we did the Titanic experience. It was cool but it was also sad. The Titanic experience is pretty much a giant building where I learned what happened and how the Titanic sunk.
After that we went and got supper at a place called Gallagher’s.
We enjoyed a quick breakfast courtesy of our Airbnb hosts and then drove in to Cork. We parked downtown and then walked a couple kilometres to Fitzgerald’s Park (which was recommended by our Airbnb host). It was huge and included a band shell, a fairy walk, a museum, a large pond, and a huge playground. The kids had a blast looking for fairy doors, checking out waterlilies, and climbing all around the playground. We’ve been to so many parks already on this trip that Brad and I having been calling it our Irish Playground Tour.
Before leaving, we popped into the museum, which detailed Cork’s heritage from Viking settlement to modern day. It was a small museum, but interesting enough to hold the kids’ attention.
We walked back to the city centre to meet a colleague of Brad’s (Andrew) for lunch. Johnson Controls has an office in Cork, and Brad has worked with a team there on a number of occasions. Andrew was very friendly and the pub he suggested (The Oliver Plunkett) was tasty. My potato leek soup with treacle bread was delicious!
Andrew took us on a tour of the office after lunch. Brad was so impressed by how high-tech and beautiful the building was. The rooftop dining and games area was a highlight, as were the board rooms overlooking the river and city. We met another friend while there – Maeve – who was lovely to chat with. My favourite part – there was a Starbucks in the building’s lobby! Ahh –
the joy and delight of familiar caffeine-fix. Understandably, I ordered a venti as I had been many days without my precious Starbucks… But wait! Alas and alack! The venti is the size of a grande at home! Oh the unfairness of it all! And to add insult to injury, the price of this puny pick-me-up was equivalent to $8.50 Canadian!! I guess it will be generic coffee for me for the next two weeks… 😖
Things started to look up, though, when we told the kids they could pick a treat for our afternoon snack. They chose a little shop called “The Shack” which sold gourmet donuts and gelato. Everyone was happy. I had a heck of a time deciding, but eventually settled on the lemon meringue donut. Great choice by me!
We worked off some calories by walking around some more and checking out the English Market. What a neat place to walk around in – so many vendors selling unusual items – the kids were pretty grossed out by the beef and chicken hearts, the tripe, and the trotters. They thought the many chocolate truffles and little red currants liked good though.
We went back to the car and decided to head out of town. Fota Wildlife Park was recommended to us, but when we arrived, we noticed only toddlers and preschool-aged children seemed to be there and the price was extremely high to visit, so the kids agreed we should go somewhere else instead.
We continued down the road to the town of Cobh (pronounced “Cove”). It is a beautiful little seaside town with a rich history. Most people who emigrated to North America on a ship boarded it here. When we arrived, there was a huge cruise ship docked at the port.
We strolled along the waterfront, checking out shops and listening to music for a bit and then decided to do the Titanic Experience. When we got our tickets, we were each given a card with the name and details of a person who boarded the Titanic here in Cobh on April 11th, its last stop before heading to New York City. At the end of the experience we would find out if the person we were ‘being’ had survived. It was very engaging. We all learned a lot.
We headed back to Cork for dinner at a lively pub called Gallagher’s. It was quite noisy, which surprisingly bothered the kids. I guess they prefer to be the loudest ones in a room… 😋 Brad and I had fantastic food – his burger was huge and I finally found a steak pie to die for! And dessert… Mmmm…
What a full day!
Sam and Charlotte take on the world! 