The Zuiderdam arrived around 8am to the second and last port in Ireland…….Cobh or Cork. We actually docked in the port of Cobh, but the intended destination was Cork, a short distance away on a 30 minute train ride. Back in 2019, this port was also on our itinerary, but we had to bypass the dock and head for nearby Ringaskiddy (funny name huh?) due to the fact that a Royal Caribbean ship had taken our dock in Cobh. The entire area of this town looked mostly deserted except for a few dock workers. Boy, would that change later.
As we have mentioned today is a Bank Holiday, so we did not expect much to be opened. Some of our buddies booked tours, while some opted for the train ride to Cork. Cobh (pronounced COVE) has a population of 13,000 people and is situated in the Cork Harbor, which happens to be the second largest natural harbor in the world. Who knew? We suspect the first largest natural harbor has to be Sydney, Australia. This town is most famous for being the last port that the HMS Titanic left for its fatal voyage Trans-Atlantic on April 11, 1912. Certainly we all know that story. In addition to that tragedy, the Cunard liner Lusitania was torpedoed by a German U Boat 10 miles off the Old Head of Kinsale a short distance from here. Many rescue workers of Cobh (original name Queenstown) were fishermen from here. The Old Church Cemetery located high above the town contains three mass graves with 169 victims of that disaster as well as a number of individual plots. The Lusitania Peace Memorial sits in the center of town.
Shortly after we were docked, several coaches arrived for the tour folks. Discover Spike Island was $50 for 3 ¼ hours, while Cork's Countryside and Kinsale was $80 for 4 hours. Panoramic Cork and Jameson Whisky was $100 for 4 hours and Kiss the Barney Stone on County Cork was $110 for 4 hours. These days, we wonder if the stone is sanitized in between kisses? Anyway, other tours included were the Cork Cultural Show for $140 and 2 ¼ hours or Waterford City, County and Crystal for $160 for 8 hours. The last one was exploring Tipperary for $200 and 8 hours. Or take the train at your own expense to Cork, and do-it-yourself.
Or do like us and stay here. The weather was feeling and looking better today. It was cool, but not freezing, and although it was overcast, eventually some sun did appear. Sure made a difference with the photos. Remember what we said about the town looking deserted? Well, by 11 am, there were people everywhere. We happened to be docked portside with a full view of the train station. We watched as train after train of people came here. It must be a destination for locals to come here on a holiday like today. Checking online, we realized there were many cafes, restaurants, and pubs in the immediate area. Some were closed, but most were not.
We were able to locate the Information Center in town, so that was our first stop. Spotting us looking for brochures, the nice info ladies asked if they could help us. Yes, we did need help finding a Cobh map, which was right on the desk. Opening it up, the docent pointed out the main attractions, and suggested we go uphill and turn right at the main intersection. She pointed out St. Benedict's Priory, which happened to be used during WW I housing the USA Naval Corps that came here to help. These days this old historic building is a retreat area for a group of nuns from the Benedictine Order. There is a lovely garden terraced off of the hillsides named the Bible Garden. The gardens were opened, but the building was closed for the holiday. They also serve tea up here on another patio, which was also closed today.
Getting up to the Benedict's Priory was quite a trip. The street we took was as steep as a street gets without having stairs and is lined with a long row of houses called "The Deck of Cards". Each ornate house is painted in pastel colors, reminding us of the Victorian "Painted Ladies" of San Francisco. Directly across from these houses is a fabulous French neo- Gothic cathedral by the name of St. Colman's Cathedral, started in 1868 taking 50 years to complete. The main spire is 300 feet tall with a 49 bell carillon. The bells rang every 15 minutes on the dot. The interior has stained glass windows, marble carvings, and stonework. It has to be one of Ireland's most scenic churches. And the congregation just happened to be conducting a funeral as we entered the side doors. Several of us quietly stood in the back taking in the interior decorations until we saw the priest begin the procession down the aisle heading right towards us. We quietly left by the side doors.
From there, we zigzagged down the narrow streets until we reached the waterfront. Turning left, we did see the Old Customs House and an old tall stack, now abandoned, that was used for burning coal for power in the old days. We went past a tiny strip of what they call a beach, and a few restaurants like the Wan Fu, with Chinese cuisine located in the Old Town Hall. By now, these venues had filled up with people eating lunch or drinking many types of beer. We even saw signs posted outside the entrances that they were at full capacity. For that reason, we never did have lunch in town…not even a beer.
We went past the Spike Island booking and ferry departure, where you could go see the isolated island with 1300 years of history. It began as a 6th century monastery, and 18th century fortress, then the world's largest Victorian prison. It has been recently renovated and now includes a nice tearoom. The consumption of tea is also huge here.
The Titanic Experience shows what life was like on board that vessel and learn the facts that surrounded the tragic sinking of the ship. Also there is the Titanic Trail where plaques have been placed around town giving the history of the tragedy. You can do it on your own, or pay for a guided and narrated tour.
There is a Promenade Park also named John F. Kennedy Park which houses a bandstand, two cannons, and a grassy field for the kids to play. Today there were tents of souvenirs and a spot with two small ponies where the kids can pose for a photo. Many young families were there enjoying some take-away food and listening to the guitar player, who was very entertaining. To say this area was crowded is an understatement.
The Commodore Hotel, the largest in town, was directly across the street from this park. Getting closer to the harbor, we went past the Cobh Heritage Center and the entrance to the Cobh Railway Station. The Heritage Center told the story of Irish immigration, the famine, and also gave you a chance to trace your ancestors, and hear about the sinking of the two ships. The Railway Station provides a link to Cork and has been operating since 1862.
The cruise berth here handles up to 50 cruise liners a year bringing in an estimated 100,000 passengers and crew to the region. It felt that there were that many people in town today. We got back to the ship after 2pm, and relaxed for the rest of the afternoon. We had a great view of the activity on the pier as well as the train arrivals and departures. Nearby the pier, a bridge crossed over from the hillside used as a shortcut to access the train. A young and crazy fellow was putting on a show by jumping into the ice cold water from the top of the bastion. He drew a crowd as he hesitated to jump over and over. Sort of expected to see law enforcement come along and stop him, but it did not happen.
All aboard was 5:30pm, but leaving the port did not happen until well after 6pm. A local brass band had set up their group directly across from the ship and began playing music at 5:30pm. A crowd of locals had gathered, but as far as we know, Ian never announced this send-off was in progress. With every song they played, the crowd cheered. Even a few of the dock workers were dancing on the green pontoons floating in the water. The crowd loved it. We heard "Anchors Away" as we exited the harbor. In our opinion, this would have been the time to have a scenic sail away, and not at 6am this morning. With the sun shining, leaving this spacious bay area was wonderful. People had come out on the hillsides and watersides to bid us goodbye, leaving us with the impression that we were a big event today. Today's decision to stay in Cobh was a wise one….we truly enjoyed our visit. We were relieved that the band did not play the theme from the movie, Titanic. That may have been too creepy.
Now we have two full days at sea and will arrive to the Azores by May 4th. We have over 1100 nautical miles to sail and it will take a speed of 19 knots to get there on time. Keeping our fingers crossed that the temperature will be higher and we see more of that warming sun.
At dinner, we learned that Greg and Heo never left town, but stayed right in Cobh like we did. Barb had changed her mind, and did not leave the ship with them. Woody had gotten brave, and ventured out on his own since the gangway was easy. He did not navigate the steep hillsides because he did not trust his motorized wheelchair to maintain the battery charge. The local residents were very helpful with him when it came to curbs as not all of the streets had wheelchair access ramping. Our meals left a little to be desired. Barb had ordered three appetizers that were very good, but the shrimp entrée fell flat on its face so to speak. Not the least bit shy, she let our waiter know who brought Oscar over to see if they could replace her main dish. The biggest problem was that the food was ice cold. Nothing worse than cold rice with spinach and broccoli even colder. From now on, she has promised to order only appetizers and forget the mains. Then when the dessert arrived, and the frozen ice cream, yogurts and sherbet were half melted. At least Oscar was there when we were served the melted desserts. We knew the problem stemmed back to the fact that the frozen desserts had been brought to the counter on the heels of our main entrees. Of course, they were going to melt. From now on, we shall choose our desserts after we finish our meal and not before that. We do not relish complaining, but we feel as if we are getting rushed out of the dining room only due to the fact we have chosen the later fixed seating time of 7:30pm. In time they will get it right, but it should not have taken over 120 days to do so.
Bill & Mary Ann
