What you need to see Cork

At first sight, maybe you don't seem to have a lot of things you can do in Cork, but have a look how I spent a wonderful day in the second biggest city of Ireland. 

Getting there

This is not the easiest part. Most of the cities in Europe will have a connection via Dublin. I was coming from Brussels, so landed in Dublin in the morning and from the airport there is every hour a 3-3:30h direct bus to Cork. The company name is AirCoach, they have blue buses. It is best to book in advance but you can get in most cases a spot in the bus also without reservation.   

Start your day with Breakfast at Cafe Gusto

Breakfast is a great part of your day as you need energy to cover all those kilometers when visiting a new place. I loved the Crushed Avocado feta, lemon & mint on sourdough toast. I added a poached egg on top just for some extra protein ;). The coffee is good but i must admit that there are better ones in town.

English Market

"... a civic space, a meeting place, a thoroughfare, and a bustling social hub of the city. With its variety of products, the pride of place accorded to small traders, the personalised service, the growing emphasis on organic products and reliance on small-scale producers, it is forever popular. A mix of traditional Cork fare and exciting new foods from afar, along with longstanding family-run stalls and newcomers from outside, all contribute to its unique appeal, which is celebrated widely, especially by visitors to the city..." (Source) 

Ring the bells at the Church of St Anne, Shandon

"Climb 132 steps and see spectacular 360 degree views of the city" (Source) on your way up stop at the 1st floor where you can ring the bells, they even have the notes for the soundtrack in Games of Thrones. 

"The Tower forms a striking landmark, visible from many parts of the city, with its red sandstone (North & East) and white ashlar limestone (South & West). It is believed that the colours of the tower gave rise to the sporting colours of Cork." (Source)

Bring cash! 

The Butter Museum 

Did you know that "In the 18th century, Cork had the largest butter market in the world" ?(Source)

The small Museum has a few elements that were used to make butter back in the days and you can read some history of butter. What I found interesting was the video that explained how the KerryGold Butter became world famous. 

Bring cash!

River Lee

"River Lee is a river in Ireland. It rises in the Shehy Mountains on the western border of County Cork and flows eastwards through Cork, where it splits in two for a short distance, creating an island on which Cork's city centre is built, and empties into the Celtic Sea at Cork Harbour on the south coast, one of the largest natural harbours in the world." (Source) 

George Bool House 

"George Boole, for whom the Moon's Boole Crater is named, was a self-taught child prodigy who is considered one of the most influential mathematicians of the 19th century. His invention of Boolean logic, a system of binary values that condenses complex thoughts into simple equations, helped paved the way for the digital revolution." (Source)

"On a quiet street in the heart of Cork's Georgian quarter sits the house where Boole did some of his more important work while working as the first professor of mathematics at Queen's College, Cork (now University College Cork). Boole moved into the house on Grenville in 1849, and penned his seminal work "An Investigation of the Laws of Thought there." (Source)
Side Note: You can't visit the house inside, but can take a picture of the door :P

Cork University (UCC)

"UCC was established in 1845 after a long campaign for a higher education institution in Munster."  (Source) 

Some interesting Facts 
 - 1910 Mary Ryan was appointed as Professor of Romance Languages, being the first female professor in Ireland and the UK. 
- The stone corridor is home to the largest collection of Ogham Stones on public display in Ireland.
- it came into existance on 30 Dec. 1845 

You have a few points of interest within the University 

Crawford Observatory dates from 1880. "The Observatory houses an equatorial telescope, one for which Howard Grubb, who made it, received a Gold Medal at the Paris Exhibition of 1900. The Observatory also contains a Ciderostatic telescope and Spectroscope." (Source)

Lewis Glucksman Gallery "is an award-winning building that includes display spaces, lecture facilities, a riverside restaurant and gallery shop." (Source) 

Stone Corridor - "The cloisters contain a collection of Ogham Stones illustrating an early coded form of the Irish language. These are ancient gravestones, each one marking the burial place of a distinguished person in a Celtic tribe, a chieftain or a bard, and date from the second or third century of the Christian era - the period before Saint Patrick came to Ireland." (Source) 

Fitzgerald Park

Coffee @ Cafe Depeche

Saint Fin Barre's Cathedral

"William Burges was appointed architect for a new cathedral in 1862, after a competition for which there were 63 entries. [...] In 1865 the foundation stone was laid by Bishop John Gregg and on St. Andrew's Day,1870, the building was consecrated. The towers and spires were not completed until 1879. The cathedral is built of Cork limestone and the interior of Bath stone and the walls are lined with red Cork marble. [...] It has been said that St Fin Barre's may be the most coherent French Neo-Gothic style cathedral in western Europe." (Source) 

The Cathedral Labyrinth it's a place that welcome you to pause for a few moments and reflect. Built in 2015 the labyrinth is a single winding path without branches leading to a center. Unlike mazes where choices of direction have to be made it is impossible to see the end of the journey, labyrinths offer no choices and lead to a central goal which is visible at every stage of the journey (Source - info on site)

Elizabeth Forth 

"is a 17th-century star fort off Barrack Street in Cork, Ireland. Originally built as a defensive fortification on high-ground outside the city walls, the city eventually grew around the fort, and it took on various other roles - including use as a military barracks, prison, and police station. Since 2014, the fort has seen some development as a tourism heritage site, reportedly attracting 36,000 visitors during 2015. (Source) 

Dinner at Cask 

Street Art 

StreetArt: Electricity Boxes 

"Mad About Cork's electrical box paintings honour a wide variety of Cork heroes and characters including Cillian Murphy, Maggie Barry, Daniel Florence O'Leary, Mary Agnes Clerke, Ashling Thompson, Mary Elmes, the O'Donovan Brothers, King Joffrey/Jack Gleeson, and the legendary Cork band The Frank and Walters." (Source) 

Other Street Art 

When walking along the streets of Cork it is easy to spot street art around, here what i found