Tuesday, 23 May 2023
Welcome to Ireland

After leaving Ponta Delgado on Saturday, the Zuiderdam takes two more calm sea days to reach southeastern Ireland. Activities on board continue to follow the same patterns:  Jim McFarland's final two lectures ("The White Cliffs of Dover" and "Celestial Events"), and the usual eating and drinking. I will spare you the details for now, but I might add some food photos later on. 

So the blog is up-to-date, even if only for the moment, as the Zuiderdam docks in Ringaskiddy, one of the local ports for the Irish Republic's second largest city, Cork. We were supposed to dock in Cobh (pronounced as "cove), an interesting port which in the early 20th century was the final European stopping point for transatlantic sailings (it was known as "Queenstown," then). The Titanic sailed for its fateful meeting with the iceberg from Cobh. But today there is a large Princess cruise ship docked, and Cobh can handle only one ship at a time.

As the Zuiderdam sails past Cobh and the Princess, I have good views from my veranda that bring back memories of my visit here in August 2013 on HAL's only small ship, now sold to another cruise line, the Prinsendam. 

Instead, we are docking in Ringaskiddy, an industrial port across the water from Cobh, with very little of interest to the tourist. I am on a full-day excursion into the green heart of County Tipperary, so the change in docking doesn't really affect me. The best part of today's docking is that we don't arrive until 10am, so I can get a little extra sleep and have a leisurely breakfast.

[Confession note: although the top of this page says Tuesday, 23 May, it is already Thursday, 25 May and I haven't published this page yet. So much for being up-to-date. I have been very busy with full-day shore excursion the past three days and that has put me very behind. But I will catch up eventually.]

Shore Excursion:  Exploring Tipperary

The excursion coach and driver (both borrowed from Northern Ireland because there are so many cruise ships in so many parts of the island that there is a shortage down east--as this part of Ireland is called), circle Cork city and then head directly north on the motorway. There are many fine, new motorways in the Republic, all built with money from the European Union to help re-establish the Irish economy--which is now one of the strongest in Europe.

It takes about 40 minutes to cross over from County Cork through the short edge of County Limerick (which I visited in 2013), into County Tipperary, famous in song and story, The Irish countryside is beautifully green, with sheep and cows eating through the grasses. I am told that it is the Irish grass and the clear water that make her butter and milk taste so fine, and Irish whiskey work so well.

The first visit of the day is in the town of Cashel, atop of which sits the "Rock of Cashel," a magnificent medieval ruin taken over by the Christians from the original Celtic kings who moved here several centuries prior to the Norman invasion of 1066. The approach road provides a panoramic view of the Rock and its buildings. The remains of buildings on the Rock today date from the 12th and 13th centuries.

It is an uphill climb from where the coach parks that HAL labels as "strenuous"; it's really not that bad. Our guide takes us round the ruins and into the spacious remains of Ireland's first cathedral.

After the visit we have lunch at a pleasant restaurant at the bottom of the hill, before boarding the coach for our next stop, only a short distance away, the town of Cahir (prounced as "care"). Our primary visit here is the castle, constructed in the 12th century.

The town of Cahir Viewed from the Castle

Massive Walls of Cahir Castle, Outside (above),
and Inside (below) 

We head back to Ringaskiddy on country roads and rejoin the Motorway only when we get close to the port. I am back on board at 6pm, which gives me two hours of rest until dinner.