The Franciscan Well & The Music Building's View

'Cause What Pub Shouldn't have a Monk on its Sign?

Inside the Franciscan Well

Since tomorrow night I'm having dinner with Jenny and Finbarr, tonight was my last night with my friends.  We decided to go out to a pub that is also a brewery.  It was nice and quiet, which the three of us enjoyed.  It also had a lot of fun decorations, a lot of which were old posters for movies or the pub itself.  We didn't stay long because we all have to pack and do various other things before we all leave on Saturday.

The View on the Hike up to the Music Building

The View from the Music Building

However, one of the things that Montana had to do was pick up her paper from the music building.  Both Kayla and Montana had classes in the music building, but I had never been up to it before.  It was kind of a walk and it would've been a much longer walk had we been coming straight from campus.  However, it has an amazing view as it's up a pretty big hill.  I love looking at cities at night, I actually wish that I was flying back to Chicago at night because it's one of my favorite sites.

Beautiful Sky

Today the sky was gorgeous.  It had been raining, but it stopped just as the sun was starting to set.  It lit up the clouds, the sky that was peeking through, and the river with beautiful colors.  If you can believe it (and if you know me you probably can), these are only a few of the photos I took of the sky.  These photos are also my way of saying goodbye to a lot of parts of Cork.

Saint Patrick's Street

The River Lee

A Seagull on the River

A Beautiful Tree

Pope's Quay

Not Sure What this is, but I Liked it

Crawford Art Gallery

Crawford Art Gallery

So I found myself with some time to kill so I decided to finally go to the Crawford Art Gallery.  The gallery building is actually the old Customs House (or so I've been told).  I'm not sure I was technically supposed to take photos as two of the rooms had no photography signs, but the others didn't.

It was a fairly small gallery, but there was a fair bit of stuff.  Most of the pieces in the gallery were paintings, but there was also a room filled with sculptures and a few spaces with more modernist pieces.  Below I decided to include some of my favorite pieces.

Stained Glass

The Captive, but I think She Looks like My Grandma 

The Eviction painted in 1850 

A Recreation of Laocoon, a Sculpture I've Loved since Freshman Year of High School

Tasty Foods

Bailey's Porridge

Half an Irish Breakfast

This morning I actually got up (I normally sleep until the afternoon), but it was with good reason.  Kayla took  Jenn, Montana, and me to the Garnish House for breakfast.  I decided to try their Bailey's porridge.  It was very tasty.  I also decided to try an Irish breakfast.  However, I decided just to go for a half Irish breakfast.  I'm glad I did because it was still at on of food.  I discovered though that I actually like black pudding.  Montana couldn't get over what it was so I ate hers too.  It tastes like stuffing.

Then we headed into town and I got another hot chocolate (tomorrow I get a free one!).  I tried to add the photo but it won't appear with the right orientation.

Chipsy Kings & Dinner

Jenn, Kayla, and Our Problematic Chips

Yesterday I again felt the need to get out of the house.  So Jenn, Kayla, and I headed into town to get some delicious hot chocolate.  Afterwards we wandered for a bit.  We found a guy selling photographs and I got one of Dublin from 1968.  Then we decided to go to Chipsy Kings, a very popular place, and split some chips.  We got one plain and one taco beef.  Both were quite tasty, although the one with chili proved harder to eat as it was just served to us in a cone of paper, but we managed.

Our Dinner

Tonight Jenn decided to make us dinner to thank us for letting her stay with us.  Jenn goes to Wheaton with Kayla and Montana and was studying in Dublin this semester.  However, her apartment wouldn't let her stay for her last week in Ireland so she came to stay with us.  She made us gnocchi with sauce, cheese, and spinach and it was quite tasty.  I find that I'm eating very well this week, especially as tomorrow we're having breakfast at the Garnish House and on Friday I'm having dinner at Jenny and Finbarr's.

Student Center

Front of Student Center, Closer to the Restaurants

Since I have just finished my final paper for UCC tonight it seems appropriate that I finish the last of my posts about the UCC buildings.  UCC's Student Center has a lot in it.  There are two restaurants, a school supply store, a bookstore, a UCC apparel shop, and a small convenience store.  During Early Start I often went to one of the restaurants for a snack during our longer break.  Since the rest of the semester started I haven't been to the restaurants as much because they get very crowded.

Back of Student Center, Closer to the Bookstore

However, I've greatly appreciated the convenience store not only for snacks but for stamps (although those are now sold at the school supply store).  I've also spent a fair bit of time in the bookstore.  If I had an hour to kill between classes I would spend it browsing in the bookstore.  It has a lot of fun little things in it in addition to cool books like nice notebooks, cool t-shirts, and games like World of Warcraft Monopoly.

Still More Wandering

Oliver Plunkett Street

In my last week here I have a 4,000 word essay to write, but I'm determined not to spend all of my time sitting in my bed typing.  So, today I spent the afternoon wandering again.  My goal today was to find an old bookstore on Oliver Plunkett Street.  I did end up finding the bookstore, but it turns out I'd been there before.  The online description also had me believing it was solely an antique bookstore when really there was only one shelf of out of print books.

My Mince Pie

Before heading there, however, I went and got some hot chocolate and then wandered through the English Market.  There I got my first mince pie, which I later ate with dinner, from some very nice people who even showed me one they were making to tell me what it was like.  I also got a sponge cake that I plan to use as a reward when I finish parts of my paper.

Inside the Used Vibes & Scribes Store

I eventually wandered my way to all three Vibes & Scribes stores since I figured it would be one of my last chances, if not the last chance, to go there.  The used bookstore is definitely my favorite, but the new bookstore and craft store are fun too.

Lots of Seagulls

It was pretty rainy for most of the day, but as I finished up my wandering the sky cleared.  Although, it then filled with a bunch of seagulls because one guy thought it was a good plan to feed them.

Kinsale: Charles Fort

Part of the View from Charles Fort

The major part of my trip to Kinsale was Charles Fort.  It was about a 45 minute walk from Kinsale to the fort, although this, of course, involved lots of stopping and taking photos.  I wasn't really sure what to expect from the fort.  I knew that it was star-shaped and large, but that was about it.  The walk there was gorgeous, even if the last bit was a very steep hill.  The views were beyond worth it.

Some of the Buildings

When I finally reached the fort, I was struck by its beauty.  While it's in a certain state of disrepair, it was very striking.  I was also, once again, struck by how amazing the Office of Public Works is.  The fort is owned by them and because it's owned by the government I only had to pay two euro to get in.  This also included a little museum they had in the fort as well as an information session.

Some of the Newer Buildings

Me in One of the Fort Nooks

I spent about an hour just wandering the grounds and taking tons of photos.  Not only did I find the structures beautiful, but Charles Fort had an amazing view.  After I wandered for a bit I was heading out toward the exit when I saw the tour guide standing alone on the mosaic plan for the fort, which I knew is where the information session was being held.  I quickly walked up the hill so that I could make it before he gave up hope and just left.

The Mosaic Schematic

The fort has a very interesting history.  The star shape was meant to give better angles for the defenders to attack the invaders.  The walls were also between 15 and 30 meters thick, however, the fort remained the most vulnerable from the land side.  I was surprised to learn that it was used as a fort even in modern times, it was used as a training camp in World War II.  It was only attacked once, in 1690, and it actually fell to the invaders. During Ireland's struggle for independence however, it was set on fire.  This is one of the reasons why all of the buildings are in such disrepair, the other being that after the burning people would come and take stone from the buildings for their houses.  I found it rather amusing that in the 1960s it actually became a kind of commune for hippies.

More of the Fort Buildings

While the guide was giving the lecture I checked out the mosaic schematic and noticed that there were married quarters as well as a liquor store so I asked him about them.  He said that for a while men were expected to be married to the army and that it wasn't until the 19th century that men were allowed to marry, but only 6% were.  After considering that most of those getting married were officers, probably only about 2% of soldiers were getting married.  While there wasn't a school on the map, the guide said there was likely some accommodation for the small number of children within the fort.  He said that the liquor store must have been a later installation as originally there was only weak beer served in the fort, and even that wasn't a very old practice.  Although he said it's the reason why some Irish people say "small beer," much like we'd use the  phrase "small potatoes."

Kinsale: The Town

Some shops in Kinsale

On Saturday I decided to take a day trip to the town of Kinsale.  It was a bit of a chilly day, but it was bright and sunny.  After getting off the bus I first spent some time wandering around.  I was surprised at how many shops and restaurants were closed.  Although, I guess a fair bit of the town's business comes from tourism and December is certainly the off season.  However, I still had fun seeing all of the shops as well as the surrounding area.

Kinsale

View of Kinsale from path to Charles Fort

James Fort

Kinsale is gorgeous.  I know I keep saying that in this blog, but Ireland just has an abundance of natural beauty, and Kinsale is no exception.  While I didn't spend much time in the town itself, although I did find a nice little friendly restaurant to get a burger at, I kept taking pictures of it.  I got some great views of it as I headed to Charles Fort.  I also got to see James Fort, an older fort that Charles Fort from across the way.  I wish I had had time to see both, but not having a car meant I had a very long walk to Charles Fort so I didn't have time to make the long walk to James Fort.

Koko Chocolate Shop

After I returned from the fort I first stopped to check the bus schedule and found that I had twenty minutes to spare.  I was delighted because I had passed a chocolate shop on my way to the stop.  I made a quick run back to it for some hot chocolate.  It was delicious and the staff was very friendly.  It also made me feel a lot better as I sat on the bus in very damp clothes.

A Ribbon

Yesterday as I walked through downtown Cork I passed a tree filled with yellow ribbons.  I noticed a sign that said they were for people being remembered.  I made a small donation to the group doing it and wrote on my ribbon 'Victims of Newtown Shooting.'  When they clipped mine on they clipped it so the writing was on the inside.  I don't blame them, it might not be the most pleasant thing for people to see during the holiday season, but I had felt the urge to honor those who died in the shootings in some way while I was here.  Much like it was on 9/11 it has been a weird experience to be here when such a tragedy happened at home.

My Ribbon

I was very affected by it.  I'm not sure why.  Perhaps it was because twenty of those who died were only six or seven.  Perhaps it's because I'm missing my loved ones now.  Perhaps it's because of the acts of heroism that many of the school's staff displayed.  Perhaps it's because I saw my president cry.  Perhaps it's because it was the second deadliest mass shooting in all of our history.  Perhaps it's because gun violence and severe mental illness are problems that our country is not addressing.  Perhaps it's because I know those who died are only a small percentage of those who are killed by guns in the United States each year.  Likely, it was all of these.

I'm sorry for this being a very somber post, but I wouldn't have felt right not mentioned it at all.

More Pretty Photos

I took these photos a while back on campus, but I just thought I'd quickly post them.  UCC really is a gorgeous place.

A Green Area Next to the Main Quad

Part of the Main Quad

A Bridge by Gaol Cross

Gaol Cross

Sine Metu

So Tasty

Today Kayla, Montana, and I took a bus out to Midleton for 'The Jameson Experience,' also known as a tour of the old Jameson Whiskey Distillery.  When we first got there we just had some lunch at their restaurant.  I got a delicious chicken and bacon pie which was perfect for the chilly day we were having.

Then we gathered for the tour.  It started off with a video about the founding of Jameson.  I almost laughed through the whole thing because some of it seemed so ridiculous.  I will say this, the people at Jameson seem very proud to work there as this video portrayed the founding of Jameson as we would the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

The Yard Where Barley was Bought

The tour was pretty interesting as most of the historical buildings had been restored.  Since I knew next to nothing about how whiskey was made, I learned a lot.  It became very clear that the Irish were quite proud of the fact that their whiskey is distilled three times while it's only distilled twice in Scotland, and us silly Americans only distill it once.  Jameson is also aged longer than most as in Ireland it's only required that it be aged for three years and they do a minimum of five.

Me and a Not-Quite-Scale Replica of the Largest Pot Still

Lights to Show Whiskey Before it's Aged, After 3 Years, 5 Years, 12 Years, and 18 Years

Some other random things I learned on our tour:

1. Whiskey changes color as it gets older, this is partly helped by the tannins in the oak casks.
2. Jameson imports some of its casks from other alcohol companies as they like adding the taste of those alcohols to their whiskey.
3. Barley is combustible (so lots of windows had to be put into the malting area).
4. The tiles used for the malting process were so heavy that iron rods had to be run through the building to support it.
5. Barley had to be bought en masse.
6. The Jameson Distillery would be perfect for a horror movie what with the creepy mannequins and old, rusting tools and machinery.
7. Jameson puts its name on almost every product it can (but still not quite as many as Swarthmore).
8. Workers who participated in the malting process had to wear special boots to protect their feet.
9. Jameson has the largest pot still in the world (the building was actually built around it).
10. Whiskey used to be proofed by mixing it with gun powder.  If nothing happened it wasn't strong enough.  If there was a steady blue flame that was perfect.  If there was a loud bang then it was too strong to sell (but this meant workers got to take it home for free).
11. The current head distiller was born at the distillery in the distillers 22 room "cottage" as his father was the master distiller before him.
12. Jameson's motto is "Sine Metu" or "Without Fear" which I'm not sure is a good motto to accompany whiskey...

Bishop Lucey Park

Since last night we learned that the lights in Bishop Lucey Park were only on on Fridays, we decided to go tonight.  The Park was beautiful and it wasn't too too cold so I had a fun time taking tons of photos.  There was a place to send a letter to Santa and to pose in different parts of Drosselmeyer's toy factory.  There were also a bunch of human-sized nutcracker statues and a sleigh to take photos with.  To get everyone in the mood for Christmas I thought the rest of this post would just be a few of them.

I Thought They Said 'Happy Christmas' Here

I Believe this is 'Merry Christmas' in Irish

Me at the Bishop Lucey Park

I Loved These Lampposts

Of Course I Loved the Place with a Bunch of Green Lights

A View of the Whole Park