Not just a walk in a park, but like a cross between walking in a wildlife park and Greenlake in Seattle. Lovely day for it and the birds were having a party with all the bread being tossed in the water.
Tag Archives: walk
Monday Morning City Walk
The weather was so lovely this morning that I went for an early walk around the city. Early being when the city is still asleep (or still waking up fully) and the only people out and about are the ones cleaning up after the weekend. I am not certain if every Monday morning offers the same sights, but this particular Monday morning there was sidewalk cleaning, awning rinsing, and glass sweeping. It was as if the weekend’s fun was being washed up for a clean slate and a new week.
Until about eight o’clock the streets were fairly empty. But as the Shandon Bells clock hit eight and 12, the roads began having more people and more traffic. I did a little grocery shopping while out. A word to the wise: Tesco is empty at 8:00 a.m. They have a fairly priced grated cheese perfect for making my alfredo sauce.
Since it was the first day of school for the smallies of Cork City, 8:30 a.m. looked quite crowded in a fun excitement of Autumn way.
Lough Hyne
We hiked up the rocky hill beside Lough Hyne. The narrow, muddy, slippery, sometimes obstructed, uphill path challenged us, but at the top the view rewarded us. It was a clear day so we could see beyond Baltimore!
Afterward, we had lunch in Skibbereen (aka, Skibb) at The Fields market cafe. It is just inside the main entrance to the left and you go through the line to choose what you want then find a table. I opted for the egg salad sandwich and what appeared to be a donut (less icky sweet than the American donut though). They even provide tap water so it was a budget-minded and quick alternative to a sit-down meal. My sandwich cost less than three euros.
There were some cute shops in Skibb. Most notably is a little place just off the main street. It carries handbags, wallets, stylish jewelry, and canes. The entire shop seemed like it had my favorite goodies – no Orla Kiely or Jasper Conran though.
Bank Holiday
We walked around Cork City today, including the train station on the east side of the city. It was a decent walk with no rain. We also enjoyed browsing Vibes & Scribes new and used book store (music too). What a feast for the eyes and mind that place is! Needless to say, I left three books richer. Next door is a coffee shop boasting good hot cocoa – quite tempting. Have not gone yet, but have heard it is locally roasted coffee and they are originally from Seattle.
Kinsale
We enjoyed the final day of Kinsale Art Week. Music, art on display, and food stalls were just a bit of the fun. It was crowded enough we were thrilled to lunch with friends then walk over to the Fort and grab a drink at Bullman’s. The entire day was close to perfection and I feel SO fortunate to live a wee bit away from Kinsale!
From here to there then back, a walk around Cork
Today, we set out for a long walk around Cork City Centre, though not the usual lively shopping district we visit. We started to walk east through the City Centre along the River Lee until we came across a trail. We followed the trail to the Cork Cricket Club and Fitzgerald Park. We had a spot of tea and enjoyed the gardens in the park, then visited the University College Cork campus. There is an exhibit at the university museum which was a wonderful thing to happen upon – it relates to books as art! At one point, the docent even posed the question to the group (on a tour of the exhibit), “Do you think books will become extinct?” Since that was quite close to my undergraduate thesis topic (The place of the book in the era of the new media), I was tickled to get to learn more about it – and thought it was pretty neat that more than ten years after I wrote that thesis the topic is still lively. We walked home and passed Jackie Lennox’s where we stopped in for dinner. The fish (haddock) and chips are amazing there. The chips actually taste like potatoes!!
Walking in Cork City
Cork is a very walkable city, so long as you watch out for all the cars. Pedestrians are not kings here like in the States. And 99% of pedestrians do not obey the crosswalk signs. I have yet to understand when one knows it is “safe” to cross, but hope to learn. It also sheds light on the title choice for David Monagan’s book Jaywalking With The Irish (available from Amazon.com
In just one day of walking around town, I visited the Cornish pasties shop, Brennan’s Cook Shop, Devenham’s, Guiney’s, Tesco, the English Market (think Reading Terminal or Pike Place – only with more groceries and fewer places to dine-in). I set out to find a favorite butcher and succeeded! We purchased (raw) two large stuffed chicken breasts and marinated potatoes for dinner and as our purchases were tallied at the register, the butcher gave us cooking instructions. The meal was delicious and tasted like something for a holiday. The best news of all is that Tesco has jarred cranberry spread so we made sandwiches with the leftovers.
