Holy crap! Last night we had a totally new experience we've never had in the 8 cruises we've taken. At 2:00 a.m., the ship was hit by a 30' wave. It sent our water glasses flying across the room, more water glasses in the bathroom crashing into the tub (but fortunately not breaking). I doubt I got another hour of sleep after that.
And here's my view first thing this morning (pic. 1). Not very nice, cold and rainy.
Cruising into port was absolutely beautiful, in spite of the gloomy weather (pic. 2 & 3).
After we cleared Customs, we headed off the ship to get our eCoach Tours to Blarney, Cork city, Kinsale and Cobh (pronounced Cove) with Butler Buses. We booked this tour off a recommendation from one of our Cruise Critic members. It was a great suggestion and we had a wonderful time.
We just drove through Cork city and Cobh to see the sights. Our first stop was Blarney Castle (pics. 4 & 5). It was beautiful and so well taken care of. After climbing to the top of the castle, I had my picture taken 12 Seahawks flag (pic. 6).
We shopped at the Blarney Woolen Mills before heading to Kinsale. I bought a 3 piece set (hat, fingerless gloves, scarf) (pic. 7) and Jim bought a cap (pic. 8).
By the time we arrived in Kinsale, we were starving. We got off the main street and ate where the locals eat, Fishy Fishy. We all had haddock fish & chips; Jim tried the local Kinsale beer, which was a light ale (pics. 9, 10, 11, 12). Everything was delicious.
We wandered around Kinsale for awhile before heading to our bus for the return to the ship. Everywhere in the world I go, this guy is always there (pic. 13)! Kinsale is a typical European town: very narrow streets, very little cars, little buildings all crammed together.
It was still light when we sailed away (pic. 14) from Ireland on our way to LeHavre (Paris), France. Cork has a memorial to the Titanic (pic. 15) since this was the last port of call before heading across the ocean. Back then, the town was named Queenstown.
Since Cork is predominantly a Catholic community, there are lots of Catholic cathedrals (pics. 16 & 17).
It was a long, cold and rainy day in Ireland. I'm sore and tired and will definitely sleep good tonight!
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