There have been a lot of saddening images in social media and the press over the pasts few days, as Cork was hit by severe tidal floods. Everyone knew it was coming, everyone was waiting, and everyone watched it unfold, helplessly. None more so than the traders and business owners along the streets of Cork City centre. They blocked their doorways with sandbags, they bailed the water out of their establishments as fast as they could, but just as Canute could not command the tide, they could not stop the rising waters of the Lee.
The pictures that spread around social media of the destruction in Cork do not compare with the images we have all seen of New Orleans or the Philippines, but that does not mean that these floods should not be taken seriously. The flood waters have destroyed property, they have cost businesses income and resources, and they have bruised the vibrant centre of Cork City. But there is one thing the mucky waters of the Lee cannot stain and that is the resilient spirit of the people of Cork.
I spent two months in Cork during March and April in 2013, and I got to know the city and the people well, even in such a short space of time. But then getting to know people in Cork is easy because they welcome you from the moment they see you. Every shop you go into, every bank, every post office, every pub, everywhere you go you are greeted with a genuine smile and a “Hello, how are you?”
After 15 years in Finland, where over-the-counter banter doesn’t really happen, the Corkonian friendliness and ease was such a breath of fresh air, and it resonated strongly with the sensibilities of my northern English upbringing. There is always time for a friendly word, there is always time for one another – even strangers.
I loved it. I bathed in the warmth and hospitality of the Corkonians with their welcoming smiles and equally welcoming Cork lilt. I felt more at home in Cork than I have anywhere else in the world, and I have travelled quite a bit in my time. I made many friends during my time in Cork, and I developed an affection for the city that simply will not leave me. I miss the place every day, and I can’t wait to go back.
Now I follow the news from Cork on the floods, and I look at the pictures of the places I know, the streets I walked along so often, and I feel helpless and guilty that I can’t help my friends or the city I love so much.
So what can I do?
Well, I can tell the world about Cork. I can let people know what a great place it is and share my passion for both the city and the county. And more importantly I can let the world know that the floods over the past few days will not break the spirit of Cork.
Ireland sits on the edge of an angry and volatile ocean. Whatever the Atlantic decides to throw at Northern Europe, southwest Ireland gets it first – at that means County Cork.
Unfortunately, there will be more floods. There will be more images of ruined shops and businesses destroyed by the rising Lee. But what you will not see is a ruined people! No matter how high the waters rise, Corkonians will rise above. They cannot help it. It seems to be as much a part of their character as the Lee is a part of their city.
So, right now, this is all I can do. But if you want to do something to help, you can go to Cork and find what I found nearly a year ago – a city full of life where there is always time for a friendly word, no matter what happens.
Saturday, February 8, 2014
Friday, April 12, 2013
Make IT in Cork
We are now half way through our Ireland odyssey, and it is
high time to thank the people who brought us here: Make IT in Cork.
www.makeITinCork.com
That is the official line. But there is another side to the company, and of course the people involved.
The guys at Make IT in Cork have made sure that we felt welcome in the city. They gave us some tips on where to go and what to see, and even took us out to see some of the lesser-known places in Cork city.
But these activities are not just confined to Cork. The sister company running the country-wide initiative called “Make IT in Ireland” is also helping to bring IT talent to the Emerald Isle, primarily to Dublin:
www.MakeITinIreland.com
This journey began at the beginning of the year on Twitter,
and it's all my wife's fault.
As a PhD researcher looking into online recruitment and HR,
she had been following relevant discussions on Twitter closely. Over time, she
found that she shared many opinions on mobile recruitment with a man by the
name of John Dennehy, CEO of Zartis Ltd. the company that owns Make IT in Cork
and its sister company, Make IT in Ireland. They shared so many opinions, in
fact, that John invited her over to Cork as a visiting scholar in order to
learn more about what Zartis are doing in the mobile recruiting space. http://zartis.com/
We had been to Ireland twice before on short holiday trips,
and absolutely loved it, so the decision to come to Cork for two months did not
take long.
In all honesty, it took about 30 seconds.
But what is this company that invites people over to Ireland?
And why are they doing it?
Here's what Make IT in Cork had to say:www.makeITinCork.com
That is the official line. But there is another side to the company, and of course the people involved.
The guys at Make IT in Cork have made sure that we felt welcome in the city. They gave us some tips on where to go and what to see, and even took us out to see some of the lesser-known places in Cork city.
 |
| Cork Coffee Roasters, McCartney Street, Cork |
 |
| Siobhán introduces Anu to possibly the best coffee in town. |
 |
| The Hi-B Bar, a Cork institution, just don't answer your phone! |
They have included us in local social events and introduced
us to people, and also offered to help with day-to-day stuff like houses and
schools
This should not be overlooked. Moving to another country,
even for a short visit, can be challenging. But Make IT in Cork have helped to
make the transition as smooth as possible. Every time I needed advice or just a
friendly face to talk to, John, Siobhán and Ronan have been available and more
than happy to help. That kind of support is priceless!But these activities are not just confined to Cork. The sister company running the country-wide initiative called “Make IT in Ireland” is also helping to bring IT talent to the Emerald Isle, primarily to Dublin:
www.MakeITinIreland.com
Ireland is such a beautiful place, and the people are just
the friendliest and most welcoming in the world. I know that many an Irish
person must get sick of hearing that, but it's true.
And here's another thing that's true: the Irish IT and
Tech-sector is quietly booming even though the headlines talk about austerity.
There are more and more opportunities for IT and tech talent opening up all the
time, with no signs of slowing. Also, 2013 is a great year to come to Ireland thanks
to "The Gathering", a year-long celebration of all things Irish.
Towns, cities and villages across the country are organising their own celebrations
and inviting those who have left and those who have never been to come to
Ireland to enjoy everything it has to offer.
And let me tell you, it has a hell of a lot to offer. Come
and see for yourself.
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Cork Passport, phase 2 - Game on!
Well, what a response to my last post about the Cork passport.
There has been lots of interest in my adventures around Cork, particularly relating to acquiring sufficient points to get the passport.
Well, good news. Cork Rebel Week have finally conceded and awarded me my Cork passport! Not in the flesh yet, I hasten to add, but they have tweeted about it, and as that tweet is now public property, the passport is as good as mine.
They made one mistake, though. Oh, yes. A big one.
They assumed (they probably didn't, it just sounds better) that now that I had been awarded the Cork passport that I would just sit back and enjoy the view of the River Lee from my open-top Pope mobile as I drive slowly around the city waving at strangers, Queen-Elizabeth style, flush from my new honorary Corkonian status.
No, no, no, no, no! I am nowhere near finished. In fact, I'm just getting warm.
And I told them as much. And they took it as a challenge. And they tweeted it to the entire Twitterverse. Fair enough, I'm game - bring it on!
So, now we have the situation where I will attempt to get as many Cork passport points as I can, and anyone out there is welcome to beat me. Let's call it #Corkpassportpointworldrecord, which is a ridiculously long hashtag and I don't expect you to use it.
In the interests of fairplay, I will now publish my points to date, and I have to warn you (and the CRW people) that there may be some potential points here that were not included in the previous count because the activities are not explicitly included in the list, but I think they are worth points. We will let Cork Rebel Week decide.
There are a few other activites that I would like to claim points for:
As I continue my adventures around Cork, I will try to wear my red The Rebel County T-shirt as much as possible. If you spot me, stop me, take a picture and tweet it @CorkRebelWeek and @RobiBrooks with the hashtag #spottherebel.
I think anyone who does that should get some points. Cork Rebel Week can decide if this is ok, and how many points should be awarded etc.
Watch this space - this is gonna be fun!
There has been lots of interest in my adventures around Cork, particularly relating to acquiring sufficient points to get the passport.
Well, good news. Cork Rebel Week have finally conceded and awarded me my Cork passport! Not in the flesh yet, I hasten to add, but they have tweeted about it, and as that tweet is now public property, the passport is as good as mine.
They made one mistake, though. Oh, yes. A big one.
They assumed (they probably didn't, it just sounds better) that now that I had been awarded the Cork passport that I would just sit back and enjoy the view of the River Lee from my open-top Pope mobile as I drive slowly around the city waving at strangers, Queen-Elizabeth style, flush from my new honorary Corkonian status.
No, no, no, no, no! I am nowhere near finished. In fact, I'm just getting warm.
And I told them as much. And they took it as a challenge. And they tweeted it to the entire Twitterverse. Fair enough, I'm game - bring it on!
So, now we have the situation where I will attempt to get as many Cork passport points as I can, and anyone out there is welcome to beat me. Let's call it #Corkpassportpointworldrecord, which is a ridiculously long hashtag and I don't expect you to use it.
In the interests of fairplay, I will now publish my points to date, and I have to warn you (and the CRW people) that there may be some potential points here that were not included in the previous count because the activities are not explicitly included in the list, but I think they are worth points. We will let Cork Rebel Week decide.
- 500 for international travel documents terminating in Ireland
- 250 for pre-registering for my Cork Passport
- 100 for sharing a CRW status on my Facebook page or Twitter
- 500 for the picture of me with Pat O'Connell
- 100 for sharing a CRW update on the Pop the Cork page
There are a few other activites that I would like to claim points for:
- We are a family of five, so there are five sets of international travel documents terminating in Ireland. Does that equal 500 x 5?
- We don't have our return tickets yet. Any points for that?
- We have had one Finnish and one Irish visitor to Cork, neither had been here before. Points for bringing visitors to Cork?
- We have another Finnish visitor arriving this week. As above?
- My parents are coming from England to visit Ireland for the first time next week and are flying directly into Cork airport. Must get points for that??
As I continue my adventures around Cork, I will try to wear my red The Rebel County T-shirt as much as possible. If you spot me, stop me, take a picture and tweet it @CorkRebelWeek and @RobiBrooks with the hashtag #spottherebel.
I think anyone who does that should get some points. Cork Rebel Week can decide if this is ok, and how many points should be awarded etc.
Watch this space - this is gonna be fun!
Friday, April 5, 2013
The Cork Passport
Normally, of course, any regular traveller to Ireland would not need a separate passport to enter County Cork. But for one day, on the 16th October, visas will be handed out at the rebel county borders in exchange for a donation to various Cork charities.
Why, you ask? Because 16th October will become Cork Independence Day, coinciding with the birthday of Michael Collins, who was born near Clonakilty, Co. Cork on 16th October 1890 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Collins_(Irish_leader) and World Food Day.
In fact, the entire week of 14th - 20th October is Cork Rebel Week in Cork http://www.corkrebelweek2013.com/what-is-rebel-week, and forms part of a much larger celebration taking place throughout 2013 in Ireland called "The Gathering" http://www.thegatheringireland.com/.
The idea is to invite both those who have left Ireland and those who have never been to experience Irish culture, tradition, business, sport, etc and have fun throughout the Emerald Isle.
As part of the build up to Cork Rebel Week, the organisers have thought up all sorts of activities to promote the celebrations; the Cork Passport is just one of these activities. Here's what it says on the Cork Rebel Week webpage:
So, Pop the Cork decided to get involved.
Cork Rebel Week, or CRW for short, devised a point system for anyone who wants a Cork Passport. All you have to do is earn 1000 points by performing certain activities and you can claim your Cork passport. Here's how it works:
On 3rd April I quickly added up my points and discovered that I had 850 points.
I posted about it on the Pop the Cork Facebook page... no reply.
I posted about it on the CRW Facebook page... no reply.
I tweeted about it... no reply.
Damn! These guys are tough. They don't just hand out Cork Passports for free.
I needed a plan.
I went back to the points table for inspiration, and there it was: "Picture of yourself with one of the CRW ambassadors...". I looked up the ambassadors, and Pat O'Connell's name jumped out at me.
I have already spent a lot of time in the English Market, just because it's a great place to hang out and watch people (that sounds a bit weird), and I knew the place where Pat worked. Then it dawned on me that Pat was the guy in the famous photo of the Queen when she visited Cork last year (2012).
"Well", I thought, "If the Queen can get in a shot with Pat, I should be able to as well".
But I wasn't satisfied with just a simple photo of me and Pat. Oh no.
The guys at CRW had made me wait. They had lulled me into a false sense of security that I had some clout because they had retweeted and favourited my tweets a few times. They had lead me on!!!
Revenge would be sweet.
I decided that I should wear my "Rebel County" T-shirt in the photo with Pat thereby scoring even more points to take my total clear over the 1000 mark. But there was more...
A few days previous, I had heard of a special chocolate bar called a "Langer bar". "Langer" is a slang term specific to Cork, the definition of which I will not go into here. Nevertheless, this chocolate bar, named after such a purely Corkonian word, is only made and sold in one shop in Cork. It is the Corkonian Willy Wonka Golden Ticket of chocolate bars.
With this bar in hand, my rebel county shirt on my back and Pat O'Connell by my side, I would shatter the record for most-points-in-a-single-photo.
Alas, it was not to be. The Half Door Sweet Shop, the only shop in the universe to sell the "Langer bar", was closed every time I managed to make it there. Disappointed, but not broken, I soldiered on to the English Market.
Pat was busy at work when I arrived. I explained why I was there and asked if he wouldn't mind taking a photo with me. He graciously obliged, and we took a few shots. He was a great sport and laughed through the whole thing. I told him I was the Queen's cousin and that she said it was ok to take photos with other English people, too.
So, here it is. Perhaps not a record-breaker, but definitely a high-scoring Cork-Rebel-Week shot.
Those CRW guys must be wondering what hit them.
Why, you ask? Because 16th October will become Cork Independence Day, coinciding with the birthday of Michael Collins, who was born near Clonakilty, Co. Cork on 16th October 1890 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Collins_(Irish_leader) and World Food Day.
In fact, the entire week of 14th - 20th October is Cork Rebel Week in Cork http://www.corkrebelweek2013.com/what-is-rebel-week, and forms part of a much larger celebration taking place throughout 2013 in Ireland called "The Gathering" http://www.thegatheringireland.com/.
The idea is to invite both those who have left Ireland and those who have never been to experience Irish culture, tradition, business, sport, etc and have fun throughout the Emerald Isle.
As part of the build up to Cork Rebel Week, the organisers have thought up all sorts of activities to promote the celebrations; the Cork Passport is just one of these activities. Here's what it says on the Cork Rebel Week webpage:
So, Pop the Cork decided to get involved.
Cork Rebel Week, or CRW for short, devised a point system for anyone who wants a Cork Passport. All you have to do is earn 1000 points by performing certain activities and you can claim your Cork passport. Here's how it works:
On 3rd April I quickly added up my points and discovered that I had 850 points.
- 500 for international travel documents terminating in Ireland
- 250 for pre-registering for my Cork Passport
- 100 for sharing a CRW status on my Facebook page or Twitter
I posted about it on the Pop the Cork Facebook page... no reply.
I posted about it on the CRW Facebook page... no reply.
I tweeted about it... no reply.
Damn! These guys are tough. They don't just hand out Cork Passports for free.
I needed a plan.
I went back to the points table for inspiration, and there it was: "Picture of yourself with one of the CRW ambassadors...". I looked up the ambassadors, and Pat O'Connell's name jumped out at me.
I have already spent a lot of time in the English Market, just because it's a great place to hang out and watch people (that sounds a bit weird), and I knew the place where Pat worked. Then it dawned on me that Pat was the guy in the famous photo of the Queen when she visited Cork last year (2012).
"Well", I thought, "If the Queen can get in a shot with Pat, I should be able to as well".
But I wasn't satisfied with just a simple photo of me and Pat. Oh no.
The guys at CRW had made me wait. They had lulled me into a false sense of security that I had some clout because they had retweeted and favourited my tweets a few times. They had lead me on!!!
Revenge would be sweet.
I decided that I should wear my "Rebel County" T-shirt in the photo with Pat thereby scoring even more points to take my total clear over the 1000 mark. But there was more...
A few days previous, I had heard of a special chocolate bar called a "Langer bar". "Langer" is a slang term specific to Cork, the definition of which I will not go into here. Nevertheless, this chocolate bar, named after such a purely Corkonian word, is only made and sold in one shop in Cork. It is the Corkonian Willy Wonka Golden Ticket of chocolate bars.
With this bar in hand, my rebel county shirt on my back and Pat O'Connell by my side, I would shatter the record for most-points-in-a-single-photo.
Alas, it was not to be. The Half Door Sweet Shop, the only shop in the universe to sell the "Langer bar", was closed every time I managed to make it there. Disappointed, but not broken, I soldiered on to the English Market.
Pat was busy at work when I arrived. I explained why I was there and asked if he wouldn't mind taking a photo with me. He graciously obliged, and we took a few shots. He was a great sport and laughed through the whole thing. I told him I was the Queen's cousin and that she said it was ok to take photos with other English people, too.
So, here it is. Perhaps not a record-breaker, but definitely a high-scoring Cork-Rebel-Week shot.
Those CRW guys must be wondering what hit them.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Serendipity and charity
March 22nd was Daffodil Day in Ireland, an event organised to help support the work of the Irish Cancer Society and raise money to help them achieve their goals. Throughout Ireland, small pin-on daffodils were on sale and it was even possible to buy virtual daffodils on www.cancer.ie. The weather on the day was pretty bad, even for Ireland, but I was out and about in Cork city and I saw the daffodils for sale. I bought one, pinned it on my lapelle and drove home.
During the drive home, I thought that it would be a good idea to take a photo of the daffodil and to tweet it. I have been consistently using the #Cork hashtag on Twitter so that anyone interested in Cork can follow me to see what I'm up to in the city. I thought that the tweet and the picture might encourage the people of Cork, at least, to support the Daffodil Day event. I wanted to support the Irish Cancer Society because cancer affects all of us in one way or another; some directly, some indirectly.
My relationship with cancer has been an indirect one, but nevertheless still close to my heart. My mum was diagnosed with breast cancer a little over five years ago. Thankfully, she caught it early,
had an operation and responded well to treatment. A couple of months ago she was given the "all clear", I use quotation marks for obvious reasons with such a fickle disease. However, my wife has lost relatives to cancer, most recently last year, and I have school friends who are struggling against the disease every day.
Cancer is everyone's problem!
After a busy weekend that included a drive around the countryside outside Cork city and a day trip to Myrtleville, the photo of my daffodil and the tweet had been pushed to the back of my mind. On 26.3.2012, the Irish Cancer Society suddenly tweeted me to say, "Thank you for your support". I thought this was a nice gesture, and I was just about to tweet them back to say something along the lines of, "Your very welcome.", when I noticed that the tweet was only the first of three tweets.
The second tweet I had to read twice. Here it is:
Wow! I had won a Dell XPS 10 tablet. How cool is that?!
At first I was just really pleased to have won something and touched by the generosity of the Irish Cancer Society and Dell Ireland. As a Twitter fan, I started to tweet and favourite and retweet, as you do, and post about it on the Pop the Cork Facebook page. But then after the initial surprise had worn off, I started to think: what do I need another device for?
We already have all the devices we could ever need. Added to that, I am in a very privileged position in that I am healthy, happily married and I have three healthy and happy kids. We are here, in the city of Cork, having a great time meeting people and doing fun and interesting things.
Basically, Cork and Ireland have been good to me - I should give something back!
So, that's what I'm going to do. I will be donating the Dell XPS 10 tablet back to where this all started - Cancer.
I have only been in Cork for a little over two weeks, but the city and the people have been so great that I want the prize to benefit those suffering form cancer in Cork. I still don't know Cork that well, and I needed a little help in doing this, so I turned to the guy who brought us here in the first place, John Dennehy.
John is a native Corkonian who is investing in Cork and Ireland by helping IT talent come over to Cork, find work, and get settled in. His company, www.makeitincork.ie is promoting the IT opportunities in Cork and also Cork as a place to live and settle down. It was John who invited my wife over for the two months, and the rest of us followed.
John put me in touch with his wife, Siobhán, who knows a doctor by the name of Clodagh Ryan. Clodagh is a paediatric haematologist at the Mercy University Hospital in Cork city, and she will be helping me to donate the XPS 10 to a young man suffering from cancer.
I'll be posting more details in the near future as they become clear. In the meantime, have a look at the following who made this possible:
http://www.cancer.ie/
http://www.dell.com/ie/p
http://www.muh.ie/
During the drive home, I thought that it would be a good idea to take a photo of the daffodil and to tweet it. I have been consistently using the #Cork hashtag on Twitter so that anyone interested in Cork can follow me to see what I'm up to in the city. I thought that the tweet and the picture might encourage the people of Cork, at least, to support the Daffodil Day event. I wanted to support the Irish Cancer Society because cancer affects all of us in one way or another; some directly, some indirectly.
My relationship with cancer has been an indirect one, but nevertheless still close to my heart. My mum was diagnosed with breast cancer a little over five years ago. Thankfully, she caught it early,
had an operation and responded well to treatment. A couple of months ago she was given the "all clear", I use quotation marks for obvious reasons with such a fickle disease. However, my wife has lost relatives to cancer, most recently last year, and I have school friends who are struggling against the disease every day.
Cancer is everyone's problem!
After a busy weekend that included a drive around the countryside outside Cork city and a day trip to Myrtleville, the photo of my daffodil and the tweet had been pushed to the back of my mind. On 26.3.2012, the Irish Cancer Society suddenly tweeted me to say, "Thank you for your support". I thought this was a nice gesture, and I was just about to tweet them back to say something along the lines of, "Your very welcome.", when I noticed that the tweet was only the first of three tweets.
The second tweet I had to read twice. Here it is:
Wow! I had won a Dell XPS 10 tablet. How cool is that?!
At first I was just really pleased to have won something and touched by the generosity of the Irish Cancer Society and Dell Ireland. As a Twitter fan, I started to tweet and favourite and retweet, as you do, and post about it on the Pop the Cork Facebook page. But then after the initial surprise had worn off, I started to think: what do I need another device for?
We already have all the devices we could ever need. Added to that, I am in a very privileged position in that I am healthy, happily married and I have three healthy and happy kids. We are here, in the city of Cork, having a great time meeting people and doing fun and interesting things.
Basically, Cork and Ireland have been good to me - I should give something back!
So, that's what I'm going to do. I will be donating the Dell XPS 10 tablet back to where this all started - Cancer.
I have only been in Cork for a little over two weeks, but the city and the people have been so great that I want the prize to benefit those suffering form cancer in Cork. I still don't know Cork that well, and I needed a little help in doing this, so I turned to the guy who brought us here in the first place, John Dennehy.
John is a native Corkonian who is investing in Cork and Ireland by helping IT talent come over to Cork, find work, and get settled in. His company, www.makeitincork.ie is promoting the IT opportunities in Cork and also Cork as a place to live and settle down. It was John who invited my wife over for the two months, and the rest of us followed.
John put me in touch with his wife, Siobhán, who knows a doctor by the name of Clodagh Ryan. Clodagh is a paediatric haematologist at the Mercy University Hospital in Cork city, and she will be helping me to donate the XPS 10 to a young man suffering from cancer.
I'll be posting more details in the near future as they become clear. In the meantime, have a look at the following who made this possible:
http://www.cancer.ie/
http://www.dell.com/ie/p
http://www.muh.ie/
Saturday, March 23, 2013
Buzz of the city, calm of the countryside
OK, so we have established that the people of Cork are great; there can be no arguing with that now.
But what else does the place have to offer? People are very important, but there are other things to take into consideration when moving to a new country.
One thing that has struck me about Cork is how quickly you can get out of the city. Cork city centre is built on an island bordered to both the north and the south by channels of the River Lee. These river channels form a very real and physical border to the city centre proper. Sure, the city has broken the banks of the Lee a long time ago as it spread north to Blackpool, south to Glasheen, east to Blackrock, and west past the University College Cork campus that follows the road to Ballincollig. But the city centre is hemmed in by the Lee's north and south channels, which keeps it from sprawling.
The benefit of this is that it is only a 5 - 10 minute drive (depending on traffic) and you are completely out of the city and in the rolling green hills of County Cork. This means that you can live in an extremely rural location with everything that affords, and still only have a short commute to the city, work and shops.
Cork seems to have pratically everything you need from a city packed, as it is, onto the small island that makes up the city centre. This means that you never have to walk far to get to the places where you want to go. To walk completely around the city centre island takes about an hour, but in that hour you can find virtually everything you could want from a city, such as:
University College Cork
St. FinBarre's Cathedral
Cork Court House
Cork Opera House
Merchant's Quay shopping centre
The English Market
Cork Library
The Grand Parade
Holy Trinity Church
and loads of shops, coffee houses, cafes, pubs, and everything else you could want.
Cork feels busy and vibrant, but not crowded. The small streets off the main St. Patrick's Street are full of surprises and interesting little shops, and the narrow alleys have some great coffee shops and restaurants.
But when you've had enough of the city, drive out of Cork city centre for 10 minutes and you can enjoy the rolling hills around Cork, the River Lee,and the absolutely fantastic views over the Lee valley. The lovely village of Blarney, with its castle and famous stone, is only 20 minutes outside Cork (10 if you drive like the Irish), Cobh harbour (pronounced "cove") is a short drive to the south, and the beautiful countryside and rugged coastline of West Cork further to the west.
We live 15 minutes outside the city centre, but we are completely in the countryside. When I look out of the kitchen window, I can see rolling hills, cows, a farm, and the horse, who we have named Helena, looking over the back wall waiting for my daughter to feed her apples.
But what else does the place have to offer? People are very important, but there are other things to take into consideration when moving to a new country.
One thing that has struck me about Cork is how quickly you can get out of the city. Cork city centre is built on an island bordered to both the north and the south by channels of the River Lee. These river channels form a very real and physical border to the city centre proper. Sure, the city has broken the banks of the Lee a long time ago as it spread north to Blackpool, south to Glasheen, east to Blackrock, and west past the University College Cork campus that follows the road to Ballincollig. But the city centre is hemmed in by the Lee's north and south channels, which keeps it from sprawling.
The benefit of this is that it is only a 5 - 10 minute drive (depending on traffic) and you are completely out of the city and in the rolling green hills of County Cork. This means that you can live in an extremely rural location with everything that affords, and still only have a short commute to the city, work and shops.
Cork seems to have pratically everything you need from a city packed, as it is, onto the small island that makes up the city centre. This means that you never have to walk far to get to the places where you want to go. To walk completely around the city centre island takes about an hour, but in that hour you can find virtually everything you could want from a city, such as:
University College Cork
St. FinBarre's Cathedral
Cork Court House
Cork Opera House
Merchant's Quay shopping centre
The English Market
Cork Library
The Grand Parade
Holy Trinity Church
and loads of shops, coffee houses, cafes, pubs, and everything else you could want.
Cork feels busy and vibrant, but not crowded. The small streets off the main St. Patrick's Street are full of surprises and interesting little shops, and the narrow alleys have some great coffee shops and restaurants.
But when you've had enough of the city, drive out of Cork city centre for 10 minutes and you can enjoy the rolling hills around Cork, the River Lee,and the absolutely fantastic views over the Lee valley. The lovely village of Blarney, with its castle and famous stone, is only 20 minutes outside Cork (10 if you drive like the Irish), Cobh harbour (pronounced "cove") is a short drive to the south, and the beautiful countryside and rugged coastline of West Cork further to the west.
We live 15 minutes outside the city centre, but we are completely in the countryside. When I look out of the kitchen window, I can see rolling hills, cows, a farm, and the horse, who we have named Helena, looking over the back wall waiting for my daughter to feed her apples.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
World Poetry Day in Cork
In honour of World Poetry Day, a little poem inspired by Cork:
The City of Cork.
The River Lee, as she flowed to the sea,
couldn't decide on which side to be.
So she split down the middle to flow for a while
in two seperate channels for roughly a mile.
And as she rejoined, she turned to look
at what had happened to the path she had took.
And, lo and behold, on the island she'd made,
a city had grown of a rebelious shade.
The City of Cork.
The River Lee, as she flowed to the sea,
couldn't decide on which side to be.
So she split down the middle to flow for a while
in two seperate channels for roughly a mile.
And as she rejoined, she turned to look
at what had happened to the path she had took.
And, lo and behold, on the island she'd made,
a city had grown of a rebelious shade.
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Do you take VISA?
Life in Finland is extremely online and connected. But then, you might expect as much from the country that brought the world Nokia phones and Angry Birds.
But it's not just mobile technology that is ubiquitous in the land of a thousand lakes (actually there's about 300 000 depending on who is counting), payment technology is also everywhere. You can pay for anything anywhere with a card, and, more and more, you can pay for stuff with your mobile phone.
In many cases this has resulted in a cash-free wallet. You simply don't need cash in most places, so why carry it around with you?
I have lived in Finland through this change toward a more cash-free society, and have become accustomed to it. The result is, my wallet is still very much cash free, although often for reasons related more to my three kids.
"But this is a blog about Cork", I hear the frustrated reader cry, so why am I telling you this stuff about Finland? Well, like any good narrative, I have to set the scene.
At the end of Paddy's Day, we decided to pop into the local pub for a couple of sneaky shandies. The village where we are renting the house consists of just a few houses and a pub, so basically an average Irish village. I had cash to buy a drink for myself and my wife, but not enough for a second round. "No worries", I thought, "I'll pay with my card".
"They do take cards here, don't they?", I asked the mother of my daughter's classmate.
After she had stopped laughing, she told me that they have probably never seen cards in this particular pub. My mind was taken back to the first day of looking for shops and footpaths, "No cash machines within 5 miles either", I remembered audibly.
"Oh well, we'll have to do without", I said to my wife, when another parent from my daughter's class handed over 50 euros, wished us a Happy St. Patrick's Day, and said, "Pay me back later."
I was a bit shocked, but did not want to appear rude in the face of such sobering generosity.
"Thank you, I will", I said, and I took the money.
"Thirty days' baby sitting", came the follow-up quip, and we laughed, enjoyed a few more drinks, and had a great night.
There have been very few times in my life that I have experienced such generosity and warmth. To the more cynical reader, the offer of money to a stranger so that their first St. Patrick's Day in Ireland is not spoiled may not seem quite as noble as I make out, but think again. My generous neighbour wanted to make sure that the two foreigners who had made the effort to travel to his country, and were obviously unfamiliar with the local way of doing things, would have a memorable St. Patrick's Day and enjoy it as long as they wanted to rather than have it cut short by a simple lack of understanding of how things work. In essence, he wanted to ensure that our first impressions of him, his village, and his country and culture were positive and would be remembered.
He succeeded in doing just that! We will never forget that night or him and his generosity.
Incidentally, he got his money back, yesterday over a cup of tea while our daughters played together at their house, and the adults swapped stories of Ireland, Finland, and England.
These are not fleeting friendships. This place gets under your skin.
But it's not just mobile technology that is ubiquitous in the land of a thousand lakes (actually there's about 300 000 depending on who is counting), payment technology is also everywhere. You can pay for anything anywhere with a card, and, more and more, you can pay for stuff with your mobile phone.
In many cases this has resulted in a cash-free wallet. You simply don't need cash in most places, so why carry it around with you?
I have lived in Finland through this change toward a more cash-free society, and have become accustomed to it. The result is, my wallet is still very much cash free, although often for reasons related more to my three kids.
"But this is a blog about Cork", I hear the frustrated reader cry, so why am I telling you this stuff about Finland? Well, like any good narrative, I have to set the scene.
At the end of Paddy's Day, we decided to pop into the local pub for a couple of sneaky shandies. The village where we are renting the house consists of just a few houses and a pub, so basically an average Irish village. I had cash to buy a drink for myself and my wife, but not enough for a second round. "No worries", I thought, "I'll pay with my card".
"They do take cards here, don't they?", I asked the mother of my daughter's classmate.
After she had stopped laughing, she told me that they have probably never seen cards in this particular pub. My mind was taken back to the first day of looking for shops and footpaths, "No cash machines within 5 miles either", I remembered audibly.
"Oh well, we'll have to do without", I said to my wife, when another parent from my daughter's class handed over 50 euros, wished us a Happy St. Patrick's Day, and said, "Pay me back later."
I was a bit shocked, but did not want to appear rude in the face of such sobering generosity.
"Thank you, I will", I said, and I took the money.
"Thirty days' baby sitting", came the follow-up quip, and we laughed, enjoyed a few more drinks, and had a great night.
There have been very few times in my life that I have experienced such generosity and warmth. To the more cynical reader, the offer of money to a stranger so that their first St. Patrick's Day in Ireland is not spoiled may not seem quite as noble as I make out, but think again. My generous neighbour wanted to make sure that the two foreigners who had made the effort to travel to his country, and were obviously unfamiliar with the local way of doing things, would have a memorable St. Patrick's Day and enjoy it as long as they wanted to rather than have it cut short by a simple lack of understanding of how things work. In essence, he wanted to ensure that our first impressions of him, his village, and his country and culture were positive and would be remembered.
He succeeded in doing just that! We will never forget that night or him and his generosity.
Incidentally, he got his money back, yesterday over a cup of tea while our daughters played together at their house, and the adults swapped stories of Ireland, Finland, and England.
These are not fleeting friendships. This place gets under your skin.
Monday, March 18, 2013
Paddy's weekend
Our first St. Patrick's Day weekend in Ireland started with a birthday party.
My daughter's classmate had a party just outside Cork in an indoor adventure playground. Basically, a huge steel box filled with padded climbing frames, slides, and about 300 sugar-powered kids and 600 caffeine-powered parents. It's a kind of extreme full-on, full-contact family sport that would scare away even the hardiest base-jumping twenty-something.
As my fellow parent, Michael, said, "The climbing frames are padded, but the kids aren't. It should be the other way round." I had to agree. I've seen rugby matches with less injuries. Despite the dangerously high decibel levels and soft-tissue injuries, the kids loved it and it was a good opportunity to meet other parents.
Considering we have only lived here for a week, we have been made to feel so welcome by the people of Cork and its surroundings that I find it hard to describe. I feel as though I have been here for much longer and known these people for much longer than what is basically just a few days. I really like it here; I feel as if I could easily stay for much longer.
After the noise and chaos of the party, we decided to make the most of the day by driving down to Kinsale, about 30km south of Cork. Kinsale had been recommended to us by another parent as a lovely harbour town with good pub grub and great scenery. It did not disappoint.
Kinsale is like the perfect picture postcard of a quaint and historic harbour town where the hills and headlands come rolling down to soak their rugged rocky feet in the sea. The northern shoreline of Summercove is lined with houses that have been built right up to the edge of the rocks, and if you want to watch the sunset with a pint of Guinness or a glass of wine, nothing can beat the Bulman pub.
Just a few hundred metres up the hill from the Bulman is Charles Fort, described as, "one of the finest examples of a 17th century fortification in Ireland".
It is a very impressive star-shaped fort built to suit the topography of the headland upon which sits and has been associated with key events in Irish history. We spent a couple of hours wandering around the ruins that seem frozen in time, as if the Spanish army had left only a few decades ago rather than a few centuries. The fort dominates the entrance to Kinsale harbour and overlooks the earlier James's fort on the opposite headland.
To end the day we took a walk along the headland heading south away from Charles fort and were treated with a surprise appearance by a seal. Its head just above the surface of the water, it floated there for a while observing us as we tried excitedly not to make too much noise, and then it disappeared. As the sun set the mist rolled in on a wonderful day in Kinsale.
March 17th, St. Patrick's Day
The tradition seems to be that there is a parade in every town and village across the land, so we were spoiled for choice. Within a few miles' radius we could choose from Cork, Ballincollig or Blarney. Cork looked like it would be absolutely crazy and probably not that much fun for the kids, and we also considered Blarney, but we ended up watching the parade in Ballincollig.
We got there early with our green hats and scarves and, at first, stood out a bit. Everyone else seemed to be dressed normally, and I began to think that we had been fooled into believing that the locals get dressed up for Paddy's Day. It crossed my mind that maybe it's just the foreigners and visitors that wear all the silly hats and paint their faces.
I began to feel a little better when I noticed the stalls with all kinds of foods and St. Patrick's Day-related bits and bobs. Virtually everything was green or had something green on it. But the people working on the stalls still didn't look very Paddy'ed up.
Great - spot the English bloke trying to fit in and looking like a right plonker with his sparkly green shamrock hat.
But not to worry, slowly the locals started to appear and the town centre became ever more green, and pretty soon there were plenty of people with sparkly green shamrock hats and Irish flags and scarves and painted faces and, my particular favourite, a huge felt hat with the green, white and orange of Ireland that said, "Who's your Paddy?". Yep, everyone was Paddy'ed up.
The parade took up the entire main street in Ballincollig and was a procession of the local clubs and associations, as well as some of the local businesses that had helped to sponsor the event.
The clubs ranged from vintage cars to Taekwon Do, and basketball to hurling. Everyone who took part in the parade made a really big effort by dressing up either in St. Patrick's Day fancy dress or in their particular club's kit. The local Taekwon Do Club put on an exhibition in the middle of the street
with fully-padded youngsters kicking each other to the applause of the crowd. The local dance club performed their own number, also to loud applause, and there was a procession of classic cars as well as much more.
The weather was, well, Irish, which means it changed every other minute, but the crowed stayed until the end and showed their support for the community.
All in all, a really good experience and a nice day for the family.
The evening turned out to be a bit wet (in the bar) with plenty of people drinking this strange black liquid that seems to be rather popular over here.
Sláinte!
My daughter's classmate had a party just outside Cork in an indoor adventure playground. Basically, a huge steel box filled with padded climbing frames, slides, and about 300 sugar-powered kids and 600 caffeine-powered parents. It's a kind of extreme full-on, full-contact family sport that would scare away even the hardiest base-jumping twenty-something.
As my fellow parent, Michael, said, "The climbing frames are padded, but the kids aren't. It should be the other way round." I had to agree. I've seen rugby matches with less injuries. Despite the dangerously high decibel levels and soft-tissue injuries, the kids loved it and it was a good opportunity to meet other parents.
Considering we have only lived here for a week, we have been made to feel so welcome by the people of Cork and its surroundings that I find it hard to describe. I feel as though I have been here for much longer and known these people for much longer than what is basically just a few days. I really like it here; I feel as if I could easily stay for much longer.
After the noise and chaos of the party, we decided to make the most of the day by driving down to Kinsale, about 30km south of Cork. Kinsale had been recommended to us by another parent as a lovely harbour town with good pub grub and great scenery. It did not disappoint.
Kinsale is like the perfect picture postcard of a quaint and historic harbour town where the hills and headlands come rolling down to soak their rugged rocky feet in the sea. The northern shoreline of Summercove is lined with houses that have been built right up to the edge of the rocks, and if you want to watch the sunset with a pint of Guinness or a glass of wine, nothing can beat the Bulman pub.
Just a few hundred metres up the hill from the Bulman is Charles Fort, described as, "one of the finest examples of a 17th century fortification in Ireland".
It is a very impressive star-shaped fort built to suit the topography of the headland upon which sits and has been associated with key events in Irish history. We spent a couple of hours wandering around the ruins that seem frozen in time, as if the Spanish army had left only a few decades ago rather than a few centuries. The fort dominates the entrance to Kinsale harbour and overlooks the earlier James's fort on the opposite headland.
To end the day we took a walk along the headland heading south away from Charles fort and were treated with a surprise appearance by a seal. Its head just above the surface of the water, it floated there for a while observing us as we tried excitedly not to make too much noise, and then it disappeared. As the sun set the mist rolled in on a wonderful day in Kinsale.
March 17th, St. Patrick's Day
The tradition seems to be that there is a parade in every town and village across the land, so we were spoiled for choice. Within a few miles' radius we could choose from Cork, Ballincollig or Blarney. Cork looked like it would be absolutely crazy and probably not that much fun for the kids, and we also considered Blarney, but we ended up watching the parade in Ballincollig.
We got there early with our green hats and scarves and, at first, stood out a bit. Everyone else seemed to be dressed normally, and I began to think that we had been fooled into believing that the locals get dressed up for Paddy's Day. It crossed my mind that maybe it's just the foreigners and visitors that wear all the silly hats and paint their faces.
I began to feel a little better when I noticed the stalls with all kinds of foods and St. Patrick's Day-related bits and bobs. Virtually everything was green or had something green on it. But the people working on the stalls still didn't look very Paddy'ed up.
Great - spot the English bloke trying to fit in and looking like a right plonker with his sparkly green shamrock hat.
But not to worry, slowly the locals started to appear and the town centre became ever more green, and pretty soon there were plenty of people with sparkly green shamrock hats and Irish flags and scarves and painted faces and, my particular favourite, a huge felt hat with the green, white and orange of Ireland that said, "Who's your Paddy?". Yep, everyone was Paddy'ed up.
The parade took up the entire main street in Ballincollig and was a procession of the local clubs and associations, as well as some of the local businesses that had helped to sponsor the event.
The clubs ranged from vintage cars to Taekwon Do, and basketball to hurling. Everyone who took part in the parade made a really big effort by dressing up either in St. Patrick's Day fancy dress or in their particular club's kit. The local Taekwon Do Club put on an exhibition in the middle of the street
with fully-padded youngsters kicking each other to the applause of the crowd. The local dance club performed their own number, also to loud applause, and there was a procession of classic cars as well as much more.
The weather was, well, Irish, which means it changed every other minute, but the crowed stayed until the end and showed their support for the community.
All in all, a really good experience and a nice day for the family.
The evening turned out to be a bit wet (in the bar) with plenty of people drinking this strange black liquid that seems to be rather popular over here.
Sláinte!
Thursday, March 14, 2013
At this rate, settling in could turn into settling down
I can't believe that we have been in Cork for nearly a week already.
We seem to be starting to settle in now, but the settling-in process feels like it is taking forever. We have only been here six full days but this is typical for us - everything should work like clockwork, yesterday.
To be honest, everything is going more or less like clockwork. The entire project has gone smoothly from its inception, and this is in large part down to the flexibility and accommodatory nature of the people of Cork.
For example, when we very first discussed the idea of coming to Cork for a couple of months, we started looking for accomodation. At first it was difficult because we were looking for short-term rentals, and most estates agents only represent landlords who wish to rent for a minimum of 12 months (some 6-month rentals, but not many). Luckily, we found a short-term rental near Ballincollig and things looked good. Unfortunately, that particular property was not available until the summer, but the owner informed us that her father was renting his house close by. I called the guy, discussed the details, and we had a deal.
OK, so now we had a house, next we needed schools.
Now that we had a base from which to work, I simply Googled schools in the Cork area, found those that were relevant for our children and close enough to the house, and started to email them. The principals from the the schools I contacted got back to me basically with the reply, "No problem, we would be delighted to have your children in our school for a couple of months". Any parent knows that the equation is more or less as follows: Happy kids, happy parents!
No exception here.
If we could find nice places for our kids to go to school, then that would be a seriously big worry off our minds. It took literally just a few emails to set up the schools and that was it. On the first day of school a few days ago, were expected and greeted with a genuine warmth that really touched me. We left our kids happy in the knowledge that they were being made welcome and were in good hands.
This should not be understated. The security that feeling gave us allowed us to then concentrate on the stuff that brought us here in the first place. Like I said: Happy kids, happy parents.
Now, after less than a week, our children have already made friends in their respective schools, and my daughter has even been invited to two parties; she seems to take after her mother ;-)
My wife has been busy at the office, taking over the world, so I have had time to get to know the city of Cork.
When it became apparent that we were definitely going to have this Cork adventure, I decided that I was going to get the most out of it and to share whatever happens - good or bad - with anyone who is interested; hence this blog that you are reading.
But that is a little easier said than done.
It is easy to make yourself these promises from the comfort of your living room a thousand miles away from the place you are going to, but once you get there, you have to do it. You have to put yourself out there, talk to absolute strangers, tell them your story and hope that they are interested.
As the old adage goes, you only get out what you put in, and it is absolutely true, but after a week in Cork I can honestly say that however much I have put in, Cork has given back manifold. And there is one simple reason for this - the people!
Everyday I have wandered around the city centre blatantly making conversation with strangers. Maybe they think I'm just some English wacko, but I actually don't believe that. My feeling is that Corkonians are genuine folk, happy to exchange a freindly word with you. Whether the conversation has been about the weather, the price of whatever I was buying, my being English and living in Finland, or whatever, I have been made to feel welcome.
So, when the family gathers around the dinner table in the evenings to swap stories of the day, the talk is overwhelmingly positive. I am aware that we are still in the honeymoon period, but to have five different people tell how much they have enjoyed their day and the people in it is something
quite special to me, and I intend to savour these days and weeks in Cork.
In the first week, this little jewel tucked away on the south coast of Ireland has made a very good impression on me. And, let's face it, first impressions last.
What will my first St. Patrick's Day on the Emerald Isle have in store? I'll let you know.
We seem to be starting to settle in now, but the settling-in process feels like it is taking forever. We have only been here six full days but this is typical for us - everything should work like clockwork, yesterday.
To be honest, everything is going more or less like clockwork. The entire project has gone smoothly from its inception, and this is in large part down to the flexibility and accommodatory nature of the people of Cork.
For example, when we very first discussed the idea of coming to Cork for a couple of months, we started looking for accomodation. At first it was difficult because we were looking for short-term rentals, and most estates agents only represent landlords who wish to rent for a minimum of 12 months (some 6-month rentals, but not many). Luckily, we found a short-term rental near Ballincollig and things looked good. Unfortunately, that particular property was not available until the summer, but the owner informed us that her father was renting his house close by. I called the guy, discussed the details, and we had a deal.
OK, so now we had a house, next we needed schools.
Now that we had a base from which to work, I simply Googled schools in the Cork area, found those that were relevant for our children and close enough to the house, and started to email them. The principals from the the schools I contacted got back to me basically with the reply, "No problem, we would be delighted to have your children in our school for a couple of months". Any parent knows that the equation is more or less as follows: Happy kids, happy parents!
No exception here.
If we could find nice places for our kids to go to school, then that would be a seriously big worry off our minds. It took literally just a few emails to set up the schools and that was it. On the first day of school a few days ago, were expected and greeted with a genuine warmth that really touched me. We left our kids happy in the knowledge that they were being made welcome and were in good hands.
This should not be understated. The security that feeling gave us allowed us to then concentrate on the stuff that brought us here in the first place. Like I said: Happy kids, happy parents.
Now, after less than a week, our children have already made friends in their respective schools, and my daughter has even been invited to two parties; she seems to take after her mother ;-)
My wife has been busy at the office, taking over the world, so I have had time to get to know the city of Cork.
When it became apparent that we were definitely going to have this Cork adventure, I decided that I was going to get the most out of it and to share whatever happens - good or bad - with anyone who is interested; hence this blog that you are reading.
But that is a little easier said than done.
It is easy to make yourself these promises from the comfort of your living room a thousand miles away from the place you are going to, but once you get there, you have to do it. You have to put yourself out there, talk to absolute strangers, tell them your story and hope that they are interested.
As the old adage goes, you only get out what you put in, and it is absolutely true, but after a week in Cork I can honestly say that however much I have put in, Cork has given back manifold. And there is one simple reason for this - the people!
Everyday I have wandered around the city centre blatantly making conversation with strangers. Maybe they think I'm just some English wacko, but I actually don't believe that. My feeling is that Corkonians are genuine folk, happy to exchange a freindly word with you. Whether the conversation has been about the weather, the price of whatever I was buying, my being English and living in Finland, or whatever, I have been made to feel welcome.
So, when the family gathers around the dinner table in the evenings to swap stories of the day, the talk is overwhelmingly positive. I am aware that we are still in the honeymoon period, but to have five different people tell how much they have enjoyed their day and the people in it is something
quite special to me, and I intend to savour these days and weeks in Cork.
In the first week, this little jewel tucked away on the south coast of Ireland has made a very good impression on me. And, let's face it, first impressions last.
What will my first St. Patrick's Day on the Emerald Isle have in store? I'll let you know.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Teething troubles, snow, and coffee
Day five in Cork, and finally I can post something on the blog.
It has been an action-packed four days with quite a few teething troubles and minor issues, but Cork and its people have been great, and have helped to sort out most of the problems.
Here's a quick recap:
Day 1 - Dublin to Cork
Landed in Dublin and took the Airlink bus to Heuston Station. Heuston to Cork on the express where we met a great Australian guy with an Irish name and Irish ancestry. He has been in Cork for 10 years and really likes the place. As outsiders, it was good to get an outsider's view of the city and the county, and it was nice to hear that he had managed to make Cork home.
The approach to Cork on the train reminded me a bit of Brighton with its rolling hills that became more and more covered with rows of houses.
The taxi ride from the station to the house was a real experience. I think our taxi driver had the stongest Cork accent EVER! I really struggled at times to understand what he was saying, but he was a really nice guy and very helpful - thank you, Denis :-)
The house is big and old and COLD!!! But nothing that a cup of tea couldn't fix.
We did it. We are in Cork :-)
Day 2 - We seriously need a car
The views over the fields are lovely and the horse that came to meet us at the back wall was an added bonus; and I have one very happy horse-loving daughter now.
I didn't quite appreciate how necessary a car is in these parts. We are only a few miles outside Cork, but it is totally rural and there are no buses and no footpaths. Seriously, no footpaths. I decided to walk to the shop to get bread and milk etc. I walked to one end of the village until the footpath ended - no shop. I walked to the other end of the village until the footpath ended - no shop. No footpaths, no shops; we need a car!
We asked a local, "When is the next bus to the city?"
What bus?
Great!
Long story short, called a taxi to take us to a car rental place, rented a car, finally went to the shop.
Day 3 - Getting lost
Had to find schools and offices. We spent all day looking for both, and eventually found them, not where we thought they would be. On the bright side, we got to see a lot of Cork; getting lost is not always a bad thing, especially when you think you have to go Blackrock everyday and then you discover, purely by chance when waiting at the traffic lights, that you only have to go to the city centre.
A serendipitous discovery, as someone once said. @JohnDennehy www.zartis.com
Day 4 - Cold winds, warm people
We had travelled about 1000 miles to escape the piles of snow in our garden and the minus 21 temperature that we woke to on the morning we left Finland. But mother nature always has the last laugh.
March in Cork, spring time, you would presume? No, no, no, minus 1 and snow flurries (or a blizzard as the locals called it). After 15 Finnish winters, I just smiled politely. I have a slightly different understanding of the word blizzard.
Nevertheless, I was fortunate enough to meet some great people who made me feel extremely welcome to their city:
John, Ronan, Siobhan and the guys at Make IT in Cork. http://jobs.makeitincork.com/
These guys are passionate about the possibilities in Cork and in Ireland in general. The Celtic Tiger years may be over, but Ireland is not. There is a lot going on here, and a sense of opportunity that you can feel.
Also, the staff at Gloria Jean's Coffees kept me happy with their smiles, Cork accents and caffeine.
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Gloria-Jeans-Coffees/164308430267514
Thank you. I'll be in again soon :-)
It has been an action-packed four days with quite a few teething troubles and minor issues, but Cork and its people have been great, and have helped to sort out most of the problems.
Here's a quick recap:
Day 1 - Dublin to Cork
Landed in Dublin and took the Airlink bus to Heuston Station. Heuston to Cork on the express where we met a great Australian guy with an Irish name and Irish ancestry. He has been in Cork for 10 years and really likes the place. As outsiders, it was good to get an outsider's view of the city and the county, and it was nice to hear that he had managed to make Cork home.
The approach to Cork on the train reminded me a bit of Brighton with its rolling hills that became more and more covered with rows of houses.
The taxi ride from the station to the house was a real experience. I think our taxi driver had the stongest Cork accent EVER! I really struggled at times to understand what he was saying, but he was a really nice guy and very helpful - thank you, Denis :-)
The house is big and old and COLD!!! But nothing that a cup of tea couldn't fix.
We did it. We are in Cork :-)
Day 2 - We seriously need a car
The views over the fields are lovely and the horse that came to meet us at the back wall was an added bonus; and I have one very happy horse-loving daughter now.
I didn't quite appreciate how necessary a car is in these parts. We are only a few miles outside Cork, but it is totally rural and there are no buses and no footpaths. Seriously, no footpaths. I decided to walk to the shop to get bread and milk etc. I walked to one end of the village until the footpath ended - no shop. I walked to the other end of the village until the footpath ended - no shop. No footpaths, no shops; we need a car!
We asked a local, "When is the next bus to the city?"
What bus?
Great!
Long story short, called a taxi to take us to a car rental place, rented a car, finally went to the shop.
Day 3 - Getting lost
Had to find schools and offices. We spent all day looking for both, and eventually found them, not where we thought they would be. On the bright side, we got to see a lot of Cork; getting lost is not always a bad thing, especially when you think you have to go Blackrock everyday and then you discover, purely by chance when waiting at the traffic lights, that you only have to go to the city centre.
A serendipitous discovery, as someone once said. @JohnDennehy www.zartis.com
Day 4 - Cold winds, warm people
We had travelled about 1000 miles to escape the piles of snow in our garden and the minus 21 temperature that we woke to on the morning we left Finland. But mother nature always has the last laugh.
March in Cork, spring time, you would presume? No, no, no, minus 1 and snow flurries (or a blizzard as the locals called it). After 15 Finnish winters, I just smiled politely. I have a slightly different understanding of the word blizzard.
Nevertheless, I was fortunate enough to meet some great people who made me feel extremely welcome to their city:
John, Ronan, Siobhan and the guys at Make IT in Cork. http://jobs.makeitincork.com/
These guys are passionate about the possibilities in Cork and in Ireland in general. The Celtic Tiger years may be over, but Ireland is not. There is a lot going on here, and a sense of opportunity that you can feel.
Also, the staff at Gloria Jean's Coffees kept me happy with their smiles, Cork accents and caffeine.
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Gloria-Jeans-Coffees/164308430267514
Thank you. I'll be in again soon :-)
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Popping the Cork - here we go!
Popping the Cork is a project to get the most out of a two-month stay in Cork, Ireland.
I am originally from England, but I have been living in Finland for the past 15 years with my wife and kids. I will be in Cork for the next two months, and I want to get as much out of my time in Cork as possible. To do this I will need the help of the good people of Cork.
I work in Social Media and I see on a daily basis how people connect, help each other, form relationships, and live incredibly rich lives with the help of social networks. My time in Cork is limited, but the possibilities to experience what Cork has to offer are not with the help of social media and the people who populate both the city and the online networks.
As you can see, this blog is pretty empty at the moment, but as I experience things and connect with people and places I will update it with posts, links, pictures, etc. so that it becomes representative of Cork and all the stuff that happens to me during the next two months.
So, now it's over to you.
You, dear reader/follower can directly affect how this project goes. The more people who connect with me, offer me help, share their knowledge of Cork; the better my experience will be and the more this blog will truly represent what Cork has to offer.
To start with, I have set up this blog a Pinterest page, and a Facebook page. I will also be using my Twitter account to connect with the people of Cork, and I will be adding more channels in the coming days.
Come on, Cork. Show me what you've got!
I am originally from England, but I have been living in Finland for the past 15 years with my wife and kids. I will be in Cork for the next two months, and I want to get as much out of my time in Cork as possible. To do this I will need the help of the good people of Cork.
I work in Social Media and I see on a daily basis how people connect, help each other, form relationships, and live incredibly rich lives with the help of social networks. My time in Cork is limited, but the possibilities to experience what Cork has to offer are not with the help of social media and the people who populate both the city and the online networks.
As you can see, this blog is pretty empty at the moment, but as I experience things and connect with people and places I will update it with posts, links, pictures, etc. so that it becomes representative of Cork and all the stuff that happens to me during the next two months.
So, now it's over to you.
You, dear reader/follower can directly affect how this project goes. The more people who connect with me, offer me help, share their knowledge of Cork; the better my experience will be and the more this blog will truly represent what Cork has to offer.
To start with, I have set up this blog a Pinterest page, and a Facebook page. I will also be using my Twitter account to connect with the people of Cork, and I will be adding more channels in the coming days.
Come on, Cork. Show me what you've got!
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