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 :-)
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