Early Sunday morning, we stopped by Super Valu in Churchtown to pick up a few supplies and we were off to the south, ultimately headed towards Waterford and our accommodations for Sunday night.
And it was raining, again. But as I read in one of the guidebooks, if you are going to wait for a sunny day to tour in Ireland, you likely will not see much, so pack an umbrella and a raincoat and be on your way.
On the way, we stopped in county Kildare at the Irish National Stud and Gardens. And thankfully by the time we reached the parking area, the rain had stopped and there were slight glimpses of sun peaking out among the clouds.
A word about stud farms and this place in particular.
We had no idea how big stud farming was as an industry. For those who are unfamiliar with the word, when you have a champion racehorse, you assume that it has good genes and therefore when he retires from active racing, you would want to use him to help sire other horses, with the assumption that they too can be champions. Ireland has been one of the centres in the world for horse racing and therefore too for raising thoroughbred horses; Ireland being the third largest breeder in the world. Over 17000 people are employed in the industry in Ireland and the total revenues for the industry in Ireland exceeds €1 billion per year.
To give you an example of the value of some of these horses, one of the horses at the Irish National Stud, Invincible Spirit, Ireland's 2001 National Champion, has a stud fee of €120,000, which means every time he is used to create offspring, the company receives payment of €120,000. As well, some its offspring have been sold for over €1 million.
Quite amazing.
We took a half hour guided tour of the enormous grounds and met some of the famous horses. All of it was quite interesting but the real treat was at the end of the tour when we were able to walk through the Japanese Gardens, considered one of Europe's finest such gardens. It was serene and beautiful and we could only imagine just how much more we would have enjoyed the walk had it been sunny and warm.
From here we drove due south to the southern coast of Ireland to the city of Waterford, home of the famous Waterford Crystal. There was a walking tour recommended in some of the guidebooks that met in front of the Tourist Offices at 1:15 PM and when we got there, the guide was there. It looked like a private tour for just us until a lady from Michigan decided to join us and off we went. Our guide walked us through the city, one of Ireland's oldest, explaining the history of its earliest beginnings under Viking rule, sometime around the 10th century. Its name is derived from the Viking name which translates to "weather fjord" reflecting its sheltered harbour which protected ships from the rough ocean weather. The Vikings built a fort there, on the site where Reginald's Tower (built in the 1200s) still stands today. As we have found on all the walking tours that we have taken in Ireland, all of the guides are well informed and extremely humourous. Ours was no exception.
Over the 90 minutes when we walked throughout the very small centre of this city of less than 50,000 inhabitants, he pointed out numerous buildings and then explained their history to us.
Our walk ended in front of the Waterford Crystal Centre.
The Waterford Crystal story in this city is quite a bittersweet one. The Waterford Glass House manufacturing facility was founded by George and William Penrose in 1783, when Beethoven was publishing his first works and the world’s first hot air balloon took place in Paris. The company was in constant production through financial ups and downs since then and seemed to be on the upswing at the turn of the 21st Century when it acquired the two name brands of Royal Doulton and Wedgewood. But innovations in computer technology, the replacement of crystal with other materials and the devastating financial crisis of 2008 forced the closure of the company and the declaration of bankruptcy.
This was a terrible blow to the city of Waterford as the company, at its height, employed 3000 individuals and was manufacturing over a million pieces a year. In 2010, a financial holding company bought the assets and signed an agreement to reopen the facility in the Waterford area, and to launch a major visitor centre which has become a significant Irish tourist attraction. Today there are 90 employees and they produce less than 50000 pieces a year.
They do produce some major commemorative pieces, such as the awards for the People's Choice Awards, the trophies for the NBA and the NFL and the Times Square Millenium New Year's Eve Ball.
We enjoyed the brief tour and then spent some time in the gift shop where we met an Israeli couple and their children who are spending a few years in Ireland with Intel.
As we previously posted, Ireland with its low corporate tax rate has attracted many hi tech companies to establish their European headquarters here. The Israeli family we met told us that there are currently 170 Israeli families in Ireland working for Intel. They will not remain here; this is a short term placement for these families as Intel upgrades its facilities in Kiryat Gat. He told us as well, that while the average Irishman has anti Israel tendencies, these are a result of the training of the IRA by the Libyan government, then under Ghaddafi. However, once the whole story is explained to the Irish, and especially when they are told about the historical and religious connection of Jews to Israel, they are ready to accept the validity of Israel and to understand that Israel does in fact belong to the Jewish people.
We said good bye to Waterford and headed west to the little town of Dungarven where we had rented an Airbnb cottage out in the middle of farm country. It was a very pleasant self catering unit on the grounds of an Irish couple, and we had a well deserved rest.
Bright and early on Monday morning we headed further west to the fishing village of Kinsale. Again, it was raining and we were beginning to think that this would never end. As the old Irish saying goes: "The weather is not too bad this week; it rained here twice; first for three days and then for 4 days"! We were beginning to believe that this was not a joke!
But then as we made our way down the highway toward our destination of Kinsale, a small, quaint, and colourful fishing village, the skies cleared and there was brilliant sunshine and it warmed up considerably. Incidentally, this is the way Kinsale is spelt in Gaelic Irish.
Kinsale is tiny; 3000 permanent residents which swells to 8000 with the influx of summer visitors. It is the perfect small Irish fishing village. A beautiful little harbour, careful attention to the maintenance of the buildings and streets and a total welcoming atmosphere to tourists, who come in droves. It was swamped with people; young and old; bus tours, self drivers like us; backpackers and hikers; the place was alive and exciting.
We were drawn to this place by a review in the Rick Steves Guide to Ireland. Rick Steves is a writer of guidebooks and we have used them to a number of places that we have visited. His descriptions are clear and he does not pull any punches with his reviews and recommendations. He will tell you when he thinks it is worth spending your time and money and when it is not.
Rick highly recommended a walking tour in Kinsale by Don and Barry, two locals. When we reached the Tourist Info office, where we were supposed to meet them, instead we met David, who was filling in for them as one their close relatives had been taken to the hospital. David is an actor and like many other Irishmen that we have met over the past few days, has a great sense of humour. The tour attracted about 20 fellow travellers and it was a great 90 minutes.
As this is the third such tour that we have taken, we are becoming familiar with the history of Ireland, and the various groups who conquered and controlled the country and the long struggle for independence. But each of the guides that we met, had their own style and way of telling the story, so that even tho you would think we would be getting bored, David held our attention during the entire 90 minutes.
At the end of the tour, we spent an hour walking thru the town, enjoying the colour and flavour of the small Irish fishing village. We even had the chance to hear a local group playing some traditional Irish music.
Watch the video: https://youtu.be/rDPTepDyiOs
We continued on our way to Cork, where we would spend the night. Cork is the third largest city in Ireland, about 150,000 people. Ireland has a thriving dairy industry and people rave over Irish Butter; Cork has the official Butter Museum and someone told us it was worth visiting. Not! We were also told that it is worth visiting the indoor English Market and we love markets. Again, not worth it at all.
But we did buy some fresh salmon there for cooking once back at our apartment and that was definitely worth it. We spent some time walking thru the town but it is not a place that I would recommend spending time in during your visit to Ireland.
Cork is famous as the port from where the Titanic left on its maiden and only voyage, and the first port of entry for most Jews who came here, fleeing persecution in Europe. The mythological story told is that they bought voyage on a boat bound for the new world and when the boat stopped at Cork, they were told to disembark...they had reached their destination. They thought it was New York, but all they got was Cork.
In actuality, many Jews established themselves here in their first port of entry and there was a robust community here with a school, shul, Bnei Akiva, a kosher butcher and "Reverend" (acting Rabbi), a cemetery, and all the amenities that a Jew would need. The first Jews came to Cork in 1772. At its height the number of Jews in Cork exceeded 400. They even have an area near the downtown area still called JewTown. The city had a Jewish Lord Mayor, Gerald Goldberg and he was loved so much that they named a bridge in his honour; the locals endearingly call it the "Pass Over Bridge".
Eventually the kids moved to the bigger cities and sadly the shul closed its doors for the last time just a few months ago; only two Jews are left in Cork. There was a closing Shabbaton in town and many dignitaries from around Ireland and England came here for the closing ceremonies, marking the end of an era in Cork.
We spent the night at the Aban Apartments, a short 10 minute walk from downtown. These were quite large one bedroom apartments with full self catering facilities. Somewhat dated but clean and well equipped.
Next report will highlight Tuesday in Killarney and our favourite little village, Dingle, and Wednesday driving the Ring of Kerry and the Ring of Dingle.
Hope you have a wonderful Shabbat
All the best
Fran and David
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