Hello from Cobh (pronounced Cove), Ireland!
It was a bit of a blustery day today. While not too cold it was most definitely windy but it didn't stop me from making the rounds around town.
Cobh (previously called Queenstown) was the final port stop for the Titanic with the ship picking up 123 passengers here before it made its way towards New York. Today I wanted to get to the Titanic Experience before I did anything else. Looking at the plentiful availability of tickets online this morning (tours begin every 15 minutes) I knew I could chance it and go on down early. It was just a few minutes from the ship but took me a little longer once I was out of the port area as I had to manage cobblestones and curbs and people trying to sell me taxi tours.
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| Follow the walking man to get out of port |
When I arrived and asked about the next tour with availability her answer was...in four minutes. Talk about great timing!
Each person is given a boarding pass representing one of the passengers who joined the Titanic in Cobh on April 11, 1912. I had Bridget Driscoll, a 27 year old third class passenger. At the end of tour we would find out whether our passenger was one of the few survivors.
The tour was part video, part live tour guide, and part self-guided tour. We saw a cabin for third class passengers,
a first class passenger cabin,
and viewed what is left of the actual tender dock where the passengers last stepped foot on land.
We heard stories of both families and individuals. As we stood listening to our tour guide talk about the Titanic it seemed strange to have my ship in the background.
Between the guided and self-guided parts I spent about an hour there. I contemplated whether I wanted to pick up anything for Scooter while I was there (didn't want bad Titanic luck), but when I found out my passenger was one of those who did survive, I made a purchase.
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| Can't leave Ireland without more extra luck, too! |
By the time I left the gift shop it was packed with people waiting for their tours. I checked the online ticket situation when I got back to the ship and it made me really glad I had gone early.
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Yep, it was another
early bird gets the worm situation |
I spent the rest of my time in Cobh wandering the streets while trying to avoid the hills. Flowers were abundant and looked nice when paired with the colorful buildings.
As you would expect in Ireland, pubs were everywhere. Need to call a ride?
Several crew members were heading to the churches and cathedrals but with the steep hills I knew wouldn't be able to make it so my pictures were taken from below.
Update: One of the crew members who helps me on and off the ship with the scooter sent me up-close photos he took today. So beautiful!
It was another day of wandering not too far from the ship. After a few hours on Scooter my bum was more than happy to have a nearby home to return to.
We have a couple sea days coming up. We'll have the Most Traveled Guest lunch on one of those days and the other? I'll probably just relax and catch up on the new movies they added to the TV for August. Then on Monday we'll be back in Iceland. See you then!
