Kilkenny & Cork

Getting the rental car

We leave Dublin today to commence our road trip in the Republic of Ireland.  We started our day with a hearty hotel breakfast before leaving the hotel around 0900 to take the bus to the airport to collect our rental car.

It was a short walk to the bus stop, followed by a short wait.  Arriving at Terminal 2, we made our way to the car rental area only to be told that since we had a booking already, we could go straight to the shuttle stop to catch a ride to the remote car yard.

After doing the paper work, we hit the road at 1020 in an Opel Corsa.  While we had booked the cheapest vehicle with no aircon, we were pleasantly surprised that the Corsa did come with aircon.  The weather was still scorching today.

Kilkenny and its Castle

On the motorway, the speed limit was 120 km/h and we got to Kilkenny around 1200.  First stop was Kilkenny Castle, a 12^th Century Norman castle that eventually became a Victorian residence.

The red-walled picture gallery was probably the most special part of the house to me but the grounds were lovely too.

We parked up near the Black Abbey which was still a functioning church, in fact, with mass in progress.  So, we continued to the St Canice’s Cathedral where we paid for the entry for a brief wander. The admission is cheaper than for those in Dublin, so we could justify it.  We’re at the stage where we have seen so many amazing cathedrals in our lives.

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Parking shock

Continuing at 1345, it was my turn to drive.  I lasted only about 1h30 before handing the wheel back to Kim to drive us to Copley Court student accommodation in Cork.

Arriving at 1600, I popped in to check on the parking situation.  The receptionist said they had no free parks left but could park at the Q-Park building with their discount code.

I looked online and was shocked to see that it was EUR45.50 to park till the morning but their code gave a 25% discount, so it was still horrendously expensive for us.

As with other places, I thought we could pay for street parking till the end of the day, then we would be good overnight till the paid parking resumes in the morning.

With the help of a local, I managed to get a parking coupon for EUR2 and we set it at 1630 to take us till the end of the day at 1830.  So, we were good till 0830 tomorrow.  Whew!

In the evening

Our room was a bit warm for the unseasonally hot weather but we were confident it would be OK through the night and fortunately, it was.

After a rest, we walked to town to explore the shopping and eating areas.  The atmosphere was pleasant, especially in the area between the two branches of the River Lee.

We ended up having a hot sandwich at a supermarket to stave off our hunger. Later, we had an awesome salad bowl from a salad shop.

We finished the day at the pub next to the hostel, where I had a Guiness and Kim, a beer.