Out of the city and into Cobh

Tuesday, June 22, 2010
6:00 p.m.

“Cobh (pronounced Cove) is situated on the southern shore of the Great Island in one of the world’s finest natural harbours.” – Cobh 2010 Tourist Information Guide

I fell in love with Cobh, Ireland today. My dad joked with me before I came here on how I should move to Ireland. Well, I could certainly see myself living in a place like Cobh. Although the trip to Cobh was scheduled as a group outing, we were given the opportunity to split up and do whatever we wanted once we arrived. The train ride to Cobh was scheduled to leave at 1:00; we made it on at 12:59. Our group was running all throughout the city just to make it on time. It was probably quite a funny site to the locals. Majority of the train ride was over water. After making its way out of Cork, there was nothing but wild horses, green pastures, cottages in the distance and sailboats on the water to see. Across from me there was a grandmother with her daughter and grandson. The grandmother told us the little boy’s name was Charlie and that he was just shy of two-years-old. Charlie was a hit with all us girls. Although he was extremely shy and looked away when we tried talking to him, I was able to get a few smirks out of him. After a short ride of 25 minutes, the train made its final stop in Cobh. The group exited, met up to grab a few brochures about the town, and separated in smaller groups to go off and explore.

The first thing I noticed about Cobh was the homes. I loved how they were all different colors. It reminded me of Charleston’s Rainbow Row along East Bay Street, but with smaller homes that were closer together. The houses gave off a very Mediterranean vibe. They were built on hills that overlooked the water. Some had clothes hanging on lines out from backyard windows to dry. Others were a bit more fancy, featuring all white paint and decks that sat up high over the hills.

A few places of interest I was able to check out were the Titanic Memorial, St. Colman’s Cathedral and the Old Church Cemetery. Cobh was the last stop the Titanic made before sailing out from Ireland to its final tragedy in the Atlantic. The Cathedral was the main architectural structure overlooking Cobh. No matter which street you are on, the Cathedral can be spotted. It took 47 years to build (1868-1915), has a length of 210 feet, a width of 120 feet, and a spire height of 300 feet. It was breathtaking. The last place I visited was the Old Church Cemetery, the spot that hosts the graves of victims from the Lusitania disaster. The walk to the cemetery was 2 km from town but since it was up and down steep hills it felt much longer. Thank goodness I decided to wear my tennis shoes.

The streets of Cobh were filled with elderly couples walking their dogs, teenagers grouped together in alleyways, quaint shops on each corner, kids running around on playgrounds and boys of all ages fishing on the harbor. The city was beautiful, historical and more than anything made me happy. It’s almost too hard to describe in words.