I'll welcome you to the city where the tour starts, in Bishop Lucey Park, in the heart of Cork city. We will then wander by Elizabeth Fort (a 1600s English fort), St. Finbarr's Cathedral (the birthplace of Cork), the old Beamish Brewery (a Cork staple!), the Courthouse, North Main Street (the old centre of Cork), and up into the Northside. On the Northside of Cork, we will walk up Shandon Street, where hawkers and peddlers once made passing by a chore, before reaching the North Cathedral, the seat of the Bishop of Cork and Ross. Following this, we will see St Anne's Church, with its famous bells and lying clocks, the old Butter Exchange, Shandon Sweets (a 100 year old hand made sweet shop), and the Mother Jones memorial, before descending back into the city centre. Once we arrive back in the city centre, we will walk through Cornmarket Street, where shawlees (Cork's working class women draped in shawls) once made ends meet for their families, before arriving at St Patrick's Street and the Grand Parade, home to the English Market and the National Monument. At the end of the tour, I hope to have given you a sense of what makes this city tick, the stories and events which shaped Cork into the fantastic place it is today, before giving you plenty of recommendations for pints and food!
