Hitchhiking in Ireland: Cork

22^nd of May to 26^th of August, 2017.     

              In Cork.
              After almost three months here, now that I am just leaving I decided write about it.
              I am listening Outra vez, by Roberto Carlos, and of course trying not to cry while I am thinking about Lulu.
              Yesterday I started what looks like will be a marathon about travels’ movies. The first one was “Tracks”, a completely different kind of travel but still very motivational one, because of the determination of the person who the movie was about it. The second one, today, was a kind of documentary about the famous “sabbatical year” for travelers and how we and the world see those kind of travelers. I thought would be better but it is to much “mimimi” and I do not know if it is because was made in 2005 but it is very conservative and even racist. What remains for both it is how everybody who is outside of this kind of travels see it as a terrible, impossible thing, some just imagined for such crazy people.
              The Philip family leaves in Ballincolig, a small village circa of forty minutes from Cork City. Actually, it is in Classes Lake, a Residential place about thirty minutes walking from Ballincolig. You do the math.
              Angela (12) speaks English better than me, that is for sure, and Tom (6) is going  the same way. Bejoy and Annlin speak the famous Indian English, so sometimes it is a bit difficult to me understand them. I mean, it was.
              During the first week Thomas, Annlin’s father (finally got his name), was there so I was a kind of a spectator, just learning. The kids used to pass the whole afternoon in front of the television and I thought “That is it?”. Since the beginning I realized that would be difficult take Tom out of bed in the morning and make him eat. Kids. At least, after all, he always behaved well with me in the morning and never cried.
              About my routine at the beginning? I do not know if it is something interesting to put in here… let me see: I prepared and gave them breakfast; changed Tom and then we three took the bus to school. After leaving them at the school door, I usually went back home walking, right after doing some shopping at Tesco. At home, after doing the clothes, I usually had my breakfast while I watched one or two episodes of Friends. Then I wrote a little bit, read a little bit and make some research. Sometimes I took a nap as well.

              But about Cork: I like Cork! A lot! I mean, its Old Tow is so charming! Truly amazing! The river Lee dividing the city looks pretty and adds up a lot.
              – Take a good and long walk along the river, from this beautiful apartments called Atkins Hall, just a little before the huge hotel The Kingsley, and go crazy until where you can.
             – Big list of possibilities: 1) Cork City Goal is really nice and beautiful (for the price, it totally worth it); 2) don’t let the University College Cork out of your plans, it is amazingly beautiful and you can walk around without pay, of course, so do it; 3) Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral is also really beautiful, don’t miss it, but go inside and pay is up to you, I was happy enough to be just outside; 4) Please, allow yourself to get lost around the rest of the “island” town because is full of small to big monuments and old buildings and very interest places, apart of all those cute small pubs and bars, one more charming than the other, so you will just have a little trouble to decided where to go.
              – In one of my goings around Cork, I went to this Pub, Sin é, where I kind of  fell for an elderly guy who worked there. He had this very nice style, old fashion plus a rebel new one and I really liked. He looked a nice guy as well. The thing is: I was prepared to make him a complement before I leave the place when I realized my pen had gone. I talked with one of the clients, who I was talking before, asked if he had seen it, but nothing. So one of those very old costumers, who are always on the pub, heard us talking and went to the bar to ask if somebody did not take my pen by mistake, and Aidan (the guy I was enchanted) freaked out! He cursed the old costumer badly, and put my pen back in my table. He was not rude directly to me but his whole attitude was ridiculous! And even so, knowing that he was being a completely jerk for nothing, I tried to apologize with him! Pfff. If you are reading this now Aidan, know it that you lost one admirer in less then five minutes just because you were an asshole. And I will not even tell you that I came back there, a few weeks later, trying to see you again one more time before I left Ireland. You were not working that day.

           Back tot home stuff, so I had to cook my own food: breakfast, lunch and dinner. What is great for someone like me who loves to cook. And of course sometimes I tasted some Indian food that Annlin or Bejoy prepared, very good, sometimes too spicy for me, but I always liked.
          Sometimes they paid my dinner or lunch when we all went out together. Sometimes they ordered pizza and paid for me. One night we even went to this very nice Hotel Restaurant, very fancy, and I did not pay for anything.
           The kids sometimes behaved badly, being very mean to each other or to me, but also sometimes they were very kind and lovely. Unfortunately, I think most of people in the world are like this.
          For the time I have been here I was very well treated, I ate, I cooked, I drunk, I cleaned, I ironed, I played, I taught and I learned. Next week I am leaving to Spain and all my reflections about that I will tell you in another chapter.