Cork, Ireland

So I finally made it to Cork on Sunday. Not much happening here. The ride down was uneventful. I spent most of the time reading "Back To The Front" by Stephen O'Shea. A good read. The scenery driving through Tipperary and Cork was very nice. They're the sort of places you'd imagine retiring to if you wanted to retire in the Irish countryside. The most random thing I saw on the way to Cork was an Aldi. Who knew they had Aldi in Ireland? I didn't. I should have asked the bus driver if he'd pull over so I can get some cheap Ramen noodles (there's no 10 for $1 here, it's about 0.85Euro per pack. Oy!). The place I'm staying is much nicer than UCD. However, there is one key element missing from the residence at UCC. There is no internet access in the apartment. Apparently, they turned off the internet for the summer and have four computers (three of which currently function properly) for everyone staying here to use. Needless to say, it's ridiculously inefficient. I'm trying to see what I can get done about possibly getting something in my room, but I'm not holding my breath.

In terms of research, today was somewhat productive. I went to the City Library and went through some newspapers. They put limits on how long people can use the microfilm readers, which sucks, but they only have two of them so it's somewhat understandable. Regardless, today was a relatively slow day there so I got to use the machines longer than the allotted time. I also spent some time in the morning calling a few places in Northern Ireland to make sure everything was in place for my visits there. There is still more work to be done in that regard, but at least it's a step in the right direction. Tomorrow I'll go to the city and county archive and hopefully get some good stuff done. They're not open Mondays, which is why I didn't go today.

This trip has been very trying in a number of respects already. It's hard to focus when there are so many little things getting in the way and distracting me, all of which are beyond my control. But, one of the main goals of this trip, in addition to collecting materials, obviously, is to learn the lay of the land, so to speak, and I think that aim is certainly being reached for better or for worse. In general, I like Cork a lot better than Dublin. I just wish I had internet access in my room, and not the inconsistent wireless network that randomly pops up. That's about it for the moment. More developments as they happen.