The gentle hoots of the woodland pigeon have woken me early this morning and I am grateful for it; tired but grateful. I once thought the bird song I heard as daybreak begins to spread over the lush green hills of this countryside was the sound of owls, but I have learned. The sun is hiding as it sits back behind the dark grey clouds that cover the morning sky in a thick blanket leading one to believe that it will be a day with endless rain. Perhaps this is true, and before my arrival here would have believed it to be so, but I have learned. I have watched many mornings such as this give way to hours of bright sunshine and warmth, before reverting to skies of grey and rain showers and sometimes if the sun is feeling generous enough, back to her bright rays once more. Mornings such as these, with their chill and dampness, used to bring me sadness as I would long for the brightness and warmth of the sun. Again, I have learned there is beauty in this kind of morning; a lesson to not take things for granted and perhaps, smarten up a bit and grab a blanket to curl up in while having my morning tea to ward off the cold and inevitable grumbles and enjoy what has been given. Life is a journey filled with much to learn. Be it about oneself or the world and all its idiosyncrasies. While the house is still quiet and everyone sleeps, I am reflecting on both. I will never learn it all nor do I have any desire to make that an ambition but a little bit each day is a thought that appeals. I love my sleep but there is something so comforting about being the first to rise and sit in the quiet, lulled by the sounds of nature before the hustle and bustle of the day begins. The places we journeyed to, although there were a great many places we did not get to explore, the ones we did were beyond expectation and more than enough. We have engaged in wonderful conversation with the people we have met and maybe I should try it more often, as I am missing out. I could continue but some lessons are just for me. Instead, I will sum it up by saying, I have learned and by doing so, I am grateful.

Yesterday we drove out to Cork. We have been a few times to see different places in the area but there was one I have been so excited for all of us to experience. The Cork English Market; sitting in all its beauty and history in the center of the city and stretching from Princes Street to the Grand Parade. The market has been trading since 1788 and is the oldest covered food market in Europe. It has stood the test of time enduring famine, flood, fires, war, and multiple recessions attracting visitors from all over the world. We headed out to explore the market after a late breakfast and rainy drive into Cork taking in a side of the city we had not yet seen. An enormous number of grand churches with steeples reaching into the clouds greeted us as we entered the area near the market along with the inevitable traffic that is commonplace in every city. Once we reached the parking area, took some time to capture more focused photos than the ones I had been taking from inside the car.

We made the short walk from the parking area to the English Market and entered the giant space to find more stalls than we could keep track of filled with sweets, chocolates, jams and jellies, baked goods, fruit and vegetables, cheeses we had never hear of, small cafes and sandwich shops, fresh fish and seafood, and meats in every cut and size imaginable. It was an overload of the best kind as everyone in this family enjoys food and its varying aromas. It was extraordinarily crowded with droves of people coming in off the street. We began our exploration by walking through the entire market, making notes of all the places we might like to stop and marveling at all the stalls and delightful smells coming from them. Ellery was not altogether pleased by the aroma of fresh fish but soon became accustomed to it and complaints ceased. Our first stop was to a grocery stall selling everything from household cleaners and handmade soaps to fresh fruits and baking supplies. I picked up a burlap market bag, Ellery, a small purple bracelet, and Audra got a homemade bar of lavender soap. We continued and as everyone was now hungry, stopped to grab a quick lunch. Ellery and I had insanely amazing toasted, ham and cheese, flakey croissants, Kevin, a chicken sandwich on a baguette, and Audra opted for a sushi bowl from a stall across from the aisle.

We sat outside on a bench and ate our lunch sharing a couple slices of cheesecake between us, one covered in a mixed berry sauce and the other brushed with caramel and reentered the market to shop. As we moved slowly through the crowds of people, we stopped to pick up a loaf of bread and mushrooms for our final breakfast here and picked up a few airplane snacks for the upcoming journey home. We also could not pass up the chocolate stall and each of us chose five truffles each to be packaged up and brought home. We ended at the Rave Cave, a t-shirt shop specializing in Irish and music themed attire. Each of us picked up a t-shirt and battled the rain back to the car.

We then headed to an antique shop we had passed on a previous outing in the town of Tallow. Google, despite all its technology smarts, provided one of the most dangerous routes of our trip filled with roads barely able to hold one car, let alone two, filled with tallest, thickest walls of green we had yet encountered, and such winding, blind curves, we counted ourselves lucky we encountered only a few cars along the way. We made it unscathed and explored an amazing antique shop while I hunted for some linens and handkerchiefs. Unfortunately, I did not find what I was looking for, but we had a great time admiring history. We returned to the cottage for some relaxation and to warm up from the wet and cold, and later headed to Ardmore for dinner. The Urchin was open, but they were not serving food. Shipmates, despite online saying closed, was open so we grabbed take away, enjoyed dinner at the cottage, and engaged in the normal activities of games and tea before bed.

We had a fascinating, fun, and easy day despite the tug of sadness that is slowly creeping in for all of us; the highlight of which was the market and fanciful conversations about what life would be like if we lived here. This morning’s skies of grey have already cleared and made way for the sun to beam bright over the fields surrounding our little cottage. Still no signs of our cows returning, but I remain hopeful. Ellery and Kevin are up and chatting, more Ellery than Kevin, in the kitchen and I think breakfast is on the horizon. I am more than ready for breakfast and to bask in the glow of the sunlight, but only after I finish my cup of tea.