If you are planning a trip to Ireland, do consider visiting Cork – the real capital of Ireland, as locals will insist.

In Cork it’s easy to experience the Irish culture in a genuine way even on a brief visit.

Here are 7 things to do and places to see.

1. Irish food rocks and Cork is a perfect place to discover it. Just hit the English Market, where you’ll find local artisan stalls with all sorts of goodies for sale – bread, fish, cake, cheese, meat, sweets – you name it, and they have it here.

^{The English Market in Cork.}

The English Market is a place where many locals do their weekly shop, so no matter what time of the week you visit it, you are guaranteed a genuine market atmosphere.

Fish stalls have an amazing variety of fresh fish and seafood. One of the souvenirs I buy when going home is Irish smoked salmon - delicious!

^{Sweet tooth will be satisfied as well!}

Spiced beef (above) is a true Cork specialty. Even the Queen of England is said to have received it as a souvenir on her visit to Cork. It's another delicious present you can get for those at home.

Cork city has a huge number and variety of great restaurants serving local produce and imaginative dishes.

^{Fish platter in Farmgate Cafe.}

^{Goats cheese parcel and salad in Nash19}

You’ll get good, honest Irish food in any of these : Farmgate Café, Isaacs Restaurant, Nash19, Electric and numerous others that aren’t on this list.

2.Irish people are really friendly. Cork is a place where you can easily end up having a chat and a laugh with a perfect stranger. During my ten years in this city, I observed first hand Irish good humor and hospitality time and time again. Even when the country goes through all sorts of economic problems, the vibe in the city remains a very welcoming one to the visitor.

3.If you know any Irish people, you know they like having craic. Pronounced ‘crack’ (and no, it’s not an illegal drug…) this word has an approximate meaning of ‘having fun/good time’. Here’s a good explanation of this elusive term .

Maybe because of its craic-loving people, Cork has so many festivals, making the city a vibrant and fun place to visit at any time of the year.

My favorite festival in town is the internationally celebrated Cork Guinness Jazz Festival, which takes place in October every year. So get your friends together and have some craic in Cork!

^{Cork is filled with jazz tunes – bands play all over the city during Cork Guinness Jazz Festival.}

Apart from festivals, Cork boasts a number of theatres, concert venues and galleries with exciting year-round programmes.

A great little guide higlighting all what's happening in the city is called Whazon. The printed version is a small booklet with a wealth of information on what's on in Cork, plus a convenient city map, easily fitting in your pocket or a handbag.

^{Whazon, a handy event guide can be found in most coffee shops, venues or galleries in Cork.}

4.In Ireland lots of things happen in pubs. A pub is a meeting place, an entertainment centre, a place to have a meal and spend some time with friends – all in one.

Even if you are not a pub-goer, but want to meet some locals, consider visiting a pub - that’s where people congregate on wet evenings. Have a glass of something, listen to some music (often live) and strike up a conversation with the person sitting next to you– don’t worry, it’s acceptable to talk to strangers and even have a laugh together (see point 2 above).

^{Arthur Mayne is ‘120-year-old chemist turned wine bar’ serving good food well into the night.}

5.Throughout history, Irish monks set up lots of monasteries and centers of learning in Europe. Today, the tradition of learning continues with a number of colleges in Cork where students from Ireland, Europe and the rest of the world come to get their degrees.

^{University College Cork}

While most of us, visitors to University College Cork (UCC), don’t have any plans of getting yet another degree, a stroll in UCC campus will make you wonder why you never considered studying here, on one of the most beautiful campuses you’ve ever visited.

This campus gives an impression of a well-groomed park with a lively ambiance on weekdays and quiet nostalgic beauty at the weekends.

^{University College Cork campus}

^{University College Cork campus}

6.A short walk from UCC campus will take you to Fitzgerald’s Park, a favourite place of many locals – it’s a bustling place on a sunny day and isn’t entirely empty on a rainy afternoon either.

^{Fitzgerald Park in Cork has much to offer in any season and even on a rainy day.}

Some recent futuristic additions to the park makes it even a more exciting place to visit.

^{Fitzgeral Park and its new look.}

7.The Irish now make great coffee. When I first came to Cork, it was almost impossible to find a place serving good quality coffee… 15 years on, things have changed – there are a number of places in Cork now, where coffee is as good as in Italy, France or Spain. You are spoilt for choice!

^{Excellent coffee in Filter, a coffee bar on George’s Quay.}

^{A wide choice when it comes to coffee variety in Cork.}

This small list above doesn’t even begin to cover the wealth of things to discover about the Corconians, their culture, places to visit and things to do in Cork, but hopefully, it has intrigued you enough to visit this welcoming, vibrant city.

Visit Cork, enjoy your life!

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