butter, Bells and Burros

Cork is about a 2-and-a-half hour drive south of Galway City. It’s known for a lot of things including the Bells of Shandon, a Butter Museum and the nearby Donkey Sanctuary.

St. Ann’s Church in Cork

At the top of a high hill in Cork you’ll find St. Anne’s Church. And just just one flight of stairs up you can ring The Bells of Shandon. The ropes are numbered. There are sheets of music to play tunes by the numbers. And those bells ring all day long!

Ringing the Bells of Shandon at St.; Anne’s in Cork.

And for the adventurous, you can climb up to the top of the church’s tower. That climb includes two ladders and going through a tight spot in the ceiling, and a stone stairwell to the top. But a lot of people do it.  

Passage to the top of St.Anne ‘s Bell Tower in Cork

Just across the street from St. Anne’s is the Butter Museum. That’s right, a museum dedicated to butter. Butter churns, paddles, casks, different types of wrapping and advertising over the years. Plus you learn all about the history of Ireland’s butter industry and Butter Exchange.

The Butter Museum in Cork

And within an hour’s drive of Cork, in the village of Liscarroll, is the Donkey Sanctuary. Hundreds of donkeys live and are cared for there. They rescue donkeys found lost in the wild, turned out by farmers years ago when tractors took over the work donkeys once did. You can learn about them, pet them, and even adopt them.

The Donkey Sanctuary in Liscarroll, near Cork

And you can hear about all three in this episode of Erin’s Isle. It’s an older podcast but a good one!