Ireland, Day 6: The left

Friday we took it to the next level and departed Dublin for Cork, via car… After the usual pain and suffering when renting a car we were off! The most important bit of advice: “no turn on red.” (You thought it would be “drive on the left” didn’t you? It turns out there are plenty of signs to drive that point home, but nothing regarding the policy for turning at red lights.)

We successfully made it out of Dublin, driving on the left and not turning on red, and proceeded to Cork along the East coast. As we drove we noticed some curious things: It seems many things are opposite when driving in Europe, not just driving on the left, thus looking left for pertinent signs, but also towns are listed closest to furthest from the bottom up. However, they make efficient use of frequent roundabouts.

Additionally, Ireland uses white for the centerline and double yellow on the edges of the road. This is further complicated by separating lanes in the same direction by, you guessed it, white lines. On the plus side the shoulders are generally wide in passing zones so that on a two lane road when you get to a passing zone, you don’t have to cross the centerline for long. Slower moving vehicles will even drive on the shoulder waiting for you to pass, if possible. But, of course, aside from occasional signs telling you not to turn left or right (not always because of a one-way), there is no clear indication of which way is the one-way on single lane streets.

Probably the most humorous items so far are signs for “traffic calming.” What this actually means is that lanes merge, divided highways end, and the speed limit reduces, but I can’t help thinking it’s something we need to reduce road rage. Calm, traffic, calm.

We managed to stop for lunch, and then make it the rest of the way to Cork, bypassing Youghal (Yawl) for the day to be seen for a full day tomorrow. Once in Cork we were greeted by many one-way streets, restrictions on which direction to turn and at one point we were even on a bridge where the legal traffic pattern is for both sides to drive on the right (let’s be North American for one block!)… in any case, we made it to our B&B, had coffee and scones, picked our room and unloaded the car.

After taking a breather and examining the info on Cork, we went to dinner at a little place with a deck overlooking a bit of the South fork of the River Lee. This was interesting if only for the chance to ponder building an island in the middle of a river and then centering your city there. Silly Vikings.

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