5 May 2016; Limerick walking tour

This morning we caught up on our washing and this afternoon went on a walking tour hosted by Declan, a local tour guide who also works at the Hunt Museum. We walked Limerick’s streets and listened to the history of the famous and infamous, viewed the Georgian architecture and visited a number of historic sites.

We stopped briefly at Frank McCourt’s Museum but didn’t go in as it was late and we wanted to visit the Hunt Museum before it closed. Frank McCourt was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1997 for his autobiographical memoir “Angela’s Ashes” which is based on his childhood and teenage experiences growing up in Limerick.

The Shannon River is subject to tidal influence and the water flow over a man-made weir and a rock shelf is very impressive. Declan said that at a particular time during the tidal movement, a standing wave appears on the river large enough for people to surf on.

We continued onto the Hunt Museum and St. Mary’s Cathedral after our tour concluded. The Hunt Museum holds about 2,500 different artifacts, both from Ireland and abroad. The oldest pieces are from stone-age Ireland and ancient Egypt. As antique dealers and advisors to collectors, John and Gertrude Hunt acquired pieces that reflected their own interests and curiosity rather than for commercial purposes. They gifted their collection to the people of Ireland in the 1970s.

The Cathedral of Saint Mary Blessed Virgin has had a long and eventful history. It was founded in 1168 on the site of a palace donated by Donal Mor O’Brien, King of Munster. The Cathedral is used daily and is the oldest and most historic building in Limerick, pre-dating the nearby King John’s Castle.