Ireland's oldest city but the drive to get here was the highlight

What should have been a two hour (120km) drive from Cork to Waterford took just under 7 hours! So many detours and places to see along the way starting with the car ferry ride from Glenbrook to Cobh, the Titanic’s last port of call in 1912. The town has been named as one of the 25 most beautiful small coastal towns in Europe. One if its streets is known as the deck of cards due to its row of coloured houses stacked onto the steep hill. Another interesting fact is that it's cathedral has a 49-bell Carillon (the largest such instrument in Ireland and Britain) which means the bells can be play tunes like a piano, but with bells!. The person who plays the bells is called a carillonneur. In 1915, 1,198 people drowned when the ship the Lusitania was sunk by German u-boats off the coast and many of these people are buried in Cobh's old churchyard. It was then onto Ballycotton to see the black lighthouse (only one of two in Ireland!), and then lunch in Youghal - where I learnt that Sir Walter Raleigh might have been a great explorer and soldier (he is credited with beheading 600 Spanish soldiers), but was a lousy businessman when he sold 40,000 acres around Youghal for 1,500 pounds. He is also believed to have introduced the potato to Ireland. Youghal is also where they filmed Moby Dick with Gregory Peck, (who played Captain Ahab) in 1956. I then drove through Dungarvan and along the Copper Coast, a beautiful scenic drive passed cliffs, beaches, coves and abandoned copper mines (a bit like Cornwall!). Today was spent walking around Waterford, the country’s oldest city. It was founded by Vikings in 914 A.D. and parts of its ancient walled core remain. It is also the home of Waterford Crystal - (which I visited), although the company is now owned and operated by the Finnish company Fiskars (who also make a handy range of garden products!) Waterford has at least 13 museums, mostly to do with the vikings - (but I didn't visit any of them). One interesting fact is that all the churches here have Waterford Crystal chandeliers which adds a nice touch.