Ireland's third "capital" (after Dublin and Belfast), Cork city is a beautiful destination located in the south of the country. Fringing the banks of the river Lee and flowing into the sea, Cork is a coastal city which has a proud and colourful history. Boasting one of the world's largest natural harbours, the South Mall famously has many gateways at street level which were boathouses long ago and seafaring merchants accessed their warehouses by water. Even some of the streets are criss-crossed by the river, so the city has lots of bridges. In the 7th century, St Finbarr founded a monastery (the Cathedral stands on the site today) and growing rich, the Vikings arrived to plunder, followed by an invasion of the Anglo-Normans (in 1172), but the brave Corkonians always resisted fiercely gaining themselves the nomer "Rebel Cork". Known affectionately today as the Rebel County, this is perhaps more widely attributed to its sporting prowess. Cork was the European Capital of Culture in 2005 and won a great accolade from Lonely Planet in 2009 where the city was deemed in the Top 10 "Best in Travel 2010" for being a sophisticated, fun, forward thinking and cultural city destination. The Cork Opera House, Crawford Municipal Art Gallery and RTE's Vanburgh string quartet are just some of the city's cultural gems, but music, performing arts and theatrical pursuits have always been a highlight. Cork is renowned for its food culture too and has really excellent restaurants. The shining beacon is the city centre "English market" where local crubeens, drisheen and tripe are traditional staples. A recent visit by Queen Elizabeth 11 brought the "English Market", already firmly on the map, to an even higher dimension. Explore the surrounding areas and take a trip to picturesque Kinsale or visit the stunning Fota Wildlife Park. The people of Cork though remain the city's biggest asset. Possessing a natural gift of hospitality and, with their beautifully lilting accent, you will be welcomed as one of their own.