A Little Something About the Nightlife

With a drinking age of 18 and at least three universities in the near vicinity, Cork has a nightlife that, while in itself is rather small, is entirely new to me, the girl who goes to school in little old Chestertown with its two (rather pitiful) bars and no clubs to be spoken of.

Here there are pubs at every corner, more than even my little guidebook can count. I’ve only been to a handful so far, but of those I’ve been enough times. There’s the Monday night Franciscan Well, with live music and a selection of specialty brews- the very same place I went my first night here. It’s a nice, warm pub where people can sit and talk and I like that I don’t need to dress up to go there. Also that’s it’s an easy distance from the apartment.

On Tuesday there’s Cavanaugh’s, a younger, more upbeat place with live music every night. But truthfully they cater to a more inebriated crowd, with old pop songs everyone knows and inevitably ends up singing. From there we can usually snag free passes to Club Classic, which is as the name suggests, a classic nightclub; no more, no less, with neon lights and the usual dance beats you see on MTV. It’s not a bad place, but without a pass the cover is much too expensive for what you’re getting.

On Wednesday after English Lit we head over to the Old College Bar, an on-campus pub and venue for sponsored gigs with a big-screen wall usually showing some rugby game. The wooden tables are all marked up and in all, it looks like what you’d think a well-patroned college bar would. It’s usually pretty subdued on Wednesdays, but that’s not bad, it’s a good place to talk.

From there we head down to An Brog, arguably the most popular college hang-out in all of Cork. I like this pub probably more than any of the others. It hosts sometimes live, sometimes DJ’d rock music, a place to dance, and a million nooks and crannies to get away from the bustle. There’s something in the atmosphere that just says, “yes, this place works.” If I’m willing to make it a long evening we’ll head up to Freakscene afterwards, a club situated over the Brog where the music is a bit more diverse, playing everything from 80s classics, to modern rock, to Britney Spears. It’s the oldest running nightclub in Cork and so far my favorite as well. It’s not like the Classic, which to me seems to be trying to hard to be suave. Here there’s music that, while it may not quite be mainstream, you can dance to it. That works for me.

At this point I should probably issue a disclaimer, seeing as I’ve outlined my week by the pubs and clubs I’ve frequented. While a few of my flatmates are very much into dressing up and heading out each night, often I’m just as content to curl up with a glass of wine and a movie. With all the options though, it can be tough to strike a balance. Usually I limit myself to one outing per week, or I’ll hit up a pub with them, but come home before the club as there’s always someone else who forgoes the dance scene as well.

What’s interesting about the Cork nightlife though is that its height is during the weekdays. Even with classes the next morning I have seen the girls out until 2am or later, and most UCC students seem to follow the same pattern. It is true that most local Irish students go home during the weekend, so I suppose it makes sense that the weekdays would be crowded, but it is the opposite of what I expected.

This week is especially lively, as it’s UCCs annual “Raising and Giving Week,” affectionately called RAG. The college, in conjunction with school societies and certain venues, puts on a host of parties and activities, which usually amount to another excuse to go out. All the money goes to selected charities and all the students show up drunk for class- or don’t show up at all. The English Department has even cancelled all lectures for this week in order to host “make-up exams” for last semester, which leaves me with only one class this week and more than enough time to have some fun.