Top 10 things to do in and around Cork

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Below are our top ten recommendations for things to do in and around Cork. They’ll help you learn about the city, and the region, and give you ample opportunity to practise your English.

1. Do some shopping on St Patrick’s Street

Cork’s main road, St. Patrick Street, is lined with a variety of shops and cafes, and has become one of the main shopping areas in the city.  In fact, since its redevelopment in 2004, it has twice won the award as Ireland’s best shopping street! Even if you don’t want to buy anything, it’s worth visiting area to soak up the buzzing atmosphere – you might even be able to catch a street performance or two.

2. Take a stroll around Fitzgerald’s Park

To the west of the city centre is Fitzgerald Park. Bordered by the River Lee to the north, it offers a fantastic view of Sunday’s Well, the affluent suburb situated on its high escarpment. Apart from the array of flora and fauna, the park boasts a number of sculptures and statues, including the one of ‘Boy with boat’ on the small pond. Also located within the park is the Cork Public Museum, where you can find out about Michael Collins, or Cork’s role in the War of Independence.

3. Explore the English Market

One of Cork’s most popular attractions, the English Market has entrances on Princes Street, Patrick Street and the Grand Parade. It is a covered market selling foods from all over the world as well as traditional local produce, including Cork favourites crubeens (pigs’ feet), and Tripe & Drisheen. The origins of the market can be traced back to the 17th century, but the present building dates from 1786. In 1980 it was destroyed by fire and was refurbished by Cork Corporation to an award-winning design by the Cork city architect T. F. MacNamara.

4. Take a trip to Cobh image

Cobh is a colourful harbour town in east county Cork, just half an hour by train from Cork city. It has a rich maritime history, and was the departure point for many emigrants who left the island for America, especially in the Famine years of 1844-48. It was also the last port that Titanic called at before embarking upon its ill-fated journey. One of Cobh’s most famous features is St Coleman’s Cathedral, which is home to the largest bell in Ireland, and from where you can get a beautiful view of the surrounding countryside and coastline.

If you visit Cobh in the summer, you might also get to see the famous regatta. It is one of the oldest in Europe, and is still a sight to be behold! There’s a definite party atmosphere during the regatta too, which will give you a great insight into this aspect of Irish culture.

5. Visit St. Ann’s Church

The Church of St Ann is located in the historic Shandon district of Cork. It is situated a top a hill overlooking the River Lee.The church is famous for its eight bells, which feature in a famous song, “The Bells of Shandon” by Francis Sylvester Mahony, and which you can actually ring yourself when you visit! You can also get a fantastic view over the city from the church’s tower.

6. Kiss the Blarney Stone image

Just outside Cork lies Blarney Castle, home of the famous Blarney Stone. The stone is also known as the ‘Stone of Eloquence’, as it is said to bestow eloquence upon those who kiss it – in other words, anyone who kisses the stone will get the ‘gift of the gab!’

Aside from the Blarney Stone, the castle is also home to the Rocklose Gardens, which are filled with rock formations. There is also a mansion, known as Blarney House, which is open to all.

7. Take in some sport

Gaelic sports, such as Gaelic football and hurling, are played extensively in Ireland, and lots of games are held at Cork’s Pairc Ui Chaoimh Stadium. Horse racing and greyhound racing are also a popular form of entertainment in the city, and can be watched regularly throughout the year.

8. Enjoy some walking in the nearby countryside

Close to Cork, around an hour’s drive away, are the Galtee and Knockmealdown mountain ranges. The scenery there is spectacular, and there are endless opportunities for hiking and biking that will enable you to enjoy Ireland’s Great Outdoors.

9. Take a walk around the Hugenot Quarter

The Huguenot Quarter of Cork is the area around French Church Street and Carey’s Lane.

The Huguenots were French Protestants who fled from religious prosecution in the 17th and 18th centuries. They played an important part in Cork life, and many of them served as sheriffs or mayors of the city, although many more were merchants, manufacturers and gold and silver smiths. The area where they lived is now an attractive district of narrow, cobbled lanes that are brimming with restaurants, cafes, boutiques and galleries.

10. Spend an evening enjoying the ‘craic’ in Cork’s numerous pubs

Ireland is famous for its traditional pubs, and you’ll be spoilt for choice when it comes to spending an evening out. Irish pubs are famous the world over for their atmosphere, and often they’ll have live music to enjoy along with the ‘craic’ as they say in Ireland! You can find detailed listings of the pubs in Cork on the Cork Guide website.

Cactus offers a range of English courses in Cork, including General English, Intensive English, Individual English, Combined English, Business English, Academic Year English, Exam Preparation English, Teacher Refresher English and Juniors English. For full details, including start dates and prices, please visist the Cactus Language website. 

Congratulations to our evening language course winner! April-July 2011

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At Cactus we have come to the end of another term of evening courses, and are delighted to have chosen the winner of our feedback questionnaire prize. This is awarded to the person who we feel has given us the most useful and structured feedback, upon completion of their course, and the prize is a refund of their course fees.

In this case our winner, Geri Tuneva, will be taking a continuation course with Cactus, and so rather than receive a refund she has opted to receive a complimentary subsequent course from Cactus.

Geri took a Level 1 10-week evening course in Spanish at our centre in Kings Cross, London, with teacher Aurea Ruiz Marcos. All in all she found her course to be excellent and scored an outstanding 5/5 for each category. We haven’t picked Geri simply because she enjoyed her course, however; Geri gave useful feedback and suggestions that our team has taken on board, especially relating to our course materials and Facebook profile. Thank you Geri and we hope you enjoy your next course!

Language learning resources you find useful: “The podcasts you provided were really useful as it gave us some more to the classes than we could get in the 2 hours we had per lesson. Also, it gave us a chance to practice and think about pronounciation”.

Course: (5/5) ”The course was excellent and I really enjoyed each lesson. The classmates were really fun which lead to a great learning environment.”



Content comments: (5/5) “The content was generally great, there were some lessons that were much harder than others, it would be great to challenge us in each lesson. However overall it was all great and is a good beginners course as it covers basic things you need to get by when speaking with in Spanish”.

Teacher comments: (5/5) “Auri was amazing, really lovely and she made an effort to make us use more than 1 sense in order to learn more quickly – one of the exercises was to have us blindfolded and for us to be guided around an obstacle course. What a great idea, really fun and we definitely learned how to give directions in Spanish!!”

Materials comments: (5/5) “The coursebook was really good, simple and understandable.”

School comments: (5/5) “So far you guys have answered all my emails promptly, even when I didn’t expect it, and this effort on your part really shows. Well done!”

Language Minis comments: (5/5) “These did not follow the course structure exactly, but this was good as we learned some new things from the podcasts we didn’t get a chance to cover in class”.

Value for money comments: (5/5) “For the price I think this is a great course, and the great thing is that the textbook is included in the price. This is a big selling point of yours and you should promote it as much as you can”.

I really enjoyed… “The whole course – Auri was fantastic, my classmates were great and the Kings Cross facilities were generally great too (apart from the toilets which were consistently out of toilet paper and soap). I really liked the structure of how were sitting – in a circle, as it felt like we could all contribute to the class openly”.

I didn’t like… “The fact that the course books were so late, but I understand this was not your fault. The electric blackboard was giving us many problems as it was hard to use (especially if you are not very tall!). Other than that everything was pretty spot on!”

I would have liked… “The listening exercises were really good as it gave us a chance to hear how fast Spanish people speak, making it a bit harder than in class (but more realistic). We could have had a few more listening exercises, as I think this is really useful. In class we speak slowly and we all know the material we have covered – the listening exercises move us out of our comfort zone a bit more”.

Have you made any progress? “Yes. I was a complete beginner before I started, I had never had a Spanish lesson in my life. Now I can talk about myself and my family and friends, give directions, talk about my likes and dislikes, etc. (all in present tense of course!!) 🙂 It feels great to get so far in 10 weeks of classes, and I feel very prepared for my trip to Spain this summer!”

Would you recommend Cactus to others? “I have already been recommending you guys to all my friends, and I know that at least 2 people will be booking their next language course with you.”

Why did you choose this course / Cactus? “You guys have a very professional website which is very reassuring. You are such a big company but you are very responsive and it feels like you are a small company – which is great as you have a big reputation that you are clearly upholding. You should promote the fact that you are in so many countries and have such a great reputation a bit more – as this is one of the most reassuring things for people looking to start a new language.”



Any other comments: “It would be great if you guys had a forum or better yet a Facebook group for each language where people could join and practice the language as well as meet others with the same interests. I would like to meet other students on higher Spanish courses, not just beginners, as this is great for practicing but also for keeping in touch with people you’ve met along the way. We created our own Facebook group for our class where we post things in Spanish that we find and think are useful – this is really good as it engages you with Cactus and with your classmates even outside of class. This would be great for your branding and web presence”.

Cactus runs evening and part-time language courses in 41 locations and 24 languages across the UK. Courses are available at all levels, from beginners to advanced, and start on regular start dates throughout the year.

Why learn English in Washington DC?

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Despite being the nation’s capital, Washington DC can sometimes be overlooked by visitors, who are often more drawn to hotspots like New York, Las Vegas and Chicago.

It is certainly very different to New York and Las Vegas, which, in fairness, are unique the world over, but when it comes to history, culture and green spaces it certainly proves a worthy rival to Chicago.

So, why should you choose Washington DC as a place to learn English?

1. Easily accessible with good transport links

Washington DC is unique among American cities because it was established by the Constitution of the United States expressly to serve as the nation’s capital. It was built around the Potomac River, which was considered a natural midpoint between the northern and southern states. Its location means that many other cities in America are easily accessible from Washington DC, and its status as capital city of America means that its airports are really well served internationally. There are three airports in the Washington DC area – Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA), Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI).

2. Full of history and culture

Washington DC was officially founded on July 16, 1790. It was designed by French-born architect Pierre Charles L’Enfant as a bold new capital with sweeping boulevards and ceremonial spaces reminiscent of those in Paris. During the War of 1812, many of the city’s buildings, including the White House, were burned down by British forces in retaliation for an attack on York, now known as Toronto. However, the British left the residential areas untouched and also spared the home of the Commandant of the Marines, located on Marine Barracks, as a sign of respect and is now the oldest government building in continuous use in the nation’s capital.

After more than two hundred years as the capital of America, Washington has been the backdrop for many a momentous event. It has also developed into a fascinating city, with a unique personality that continues to attract people from a variety of states and countries, who come for a variety of reasons.

3. Easy to get around

Washington DC city centre is actually relatively small, and can certainly be easily explored on foot. There is a good range of public transport options though, so anyone who prefers to get around this way can easily do so – the city boasts a great metro system, plenty of bus routes and lots of taxis.

4. Clean and spacious feel

Visitors to Washington DC often comment on its spacious feel, and how clean it is. Unlike many American cities, there are relatively few high buildings as Washington has prohibited tall buildings for nearly 100 years, since the Building Heights Act was passed in 1910. The act stated that no building can surpass the Washington Monument in height – it currently stands at just over 550 feet.

There are lots of parks in Washington, which prides itself on being a very green city, both literally, and in terms of looking after the environment too.

5. Cosmopolitan and welcoming of foreign visitors

Washington DC is a very cosmopolitan city and is home to many nationalities. Some of the foreigners who live in ‘DC’ are there to work – Washington has more embassies than any other city in the world and is also home to international organisations such as the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank. Others, however, are there to study at one of the many universities in the area. Included in the list are Georgetown University, George Mason University and the George Washington University.

6. Vibrant nightlife and entertainment options

Washington has an enviable selection of nightlife options, many of which cater for the thousands of students in the city. There are over 40 performing arts venues and theatres, and over 100 restaurants in downtown Washington.

The city is also home to four major sporting venues and eight major professional teams including the Redskins (football), Mystics (basketball) and Capitals (hockey).

Currently, Cactus offers General English, Intensive English and TOEFL courses in Washington DC. For full details, and information on other US destinations, please visit the Cactus Language website.

Get ready for Oktoberfest in Munich

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It may come as a surprise that the world’s biggest beer festival, Munich’s Oktoberfest, was born out of celebration for a royal wedding back in the early 19th century. Yet it was the drinking and partying that drew most attention at the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig (later to become King Ludwig I) to Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen on October 12th 1810, and it was this that launched ‘Oktoberfest’ as we know it. Read more →

Film review: City of God

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I got the chance to watch City of God whilst travelling around the world. The first destination on my exhilarating trip was the exotic and exciting Rio de Janiero. I arrived intrigued and slightly anxious after all the frightening things I had heard about this part of the world, but I am pleased to say it wasn’t as daunting as expected. I saw all the famous landmarks this wonderful city has to offer such as Copacabana and Ipanema beaches, and the magnificent Maracana football stadium. I also travelled through the infamous favelas to get close-up to the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue, looking out over this beautiful city. My very first experience of Brazil was thrilling and it was a great introduction to my travels around this amazing continent.

Further along into my journey, I stopped for a week in Byron Bay, Australia. A laid-back, bohemian town, it was my kind of place. My hostel had a cinema room, and during my stay, it was to show the Brazilian film City of God. My lack of in-depth film knowledge meant I did not know too much about it; but what I did know was that it was set in Rio, that fun and fascinating city I had visited a few months earlier. This was definitely one to watch.

I didn’t speak Portuguese and did not have the chance to learn much of the language during my relatively short time in Brazil, so luckily this film was subtitled. This certainly wasn’t a hindrance to watching City of God. Gritty, romantic, violent, action-packed, scary and gripping; this film is positively one to remember. It shows the struggles of Rio’s poorest trying to survive in the dangerous, mud-constructed, crime-ridden favelas, where gun fights are a daily occurrence. The film brought back memories of my taxi driving behind a police car for part of my journey through this neighbourhood, with officers pointing machine guns out of their car windows.

The beauty of this film is that it captures real life, but also gives a helping-hand to those it portrays so realistically. It hit home how precarious these shanty towns can be, but also the tremendous talent of the local actors and actresses in the film. All but one of the main cast was from the favelas, mainly children and teenagers. They had been given their chance to shine, and shine they certainly did. The superb cast deserve all the acclaim they received for their tremendous performances.

A truly fantastic film and a truly wonderful city; a must-see on-screen and in person.

Film review: Maria, Full of Grace

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It’s the kind of film that stays with you for a long time afterwards. It’s not exactly a feel-good film, nor is it one I’d pick off the shelf to wind down with before bed. But if you want a film that will really grip you, even shock and sadden you, all whilst opening your eyes to the reality of life elsewhere, then here you have it.

Take one pregnant, 17-year-old girl from a poor village in Colombia who wants to escape the family she supports, the baby’s father who she doesn’t love and the country where she will never earn decent money. Maria is her name. Feeling trapped, it doesn’t take much for her to be tempted by an offer to earn a huge sum of money to smuggle drugs into the US.

The only proviso is that these drugs have to be ingested in the form of pellets – 100 small sacks filled with heroin and sealed with latex and dental floss – which must be swallowed whole and carried in Maria’s stomach until she reaches her destination. Not only does Maria risk being caught at US customs, she faces certain death should one of these pellets burst inside her as well as untold risk to her unborn child. Yet the film sees her determinedly practising by swallowing eye-wateringly large grapes and ultimately boarding the plane, drugs ingested, as we follow her gripping odyssey into danger.

Utterly engrossing, you can barely look away from the screen, the tension unbearable. Another drug mule staggers ashen-faced to the bathroom mid-air, while the interrogation at US customs leaves you holding your breath and wishing Maria safe passage. Job done – she’s through.

But it’s not over yet; the vulnerable teenager now finds herself on the streets of New York, surrounded by a language she doesn’t understand and people she doesn’t know. All she knows is that she has to deliver the drugs, every single pellet, safely and entirely, to a random address. Without wanting to reveal how the film ends, Maria’s mission becomes one of survival as the ruthless world of international drugs trafficking is exposed in harsh light.

Shot in documentary-style with a hand-held camera, this film is gritty, honest and powerful. It’s not flashy, it’s not clichéd and it doesn’t preach about morals. You can take away thoughts about the injustice of exploiting the poor to satisfy the pleasure of the rich, you can question the lengths that someone would go to to better their life, but most of all you can admire Maria for remaining dignified, calm and graceful – as the title implies – throughout her whole experience. It’s a tribute to the human spirit, and in that sense this is the real silver lining.

Film review: Apariencias

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Apariencias, which means appearance, is a South American romantic comedy movie. The story revolves around Carmelo (Adrián Suar), an extremely shy person, who falls in love with his colleague Veronica (Andrea Del Boca), but struggles to express his feelings. In a twist, Veronica finds him demonstrating in a gay rally and thinks he is gay. Instead of telling the truth, Carmelo pretends to be gay and builds lies around this to get closer to Veronica and win her over.

I watched Apariencias a year ago when I was doing the level 2 Spanish course. None of my classmates or my teacher knew about this movie. I watched it just because it was available for free, not really by choice, but I’m glad to have seen it. Apparently South American Spanish is easy to understand as people talk slowly, so it was a good pick any way at the time.

I didn’t know much Spanish, so watching a movie without subtitles was very ambitious, but strangely I enjoyed it. I had to pause several times in between and refer to the dictionary to find the meanings of whatever words I could make out in their conversations. It was hard work, but I felt great when I understood what was going on in the movie. Everything fell in place when I watched it for the second time.

As Apariencias was the first Spanish movie I watched, and I put lot of effort to understand, it’s always going to be the most memorable movie for me. Also, it was a nice movie, which made me laugh despite having difficulty in understanding the language. Therefore I can say without hesitation that Apariencias is the best foreign language movie I’ve ever seen.

Film review: the Diving Bell and the Butterfly

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Based on a novel of the same name (Le Scaphandre et le Papillion in French), The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is the true story of a man who suffers from ‘locked-in syndrome’. This is a rare neurological condition which has no effect on mental capacity but leaves sufferers unable to move a muscle – except for the left eyelid in his case.

Amazingly, the author of the book, and central character in the film, is the man who was victim of this cruel fate. Jean- Dominique Bauby was enjoying a fast-paced and fulfilling existence as editor-in-chief of Elle magazine when a sudden and massive stroke stripped him of his movement, and ultimately his life. In an amazing achievement, he managed to painstakingly commit his story to paper using only blinking movements, a specially devised alphabet, and the aid of a companion to transcribe.

You could be forgiven for thinking that this would not be an uplifting film to watch – certainly not one for when you’re feeling down in the dumps and looking for a little escapism – but in actual fact, nothing could be further from the truth. The film is actually very funny in parts, and although a very sad and moving story, it serves as a great reminder for how easy it is to take life for granted, and how it is possible to triumph in even the greatest of adversity.

Jean-Dominique, or ‘Jean- Do’ as he is referred to throughout the film, is played by Mathieu Amalric, widely considered to be one of the greatest French actors today. The film itself won Best Foreign Language Film and Best Director at the Golden Globes and was nominated for four Oscars – deservedly so, the general consensus seems to suggest.

Meze Magazine - August 2011

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This article in the business section of Meze magazine takes a look at virtual learning options for business people pushed for time.  “If you do business in countries where English isn’t the first language, it pays to be able to do more than order beer and sausage – and being short of time isn’t an excuse.  There’s no need to leave your desk or hotel room when you can lean a language in real time on Skype.  You can speak to trainers freom all over the world and benefit from the extra motivation of having intense, face-to-face training.  Cactus Language Training, whose past clients include big corporations like Goldman Sachs, Deloitte and Credit Suisse have a pool of international trainers available on Skpye for around £29 per house.  ‘All you need is broadand, a headset and a web cam you are ready to log-in,’ says Cactus PR manager Lucy Brandt. “This executive product is for those who have no time to do a session in a training centre.” https://www.cactuslanguagetraining.com

Star Telegram - August 2011

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Learn the language Here’s a chance to take a vacation and learn a language at the same time: Cactus Language Training is offering special bonus pa… read entire article

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