LIMERICK, REPUBLIC OF IRELAND

The City of Limerick

With a population of roughly 60,000, Limerick is the fifth largest city in Ireland. Overlooked by Woodcock Hill immediately to the north, and the Silvermine Mountains to the east, the city is spread along both banks of the Shannon River, a few miles east of the Shannon estuary. Limerick has traditionally been seen as a down-to-earth city and has long been eclipsed by Galway, its neighbor to the north. But this is true no longer. The Limerick of today is a busy, bustling city and the commercial capital of the mid-west of Ireland - the poor, dreary, rain-sodden town, ever-present drunk townspeople, and religious maniacs which Frank McCourt so memorably evokes in “Angela's Ashes” is no more. Like many other Irish towns and cities, Limerick changed and prospered greatly during the success-driven 90s, and is currently in the midst of a comprehensive makeover. As a result, you'll often see cranes and scaffolding during your wanderings through its streets, as Limerick's renaissance unfolds.

Limerick is a compact, walkable city where most of the sights and attractions are within ... more