Art vandalization, indulging yourself, & rating castles: What to do in Limerick

King John's Castle, Limerick 

Limerick? I'd never really thought of going there, much less did I think I'd want to have a birthday trip there, but several things have opened my eyes to the enjoyments of Limerick. Let me tell you about some of what to do in Limerick, so you can perhaps plan a Limerick trip for yourself!

First up is a bit of tasty food. As you probably know, Ireland has gotten a great reputation for the quality of its food products, and during Love Gourmet Week June 1-10, you can try some for yourself without slaving over the cooker, because local restaurants are offering specials for the week! The website tells us:

'Superb menus priced from €35 per person will offer outstanding value for unique culinary specials with locally sourced produce during the event which runs from Friday, June 1st- Sunday, June 10th inclusive.

Fifteen of the top restaurants in Limerick and the Shannon region will offer an outstanding fine dining experience at exceptional prices. The ethos of the event will again be a celebration of local produce, great Irish food and organic produce.' 

Find out more here.

@fustar's daughter loved getting even with NAMA! 

What first piqued my interest in visiting Limerick is an biennial art event, Eva International, centred in the city and running from 19 May- 12 August. 

The theme for this year's show is taken from a book by Franco ''Bifo'' Berardi, After The Future, and contains a idea that really appeals to me--'living slowly in the infinite present.' For me, that is what looking at art helps me do-- to be present just looking & feeling, and then considering. 

I'm not knowledgeable about art, but I do enjoy it, & I think I will enjoy Eva International in Limerick. PLUS, apparently you may get to vandalise/paint a NAMA inspired work: José Carlos Martinat's "Vandalised Monuments Power Abstraction 4" 

At least that's what I saw on Twitter, so it must be true :-)

A. Catalan, 'Morphological Zone', 2011 

Click here for more on Eva International

I also found out about The Hunt Museum, which has art & antiquities from the Neolithic age to the 20th century. They also have lots of events listed, do click on their website! Additionally, they look to be just a short walk from The Milk Market, which has lots of different types of goods on offer in an award winning setting. Depending on the day it seems the concentration of some items are higher; Saturday seems to be the big food day, yum! 

Limerick's Milk Market

Also in Limerick is King John's Castle, pictured at the start of my post. It has no website, & has gotten mixed reviews from folk on Tripadvisor-- some say definitely visit, others are quite 'meh' about it. I think we shall have to go see for ourselves, & will let you know what we thought!

I'll also let you know about how we get on with my big birthday present- a stay at the #1 Tripadvisor rated, & multi award-winning 1 Pery Square! We'll be having dinner one night in their Brasserie One restaurant, and I'm also very tempted to try one of their extensive list of spa treatments while we're there. As I'm not a very girly gal, I'm not quite sure what they all are/do... there are Voya, or Payot (must be brands?) lists of treatments as well as things I do understand, like massage :-) But, really, I'm thinking that I'd like to go for something that lets me get into this gorgeous looking bath!!

We've 2 days in Limerick-- have you any Limerick suggestions for us to see/do/eat on this trip or another? Leave a comment below, or tweet me @vibrantireland

Thanks!