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Published: August 24th 2008
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This entry will focus on the first day of our tour proper in which we began our travels on the tour bus with our fearless leader, Tommy O'Reilly. I was paired with Nancy on the bus and we all settled in to our new mode of travel which included long periods of Tommy sharing his endless Irish wisdom and boundless knowledge of Irish history with us, interspersed with Irish music.
Our first stop was the Rock of Cashel. Well, actually it was more like we saw it from a distance as we stopped on the side of the roadway. It was a beautiful sight. But alas, we were not going up to it, this was just a picture stop. So on we went.
The next stop was Blarney Castle. This was the biggie for the day...Well, actually for the trip. We'd picked a tour that specifically had this stop on it. The Blarney Castle area was connected to the Blarney Woollen Mills by a walkway. After parking with the other multitude of tour buses we made our way over to the castle. It was one of those situations where you round a corner and there it is, framed above
Blarney Castle 3
From a different angle. the trees. So beautiful. And then it just gets more beautiful and impressive as you get closer to it. When we got up to the door we saw that the line to kiss the stone started at the bottom and went all the way to the top. We were all for it, so we got in line.
The first part of the line went up through the main rooms of the castle. Bare and unrestored, it was just centuries old stone. Next came the terrifying climb up the twisted spiral stairs. Steep, narrow with only a rope on the side to hold on to and pull yourself up with, these were some of the scariest stairs I have ever climbed in my life. Once we made it to the top I was so relieved I could just stand there and pant for a while. Dad was looking at the scenery and taking pictures of the livestock far below. Me, I was trying to get as far away from the steps as I could and trying really hard to catch my breath and slow my pulse rate. But then came the worst part. Trying to take pictures of my family
Blarney Castle 6
The start of the line and the door into the castle. laying on the parapet of a castle, kissing a stone below wall level with an elderly Irishman clutching them around the waist. And then it was my turn. Very scary. All I remember is looking down below me at where the stone was as the man above me kept saying "back...back." I thought, "No way, I'm not going down that far." Let's not forget that your hanging by your butt from an ancient castle wall. And so...I made a kissing noise at the nearest rock and then came back up. Oh well...I missed the Blarney Stone. But at least I came within a few inches of it.
Afterwards I was ready to get down and out of the castle, but it seemed to take forever. At last we exited into the open air. I believe I was heard to mutter something along the lines of, "Get me out of here." But I plead the 5th. Needless to say it was an unforgettable experience and one that I'm not too willing to repeat. Though I would love to go and see the castle again, walk around the outside and take in the history and the beauty. That's a bit different
Blarney Castle 8
Kissing the Stone. than walking up life-threatening stairs and hanging over a wall to kiss a fabled rock that's probably really just a plain old stone. Who knows, maybe we're all a bit more eloquent than before. Or maybe not.
Whether or not we received the gift of eloquence, we did not have the gift of time. So we made our way back down to the Woollen Mills area and ate at the pub there. We had a lovely ham and cheese sandwhich that was amazingly one of the best meals we had. But lunch left us with only 20 minutes to shop in the Woollen Mills. Mom and I ran in and power shopped. It was rough. We bought quite a bit in a very short time, but it wasn't exactly fun. But the bus didn't leave without us. We made it back on board with Tommy before he departed.
And depart he did, this time for Killarney. Our hotel had been upgraded to the Academy Plaza Hotel right on the main street of Killarney. It was really nice to be able to just walk out of our hotel and shop. And that's exactly what we did after dinner. I
Blarney Castle 9
The line as seen from below around the parapets of the caste. They're all waiting to kiss the stone. think we really got the majority of our gift shopping done here. This place seemed like a really quaint, lovely little place. And apparently they cater to the tourists as all the shops on the main street were open past 9 pm.
Next stop...the Ring of Kerry
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