Blarney or Baloney? It's All Malarkey to Us!

Setting out early on Friday morning the roads were again quite busy, but the drive along the coast was beautiful.  Entering County Cork we made our way Northwest to the village of Blarney - famous really for one thing: Blarney Castle, home to the mystical Blarney Stone.

Allegedly imbued with the power to grant the 'Gift of the Gab' to all who kiss it, this stone has been a site of pilgrimage for decades - not just for tourists but also a huge number of stars, celebs and politicians (including a younger Winston Churchill) who have all quite literally bent over backwards to kiss the stone.  Members of my family (who shall remain nameless for now) had begged me not to kiss the stone since it was felt I was already too well endowed in the speech department - but ignoring these pleas I was determined that Denise and I would indeed come face to face (or rather lips to rock) with the famous stone.

Kissing the Stone for the Power to Persuade

What was suprising to us both was how much more there is to Blarney Castle than just the Blarney Stone.  Set in a large and attractive woodland reserve your entry fee gains you access to a pathway that meanders over and along a fast-flowing stream (into which thousands of visitors - including us - have tossed coins to accompany wishes).  The path takes you up to the base of the imposing castle itself, but your entry is via an impressive watch-tower, past the old dungeons (take a torch if you feel in the mood to explore - they are pitch black and quite wet), kennels, and eventually (and inevitably) a gift shop.  The castle is really interesting, with a series of informative sign boards setting out the history of the complex.  Highlights include the banquet room, the vast kitchens (with a fireplace large enough to roast a whole cow), the 'toilets' (holes in the outer wall), and the roof...on which you find the stone.

The Blarney Stone is situated in a rather hard-to-reach spot - on the underside of one of the castle battlements - with nothing below it except the drop of about 5 floors to the gardens below.  Part of the myth has always been that the struggle and danger of getting to the stone to kiss it makes the power that much more effective - and if the stories are to be believed more than one poor soul was lost when their efforts resulted in a sudden 'drop' in their life-expectancy.  Today though things are much less risky - two staffers help you sit down (on a comfy mat), lean back (with one holding yours legs and the other taking the digital picture - available later at the gift shop for a mere 10 Euro).  The whole affair is great fun, and having kissed the stone we are both now feeling much better equipped to speak for years and at some length to you all about every detail of out travels!! :)

As an aside - Denise and many others do get quite worried about the hygiene aspects of so many lips kissing the same spot - the guide book mentions (we hope in jest) that some locals have, from time to time, peed on the stone as well...the things we do for a golden tongue!

Heading back down we then walked along the battlements, visited the old lime kiln, and passed the manor house (occupied by a rich family who open the house to tours at a price - we decided not to pay the extra and just took pics from outside).  The gardens are immense, and we took a long walk down to the lake.  Our last stop was the Stone Close - an area reputed to have been the haunt of a witch and a number of druids (nature priests).  The Close is littered with sights that include dolmen (massive standing tomb stones), the wishing stairs (hewn out of the natural rock the legend goes that if you keep your eyes closed and walk backwards up and down the stairs the witch will grant your wish - so of course we both did it), the druids cave, the witch's kitchen, the witch stone (from a certain angle you can see her crooked nose and profile), a sacrificial altar stone, a druidic circle and the Fairy Glade.

After a much-needed picnic lunch at Blarney we drove on to Killarney where we spent the night at the Sugan Hostel (see separate review)