Day 3: Blarney Castle & Rock of Cashel Castle

Today we started by leaving our hostel in Kilarney and traveling to Blarney Castle. The Blarney Castle is home to the infamous Blarney Stone. This is the only place in Ireland that I’d heard of prior to traveling here. Legend has it that if you kiss the stone, you’ll receive the gift of eloquence of speech (or as some say, the gift of gab).  Near the Blarney Castle, there is also the Blarney house, fairy gardens, lake walks, and several other activities. We only had about an hour and half there, so when we walked in, I said that I thought we should go straight to the castle and kiss the stone in case there was a long line, and then do the other things if we had time. It turned out that getting through the castle took 45 minutes, so it was really good that we decided to do that first (our two professors even jumped in line with us so that they would have time to get through). The castle was cool, but it all of the other rooms in the castle were definitely overlooked in the thrill of kissing the stone. By the time we got to the top of the castle, the view was breathtaking. I will never get tired of seeing views of Irish fields and animals grazing nearby. It is the most picturesque view I’ve ever seen! Here is a view of the Blarney House from the top of the Blarney Castle. 

            We kissed the stone and it was a really fun experience. I was the only one who really got a picture kissing the stone, unfortunately. While it was fun to kiss the stone, afterward I felt like my lips and hands were so dirty from touching all of the same things that hundreds of other people have. On a sign on the way in, it said that this castle is the most visited and photographed site in all of Ireland...and I believe it. We joked about how we would all get cold sores from kissing the stone. They rush people through there so fast that you hardly have time to even do it! Needless to say, it was the quickest and most hurried kiss I’ve ever had! :)

           

            Then we got back on the bus to go to the Rock of Cashel Castle. Every time we get on the bus, I end up falling asleep almost instantly. That’s probably because my body is used to sleeping at this time of day, and also driving always puts me to sleep. I woke up as we arrived at the castle, which made me somewhat grumpy. We’ve seen four castles in the last three days, and I hate to admit that I’m already getting sick of it. But this one actually turned out to be my favorite one so far. It was built in 1235 as a cathedral. There is immaculate detail and beauty all over the castle. I loved the barrel vaulted ceilings and all of the ancient stone throughout the castle. There’s a really old graveyard outside the cathedral. Most of the headstones aren’t legible, but the oldest one I could find was from 1789. Amazing! The view outside of the castle is absolutely amazing, too.

            Now we’re on our way to Dublin for the next two nights, after which we head to Wales. I’ll be sad to leave Ireland—I love it so much more than I ever thought I would! It hasn’t rained on us once since we arrived—it’s been sunny skies and clear weather the whole time. I look around at all the lush trees, bushes, plants, grass, and flowers and I really think that anything could grow here. Every inch of this landscape is covered with a shade of green. Flowers grow wild here and tiny daisies and buttercups can be found on every lawn. I will be very sad to leave Ireland on Saturday!  

Irish sunset from last night. :)