Now we have heard of kissing the Blarney Stone and becoming a more eloquent speaker. Today we went to Blarney Castle to check it out and you will have to be the judge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

To kiss kiss the Blarney Stone you have to lie on your back and slide back under the rock to kiss the stone. Being a sensible person, I declined this wonderful experience. Mike volunteered. You will have check out if he is more eloquent or if it is baloney!

 

 

 

Blarney Castle has the most amazing gardens and grounds with snowdrops,crocus and daffodil flowers peeping up through the grass.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The original castle was built near ancient Druid grounds and in fact a hermit still lived in a cave there. A rock garden( an amazing place for a game of hide and seek), was built around the Druid area..

 

 

 

 

The Poison Garden……to help or harm.

Enough of Blarney Castle…..there are more pictures, but we also went to Cobh , an historical town for emigrants and the last port before Titanic met its fate. They have a heritage centre that documents Titanic’s visit and the emigrants from Ireland…..some not by choice. Political and Catholics were transported from Ireland as early as the 1600’s to Barbados ,the America, and Argentina. Cromwell managed to dispose of 500,000 Irish people during his time in power. Irish people have been leaving the country either voluntarily or by force and so have influenced the growth of many countries.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exhausted? Tomorrow it is a quiet day…..just a trip to Spike Island then a drive to Rosslare for the ferry to England…..oh and then the train to London.