the view from above
the stone-kissing ceremony is way up.
to the left the single tower surviving the fire that destroyed the 18th century Court
but he is not sure, fear of heights?
this used to be the dungeons
at the foot of the castle
passing by the remains of what used to be the Watch Tower
a bit further in the park sits the 19th century Blarney House
these people did make it up the staircase and probably kissed the stone. Nobody is talking....
the staircase is full, people are standing in line outside
Blarney Caste are the ruins of a once mighty castle, built in the 15th century by Cormac MacCarthy, then King
of Munster.
Queen Elizabeth I ordered to hand over the property to her Protestant confidant, but the then ruling MacCarthy
produced a never ending litany of excuses, causing the queen to call it "all blarney".
Finally, in 1646 it were cannonballs,
not words that demolished Blarney Castle and brought the MacCarthy's into submission.
Today, all what's left of the castle are
the keep and a tower, but the remains are set in a lush garden with age-old trees and pleasant lakes.
What brings droves
of tourists to the castle is the
Blarney Stone, said to give the gift of the gab. But to be able to speak eloquently, you must
climb 108 steps on a narrow spiraling staircase to the upper embattlement where you have to bend over backwards to
kiss that magical stone.
We visited Blarney Castle in June 2018 only to find the staircase loaded with tourists. We had
to forfeit the stone- kissing and thus missed the gift of the gab.
Blarney Castle is set in a large park with lush gardens
at the entrance to the castle
this is how it is done, with a little professional help
a nice mural in Blarney
