Cork uncorked! (Episode 2: Blarney)

Previously on emerald_away: Kalen and I had left St. Finbarre's Cathedral, and had an awesome organic vegan lunch, and hopped on the bus headed for Blarney.

Today's episode: Blarney.

We went to Blarney to see Blarney castle, and of course kiss the Blarney Stone, because we're lame tourists sometimes. Blarney is my new favourite place ever. Let me show you why.

We arrived in the town and walked over to the castle grounds. (Ooh, scenic!)



They had lots of really lovely flowers blooming all over the place.



There's the castle!



Getting closer...



Crossing the bridge...



Right up close.



Apparently they couldn't decide on just one type of window.



The castle wall.



There's a cave underneath the castle wall. Apparently it used to connect to a series of underground passages that led all over Ireland, but they're lost now. How cool is that?



The part of the cave that still exists is open for people to walk through. So we did. We can't resist a good cave.



It was not nearly as tourist-y as Dunmore Cave, so it was very very dark. Hooray for my ridiculously bright camera flash!



It was pretty treacherous. We just about fell in some pits. So we decided to head back out to where we could see again.



Then we took the path around and up onto the castle wall.



Peek!



Looking over the wall. There were some convenient steps built into the side of the wall so short people like me could see over...if I stood on my toes. (Auntie Jane understands!)



We walked along the wall until we got to the castle. The Blarney Stone is at the top of this tower (in the middle where those metal bars are). This is the part when I started having second thoughts. I don't like heights. "Wait, you want me to climb up where?? And then hang upside down?? Are you sure?"



Alright. *deep breath* Let's do it. Going up...



By the way, these are the stairs we were climbing. Spirally. They were very very narrow. Towards the top, they got narrower, and it was a challenge to get through with my backpack on. They were also very very steep. Needless to say, I felt a little less than safe.



But we made it to the top! Alive! (Bonus!)





Then we both hung upside down and kissed the stone, but you'll just have to take my word for it, as there are no pictures. They make more money if they say you can't take your own pictures, but have to purchase one the horrid ones they take for €10. They were really unflattering, and certainly not worth €10, so we didn't buy them.

The stairs going back down were much wider and less steep, so we made it down just fine. Hooray! Then we walked over to Rock Close, which is a wooded area on the castle grounds which was used centuries ago by the Pagans. (Starting to see why this is my favourite place ever?)

We couldn't resist climbing a tree or two.



I'd just like to point out that European robins look very different from the North American ones, and are about a quarter of the size.



Here's Kalen in the Druid's Cave.



This is the Witch's Kitchen.



There's a little hearth inside the cave. I brought home a little piece of her fire wood. I'm sure she won't mind.



The Witch's Kitchen is underneath the coolest tree ever.



And here is the Witches Stone. Do you see her face?



This is the Druid's Circle. It was used for all sorts of special rituals. The great big stone at the back (to the left) was a sacrificial altar.



I climbed up and sat on the altar to look down on the circle.



Walking round the woods.



This part of the woods is the Faery Glade. I'm a big fan of anywhere that has faeries.



Waterfalls!



This is the Dolmen. It's an ancient tomb portal. No one knows how that giant rock got there. (Oooh, mysterious!)



Kalen walking through the portal. There's not a lot of space.



The top of the Wishing Steps. The legend is that if you walk down and back up the steps with your eyes closed, thinking only of your wish, then the Witch will grant your wish within a year.



We tried it! Kalen's coming down!



There's a disclaimer near the steps saying that Blarney Castle is not responsible for people injuring themselves on the steps. We thought this was funny. Until I fell down the steps. But I'm okay!

And that was our trip to Blarney. When we got back to Cork we were exhausted and starving from walking around all day, and we really really wanted fish and chips. We walked around Cork City for like half an hour trying to find fish and chips. We went into this one pub and asked if they had it, and he said that he can't think of anywhere in Cork City that would serve it. SRSLY?? Since when can you not get fish and chips in Ireland?? That's just nutty! I was so frustrated. Anyways, we finally found some here:



It was a very strange little diner. The people working there had very thick Cork accents, which were difficult to understand. But the important part is that we got our plates of deep-fried goodness. And all was well.

That night we went to a free comedy show at a bar near our hostel. It was pretty good. I really got a kick out of the name of the show...The Craichouse. (In Irish, "craic" means "fun" and is pronounced like "crack". Get it? Crack house? Tee hee!)

Tune in tomorrow for the thrilling conclusion of this epic 3-part series!