Happy Halloween from Dublin. Surprisingly, Halloween is widely celebrated here in Ireland. Apparently, there are bonfires and fireworks in addition to the trick or treating that goes on. Very fun!
Today was my day trip to Blarney Castle and it was a gray and rainy day. What I wasn't aware of before heading out is that we also stopped at two towns along the way: Cobh (pronounced: "Cove") and Cork. Really, I could have done with skipping Cobh and Cork to give us more time a Blarney Castle, but what can you do.
I met the tour group at 8:15 this morning. The tour consisted of a kick ass tour guide (John) and 5 tourists. Yep, it was a teeny tiny group. The other 4 tourists were all American college kids who are in Europe studying for the semester but they spend their weekends exploring Europe. I wish I had thought to do that when I was in college. It was a very friendly group. The trip to Cobh took approximately 3 hours from Dublin.
Cobh (formerly known as Queenstown) has one particular historic significance. It is a major Irish port and was the final stop before the Titanic headed off on its maiden voyage. 123 people got on the ship in Cobh and of those 123, only 44 survived. Today, when I arrived in the town, I walked up to their cathedral (St. Colman's), which is one of the tallest buildings in Ireland. It is a beautiful neo-Gothic church. Oddly, there was a beautiful golden retriever hanging outside the church as I went it. After I left the church, I said goodbye to the dog, who proceeding to run ahead of me. Then he waited for me at the staircase leading back down into town and accompanied me the whole way. He then went along his way. After visiting the church, I went through the Titanic Experience tour which gives a brief idea of life on the Titanic. It has mocked up First and Third class quarters and such. Interesting, but not sure it was worth the €9.50.
Next, the tour stopped in Cork, which was basically a feeding place. Two of the girls and I did a little shopping and then grabbed some lunch.
Then we were off to Blarney Castle. Blarney Castle is a medieval castle which dates back to 1200. It is mostly a ruin, but the most important part of the castle is the Blarney Stone. The Blarney Stone is a limestone slab that is set high in the castle. "According to legend, kissing the stone endows the kisser with the gift of the gab (great eloquence or skill at flattery). The stone was set into a tower of the castle in 1446" (Wikipedia). Millions of visitors have climbed hundreds of steps in order to lie on their backs, lean as far over as possible, in order to kiss the stone. Well, when in Rome! Yes, that's a picture of me kissing the Blarney Stone. It was much more difficult than I thought it would be.
After kissing the stone and checking out the castle, two of the students and I walked around the beautiful Stone Close, which are the mysterious and beautiful gardens on the grounds. There was so much more to be seen but we ran out of time. It was then another 3 hour bus ride back to Dublin.
Terrible weather today, but it was a tremendous amount of fun!! Day 11 photos can be found on my GToE photo site.
2 comments:
Ok, upside down stone kissing.
You already had the gift of gab! My great grandmother was from County Cork.
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