May 19, 2013 - Newsflash – “The Emerald Isle sinks into the Atlantic”

This week we have hiked to the top of an improbably named mountain, visited the last departure point of the Titanic, rambled through castles too numerous to mention, planted a kiss on the Blarney Stone and once again drunk beer(s) with the locals. We started the week in County Wexford in the “Sunny” South East and have ended in the famous village of Blarney, County Cork. Our intent to hike 3-4 times per week has been somewhat dampened by both of us being less than 100% healthy, but we have still completed a coastal walk and a hike to 3,000...

Oct 16, 2012 - Blarney

This morning dawned a beautiful day, and after a cooked breakfast we set off to walk the 2½ km into Blarney and the famous Castle. It was lovely to explore at our leisure and there were not too many people here. Of course we climbed to the top were we both did the “hang upside-down over a sheer drop to kiss the stone” experience, which is said to give the gift of eloquence. Seemed to have worked its magic on David! We then walked through the beautiful Rock Close gardens, said to be the site of an ancient druidic settlement. Leaving the...

Jun 23, 2012 - Blarney Castle

We engaged in a different form of exercise this morning. One of our larger RVs wanted to go dump but found the left front tire sunk in the grass which quickly turned to mud after 2 days of rain. So, at 8:20 Ivan, 4 guys and I pushed from the front while Dieter rocked the RV back out of the hole. To my dismay none of the others not involved in the rescue thought to take a picture, including the wife IN the RV working on her computer while we were pushing her and her RV to safer ground! Really disappointed me as I felt this was a rather...

Jun 22, 2012 - Ring of Kerry

Today was a great all-day bus tour on the 106-mile ring road around a lovely peninsula in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The peninsula is bordered by Dingle Bay on the north, the Atlantic Ocean on the west and Kenmare Bay on the south. It really is beautiful with its lakes, mountains, valleys and picturesque villages all along a narrow road I was so glad I didn't have to drive. I tried my first (and last) Irish Coffee and decided it wasn't worth 5.50 euros! The sheep dog demonstration was excellent! The day started with a quick...

Jun 21, 2012 - Cliffs of Moher; Bunratty Castle

Rain and fog as we started our day driving to see the famous Cliffs of Moher. Standing 230 meters high they stretch for 5 miles along the Atlantic Coast south of Galway Bay. There is a new ecologically-minded visitor center and small museum bermed into the hillside. Wide paved trails and steps lead to various lookout points. Quite nice but not sure worth all the hype we read about them. (Perhaps if it had not been rainy...) More rain as we drove to Bunratty Castle. [Bun = end of a river, Ratty = the river's name]. It was restored between...

May 23, 2012 - Making out with a stone wasn't what I thought...

It was better!! What a feeling to hang completely upside down to kiss a rock!! But more on that later... Visiting Blarney Castle was incredible and one of the best places I've seen so far. I highly recommend it for anyone coming to South West Ireland! The castle originally dates from before 1200, when a wooden structure was believed to have been built on the site, although no evidence remains of this. Around 1210 this was replaced by a stone fortification. It was destroyed in 1446, but subsequently rebuilt by Cormac Laidir MacCarthy, Lord...

Mar 7, 2012 - Things to see and experience

Today I also woke up at 10:00, also by my mother. She told me that we were going to pick up my sister and then drive to Blarney castle which is located in Blarney who is just outside cork, it was a half an hour drive. Blarney castle was the place where rich earls lived. Now it's just a tourist attraction. It was a pretty cool castle, it was very high. It looked like it was all made of stone. Wherever I looked I saw walls of stone. The long spiral stairs who reach all the way up to the top was also made of stone, it was a small way up the...

Aug 30, 2011 - Blarney

This morning we headed east to Blarney and to the castle. After climbing the 80 odd stairs, lying on my back and leaning back, I have now joined the millions of people before me to kiss a stone. In true tourist style they took my picture to prove it. The view from the top of the castle was amazing, gave me another chance to use the panoramic function on the camera. The grounds a pretty, with old trees, maintained gardens, they even had a poison garden. Yeah had a beautiful salad for lunch, first meal in a week, that did not have three...

Jun 18, 2011 - I kissed the Blarney Stone!

This has been one of our favorite places. Even though we missed the tour, it was "lovely"! Drivving into Blarney, we had not idea where the castle was. The castle grounds are well hidden from view by plenty of trees. It would take more than a day to explore the castle and its 8 acres full of hidden gems. After paying and stepping through the gate, we all felt we had stepped back in time. The limestone of the castle has slowly eroded over time, but our imaginations came to life when we entered. "Grand" fireplaces, spiral staircases, lookout...

Nov 3, 2010 - Blarney Castle

I'll write more later, but the Blarney Castle was very nice & they now have a guy holding onto you so that you can reach the stone & get back up... The weather cleared up so it was sunny & fairly warm. The castle is fairly intact and so you get a decent idea of what it would have been like to function on a daily basis... People were shorter. The set of stairs leading up is so steep that rather than a railing they've put in a thick rope vertically through the middle that you can use to hang onto. The castle is surrounded by several acres of...

Apr 17, 2010 - Kissing the Blarney Stone

We enjoyed another fabulous sunny day...our third day without rain! We saw some beautiful rolling hills on our way to Cork where the Blarney Castle is located, home of the famous Blarney Stone. Legend has it that if anyone kisses the Blarney Stone, they will then possess the gift of eloquence...in other words, the gift of B.S.! Some of us already have that gift, but several decided to brave the 114 steps up to the top of the castle where a gentlemen helps to lower one down to where the stone is located (he, of course, expect a little tip!)....

Jul 7, 2009 - Day 5 - A touch of the Blarney

Today we went to see Blarney Castle in the town of Blarney. Our landlady at Blarney Vale B & B told us that she thought the emphasis of Blarney should be the Blarney House (which is privately owned) and the beautiful gardens surrounding the house and castle and not just the stone. We decided to do both! We toured the entire castle exploring all the little nooks crannies, some of which were quite a tight fit for Charlie (door frames being only about five and a half feet tall at best. We finally made it to the top of the castle, enduring the...