Blarney and Guinness

I now have the gift of the gab, the eloquence of poets and politicians. I'm not sure that I feel that different, although I made sure to kiss the stone well in order to get all the gifts that it could provide me. It's actually a bit gross actually, the stone has a big wet mark from all the lips that have smooched it (probably from all the lip gloss from girl's lips that has rubbed off onto the stone). The stone itself is rumoured to be half of the throne of kings, which I saw when I went to Edinburgh Castle, which kings used to sit on when they were coronated. Half was given to Ireland in exchange for their services during an allied Irish-Scots war against the English.

I was awe-struck by Blarney castle. It was ingeniously designed, built on a bed of rock so noone could mine in, and very attractively designed. The castle itself is still in excellent shape, and there are also escape tunnels from the castle from when Cromwell's forces overcame the castle and tried to take the treasure within - none of which they managed to get their hands on.

Blarney castle is only the start of the spectacular, though. My favourite area was in the surrounds of the castle, called Rock Close. In these gardens, the Blarney witch resides, who grants wishes to travellers who walk up and down the Witch's stairs with their eyes closed, walking backwards. It's a difficult feat, but one that I'm glad to say that I achieved. She gives wishes in exchange for the firewood that she steals from the house nearby. Apparently apart from giving wishes, she's really quite evil and attacks people - luckily she's trapped in the Witches stone by day and only comes out by night. I thought it was a bit harsh to trap the poor witch in a stone by day and that they should let her out - Irish nights are awfully cold, even worse than Irish days!

Amongst the wonders of the Rock Close, there is also a Fairy Glen and an old tomb from the first inhabitants of Ireland, even before the druids. There's a druids circle there, also, with a sacrificing stone and everything. Most fun place in ages, perfect for me and to take your children to!

Yesterday I travelled from Cork to Killarney, and spent the whole bus trip talking to a lovely old lady from Dublin who was headed on holiday. Killarney isn't as touristy as it's made out to be if you ignore the tour buses, and the national park looks awesome. Despite the rain, today I'm going to try and have a walk through the trails of Killarney National Park.

Last night, I met some Aussies at our hostel. The only possible eventuality when you meet Aussies is that you go out drinking at the pub. I met a Danish couple, and Irish, French, English and Dutch people, tried Guinness from the tap (really quite good!), and danced. It was a great night!