The Blarney Stone can be found built into the battlements of Blarney Castle which is just a few miles from Cork. First thing in the morning the FLTT headed there. Had I been traveling independently I would have bypassed this place as being nothing but a tourist magnet. I would have made a mistake. It is touristy ... way touristy ... but with reason. Kissing the stone is pretty stupid, so, of course, I did it. Sandy maintained her dignity, took my picture and abstained. But climbing the 120 steps to the top of the castle where the stone is, led us to platforms overviewing the charming countryside of County Cork. Well worth the climb. What is best about the site however is the 60 acres of lawn and gardens. We spent the better part of an hour and a half walking the grounds and admiring both the natural and the manicured settings.
From Blarney we went to the religious ruins of the Rock of Cashel. This is a huge ruins of a church that was at times the seat of the ancient kings of Munster, where St. Patrick wrestled with the devil and then baptized King Aengus. And where the local clans fought over the Church for hundreds of years. Now it is the final resting place of the archbishop Miler MacGrath, the scoundrel of Cashel, who lived to be 100 years old. We can only imagine how humbled the average worshiper must have felt when approaching the great building in the 1300s
We ended the day's travels in the town of Kilkenny where there is yet another imposing castle along with a love of the sport of hurling.
We finished the night having another session with the Folk Legacy Trio and a roomful of perfectly harmonizing amateurs. I moved my lips to the tunes that I knew, but did my best not to let a sound escape from me.
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