On the second day of my weekend break from class, I went on a day tour to Castle Blarney. It was nothing short of awesome! The castle was a very tall tower that had an incredibly narrow staircase. The stones that Castle Blarney was created from gave it a Medieval feel, and every room of the castle (such as the kitchen and the bedrooms) had no furniture or décor in them. These details made it seem like more of a fortress than a castle, for it looked like it would be better served as an impregnable hideout for soldiers, rather than as a comfortable dwelling for kings and queens. However, Castle Blarney was still great, and I had no shortage of fun while exploring it.
As I scaled the stairs of the ancient castle, I eventually reached its roof, which contained the legendary Blarney Stone. Folklore says that anyone who kisses the Blarney Stone will be granted the gift of efficient flattery. However, the process of kissing the stone could turn some people away in fear, for one has to lean back over a large gap in order to reach the stone (the gap has guardrails, but there are always those people who fear heights no matter what). I decided to take up the Blarney Stone challenge. At first I was a little nervous, but when I kissed the Blarney stone, I didn’t even feel like my position was precarious or unsafe. Whether I will gain those skills of flattery, however, only time will tell.
Once that process was complete, I did several other interesting things during my visit to Castle Blarney. I looked at its garden which contained nothing but viciously poisonous plants. I also explored the castle’s labyrinth-like and somewhat inaccessible dungeons. Finally, I got something to eat, went to the Castle Blarney gift shop, and made my way back to the tour bus. The Castle Blarney Day Tour was truly an experience that I will never forget, and I highly recommend it to my peers for when they have their days off.