This whole thing started on Wednesday morning at 3:30 am when we got up to head to Skyharbor Airport in Phoenix. From Phoenix we flew to Newark (Direct TV makes the flight so much more enjoyable!). Then after a five hour layover, that included a little lunch and a ton of Arrested Development, we were on our way to Dublin.
While the hop from Phoenix to Newark was nice...the six hour skip to Dublin kind of sucked!! The seats were smaller and more uncomfortable plus there was no Direct TV. But, on the bright side the in flight entertainment was free...so I did watch Captain America and a ton of one off tv episodes.
Along the way we realized that with the exception of of the mountains the drive was a lot like heading through Wisconsin (with more sheep...none of which appear in this picture).
About an hour outside of Cork the flow of traffic seemed to be slowing to pass a single vehicle. When we caught up we saw what the slow down was all about. So, for the second time in my life, as far as I know, I came across a Google Maps car.
So after acting like complete idiots while passing the car we finally pushed forward to Cork and then to Blarney Castle.
Let me say that once we got onto the grounds of Blarney Castle that was more of what I had imagined the countryside of Ireland would be like.
The grounds to Blarney castle were
amazing. Serene rolling grounds with
streams, gardens, groves of trees are the norm here. Like many landmarks in the
states there’s a calm feeling you get as you approach. A silence, that seems to
be equal parts amazement and respect, that none seem to want to break. Not until you are in the shadow of the main
tower do you begin to hear people talking to each other.
For those of you who have not made
the trip to the castle let me lay it out for you like this. In the movies where
you see all the stairwells to the castle battlements are wide enough for two
guys in full battle gear to run up and down side by side…this is not that type
of castle. The climb to the top is scary in the fact that the stairs at some
points are no more than 6-7 inches wide while going almost straight up on a
tight right hand twist. It really made me happy that I had done as much cardio
training on the workup to the trip. As you make the climb you have the chance
to step off into man of the side rooms like the kitchen, master bedroom and a
few others. A luxury that dad was more than happy to take advantage of when
they presented themselves. It was either that or induce a heart attack!. The
payoff though was worth it. Once you reach the top you are presented with two
gifts.
The first gift at the top of
Blarney Castle is the chance to walk the battlements and get a 360degree view
of the grounds and surrounding lands. The second gift is, if you are so
inclined, to lay down flat, bend over backwards….and kiss the Blarney Stone. Dad and I both engaged in that oldest of
Irish tourist traditions! Really , you
climbed to the top of the bloody castle, why the hell not?
After making our way down we spent
a few minutes walking through the poison garden. Where all the plants are
deadly to either smell, touch or ingest. Good Times!!
After finishing up there we made
the long drive back to Dublin and grabbed a bite to eat. A meal that neither
one of us made it through without nodding off at some point. So, food was eaten Guiness was drank and we
were both passed out within minutes of getting into the hotel room. Day one ended at 10pm with the plan of getting
up around 8am the next day to drive to County Carlow and Duckett’s Grove Castle
