Craic in Cork: Back to Blarney

It was a very rainy, windy, gross day in Ireland today. But, not as horrible as the weather I am hearing about at home...I am definitely very glad I dodged that! On this rainy day, Anne, Allegra, Jane, Matt, Seton, Betsy, and I decided to go kiss the Blarney Stone. This time, we passed on bike riding there, which I can say I am more than happy we did that.

Before going to Blarney, we needed something to warm us up. That means, O'Conaill's. I really need a frequent customer card, because I go there way too often. It is just so good! This is most definitely what I missed most about Cork. I think I will have to bring back loads of their hot chocolate makings in the spring, or else I may have withdrawals. Once we finished our liquid droplets of heaven, we headed out to Blarney.

We spent a few hours wandering the grounds of Blarney, but it was a little chilly! We did not have much tolerance for the cold, so everyone moved quickly through the various sites. No one was at the Blarney grounds today, so we really had the entire place to ourselves. Our first stop, obviously, kissing the stone. As I said in my first post about kissing the stone, when you do this, you receive the "gift of gab" for seven years. Now that I have done this twice am I all set for fourteen years? Is my speech eloquent yet? I guess we will have to wait and see! After our quick kissing sesh with the stone, we went on a mission to look for the Wishing Steps. These are stairs in one of the many gardens on the Blarney grounds that are said to grant you a wish. In order to have your wish granted, you must walk down the stairs, and then back up them, backwards, with your eyes closed, while thinking of your wish the entire time. We did not know about the walking down the stairs and thinking of your wish piece of the puzzle, so we decided to change the game a little bit. Everyone sang Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star as we went down, because we did not want to screw up the wishing process, we wanted to be distracted and have nothing else in our minds. Only after this did we realize we messed up the first part. So, I guess I wished for a nice and shiny star, as well as my other wish?

When we were done at Blarney, we hopped back on the bus back to Cork. Everyone was starting to feel frozen and wet, a perfect mix to curb up under your covers. On our way home from the bus station, Anne and I picked up the makings for dinner, and headed home. We needed to get ready for our busy weekend coming up!

Tomorrow, we leave for Barcelona! Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

CLASSIC