It's not baloney, it's Blarney.

"Baloney is the varnished truth. Baloney is the unvarnished lie." It's important to know the difference!

This was one of the many things I learned at Ireland's #3 tourist attraction: Blarney Castle. Isn't it a kind of requirement to see the Blarney Stone in Ireland? Especially if it is only a ten minute bus ride from where you're living? Right.

So, Ben, Elizabeth and I were "kitch" and went to Blarney. It's much more than the stone, or even the castle; it includes a manor house from the 1800s, large gardens, too many gift shops, and a restaurant and hotel. Blarney is actually a quiant town in suburban County Cork, and is clearly flooded with millions of tourists every year. We participated in the action on a Saturday.

Blarney Castle was built around 1446 by the MacCarthys, of one of the most powerful pre-Cromwell clans in all of Ireland. It was rebuilt from an earlier castle at this time, and still stands, atleast as a partial ruin, today. The stone itself is shrouded in legend and intrigue, with multiple tales behind what it is and where it came from. The popular legend is that Cormac MacCarthy saved a woman drowning in a river. The woman was actually a witch, and in return for saving her life, she presented Cormac with the Stone of Eloquence, in the 14th Century. When his family's castle was rebuilt in 1446, the stone was placed in the tower, and anyone who kissed it would be given the gift of eloqence. Millions of people have kissed the stone, including: Woodrow Wilson, John F. Kennedy, Winston Churhill, Laurel and Hardy, and Sir Walter Scott, among others. Churchill visited the stone in 1912, well before he became one of the greatest orators of the 20th Century. Interesting...

We only visited the castle, as we were hungry after the climb to the tower and interested in home after sufficient exploring and puckering up.

Yes, I kissed the stone!

We had a gradual climb up the tower between the line of people, spiral staircases, random alcoves, and breathtaking views. At the top, the line moved quicker, and I was all of a sudden putting my purse down and laying on my back. The man, whose job it is to position and hold people to kiss the stone, was very nice! He greeted me kindly and then positioned me just right to get my lips on the worn out stone. It happened very quickly and garnered little thought on my part. I just layed down, bent my head back, was scooted toward the wall, and kissed, and no sooner was I getting up, realizing just what height I had been hanging upside down. It was a very unflattering angle in the picture, but well worth it, even if it was such a short moment.

Ben also kissed the stone, while Elizabeth refrained. We have heard stories about just how germy that stone is...and not just from millions of people kissing it. It seems the locals enjoy making the stone as gross as possible for all those damned tourists. But, I don't know if any of those pleasant stories are true, nor would I have given up the opportunity for such fun. Besides, as if I needed it, I am now blessed with the gift of gab!



It was a great day, and the perfect way to transition into the regular term. I think I've figured out my class schedule; this week is meant for everyone to get acquainted with the class possibilities through introductory lectures, but the burden of that freedom is realizing that if I check out every class I'm interested in, I'll just get depressed from not being able to take all of them!

I have blocked out Monday and Friday on my timetable to maximize travel time, but it looks like I'll only have a couple of hours every afternoon dedicated to class. I have a couple of history classes, a Government class, and Literature class on the schedule, but tomorrow I'm going to be checking with those departments about credits, and then confirming with DU about what I'm approved for. I'll be turning in my final timetable on Thursday to the Gaelic department, which will be building that class around the students' timetables for the week.

I'll be updating later in the week with that final schedule, how Irish classes are, and maybe throw in some Blarney!

~MJ