My Adventures: 3 – Kissing The Blarney Stone
by Jenners • 08/08/2010 • Travels • 32 Comments
Inspired by the creation of my bucket list, I’ve been writing a series of posts about some of the adventures I’ve had in life. In doing so, I hope to inspire others to try some of these things and to impress the heck out of my Little One. (Because I know that, someday, I’m not going to seem all that cool to him and maybe these posts will remind him that his old mom wasn’t always so stodgy and unfun.)
It seems to me that every blogger should travel to Ireland (just outside of Cork) and kiss the Blarney Stone. Allegedly, by kissing the stone, you gain the gift of gab (great eloquence or skill at flattery). I mean, if you’re going to write on a regular basis and hope people will read it, this is a good skill to have in your back pocket.
With my tendency to babble on about things at this blog for almost two years now, it probably doesn’t surprise you that I have indeed kissed the Blarney Stone.
Now you may be wondering why I could classify this as an adventure. Perhaps you think, like I did, that kissing the Blarney Stone would simply involve walking up to a rock and bending down and kissing it. Aside from the obvious sanitation concerns, this is what I envisioned kissing the Blarney Stone would involve. So imagine my surprise when I arrived at Blarney Castle and discovered that kissing the Blarney Stone involves a little bit more.
First, you climb up almost to the top of the crumbling Blarney Castle. The steps are quite narrow and spiral upward for what seems like a long time. In the U.S., these stairs would have been equipped with handrails. Not so in Ireland! (At least when I did it.)
Once at the top, I found out that you actually get lowered down off the castle ledge (with the help of a lovely Irishman) until you are dangling over the edge of the castle (which is very high up .. did I mention that?) and then you kiss the Blarney Stone, which is located above your head.
If like me, you are a little bit afraid of heights, this might be a little more than you bargained for, which might explain my face in the second photo. (And just for the record, I never contracted any diseases of the mouth from kissing a stone that so many others have kissed, including the rather unkempt gentleman that kissed the stone directly before I did.) (Note: These photos were taken when I wore contacts and long hair, which accounts for why I might look a bit different than you are used to. Plus I was considerably younger.)
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| Me Being Lowered To Kiss the Blarney Stone |
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| Me Immediately After Kissing the Blarney Stone |
Using my gift of gab for good (not evil),
Love your face in the second photo
I didn't realize it was such a commitment!
I had no idea. I like you thought it was just a little stone that you leaned over and kissed.
I'm impressed.
Oh, I could NOT have done that!!! The pictures are great…
It looks like you had a lot of fun kissing the Blarney stone! I'm sure I would do it if I was there, but only if I had a bottle of hand sanitizer with me (to wipe across my lips after kissing it). I'm neurotic that way.
Well, I'd say it worked! Good think you have decided to use your powers for good and not evil.
Oh you are so awesome! It's like every time you share a new adventure with us, your coolness factor goes up even more
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I can't believe that kissing a stone is so much work! You definitely have a terrified look on you face in that second photo but at least you have that as proof that you really did it!
I think I need to go kiss that stone too since I lack the gift of gabbing
You look terrified in that second shot. I would be too!
That second picture is the cutest picture of you ever! I think it should be your avatar!
You don't look like you enjoyed kissing a rock, lol. I would LOVE to go to Ireland, maybe it would improve my gabbiness?
Wow! That was an adventure. I would love to go to Ireland someday. I grew up in an Irish American neighborhood and I always felt like the odd kid out because all my friends had visited there. Wishing you all the luck in the world…
What a great adventure…I thought that was just a myth…now I know I must try it…and I really like Irishmen lowering me down the side of a rock..!
Did you really think that you needed to kiss a slimy stone in the Emerald Isle to ensure that you had blarney in your soul? I think you have blarney in spades. Love the adventure!
Enjoy the day!
Erin
Kudos to you kiddo, for doing that. We got all the way to the top, i took one look down at the ground and thought I was going to faint. It was if the ground was swirling and coming up to meet me.
Hell of a time to find out I have vertigo!!
I just wanted off that castle asap! I guess I've earned my Wimp designation honestly.
HILARIOUS! The look on your face in that second photo is priceless. Ah yes, natural beauty and history is just that in Ireland, natural (as are some of the people like the man you encountered).
Sounds like a worthy adventure to me I might have chickened out if the person ahead of me was terribly "unkept."
I also agree that all bloggers should visit ireland! Now, if i could just talk my bank account into it….
Ooooh, I want to do that!! I had no idea that you had to hang upside down from a castle. That makes it way cooler.
SUPER neat!
You definitely received the gift my friend!
I knew that there was some kind of catch with kissing that stone! You were very brave. I'm not sure I would've been able to bend over backward like that.
I hate heights. I guess kissing the blarney stone is something I will have to pass.
How can we be sure you aren't using your powers for evil?
Yes We all enjoy your blog, but heavens we waste a lot of time on it
OMG I am SO jealous! With a name like Erin, I have to be Irish right? And that IS my bucket list…I don't care if I do anything else in life, but I HAVE to go to Ireland. My family from like years past own a castle, and it could be mine if I want to pay the back taxes…uhhh NOPE! But I WILL get to Ireland some day!
Did I say I was Jealous? Yep, I'm jealous!
You had to hang upside down to kiss it?! no way I would do that!
You should market that face. For post cards. For t-shirts. For billboard signs about increasing interest rates or something. THAT FACE!
I'm truly impressed. I've never ridden a horse into the ocean, gone swimming with dolphins, OR gone to another country only to be dangled close to some rock I'm supposed to kiss (as opposed to clinging to it for dear life). But I CAN say this! I'd be making the same face you did… like during ALL of it.
What would you do if you started using your powers for evil? I am so curious about that!
Hey Jenners, I did this too, in (gulp!) 1985 and it scared the crap out of me. The height, not the germs. So we've both kissed the Blarney Stone–no wonder we can talk so much.
Even stranger than I imagined. Do they ever sanitize the stone? I mean, multimillenium worth of germs. Yuck. My face would look like yours, too.
I don't think I need to kiss the Blarney Stone. I seem to have been passed the BS gene – all my siblings and I have it. It's from my father's side of the family, although it must have been recessive in my dad's case.
I think I'll pass. I'm pretty scared of heights too.
Wow! I would have pictured it like you first said too. Other than Mexico I have never been out of this country.
Ok – after seeing the photos I am 100% convinced that this qualifies as an adventure. And…since I try to avoid the A-word as much as possible, I will probably erase this from the list of things that I would like to do before I die.
I suppose my blog will suffer for it — but that is a risk that I am willing to take
You're so adventurous! I would love to go to Ireland someday. I don't know if I'd climb the stairs and be dangled upside down…
Love the look on your face!
SO COOL that you did this! One of the downsides of getting married/having kids young is that you don't get to go on these kind of adventures! Looks like the stone worked for you!