It was really nice being able to stay two nights in one spot. Our final destination for today is Cork and it is only 1-1/4 hours away. Because of that, we decided to head into Killarney city centre and do a little bit of shopping before leaving town.
We left Killarney and stopped in at Blarney Woollen Mills. It is a former wool mill that was transformed into a restaurant and the largest Irish shop in the world. Between the eating and shopping, we spent over an hour at the Irish Cracker Barrel.
What is probably one of the most famous landmarks in Ireland, the Blarney Stone. Since it was only a five minute walk to Blarney Castle & Gardens, we decided to leave the car at the mill. Blarney Castle is a ten minute walk along the banks of the River Martin from the entrance.
The stone is at top of the castle which is accessed by climbing a very narrow staircase. Once we got there, I was surprised. I thought the Blarney Stone was an actual stone. I did not realize that you are kissing the side of the castle. As you get down on the ground, a person holds you as you lean way way back and kiss the stone. Now we shall see if Karen and I were both given the gift of eloquence.
When we got down to the bottom, we noticed that there is a spot where you can look up and see people kissing the Blarney Stone. It is a much different perspective than from above.
It was a thirty minute drive to the Radisson Blu Hotel & Spa in Cork. After we got checked in, we went back into Cork’s city centre. What we did not realize is that most things were closed by 7:00pm. We did manage to find a few stores that were open before we went to Scoozi Restaurant for supper. The evening ended relaxing back at the hotel.
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