THE GIFT OF GAB

Some tourist venues are obligatory and this is one of the most pleasant of them. We had a fabulous time at Blarney Castle this weekend. The guide book was quite negative about Blarney but it is not an easy feat and the grounds are breathtaking.

The story goes that Queen Elizabeth I was requesting that the Lord of Blarney, Cormac McCarthy, show his loyalty to the crown by bequeathing his castle and property to the Crown. However, Lord McCarthy repeatedly flattered and avoided the oath. Finally after great efforts on the Queens part she gave up and declared, "He speaks a lot of Blarney" thus giving rise to the current meaning ... Blarney - clever, flattering, or coaxing talk.

This is the kitchen, with the wooden floor long missing and vented at the top of the castle. I am thinking it would not have been a horrible job cooking for the castle in this open air kitchen but carrying food up and down the stairs would have been tough.

The kiss is not casually achieved. To touch the stone with one's lips, you must ascend a very narrow circular staircase (not easy with size 13 feet), then lean over, backwards, on the parapet's edge. There is an assistant to hold on to you and the parapet is now fitted with wrought iron guide rails and protective crossbars, but still.

What ever will Carter do when he arrives in Ireland to find that his brother and sister have both kissed the Blarney Stone in his absence? Will he have some competition for speaking time in the Airhart Family?

WRONG TURN ON THE WAY TO BALLYCOTTON

While trying to get to the lighthouse at Ballycotten, we found this secluded beach. There were a few surfers out but otherwise pretty quiet.
Ike got out his pole but immediately, dad lost the lure on these rocks. Pretty tough fishing conditions. Interesting hole in the rock formations.

Ellen climbed up to an area where she could read in peace. There was a stream that flowed into the ocean creating an interesting little eco-system.

BALLYMALOE

In our travels there are many jewels that we discover but sometimes they seem like they are made just for me! Ballymaloe Cookery School is one of them. Under the vision of Dariana Allen, located on a 100 acre organic farm this school caters to all types of cooks. Courses are offered in everything from a complete 12 week course for professionals to a day of jams, chutneys and pickles, or chocolates, or artisan breads. Ellen has taught herself to draw with the help of a book recommended by our friend and art teacher Jennifer. Here she is drawing an arbor in the main garden of the farm. I have never seen such an imaculate garden. Every single veggie is picture perfect. Stunning!

They do have visitors that appreciate their produce as well so netting is in order to keep the birds and rabbits out.

The farm raises it's own chickens, cows, goats, and pigs as well. Completely incorporating them into the organic cycle. It is so much nicer when the rain just washes away all the chicken poop.

MEET THE TAYLORS ... FISHING TRIP TO COBH

This is our new friend Lauren! She is 3 and a very big girl, just try to tell her that there is something she can not do because she is not old enough or big enough and she will let you know that she can do anything because she is definitely a very big girl!

This nice family is the Taylors, our new neighbors, Jerry, Anne, Jordon, Ross and Lauren. We made a trip to the small city of Cobh to fish. Jerry works for Alstom as well and has been here for over a year. They are from Scotland, Anne is from Paisley, which sounds like a lovely place. Cobh has the infamous distinction of being the last port-of-call for the Titanic. It is a super deep port and now hosts the Worlds Largest Cruise Liner, The Genesis, which is 40% larger than any other Cruise Liner. Cobh is a beautiful city and though we did not catch any fish the scenery was lovely and we did partake of authentic "fish and chips" under the guidance of the Taylors.

Jackets are in order, although it is not that cold there is a brisk breeze off the ocean.

Welcome to Ireland ... 40 Shades of Green

FOTA ISLAND BOTANICAL GARDENS

After a very smooth trip "over the pond" we are settling in nicely. Tom found a very nice house for us that is with in walking distance of Midleton town and most importantly has neighbors of the ages 8,7, and 3. Our original choice had been the Sheraton Fota Island Lodge, a lovely resort which is close by and next to this beautiful nature reserve and botanical gardens. It is easy enough to visit and this was one of our first outings. There is a home on the property which now serves tea. It was the home of the Smiths and Barrys in the late 19th century and has been restored in the 1990s. It also has a zoo area and we are waiting for Carter to get here to make a visit to the zoo.

The gardens have an incredible Victorian Fernery. Cork is blessed with an unusual micro-climate that allows subtropicals to exist despite the fact that there is scarcely a day over 80 degrees. The plants were are nicely labeled and it was interesting to see where everything was from. They had several Sequoias from California and most of the ferns were from Australia, New Zealand, and even Tasmania. I recognized so many things but knew none of the common names, so interesting to see what everyone else calls them. Also lots of new plants more akin to the Southeast region of the U.S.










The kids and I decided this looked just like "Land of the Lost". We thought there would be a dinosaur jump out from behind these plants at any moment. They were huge and truly amazing! Our first lesson in Irish is 40 shades of green - everything is green!

Annual rain fall is supposed to be more than 70 inches a year but so far the rain has taken a bit of a break to welcome the visitors from Texas.