This is the view at the top of Blarney Castle, standing in line to kiss the Blarney Stone. The view was great, but the castle didn't impress me that much. The main draw is climbing to the top so you can kiss the stone (which we didn't, more on that later). Unlike some of the other castles, where you can have a guided tour (Kilkenny) or wander through with a one-page map/guide sheet, this was strictly a one-way affair. You went up a series of stairs on one side of the castle, and down the stairs on the other side. If you changed your mind about climbing that far up, too bad. It hadn't been restored much, and what was there wasn't signed or labeled in any way. Everything was pretty vague.
As far as kissing the stone, we passed, thanks. To kiss the stone, you have to lay on your back on this walkway, and dangle backwards, upside down, over about a 3-storey drop. The fourth person from the left in that photo is the official photographer, who stands on a ladder and takes your picture (for a price) as you kiss the stone. There's another "official" person who holds your legs to make sure you don't take a header through the hole and break your neck. I think you're supposed to tip this guy, but I don't remember. I'm not that fond of heights, and since there's no way to know how often they clean the stone (if at all), we decided to pass on the experience. Although I do hope they send someone up occasionally to spray the thing with disinfectant of some sort.
Bonus: if you want to build your own scale model of Blarney, I found a website with plans for a paper-cutout castle. Could be fun. :)
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