It’s good to finally be caught up with my blog. I’ve been lagging badly since the UK. Waterford should prove to be a nice two day stopover on the way to Dublin. As it turns out, Blarney Castle was right on the way to Waterford so I decided to stop off and visit the Blarney Stone.
BLARNEY CASTLE
I got a hankering for fresh cider and hot donuts once again as the crisp air hit me.
FERN GARDEN
CASTOR OIL PLANT
CANNABIS – No idea how this ended up here.
Back to the castle for a look at the Blarney Stone, that bit of Irish iconography.
Kissing the Blarney Stone is supposed to give a person special oratory powers. Personally, I think it’s a load of blarney.
THE BLARNEY STONE – In recent years the black bars were added to prevent people from plunging to their deaths whilst kissing the stone. That’s much appreciated, but how about some anti-bacterial wipes. Personally, I find it hard to believe that pressing one’s lips to a rock can imbue the kisser with oratory powers or anything else other than perhaps herpes or a cold from one of the hundreds of people slobbering on it on any given day. I had always thought it was a freestanding stone. Instead, as you can see it is part of the castle wall and is rather inconvenient to make out with. Thus you have the attendant and rubber mat to lie back on whilst a well-positioned camera captures you romancing the stone.
A close up of the germ fest that I chose to avoid. I’m already fairly articulate so I figured what I might gain in articulation, I would lose in the possibility of having my audience distracted by an oozing sore on my lip.
It was a rainy three-hour drive to Waterford, but my little interlude in Blarney was well worth time and price of admission. As you can see evidenced in the pictures, just because it happens to be raining, it’s no reason to write off a day in Ireland.
Lismore Castle
This day began with a simple Google search of day trips from Waterford which yielded the town of Lismore. TripAdvisor came up with a few attractions and a good restaurant, and presto I ended up with another great day of castles, ruins, and strolls through the forest.
BLACKWATER RIVER
LISMORE CASTLE
Lady Louisa’s Walk
Lady Louisa was the daughter of the 7th Duke of Devonshire, ancestor of the current owner of Lismore Castle, the 12th Duke of Devonshire. She lost her parents when she was only fourteen and was expected to take over the operations of the estate. She was a real nature lover and established many trails in the area. This is the only one that has been preserved.
Lady Louisa’s walk is primarily a woodland walk along the riverbank. One can expect to find woodland plants such as beech, ash, ferns, spindle tree, holly and ivy as well as wood sorrel, golden saxifrage and wild garlic to name but a few.
COME ALONG
BLACKWATER RIVER
Pivoting Semi-Cylindrical Gate – Let’s you through but keeps the sheep where they belong.
Just another beautiful day in Ireland.
Ballysaggartmore Towers
Diffused light plays on a carpet of leaves as the babbling brook on the side serenades me as I make my way to the towers.
Again, I am afforded a relaxing stroll in the forest before coming upon strange abandoned relics of another era.
Ballysaggartmore Towers are two ornate entrance lodges (one also acts as a bridge) that are situated on the former Ballysaggartmore Demesne approx 2.5 kilometers from the town of Lismore in County Waterford. The structures are considered architectural “follies”.
Local lore suggests that the grand entrance lodges were built as a prelude to an extravagant mansion that Keily-Ussher intended to build but never did as he ultimately ran out of funds due to their construction, and that his building pursuits were spurred on by his jealous wife who was envious of her sister-in-law who lived at the stately Strancally Castle.
One last stroll out of the forest before a late lunch at Foley’s on the Mall.
What a great meal. Fantastic fish chowder. It’s run by a Dallas girl and her Irish husband.
Twilight Time
Twilight time to dream awhile,
Unveils a deepening blue.
As fantasy strides, over colorful skies,
The form disappearing from view.
In twilight time, dream with me awhile.
A nightingale plays a dark mellow phrase,
Of notes that are rich and so true.
An aerial display by the firefly brigade,
Dancing to tunes no one knew.
In twilight time, dream with me awhile.
In twilight time, dream with me awhile.
Building castles in the air,
Whistling to the wind.
As nature bows down her head,
See what tomorrow brings.
In twilight time, dream with me awhile.
Bats take to wing like puppets on string,
Prancing through cool evening air.
In a sightless glide, no reason to hide,
From the ray of the sun’s blinding stare.
In twilight time, dream with me awhile.
In twilight time, dream with me awhile.
Moody Blues – Twilight Time
Comeragh Drive
This little adventure was thanks to a brief search on TripAdvisor.
The Comeragh Drive is pretty much all like this except for the narrow lanes canopied by trees for which I failed to supply photos since I was driving the car at those moments. I basically spent about three hours driving around the area following the signs and soaking up the scenery. The hike to the waterfall was the one bit of exercise I got.
Mahon Falls
It just never stopped the whole day long. You might ask what happened to Waterford and the glassworks in all of this since the thread is called “Waterford Days”. It’s pretty simple really, Waterford Crystal isn’t even made in Waterford anymore. They farmed it out to Poland. The town is a fairly drab and banal undertaking.
Seriously, would you rather spend your last days in Ireland exploring this?
Or this?
Time to pack and get ready to drive to Dublin in the morning.
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