Bending over backwards

It was a beautiful day in County Cork today and perfect for taking a tour of Blarney Castle.  It is a 12 Euro cab ride from our guest house and our driver gave us a running commentary on the local area.  There were several bus tours at the castle today, but it would have been worse yesterday.  The cruise ship Independence, which carries 6000 passengers, was docked in Cobh (see yesterdays photo of pier) and there would have been several cruise passengers also touring the Castle.
Here is a link to a short clip giving you a glimpse of what we did today.

http://www.blarneycastle.ie/pages/kiss-the-blarney-stone

And even though I had planned not to kiss the blarney stone, I thought that I have come all of this way and will probably not be back again, so I too kissed the stone.  Now I have the gift of eloquence.

I am happy that I have my pilates training giving me the flexibility to bend over backwards and get back up.  I wonder if this is where the phrase "to bend over backwards" come from.

We had thought that we might spend the afternoon in Kinsale a little further south, but decided to spend the afternoon meandering around Cork.  We helped the local economy by purchasing 3 books.  Ed bought two books to add to his collection of books on the Second World War, The Amber Room and Savage Continent.   I bought The Bodhran Makers, a book by an Irish author, John B. Keane a moving and telling portrayal of a rural community in the '50s, a poverty-striken people who never lost their dignity.  The book has everything, humour, romance and tragedy.  Can't wait to get started.

Walking back to the guest house we stopped in at St Fin Barre's Cathedral.
The church was completed in 1870, but sits on the spot St. Fin Barre chose in A.D. 600 for his church and school.

We have had a grand time in Ireland.  For such a small country that there is so much to see.  We will have to return another time to see more.
Tomorrow it is on to Glasgow.  I have already been practicing my brogue.